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Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Wijvenweek / Shopping

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Wijvenweek post #1. Jen at A2eatwrite wrote an excellent blog post about breasts for her participation in Wijvenweek. I had received an email about this week and completely blanked on it, but fortunately it's not too late to participate. Before I can explain Wijvenweek, I first need to define wijven. The word wijven is apparently a negative word for females. To make a long story short, there basically were some blog awards in Belgium. Some female bloggers won them. Some folks who were apparently jealous complained that the winners were all wijvenblogs. This led several Flemish women to show detractors what a real wijvenblog might be. They created Wijvenweek to run from March 24th through March 30th, where women, whether or not they are considered wijven are encouraged to post on a different feminine topic each day. As a self-declared feminist, I am excited to participate. (For more information, it helps to be fluent in Flemish.)

Today's topic is shopping. Where to start? Of course with shopping for my triathlon. Sounds safe to read? Well, this one might make you squirm a little bit. As I have dove into the world of triathlons, I needed to figure out what to wear. I was originally planning on wearing a swim suit and then pulling on biking shorts and a shirt for the biking and running. Then I thought about it. Wet suit under spandex biking shorts subjected to running and sweating...Sounds like a recipe for a yeast infection. How do women triathletes avoid this? Let me tell you, none of my triathlon training books have a section on preventing yeast infections. Yet they all discourage triathletes from wearing underwear under biking shorts because it can be uncomfortable and it can interfere with the "moisture wicking" ability of the chamois (which is the material in the giant pad in the biking pants to protect important parts). Hmmm...interference with the "moisture wicking" sounds like a euphemism for yeast infection!

Just so you don't think my concerns were medically unfounded, my primary care physician told me to buy yeast infection cream for my medicine cabinet because it would be a "medical miracle" for me not to get a yeast infection between my triathlon training and some antibiotics that she prescribed. The real miracle is actually being able to choose a specific cream from the millions available in the pharamacy. My triathlon training books were no help; none of them include Monistat under equipment needed for triathlon training.

After doing further research, I realized that there was something called a triathlon suit that people wear so that they don't have to change. Honestly, it's not something that I would be entirely at all comfortable wearing under normal circumstances because they're not...how should I put this...very flattering. I could risk the wet swim suit under biking shorts and hope that I would be wearing the combo for a short enough time not to have a problem. But that didn't solve my clothing dilemna. There was also the whole issue of a sports bra. I really didn't want to wear one swimming; that would be like swimming with a dish towel shoved down the front of my suit.

I did some more searching, talking, and shopping. I finally chose a two piece triathlon suit. It's got the sports bra built right into the shirt, and the whole thing is made out of moisture wicking material. It's meant for all three sports. I got it in black. Yes, I will look like the grim reaper on a bike. With a red helmet of course. I have to look stylish after all.

A. Elliot's Lesson Learned: There are many clothing options for wijven doing triathlons.

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posted by Alex Elliot @ 8:04 PM   6 comments
6 Comments:

  • At 3/26/2008 3:01 AM, Blogger Goofball said…

    Hi Alex,

    cool that you are participating in wijvenweek.be !

    Wow,...clothing for thriatlon. I seriously had never thought about it before. Sounds like a tough choice indeed. I assume they don't stop the time while you can go change in a fitting room? Bummer huh.


    The lesson learned is hilarious!

     

  • At 3/26/2008 8:09 AM, Blogger Heather said…

    Wow. I'm certain I'd never want to have to worry about this!

     

  • At 3/26/2008 9:01 AM, Blogger Mayberry said…

    What a cool topic for wijvenweek! Glad you found a solution.

    I loved "for more information, it helps to be fluent in Flemish." LOL!

     

  • At 3/26/2008 6:07 PM, OpenID cablegirl said…

    Fascinating. You know, I never would have thought about the difficulties of "what to wear" to an athletic event! Yeast infection aside, I can't imagine how uncomfortable running in a swimsuit would be... I mean, talk about chafing in horrible places.

    But, of course there is an outfit specially designed for it. lol

     

  • At 3/27/2008 7:21 AM, Blogger Jen of A2eatwrite said…

    Alex, I think you absolutely rock for doing the triathlon. And of course, yes, the red helmet is important for style. ;-)

     

  • At 3/27/2008 9:58 PM, Blogger Suzanne said…

    Oh, wijven week is awesome. I am going to follow your example and write some wijven posts at CUSS.

     
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Name:Alex Elliot
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About Me:Professional Mom of two cats, a dog, an ant farm, and oh yeah...two boys: a 4.5 year old and a 2 year old. Also found in my house is my husband who is known on this blog as The Big Giraffe.
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