Disclaimer: I am not a medical professional, just a concerned citizen
Ladies and gentlemen of the triathlon community, this is a friendly reminder to take a small break from swimming, biking, and running (and eating, and sleeping) to have your skin checked by a dermatologist every year. In our training and racing, we accumulate countless ours of sun exposure. Unlike most other forms of cancer, our active lifestyle actually increases our risk of getting skin cancer. Ironman World Champion, Leanda Cave, isn’t immune to it and neither are you!
Of course, you already know to reduce your exposure by wearing sun sleeves and sunscreen. In case you need a reminder, this is what can happen if you forget to apply sunscreen properly. A year later, I still have a tramp stamp tan…
Yikes- that looks painful!
The sun is such a scary thing, especially when we’re out there for prolonged periods of time sweating. I’ve tried to make it a goal this year to apply before I workout, but I haven’t been very successful. Thanks for the reminder.
That sunburn was horrible!
I found a sunscreen that works well and smells awesome, so I actually enjoy wearing it (http://www.coolasuncare.com/sunscreen-spf-45-mango). I keep a tube at home and another one in the car.
Thanks for the suggestion! They actually sell it in two stores in my city, too!
If that didn’t look like it hurt like hell, I’d have laughed. I will not be sharing this post with my wife as it would undoubtedly come with a chuck on the arm and an “I told you so”. 😉
Please feel free to laugh! It’s been long enough that I can laugh at it too 🙂
My lower back was only exposed for 90 minutes while I was previewing the Wildflower Olympic bike course last year, yet burned that badly!
Wow!