Rookies feel the burn — and rewards — as training ramps up

LACONIA — The Daily Sun’s Rookies — two local people who have committed to their first triathlon — have been at it for more than two months. That means that their workouts are becoming more arduous as the date of the event draws nearer, and that they are starting to see progress in their capabilities.

The rookies, Jeremy Hart, 43, and Lauren Howard, 49, have agreed to participate in the Olympic-distance Wolf Triathlon in Wolfeboro on Saturday, July 29. On that day, they’ll be challenged with a 0.9-mile swim, followed by a 19.5-mile bicycle course and then a 10k run. While both rookies have past experience with running, this will be the first time they’ve done an event with either swimming or cycling, and neither has attempted a triathlon before.

The rookies will get some help, though. Bootleggers and MC Cycle & Sport will make sure they have running shoes and bicycles to use for training and race day. Fit Focus and The Wellness Complex are providing access to treadmills, strength training and a lap pool. Tri Tek Events is waiving their entry fees for the triathlon. Colin Cook, of Peak Triathlon Coaching and Northeast Multisport, is guiding them through a training program.

Cook’s program is starting to push their limits, both Hart and Howard said.

“It’s definitely picked up with the training, which I can definitely feel, but [I’m] trying to stay on it so I’m in good shape for the race," Hart said. He said he can feel how individual muscle groups are being worked through the training. “I can feel my muscles more. When I go out and run, muscles are feeling a little more sore. I can feel more effort going into the workouts.”

Howard has felt the same acceleration in the Cook’s program.

“Excercise-wise, it’s getting harder,” she said, noting that the program is now prescribing more than one workout per day, getting them used to going from one discipline right into the next.

Both participants are putting a heavy focus on their swimming because they said it’s a weak point in their abilities, and because they are averse to running in cold and on ice.

“I don’t know that I’m ever going to enjoy swimming,” confessed Howard, who said she is still feeling less than confident when she’s in the water. However, she added, “I’m glad I’m doing it. My body feels good.”

Hart said he’s noticed a “shift” this month, particularly when it comes to the swimming exercises, some of which seem odd, such as using only one arm to stroke for a lap of the pool.

“I said, ‘I’ll do this but I’m not really sure,’ but now I’m seeing an improvement from the things he’s asking me to do,” Hart said.

The training plan calls for workouts five times per week, and the sessions last from 45 to 90 minutes each. The rookies are finding that the first step in any workout is building it into their schedule.

“I have to get better at my time management, to get done all the stuff I normally do and get my workouts in,” Hart said. “I have to schedule ahead of time, and make sure everything’s where it needs to be.”

And, as the training gets harder, he feels stronger.

“I am feeling much better. I feel like I can definitely do it,” Hart said. “It’s a long way to swim, but I feel a lot more confident now.”

For Howard, who is turning 50 later this month, she said the experience has shown her that “age is just a number,” and noted that while she is training for her first triathlon, she is also going back to school to begin a new career. “This is going to be a big year for me.”

Howard isn’t as confident as Hart is in the water, but she has committed to the training, and the smart money says that she’ll make good on that commitment.

“I’m persistent, for sure,” Howard said. “I’m not going to give up. I can do this. I am doing this.”

She said she never thought that she’d be starting her day well before dawn, so that she could get in a triathlon-level workout before most people have had their first cup of coffee, but she has quickly come to appreciate her new schedule.

“It’s been an important part of my life, so I hope I keep up with it afterward,” Howard said. She said she enjoys having a challenge, and meeting expectations. “I like saying I’m going to do something, committing to it and following through.”