Women's Top Ten Tri Tips Needed
RnP are about to lauch a women's only recruiting drive, adn we want your top ten tips for women triathletes. Can be serious to funny, etc. Our plan is to promote the Women's only drive through the tip list...you can be anonymous in real world...please just post here and we'll pick it up from there...ideally post by Monday!
Thanks so much Team, have a great weekend!
P
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Name your bike!
Don't compare yourself to others! (Male or Female)
Maintain a sense of humor!
Ask questions if you don't understand something. (No one will make fun of you!)
Those are some I can think of right now. Will let you know if I come up with some others..
Hey Ladies,
Thanks for your help! The title will be something like "Top Ten Tips for the Female Long Course Triathlete, from the Women of TeamEN"
So imagine that you're talking to a peer on the outside and want to save them from some mistakes you've made, give them right perspective, get their minds right about HIM and IM training and racing. This is your chance to be kinda coachy, in other words
You'll get the secrets behind racing smart and actually running and PASSING others during the marathon.
Meet the coolest but still normal women in triathlon and know that you won't need to have a knife pulled from your back later.
See how the mother's of 4 and 5 kids find time to fit iron training into their life and why it is a lifesaver for them.
Hear about all of the newest gadgets out there to help you train, and get real time feedback about how compatible/ accurate/ useful they are.
There are no dumb questions! You will get a polite response (or the other person will get punched in the nuts or ovaries) --- OK, I was stretching it there :-)
*Retire your cape. Outsource daily tasks such as cleaning, meal preparation or laundry when you encounter those high volume training weeks. No price can be put on your peace of mind. The only person who thinks you HAVE to do it all, is you.
* Get your zzzz’s. Important repair work goes on at the cellular level which only happens during REM sleep. Don’t underestimate the role that adequate rest plays in your success in training. Naps are good!
* Recovery weeks and easy workout days are there for a purpose. Too often we “A” types can tend to go too hard, too long, too often, much to the detriment of our overall training. Give your body the rest it requires to perform.
* Create your own race team. It takes a nation to get you to race day. Family, friends, training partners, coaches and health care professionals all play valuable roles in delivering you to the finish line healthy and happy. Be sure to recognize and thank those who support and sacrifice for you throughout the season.
Long Course Female Triathlete Tips:
1. Think you can? = Know you can! then work out the details!
2. Look at your personal calendar and schedule and take as long as it takes, even up to two weeks! mulling and pondering where the open windows of time are for you to train.
3. analyze cost, drive time, training time and how it bumps up against real life.
4. Come up with your tentative schedule and then "try it out" for a week, tweaking the small details like what time to get up?, how to be efficient with food prep and gym bag packing!
more later
1. Hair long enough for pig tails? Much cooler than single pony tail because the pig tails keep your neck exposed.
2. Apply A&D Ointment after every bikini shave. Makes a difference when you are in the bike shorts. Also helps with saddle sores as does Chammy Butter (I might have product spelled wrong.) Cream up girlfriends. Don't shave the bikini area within 24 hours of race.
3. Spectators love when you go girly....add some color on the bike or your clothing and you'll get more cheers, which can be useful during the tough parts of a race. Nothing like someone complimenting your jersey when you feel like crap.
(Note I'm trying to think of tips that no one else has mentioned yet.)
Ugh, sorry- these "special tips for girls only" things sorta grate on my nerves. Like just 'cause I have a period each month I need extra special advice for how to train and race triathlons. Almost all the advice we tend to drum up applies to both genders (even the bikini shave stuff- and btw, Pam, I never thought about applying A&D after a shave- good stuff there).
Frankly, the only "girl specific" advice I'd feel compelled to share would be pretty graphic stuff (like how to pee without pulling your shorts down, or how to deal with tampons and heavy flow during an IM) and not something you are gonna want to use for promotion materials.
That said- great advice from the ladies of EN thus far- as always.
I don't really see them putting tips about A&D ointment after shaving in their advertisements for women to join EN.
I do think, though, that the sport is full of (mostly male) doinks who are all to eager to dominate any training conversation with know-it-all pronouncements: "You should NEVER..." "You should ALWAYS..." Women, as a gender, are often derided for being too focused on appearances (hair, weight, clothes, shoes, etc.) which I find ironic considering that the most judgmental and appearance-focused people I know are male triathletes who find little to respect about their peers except their possession of the latest model of [whatever]. (Wow, that came out a little more scathing than I meant but...well, no, I guess this really irritates me!)
I serve as a mentor to new triathletes through my local club and the one piece of advice I give them (both males and females) is: Ignore most advice to buy the latest-and-greatest gear. Only buy something if 1) you truly, truly understand how it can help you be a better/faster/healthier triathlete, and 2) you feel that your training and performance is being harmed by not owning this thing.
If so then:
I tell my female friends to not be afraid to train hard or to go to the group rides they feel are out of their league. I tell them go, ride as hard as you can for as long as you can and you will get so fit. Once you get dropped, you continue to slay yourself and just meet up at the next meeting point in the ride.
