Doing the DU

Yesterday (Sunday) I participated in my first duathlon of the season. A duathlon consists of two run portions with a cycle leg in between. It is essentially a triathlon without all those messy wardrobe changes and the immobilising fear that a camera man will catch you at any point in your swimwuit! So yesterday my du consisted of a 2K run followed by a 20K cycle and finishing up with a 5K run.

I woke up bright and early in the morning to make sure that I had time for some food and that I wouldn't feel rushed. I gathered up all the equipment, completed the mental checklist, ate the last few bites of my toast and headed out. It was a nice serene car ride to the race course and surprisingly I wasn't feeling nervous at all. I arrived in perfect time, picked up the race kit, set myself up in the transition zone and went back to the car to scarf down a bagel (I think athletes call that carb loading??) before the big race. The countdown was on, only 20 minutes to go before the start.

For the start I queued up with a thousand of my closest friends and we were off. I managed the first leg, 2K run, with ease. I hurried into the transition zone and quickly changed into my cycling gear and jogged out of the t-zone and began the cycle leg. Now I need to stress that cycling is NOT my forte! AT.ALL. Little did I know that the 20K cycle leg was going to have more ups and downs than a fairpark roller coaster. Every minute was torture. My legs hurt, my ass hurt and the scenery? Can anyone say cornfields? Anyhow during the hour on the bike it felt like almost every person on the planet passed me on their bikes. Oh well, I'm not out to win, I'm out for the sense of the accomplish, right?

By the time I'd finished the second leg I'd been heavy breathing for the better part of an hour. I hopped off my bike and onto a pair of bambi like legs that I didn't even recognise as my own. I knew I was standing upright but there was no way I could predict for how long! I made the second footwear change, struck up my iPod and headed out for quick little 5K run!!

All I remember is that the final run felt surreal. The entire way I wasn't sure if this would be the last second my legs would hold me up. I felt as though a collapse was inevitable. As it turns out I managed to cross the finish line and was suddenly hit with an overwhelming sense of accomplishment. The numbers I turned out yesterday weren't my best by a long shot but I still finished. At this stage in my battle against my bulge could I really ask for more???

Total exercise time:
1 hour, 42 minutes and 7 seconds

-Erica