In at the Deep End

Hi everyone.

I am Steve, a Manager from Northamptonshire in the UK. I have spent the last 15 years sitting in an office for a day job so have recently (18 months) started to get fit again. My legs are Ok from biking and running but my upper body is not great. Little strength and not much tone.

I was looking for a new challenge for 2012 and have been convinced to go for an Olympic Distance Triathlon. Now I ran a half marathon in July at 1:45 and did a 100 mile off road cycle ride so am reasonably fit (for my 43 years!), although I am better at endurance that speed. 

My problem is that I swim like a barrel of frogs. I can do 1500 metres in the pool but it takes me an hour and I seem to be faster in breaststroke than front crawl. I have downloaded a training plan and will seek out some specialist swim coaching.

I have booked in for a Tri on 13th May but may look for a sprint race earlier to get some practice and tips. I am also joining PACTRAC, a local tri club, to share experiences and help with motivation.

I have looked at past results and it looks like I need to shave a minimum of 15 mins of my swim and just work to improve my bike and run times which would currently see my towards the tail end of the field.

Wish me luck!!

Steve