Originally posted by Kayeherl
My name is Kaye and I just recently decided to start training for a triathlon. I'm about 70 lbs overweight at the moment and suffered a knee injury that's put me out of commission for the past year, so it will be a long journey just to get into shape for doing a sprint triathlon, but I'm determined to get there. What are your guys's thoughts on getting started for a fairly out of shape 19 year old with a knee injury? I look forward to take this journey with you!
I don't know much about knee injuries. I know a lot about being overweight....which made my knees hurt all the time.
Follow your Doc's advice on knee stuff.
As for the other bit....focus on the short term goals. You can't lose 70 lbs overnight and you can't train for a race in a day.
That being said, you can do it all. For one, you're 19. I was 40+ and 100+ lbs overweight. And, just recently finished a full Ironman. It took a few years to get there. But I've enjoyed every step. Well, not every one of them....there's always a few days where you just don't want to run.
You're in a great position. By ignoring those long term goals, you will have so many endorphin releasing successes.
You've already recognized it's a journey.
Each weigh-in where you lose 1...or 2...or more lbs. So often you'll be at the point where you're like "HOLY CRUD! I just ran 2 miles!"
And then a few weeks later, maybe it's "3 miles!!!!"
"OMG, I just rode the same 20 miles on my bike I did last month, but it was almost 3 mph faster!!!!"
Track your miles. Pick a platform like Mapmyrun or Strava to track your miles and marvel as you pile them up.
And then some day you're going to hit a 'mythical' distance or something that you just never ever even thought you'd be doing. For me, it was running 8 miles. I set out to run my usual 6, but it was the day after Halloween and I wanted to punish myself for eating too much candy. I did 9 that day, that would have been a PR pace for my usual 6.
And I can say this too, if it adds a little inspiration. The "highs" that you'll feel from these things are astounding. They are the "high" I suspect you're looking for...which is why a lot of us wind up in this endeavor.