May 7
Looking for a little inspiration as you head-out the door for your workout today? Come to Le Club West Island and train like an athlete! Can you guess which Le Club members are vying for a spot in the 2012 London Olympics?
This January, Le Club West Island will be featured as lululemon athletica’s facility of the month. We’ll be offering free in-store classes at Fairview Pointe Claire every Sunday and Tuesday from 9:00 – 9:45 am prior to opening.
Please come and support our instructors on:
Check-out this amazing sporting goods sale event. All proceeds from the sale will help support the West Island Palliative Care Residence and the Beaconsfield Rugby Club.
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Proud parents, and longtime Le Club West Island members, Bernadette and Walter Reichert are in Hawaii this weekend to support their daughter Julia as she competes in the 2011 Ironman World Championships. This is Julia’s second trip to Hawaii for the Ironman World Championships. She qualified for her spot again this year by winning her age category in Ironman USA in Lake Placid this past July.
Julia has only been involved in the sport of triathlon for the past four years. The 24-year-old was once a competitive synchronized swimmer, but soon fell in love with running marathons and long-distance cycling. More than anything, Julia enjoys the entire build-up to a triathlon event rather than the race itself.
“I’m not super big on the competition part [because] I get nervous. I do enjoy the competition, but I really like the training. This sport, and the Ironman distance in particular, involves a lot of training,” she explained.
Julia runs almost every day of the week to prepare for races. During weekdays, she runs for 60–90 minutes, and on weekends she trains for up to three hours. She also bikes just as frequently, but “only swims two to three times a week” due to her synchro background. Of course, there are challenges that arise from being a triathlete while attending university, but Julia has managed to be successful in both aspects of her life.
“It’s hard to balance everything, but it helps that my boyfriend’s a triathlete and [some] of my friends also do the sport, so we can socialize while we do the training,” said Julia. “But you have to be able to do your homework and study, while [treating] training as a break.”
At the Ironman World Championships in 2010, Julia finished 10th in her age category with a time of 11:28:21. While the course proved to be a difficult test, Julia relished every second of her experience in Hawaii.
“All the [athletes] there were really nice. I tried to ask as many questions as I could [to] soak up their experience because a lot of them had done it before,” said Julia. “The race itself was super challenging. I realized that I just needed to calm down and do my own race and enjoy it. I did, and I was able to finish it strong.”
As she prepared for the 2011 season, Julia is hoping that she served as an example to aspiring triathletes trying to make the next step. Her advice?
“Start small, see what you like, and build up slowly. Get in some runs, bikes, and swims, but always be consistent. Don’t overwhelm yourself right away but be as consistent as possible.”
We wish Julia the best of luck on an “awesome” race day and we’ll be sending you some positive vibes from Montreal this Saturday!
Join us in wishing Marie-Claire Pitre good luck in the Montreal Triathlon on Saturday, September 10th. Marie-Claire has been a valued member of Le Club West Island for over 5 years, and this year she decided to train for the triathlon along with her daughter. She felt that it would be an appropriate challenge to mark her 60th birthday and her daughter’s 30th!
Marie-Claire is ready physically and mentally! As she says, her main focus now is to “live the event!” With this great attitude, she is already a winner.
Her family has been a great support throughout her training and they will be right there along the route on Saturday and waiting for her as she crosses the finish line with their “TEAM PITRE” caps and t-shirts!
Bonne Chance Marie-Claire and have fun!
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