New Here

[TriSooner88]

I am new to both this club and to tri/du, so I just thought I would say hello and tell everyone a bit about myself.

Last year I weighed 315 (used to be an athletic 210 with 12% bf in HS, but depression + college ruined me) and decided to take a spinning class to help get me in shape. I have now lost 40 lbs and continue to love cycling. However, I have a friend who is in amazing shape and is training for tri's and I decided that I would join him. My goal this year is to complete a couple sprint tri's and the fall du. I have been easing myself into running by doing some walking/running interval training every other day. My swim form is horrific, so I will need to find a way to improve that (don't have any gym memberships, so not sure how to do that cost effectively yet). I am really excited about getting into the tri world. My uncle used to compete, and he really loved it.

[linda_j_weber@ssmhc.com]

You found the right place! There is a duathlon coming up in March that you should definately try to attend. I think that everyone from triokc would love to see you be succesful with your tri experience. If you have any questions or need any assistance whatsoever, I would be more than willing to help. Good Luck and Welcome

[TriSooner88]

I am thinking of going to watch. I think March might be too early for my first du, as I just started training for a run less than a month ago. My base isn't very good yet. I am nervous of overtraining this early. I am thinking my first event will be the Route 66 Sprint Tri in June.

[glen woods]

Volunteering at a race is a great way to get to know the sport and the people. TRIOKC puts on some of the best races in the country. You should volunteer at MIO and try to meet everyone.

[TriSooner88]

I think that is going to be the gameplan. I would like to get a good look at a race and meet more people.

Oh, newbie question here, but are overweight people in tri suits looked down upon during races? I will not be really fast by June, nor will I have really low body fat (right now am about a 17 men's shirt and a 44 pant), but I would like to get a tri suit (if I find one that is comfortable) because I have really fair skin and I really like the idea of not getting a sunburn on my lower back when my top layer starts moving upward. The past couple years of being really overweight has made me quite self-concious, hence my question.

[buzz]

Weight has no bearing. Actually, one of club members you will see at our races is Neil Harmer. Name probably doesn't ring a bell. He lives in Bethany and was a Season 5 participant on Biggest Loser. Neil does most of our races and has done Redman half iron a couple of times. TRI-OKC is made up of pros, elites, average people, newbies, etc....I'd like to think of us as more of a social, support club that enjoys multisport.

[TriSooner88]

Weight has no bearing. Actually, one of club members you will see at our races is Neil Harmer. Name probably doesn't ring a bell. He lives in Bethany and was a Season 5 participant on Biggest Loser. Neil does most of our races and has done Redman half iron a couple of times. TRI-OKC is made up of pros, elites, average people, newbies, etc....I'd like to think of us as more of a social, support club that enjoys multisport.

I am glad to hear that I would be made fun of if I am in a one-piece tri suit. Completing the half Redman is quite something. I hope that I can do that at some point. Everyone at the meeting I went to a couple weeks back seemed very nice and approachable.

[kkillgore]

I am excited to welcome you to the sport and I hope we can help you with your fitness goals along the way. To help with the swimming component there is a Master's Swim class at OUHSC on Tuesday evenings. It cost $8 for TRI-OKC members and gets you full access to their gym facility if you want to fit in a workout before or after the swim class.

Kristin