What to do with your girls? Unless you’re planning to change tops in the transition area you’ll probably want a lycra material up top to wear when racing. Lycra, the same material used to make swimsuits, will dry much faster than cotton and make your ride and run more comfortable. During races I usually wear tri shorts and a swim suit bra-top under my wetsuit for the swim. After the swim I slip on some type of dry fit shirt to wear on the bike and run. For some women support is a serious concern, unfortunately I’m not one of those women. But for the women who do need extra support up top consider choosing thicker straps and doubling up on bras.
What about my other girl? It takes most women a long time to find a comfortable saddle. It’s important to make sure that the pressure of the saddle is on your bones rather than your soft tissue. Too much pressure on the soft tissue can lead to numbness, bruising, and lots of all around discomfort. The best option to solving this problem is trying out different saddles. Don’t be fooled by women’s specific saddles, just because it says it’s made for a woman doesn’t mean it will be the best option for you. You’ll probably have to try out lots of options before you find the right fit. If you’re in the Ithaca area check out The Finger Lakes Running and Triathlon Company they’ve got lots of models that they’ll let you test out.
What do I do about the monthly woman curse? There were a few doctors at last year’s clinic who gave me some very beneficial information on this topic. If you take an oral contraceptive and a big race happens to fall on the week of your cycle you don’t need to worry. You can simply skip the placebo pill week (usually the last set of pills in a packet) and begin a new packet of pills. By doing this you’ll skip your cycle for that month and avoid have to race with your period. If you don’t take an oral contraceptive then I guess your best option with this dilemma is to pray to Mother Nature.
Where do I go to the bathroom? Women definitely have it much harder in this area. Everyone pees in their wetsuit, get over it. Believe me it is the easiest and best time to go during a race. It will add a little bit more warmth to your wetsuit and will be washed out by the end of the swim anyways so don’t be afraid to do it. Don’t pee while riding. One women told us that she tried to do this and, unlike the swim, when you’re on the bike there is nowhere for the urine to go except on you and your bike. She was left feeling wet and sticky for the remainder of the race. Once the swim is over the only place for women to go to the bathroom is in the port a potties. There’s always port a potties along the course so make sure you know ahead of time where they will be so you can plan accordingly.