I tell them to find like minded women and men to train with who are not trying to win the workout but who want to just work hard and build eachother up through encouragement and praise.
Here in EN you get all of this virtually if you don't have people near you to do this with.
I tell them just because you have a job and kids does not mean you don't have time to get fit and train for an IM. I tell them with hard fast short workouts most of the year you can get SUPA fit.
I have a friend who is coaching for ironTeam. He can't stand the ridiculous workouts the team does. So much wasted time. What woman with a family or job has time for all that fluff. Good Lord. Come into EN and we will show you how to get really fit in 1/3 the time.
Trimoms with kiddos (especially wee ones) beg, borrow and steal time from hubbies, family members, baby sitters, neighbors, friends, etc. to get those workouts in!
Think outside of the Box:
If a TriParent, also look for training opportunities that match up with kids' activities: kid's swim lessons? is there also a lane for you?, cool childcare at the gym? = what can you do there?, running at the track? can the kids also come to play?, running outside? can the kids ride their bikes up ahead? baby on board? jogging stroller... Most everything can be done with your children except for the cycling outside.... so any time your children are safely looked after is an opportunity to ride working it around work schedule. Soccer practice for kids? = ride time for you! Mother's Day out? = cycling. Tag team with spouse and one of you gets up early to ride and then the other parent rides on your return or hire a babysitter.
Any small window of time that comes your way?? have running shoes in the car! be prepared with a gym bag to be flexible in your training. If the family is driving somewhere? can you ride to it and then get a ride home with bike in the vehicle? or vice versa? Running a 5k?, cycle to it and ride afterwards. Running a half marathon? warm up beforehand and then run a few miles afterwards for the easiest long run mentally ever! ride to the pool, swim and then ride home. Run to the pool and swim and run home! Run to the grocery store! Ride to the group ride, hammer and then ride home! Does your car need servicing? pack your bike, leave your car and then ride home. Ride to the OW swim, put your bike in somebody's else's car, run with them and then ride home! Why wait for your car to be serviced for one hour? go out for a run or ride! Kid at the orthodontist? you guessed it, go running!
Always have food in your car! just in case you need it. Never go home in a bonk if you live with people!!
Personally, I think it would be fine to present a list of women's tips, and then close it by saing...don't buy into the typical hype that you gals need sex-specific training advice or tips, because that's exactly how you've laid it out for us and it's therefore a true reflection of our community here.
"I am not a fan of women are so special" Say Patrick... would somebody bop him on the head!!! I am completely okay with women are special!!! yep we know what you mean... and will forgive you... but really Linda next time you see him, bop him. m (old emoticon goes here!)
I wrote this for Linda a few days ago:
As a female triathlete, you have to learn to play with the boys. They are seventy percent of the participants at any triathlon, and run so many of the companies that make our bicycles, our jerseys, fit our bikes and sell us our running shoes. From the EN ladies, I have learned our thirty percent counts! Never have I encountered such a smart, caring, powerful group of women. I'm proud to have them all as my mentors and friends. Thanks to you all for teaching me do this sport like a girl.
In a male-dominated sport, it is sometimes difficult to get respect. How many jerseys have a tried on that I've dismissed because I don't believe the people at the company measured an actual girl? How many too big race t-shirts do I have? How did I get so much pink workout gear when my real life wardrobe looks nothing like that? here are lots of people in the sport who think they know what women want. Most of the time they guess wrong. One of the best things about EN is that the ladies -- everyone -- gets tons of respect. No question is too big or too small. All that really is required is that you respect the sport and the people who play it and be willing to put in quality work. The team asks. Everybody wins.
Girl is powerful here. It is one of the reasons I've put my big deal hobby in the hands of this team.
Okay -- rant over.
Time for a quick exit from the women's forum while my head is still intact!!!
Patrick, I just found this thread and wanted to add that as you know I am very new to EN and I have never found so much support (in one place). Because we have this woman's thread we can go to it any time of day or night, any day of the week. We often have "issues" (as do men) that we need answers to right away and this is the place. There is no judgement, there are no dumb questions and people come out of the woodwork to reach and and give multiple solutions or suggestions for the initial "thread". I have found that I have been able to share and ask questions that I wouldn't have the nerve to do in retail stores and other TRI environment. There is ALWAYS an answer to your question here. Women being vulnerable with one another allows other women who may have been "holding onto something"to go ahead and put it out there. If this forum doesn't know the answer or the women think it is better asked in another forum they will be told "where to go" in a very respectful manner. These women genuinely care about each other, it becomes a family, and you begin to feel as if you have sisters, mothers, or whatever... that you never had in your "real life". Again, it is not JUST about training, the EN family help each other with their psychological, mental, physical and even spiritual issues. It has been a godsend for me.
Thanks for sharing this!!!!!! I get goosebumps reading it...