Profile Design and Ironman

I am a bit of a planner. I mean, if my annual vision board and monthly goal check ins are not a proper indicator for you, I don’t know what is. The reality is, I am utterly blown away by the power of putting your goals where you can see them – I have tackled EVERY SINGLE THING on every vision board I have ever made, and I think it is just a matter of reminding yourself what you are working towards and then doing it.

Although I am a planner, I tend not to be detail oriented in the case where I will make big goals and then fill in the details later or as I go. It is both my biggest strength and weakness as an athlete.

Prime example was the time one of my sponsors asked me to do a race for them and I agreed without asking any questions. I showed up on race day and saw a sparkling mountain bike from Inception Cyclery. Turns out, I should have asked what we were doing because the race was an off road duathlon and I had ridden a mountain bike once before, which didn’t necessarily translate into race ready.  Regardless, minor details. You can read about how that turned out for me here.

The summer, I was asked to partner with one of my sponsors to try something that is a little bigger than an off road duathlon in 2016 and I didn’t even blink before I said yes. I have a bucket list race for every decade of being alive and the race for my twenties was an Ironman. I didn’t do research, ask around or even start looking into it – I just put it out there and suddenly I was asked to do the Muskoka full in 2016. So I am doing it.

An IRONMAN is one of a series of long-distance triathlon races consisting of a 2.4-mile (3.86 km) swim, a 112-mile (180.25 km) bicycle ride and a marathon 26.2-mile (42.2 km) run, raced in that order and without a break. Sounds like my type of crazy!

Although I have no problem make wild, drastic goals (I ran my first ultra having only raced 7 miles up to that point), I do believe in putting in the work. I make goals, but then I show up to the practices and early morning sessions and work it. This summer, I was putting in long miles on my road bike and this fall, I found a swim coach and have been working on my freestyle as it is by far the weakest point in my triathlon. I by no means consider myself a triathlete, but this summer, I will be doing a few sprints and Olympic distances to work up to a half and finally to the full. Because I am in my twenties and because I said I would.

As I work toward some of these goals, it is vital that I have quality products because I am hard on my stuff. This summer, I was sent some products from Profile Design and I used them almost daily.

Profile Design is a triathlon company that is committed to quality engineering. The world’s greatest triathletes, such as Mirinda Carfrae (this year’s IRONMAN female champion) and Chris McCormack use their products for their training and racing. They pay attention to the details so I don’t have to, providing the best design innovation in the world.

One of the first things I tried was the T1+ Alloy Aerobars, which is a vital part of a triathlon bike.

They were light, fast and comfortable for my long rides and are hands down the best aerobar I have tried. Made of pure carbon fibre, it is the official aerobar of IRONMAN and have adjustment points to ensure it is a perfect fit.

I also tested out the Aero HC System which is the favourite among the list of industry hydration systems and the official choice of Mirinda Carfrae.

Also? It just looks great on the bike. It fits between my arms and is engineered to hide the computer monitor for an added aerodynamic advantage.

It filled easily and I didn’t find I spilled water everywhere while refilling like other systems.

The final thing I reviewed was the Bellwether cycling jersey and short. I had just bought an expensive pair of cycling shorts the same night that these arrived this summer and I was able to compare the difference between the Bellwether and the other pair.

You know when you can just FEEL quality? That is the Bellwether shorts in a nutshell. I rode on them all summer long and they are still my go-to pair. I have the Axiom style and they are decked out with leg grippers, a 3D multilayer pad and reflection accents for night riding.

The top was amazing. You will recognize it from this photo.

It is the Bellwether Impulse which is super breathable and super cute.

One of my training sessions this summer was brick workout with a long ride followed by an even longer run. It was raining that day so I decided to just stay in the Bellweather gear for my 30 KM run. No chafing or discomfort even in the rain. You can find pricing and where the products are sold locally on their website by pressing the BUY LOCAL option.

I’m a Profile Design and Bellwether junkie and will be training in both on my road to Ironman 2016!

What is your biggest goal right now?

I am in the market for a new TT bike. Any suggestions?