Super triathlete moms (chapter 3)

In this chapter we will meet 6 women who are among the best in the world in their respective GGEE

 

 

We continue with our series dedicated to triathlon moms. In this third chapter we will meet 6 women who are among the best in the world in their respective GGEE (including one of them, Ruth Brito standing up to the elite in Spain), as shown by the fact that between the six of them, 2015 adds two shares in the 70.3 World Championship and two Kona Finishers ... and for 2016, two of them have a Slot for the 70.3 World Championship and another two for the IM World Cup.

The questions we have asked are the same as in the previous ones First of all y second with a presentation of each of them, their beginnings in triathlon, favorite competitions, how to combine family and work life with training and competitions, ending with some tips for women and mothers who want to start practicing triathlon.
 

RUTH BRITO (SPAIN)

Ruth Brito, 35 years, I studied Physical Activity Sciences but right now I am a housewife, I live in Vitoria-Gasteiz, I have a child who has 1 and 11 months.

 I started triathlon with 17 or 18 years ago I do not remember, I worked giving swimming lessons in the Real Club Nautico de Arrecife and they organize a sprint and a shorter triathlon of initiation, then my friends who practiced triathlon and some Lanzarote Ironman encouraged me I did the initiation, since then I fell in love with this sport that is my passion.

On how we organize with the trainings… We usually travel a lot because I accompany my husband Eneko Llanos (5 times top7 in the Hawaii IM World Cup) on his travels, so the days vary greatly depending on Eneko's year goals. But when we are at home we organize ourselves to take care of Jon and to be able to train both of us, so we spend the day in relays, since he still does not go to nursery or school.

Right now I think this season has been very satisfying for me and my best results have been 3ª in the Vitoria-Gasteiz Triathlon Full distance and 3ª the Long Distance Spain Championship.

For those who have never done Ironman distance I advise you to debut in the Vitoria Triathlon -Gasteiz, for good organization, good atmosphere, a devoted hobby that does not stop to animate, beautiful circuits and quite flat.

For those moms who want to try but think it's too much to do a triathlon, she told them that you can ... do a session a day of sports, changing the disciplines and it's fun because you change sports, it's a matter of starting like this I encourage you.

For those who are triathletes and after motherhood do not know how to do it, I advise you first to do the quarantine, then swim and walk, then walk and run, a little bit of bike, do basic hypopressive work, but first as you go doing sport listen to the body and stop if you have any discomfort, slowly, slowly.

(Photo Ruth, author Felix Sánchez Arrázola)

LIZ LEZCANO (PARAGUAY)

Liz Lezcano, I have 37 years, I am a Dermatologist Doctor living in Asunción del Paraguay and I have 2 wonderful children of 4 (Lara) and 6 years (Leandro).
About my beginnings, of the 3 disciplines I only knew how to swim, I love everything that has to do with water; since I have use of reason practiced some kind of water sport (swimming-wakeboarding) but as I am hyperactive never a single thing was enough for me so I launched into triathlon without knowing what I expected: "discipline" to the maximum expression. I've only been 1 year 6 months in this that every time I love more.

My life is "chaotically accelerated" but completely happy, since I step on the ground my life depends on time; everything has its chronometer from the beginning with work, function of mom, wife and training. It is very hard to be a professional, mother and athlete because I always strive for excellence (it does not mean being the fastest woman), but to give the best to my children, my husband, my patients and my sport.

The children are to enjoy them, they deserve the best education with examples and that is what I feel I transmit to them every day; When the night comes I can close my eyes and be proud of them because they are excellent students, athletes and happy children. It is not enough to have children destined alone for their fate in the world. The 3 things that take priority in my life are: my family, my work and training; It is like a single body, soul and life impossible to separate. But the best thing about this sport is the union of my husband to this lifestyle.

So far the most outstanding result was this year in the IM 70.3 of Foz de Iguazú where I got my pass to the Australian World 2016 in a very hard race, of course it is the one that fills me with happiness for the achievement obtained.

I do not have a favorite triathlon because I consider that I like all the challenges that I propose, therefore the preparation and dedication for all would be the same and with the aim of "fighting to the end".

My advice is to train, train and train there is no other secret and if you are going to do it, better do it with a good physical preparation before a race; this is about enjoying and not going to suffer.

Triathlon is a fantastic sport that combines 3 disciplines, where it leads you to opt for a healthy lifestyle for body and mind, it is not a moment or a career it is a philosophy of life, a total change to the discipline , to order and patience; nothing is achieved soon, time becomes your best friend. Each personal dream becomes your life companion until you make it a reality and keep looking to get further and further away. Along the way you will meet people with the same challenges as yours, realizing that the world lives, turns and dreams of this sport.

