Triathlon goes "soft" - (Active.com)

I read this article in the Wall Street Journal a while back. Actually, a co-worker gave it to me. He said it reminded him of me. I put it in my blog ideas folder and was glad to find it on Active.com so I could just link to it. I'm not sure if I should be concerned about the soft triathlete reference or just accept the fact that I do resemble the remark.

If a doing a sprint triathlon is "soft" I will take it. There are millions of American's that could only dream of running 3+ miles let alone preceded by a healthy swim and bike ride. Consider these statistics on the fitness.gov site.

Nearly half of American adults (4 in 10) report that they are not active at all; 7 in 10 are not moderately active for the recommended 30 minutes a day, 5 or more days a week.

Obesity continues to climb among American adults. Nearly 60 million Americans are obese. More than 108 million adults are either obese or overweight. That means roughly 3 out of 5 Americans carry an unhealthy amount of excess weight. The cost of obesity (direct and indirect medical costs) is $117 billion per year.

The percentage of adults in the United States who were overweight or obese (body mass index greater than or equal to 25) in 1999-2002 was 65 percent. Overweight and obesity cuts across all ages, racial and ethnic groups, and both genders. A new study in the Netherlands found that excess weight cuts years off your life.

Triathletes, Ironman or Sprint, hardcore or "soft", are still a healthy bunch comparatively.

Count me in.