In the winter of 2008, I decided I wanted to do my first sprint triathlon.  🏊‍♀️🚲 🏃🏻‍♀️

I was loving running and thought, hey, why not mix it up and try a tri? 🤷🏻‍♀️

Like many things I’ve decided to do in life, this was a spur of the moment, gut instinct decision. Nowwwwww....I didn’t own a bike (...or bike for that matter), and my idea of swimming was the doggy paddle...no joke...but I was pumped to do a tri 🤪

I remember thinking eh, I’ll borrow a bike for the race and it’ll be fine! I mean how hard could it be to bike🙄

⬆️ (So yeah...I struggled a little on race day with that part ...I was like....gears?!? 
Oh man! 😂) ⬆️

My main concern was the swim. I KNEW I could not doggy paddle the swim. So I found a class at the local YMCA called “triathlon swim” and I was like BOOM. Here. We. Go.💥

I will NEVER forget the first class...I arrived about 10 minutes late because it was a freakin blizzard out. When I walked into the pool area I was immediately like FUCK!  😳

Every lane of the pool was FULL with seemingly expert freestyle swimmers, wearing proper swimsuits, goggles, swim caps...ALL THE THINGS... 

...and then there was me. I did have goggles, but no swim cap (and LONG hair), and I was the doggy paddle expert. GOD. HELP. ME. 

🚨 I was 26 years old 🚨

The instructor told me to get in the pool and show her my stroke. 

I’m sorry, my what? My stroke? What stroke? 😩

I was sweating and I hadn’t moved an inch. 

I got in the pool. I dunked under, popped up, and started to “swim”. Like, for real, I wouldn’t even put my face in the water. I kind of moved my head side to side in the air and doggy paddled...and DIED INSIDE. 😰

The instructor said, “OK. Well. We have a lot of work to do. You need to put your face in the water and learn to freestyle.” And I laughed out of embarrassment and agreed. 

I spent the next week in the pool at the YMCA almost every night after work. 

One of my classmates had kindly gifted me a USA swim cap after seeing me struggle day one, so I learned how to get that sucker on without contorting my face and ripping all my hair out in the process😜

And guess what else I learned to do? 

I stuck my face in the water, I kicked my legs and feet, I nearly choked to death on water and I thought my neck might never be right again... but I learned how to fucking freestyle 🙌🏻

I returned to class the following week and while I was certainly no expert, I got into the lanes with all the other swimmers, 2-3 deep per lane, and I freestyled my way back and forth, back and forth, and yeah I got passed a few times, but I held my own...and my god, did it feel good 👊🏻

As the weeks went on, I improved my stroke, I became one of the faster swimmers, I didn’t get passed anymore, and most importantly, I never gave up. 

I finished my first sprint triathlon that Spring💫

Bottom line....If there is something YOU want to do...unless you’re dead...it is NEVER too late!

Age IS just a number. 

All you need to do is BELIEVE IN YOU. 

Do not give up on YOU or your dreams. 

Take the leap and (literally) DIVE IN! 

It may feel scary AF, but I promise you, you will feel like a freakin rockstar when you hit your finish🌟