The power of perseverence! Just keep swimming and spinning :-)

Meet Emily! Emily is one of a kind, a gal who just gets about her business, and who loves nothing more than smashing through her comfort zone all while giving back to her community. Today we share Emily's journey into triathlon. Her blog is all about the power of perseverance - despite setbacks, personal loss and physical challenges, her determination to keep pushing forward and embracing new challenges has been the key to her growth and success in triathlon.

Rocking out FOHER at every opportunity, she now has the motivation and confidence to push through tough days. I hope you enjoy Emily's story, and as always, please share with anyone who might benefit or relate.

x Kylie and the FOHER Team

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Hi! I'm Emily. My triathlon journey started with road cycling. I started cycling early 2020 after a long journey and many physio and specialist appointments and one surgery working through my knee pain. I had bought my road bike a few years earlier, and got it after my physio suggesting trying cycling as a more knee-friendly alternative than dancing. Being me, I got a drop-bar roadie, cleats and went all in.

Pic: Emily with her trusty roadie! 

My competitive side kicked in pretty quickly and I wanted to have a go at crit racing. I raced a few, and then one of my fellow FOHER Ambassadors, Phila reached out to me, and before I knew it I had joined the FOHER x Brisbane Cycling Femme Racing Team and went from crit races to a road races and then 2 day tours with time trials, road races and crits. My cycling racing 'career' was all D grade, all dropped off the back and all last. Did that ever stop me? Hell no. There's been rides when I've gotten dropped and it sucks, but I always picked myself up and kept rolling on. Finishing my first century with the MS Brisbane to the Bay 100km was a huge highlight.

Pic: Emily post Turbo Durbo on the Boulie around Melbourne, a bit puffed!

I loved cycling but something was missing - I wanted something new and another challenge. I travelled to Noosa Tri in 2021 as a supporter and it was such an incredible experience and such a vibe that at the end of the weekend I had committed to Noosa as an individual in 2022 - my year of 'Zero to Noosa in 12 Months'. Initially I mentioned to a friend that I was thinking of trying running and maybe entering some duathlons, mostly because I hated swimming and was especially terrified of swimming in the open water. The friend then asked if that had ever stopped me before to which again the answer was hell no. So I aimed for Noosa Tri, and a month later after 2 weeks of training I entered Tri Pink in Brisbane (100m/3km/1km).

Pic: Em did Tri Pink with a pool swim as a confidence booster - and it worked!

That Tri Pink 100m pool swim I was so goddamn determined and so goddam unfit. I absolutely refused to use the pool noodles the lifeguards were trying to give me when I was hanging on the edge of the pool about 6 times in the second lap. I made it. I recall thinking at the end of it that I had never been so exhausted from half an hour of exercise in my entire life but had definitely caught the tri bug.  That summer season I did a couple of tri's at Bribie Island - panicked in the water each time and had managed to reset. There's a pic of me trying not to hurl in my spotty tri suit and I absolutely love it!

Pic: Em overcoming her open water swimming fears at Bribie Tri.

The floods happened in Brisbane in early 2022 and interrupted my journey again, with UQ pool being closed and squad being off for a while. I reset from that and then got news that I couldn't easily bounce back from like I had with everything else. My father had passed away suddenly and whilst it is now nearly 2 years ago I still cannot explain how it felt and how it still feels.

My training went well out the window. It took me quite a few months and most of the rest of 2022 to get back to some sense of new normal. I switched my Noosa Tri entry from an individual to a team one and recruited two incredible friends to swim and ride for me. I ran (well ran/walked) with not much training and whilst it wasn't the Noosa experience I had planned, it was still an emotional experience and that finish line was like nothing else (this is where I have some brilliant pics - one of me on that finish line and another of me in the wheelchair / holding a spew bag which I honestly love). It was so incredibly hot that day, especially coming later in the day as a team runner, and I remember how hot the asphalt felt through my shoes. Even so, I will absolutely never forget that run down the blue carpet. The chorus of Queen's 'Don't Stop Me Now' hit over the PA as I crossed over the final bridge and with Queen (a very special song for me) and it felt magical.

Pic: Emily running down the finish chute, and in recovery trying not to spew at Noosa Triathlon in 2022.

I met a few more of the FOHER community at Noosa and in 2022, and it really has been the kit that connects. I met Sarah, who I then discovered lives an hour away from where I was moving to a few months later.  I tried a few times to get back into training, consistency and seriously between then and late 2023, but it never stuck. There was a move to Melbourne and a whole lot of study making it hard. Then, in November 2023 I decided to double or nothing my Noosa goal and aim seriously for a 70.3 - maybe Geelong 2025 if I can get ready. I wanted and needed a big goal to push me, but I also knew that I needed support to get there. It's been a couple months now working with Penny Slater as my coach and it has honestly been one of the best decisions I have ever made. I have come so with my swimming!

Pic: Emily at Williamstown Beach doing exposure swims over summer 2024.

After a turning point during a calm open water swim, I did Barwon Heads tri, hung off a surfboard a few times, tried not to hurl (knowing he would haul me back to shore if I did) but I did it! The finish line feels on that race was just the most incredible moment. A few weeks later I did it again at Ballarat! Hung off a pool  noodle but I did it.  

Pic: Finishing my first open water swim tri was a huge achievement!

I finally finished my Masters and am now an Accredited Practising Dietician, and am in the process of launching my own business, but this time I'm not letting anything stop me achieve my goals! What matters for me is what my body is able to do for me at the moment. My FOHER kit, to me, helps me get out there on the tough days. Feeling good, and feeling confident in fun, bright and flattering kit makes such a difference in enjoying the training and finding that motivation.

Pic: Em with Phila who encouraged (or conned depending on who's talking!) her into riding Mt Coot-Tha in Brisbane.

The Halcyon days kit is my absolute favourite; the tri hipsters and crop combo got me comfortable running sans shirt which I never thought I would be. Pro is it is so much more comfy on a warm day! So if you never thought to do a tri, if I can do it, then anyone really can!

x Emily