Sprinting: Ouch!

Sprint triahtlons are a fantastic way to get involved in the multi-sport world. Trifitness puts on a very fun, safe event down at Seaside Park in Bridgeport, CT. I had the opportunity to race this year, which was a special treat. This is close to home, so my family was able to journey down to see the race. There is nothing like having your kids cheer for you as you race.
Although the distance of a sprint triathlon is relatively short, it can be quite painful as the effort is much higher.
I hit the swim and almost went hypoxic. I settled down and came out of the water ready to roll on the bike. I tried to hit the bike hard as I knew there would be fast cyclist behind me. I was able to hold 312 normalized watts for the first 5 miles, but I realized this was a bit too high to maintain. I brought it down to 300 for the remainder of the bike. I came through the 2 loop bike and headed onto the run. My legs felt great, but 100 meters into the run I had an issue. My left calf tightened up right away. I shortened my stride and tried to focus on quick cadence. I felt really strong but every time I tried to open up my stride, I could feel the pain in the calf. I was able to maintain a decent pace for the remainder of the run and crossed the finish line with a decent day. Now I need to focus on getting my left calf back to health.
Results: www.coolrunning.com/results/11/ct/Jun12_Trifit_set1.shtml