Book Review: The Slow Fat Triathlete

Slow Fat Triathlete: Live Your Athletic Dreams in the Body You Have Now

Don't let the title put you off, this is one of the best triathlon books around, and definitely the first one I would want to give someone just getting into the sport. It's inspirational, funny, and contains a heck of a lot of good information. There's just that darned title getting in the way. I recommended it to a friend of mine and watched her kind of cringe - it's like when you tell someone they should read this book you can hear them thinking "Does she think I'm slow, and fat???" I love the way the author explains the title in the first page, it really makes sense with the rest of the book, still I worry that it keeps more than a few athletes-to-be from picking this little gem up.

The author, Jayne Williams is just a gifted writer. She has that ability to turn her own experiences into something that everyone can relate to. On top of giving you her insights into her own first races and eventual immersion in the sport, she passes on a whole lot of wisdom on everything from what to take to your first race to how to survive putting on a wetsuit for the first time. She handles it all with humor and an upbeat quirkiness that conveys the awesomeness and beauty of the sport without descending to the maudlin. With chapters on equipment, training, your first race, how to be a supportive spouse or partner, injuries, illness, and eating, this book pretty much covers almost everything I'd want to tell a first-time triathlete.

So pick this book up and give it a read. Even if you've been in the sport forever, it's sure to touch more than a few memories and give you a smile. And give it to your noobie friends, just tell them to ignore the title. No really, you're not slow and you're not fat, just read the book already!