QOTD: Have you ever done a triathlon? (I know some of you have.) If so, what distance? If not, why not? And what I really want to know... how much more time on top of regular marathon training would it take for an Ironman distance??
I did my first tri around 1.5 years ago. Have done several sprints and a handful of international/Olympic distance. I am now training for the Wilmington Ironman 70.3 in October.
Time: My week in general includes Swim x3 (2 U.S. Masters Monday and Thursday @ 5:30 a.m./1 solo at my club pool); Cycle x3 (2 indoor sessions 45 minutes to 1:15 Wednesday and Friday/1 road 2 hours to 4:15 Saturday); Run x4 (Tuesday 45 min-1 hour/Wednesday easy 1 hour/Thursday sprints or mile repeats/Sunday long run); Weights x 2.
I work 50-70 hours per week and unless I am getting it done in the early morning my plan is shot. My long ride on Saturday takes up a large amount of time. Some days I am working out in the a.m. and p.m. With prep, travel, warm-up, workouts and maintenance I am at 15-20 hours per week. I have neither the desire nor time to train for a full Ironman.
Expense: Be prepared. I have a road bike, tri bike, race helmet, training helmet, cycling shoes, race cycling shoes, race wheels, wetsuit, swim cap, goggles x3, a bag of swim training tools, sunglasses, tri shorts and tops, running shoes (multiple) and a bunch of other stuff. I pay for Masters Swimming. You do not need all of this to start but it gets quite expensive. When you travel for a race you have to lug all of this stuff.
My Experience: I am a far better runner than triathlete as my swimming holds me back. Nevertheless, the training is much more enjoyable. I like the international/olympic distances but will see how the 70.3 goes. I am fortunate to be able to swim (outdoors only), cycle (indoor and outdoor) and run (indoor, track and street/paths) in my immediate neighborhood. My indoor pool (Masters) is about six miles away.
In summary, if you have the basic equipment and easy access to train it is worth the effort. Best to try the sprint distance before investing time and money. I can't tell you how much it sucks to cycle for a few hours and then try to run.