I Can Haz Triathalon

Every year our local YMCA sponsors a "Lazy Triathlon" where, over the course of four weeks you run/walk, bike ride and swim a triatholon.  You can compete in and complete different levels, from bronze to gold.  Entry fees are minimal, and you come away not just with a really cool t-shirt, but also the bragging rights that you completed a triathlon (I suppose adding the "lazy" piece would be more ethical, but, well...)

At the beginning of January I decided to sign up for this year's LT, which was scheduled to begin January 16 and end February 12.  I grabbed the flyer and thought I'd shoot for the Bronze level, which includes 20 miles of running/walking (I can do that!), 50 miles of biking (I think I can do that too!!), and 2 miles of swimming.

I forgot about the swimming.

So I checked out the pool.  Standard pool, I suppose.  Kinda big, nice, blue, chlorine aroma, all of that stuff.  The flyer indicated a mile is 76 laps of the pool.  I looked for the missing decimal place - surely they meant 7.6 laps.  I looked down the length of the pool again and remembered the last time I actually swam in a pool - I might have been 14.  But, never one to give up on a dream (and a cool t-shirt) I decided I'd ask for special permission to start swimming before the LT actually started (and for me, before port placement and chemo began). 

I tried several times to connect with the person in charge of the LT, but our schedules never connected.  Then suddenly it's the 16th and I've missed my pre-op/chemo window of opportunity.  Sadly, I thought about giving up...

...when I decided to do it anyway, sans the swimming.  And so, I have devised the

I Can(cer) Haz Triathlon*

Following the Bronze guidelines, I'm planning to run 20 miles, bike 50 miles, and...wait for it...10 hours of yoga.  "10 hours of yoga?" you scoff?!  Yeah, well, I had to come up with a third thing for the triathlon and, well, you go with what you know.  Or something like that.

Because I'm making my own rules, I started on January 15 (a day early, I know), and my totals thus far are as follows:

Running/walking:  6.18 (13.82 remaining)
Biking:  6.25 (43.75 remaining)
Yoga:  1.25 (8.75 remaining)

It's good to have goals.  I have to keep moving, keep my heart working, and keep my body alive during this time, even when I'm exhausted.  It's that, or leaving a permanent divot in the sofa where my butt spends too much time already anyway. 

Besides, there's always next year.  Might be a good reason to learn to swim again.

*sending a shout-out to icanhazcheezeburger dot com, in case you've never visited...