LORENA CORTES (ARGENTINA)

My name is Lorena Cortés 41 years Architect mother of Valentina 13 years and Ona 7 years.- I live in Trelew (Chubut) in Patagonia Argentina.

Running I always liked since I lived in the city of La Plata while I was studying, I started with adventure races, but in 2006 a great friend Fabi Bonet invites me to a great challenge El Cruce de los Andes, it was a one way road after he came Crossing but by bike and thus a series of marathons and adventure races. I loved the bike I had discovered in these times and always run, but I could not swim and worse still I had water panic so I set myself a great challenge to learn to swim and in 2009 without knowing I signed up for the IM 70.3 Pucón, it was crazy the beginning of this great madness haha ​​!.

So my life and that of my daughters was transformed, my house, my car, ... everything is transformed when someone practices triathlon. My youngest daughter tells me a mom in this house there are more bicycles than people, the car always full of food and girls wondering if you swim today mom or go on a bike.

The madness is growing and so after running several local races win a couple of times the local triathlon championship, the summer weekends were transformed in that the plan to go to see mom run, and one armed everything so that happen because the triathletes are selfish and a lot, summer activities always have a pedaliadita, a nadadita or a trot and we try to see how we set the day to fulfill our training plan while being potatoes, professionals and friends.

The day arrives 6.30 I leave the girls at school and I go to my job that is a few kilometers from Trelew. I go to the 14, that's where I take the opportunity to train before leaving 16 school, nothing can fail or the wind goes against me because I did not get to look for them and of course it happened to me !! You make a super last ha! to reach. Then between the activities and the tour of my particular works the day goes by, some nights there is nothing previous to leaving homework and food ready. There are some days that they are with their dad is there when I swim and take advantage of the bike funds.

My favorite races are Concordia organized by a dear friend Ale, Pucón that in 2015 I was injured to finish and without wanting to even dream it win my category and qualify for the Austria World Championship in Zell Am See 2015. One day I told the 40 years I want to run my first half Ironman and without wanting to, I was in the World Championship wondering what made the most beautiful race in the world! But good that day in Pucón I understood that when you relax you do not look at the clock in fact I took it out in the middle of the race when we run with the disembodied heart for the injury or mind because it did not give more is there when we get our best version, that is what I try to transmit to my daughters today that you do their activities also Hochey and Riding that ENJOY that they do it with the soul but that they are happy!

(Photo by Lorena Cortes: author Carmelo Fiore)

FLORENCE FRAGA (ARGENTINA - PANAMA)

Maria Florencia Fraga, Lic in Administration and HR, I was born in Argentina, but I live in Panama. I have a 6 year old son Fiorentino

I started with a swimming relay, from there I was invited to try the triathlon, I have been with 4 for years.

I get up to the 4 for a light breakfast and I start training, then I work exchanging the schedules if I mix with the training I always coordinate that I finish my schedules with respect to the sport before the 2 in the afternoon, breakfast in the pool or light lunch in it, from there I go to my house to coordinate with my son the extracurricular activities, then I keep working at home while I take care of my son, I prepare it for the next day as well as my things, I make the food and when everything is finished and both (son father and dog) are in bed I go to sleep, sometimes I defeat the dream and fall before I hahaha

I am very proud of my three 2015 World Championships this year, I never thought that the three of them would be a success, I have worked very hard for two years in silence and with a lot of vocation and love for it, but being with the best in the world and being new in Long distances were not foreseeable for me.

Away from the Half, I advise first to dominate and feel comfortable with the Olympic, and then experiment at medium distances. I advise that you should train with a personalized plan, focused on your performance, have a training complemented with food and rest, demand, everything that one can experience in training will be very useful in the competition, you can not train relaxed , you have to set goals and go for them, get medical check-ups every year and always listen to the body, not mix the charges and always have confidence in your spreadsheet, use a band that controls your heart rate. In my opinion, Triathlon is a beautiful but very sacrificed sport and it should not be done that way because its loads are very high and we have three disciplines of which we must be optimal to face them with quality.

I always appreciate that you keep me in mind, always very grateful to you,

 

MARIA LUZ ARELLANO (ECUADOR)

Marialuz Arellano, 42 years, I live in Quito (Ecuador) I have 4 children: Avelina from 12 years, Tomás from 10 and Julián and Martin from 9.

The idea of ​​running an Ironman started at the end of 1999, finally in the 2009 I ran my first Ironman in November of the 2009 in Panama City-Florida, prior to that I participated in my first 70.3 in Orlando in the 2008

Usually in the mornings I send my children to school and I accompany them to breakfast, most days I leave after that unless I have a long training and leave earlier, after that, I go to my office to meetings and review the topics of the day, in the afternoon if I have double day I train again and at the end of the afternoon I return to the house to see my children review homework and put them to bed.

I think that each competition can be seen as a metaphor, from each one I get learning and personal growth, I accumulate unique experiences and memories, I could talk about each one with the same passion and emotion, for different and different reasons ... however when I they ask what is my best career, my answer is: next ...

My favorite race is the IM 70.3 of Ecuador in Manta, my heart and all my passion for this sport is settled in the organization and set-up in the race of my country. Although I have not run it, I have tried the route, the water is magnificent, the bicycle route is rolled on a smooth and perfect pavement, and the athletics is flat with a unique audience that animates every meter of the race. Of the competitions that I have run, outside of the world championships, I really like the 70.3 of St.George for its difficulty, the competitive and the beauty of its landscapes. At Ironman, Klagenfurt in Austria is amazing.

Triathlon is a way of life, and the practice of it with the balance and balance of its practice involving each of the vertices of a person's life, constitutes the realization. For a mom the central axis is her children, however, making exclusive time for oneself is important and necessary, if we can devote that time to something that we are passionate about, and that helps us grow, with experiences, experiences and learning of ourselves and of all the practical and scientific information developed around sport, our children will be the first beneficiaries of this growth.

For a mom who starts training, the first thing she has to do is set small and achievable goals, manage her time well so that this activity does not take time away from other priorities, then look for a coach who manages the planning and who has clear your availability of time and your objectives, join a training group, and look for guides in each sport to start developing a good technique in each sport.

Close your eyes and visualize completing a race, when you open them, sign up for that race, that's the first big step. The preparation for it can be built little by little every day, with consistency, and without losing sight of the objective.

 

CARMEN GIL BRAHIM (SPAIN)

Carmen Gil Brahim, 42 years, professor of Spanish, resident in the USA, Atlanta. 2 children, Marc from 9 years and Nora from 7.

I was born in Sabadell (Barcelona) and there I swam in the Sabadell Swimming Club until the 1992 that I left. Once I stopped swimming I spent many years that the only sport I practiced was running, eventually my husband and I set out to do a triathlon. In the 2009 I made my first Olympic distance triathlon and since then I have been increasing the distance to reach my first IM in the 2012.

Depending on what training stage I am in, the weeks can vary a lot. But in general, training for an IM, my average was about 19 hours.

Mondays are typically swim-only days, with an afternoon session after picking up the kids from school and dropping them off for soccer and gymnastics. Tuesday is a double day, in the morning I usually wake up at 4:15, start with a weight session followed by a short fartlek running session on the treadmill. I go home, pick up the kids, and get ready for school. On Tuesday afternoons while they do their homework, I start with my second session of the day, usually 1 hour or 1 hour and a half by bike. I don't turn on Wednesdays, I have a bike session and a short transition 20 'run. On Thursdays I have a double session again; in the morning I run an hour or so with intervals and in the afternoon I cycle.

Fridays is just swimming and I usually do it with a group of masters in the morning.
Weekends are usually the hardest, Saturdays are for long races and on Sundays I ride a bike, 6-7 hours with a 20-30 'walking race just after.

My husband and I do triathlons, on the part it is much easier because we both understand the importance of training. But that also limits us a bit with the distance for which we can prepare. Right now and until the children are older, we have to take turns with the IM. Last year it was his turn and this year mine, where I ran IM Florida ... getting slot for Kona'16.

About the result of which I am most proud ... buff, I have very good memories of many races with good results, but my results in the last two years in the distance of IM exceed those of the shorter races. My most outstanding result before a week ago when I competed in IMFL2015 was my 1er placed in my age group last year in IMLOU and my classification for Kona that same year. But without a doubt the result of IMFL2015 has been my best result, where I finished not only 1ra of my age group (qualifying for Kona in the 2016) but I also stayed 3ra of the general. A GREAT DAY!.

As advice ... if you can pose it, I personally prefer to do as many training sessions as possible in the morning, early when the children sleep. So there are no excuses and I feel like I'm still there when they need me.

(Note: During these interviews the IM of Florida was disputed, Count Carmen Brahim was 1st and Maria Luz Arellano 2nd in 40-44. They both got the slot for Kona. They met after the IM and this photo was taken together to publish it in this article. In 2016 we will have two friends from Triathlon News in “Mecca” of the triathlon)

 

Juan José Martí Navío @jjnavio