Women Who Tri ― A Reluctant Athlete's Journey into the Heart of America's Newest Obsession

How does a middle-aged, out-of-shape mother of four reluctantly find herself on the starting line of a triathlon? She lives in the epicenter of the nation’s largest all-female triathlon club, and resistance is futile.

In Women Who Tri, Alicia DiFabioexplores the triathlon-mania that has gripped not just the women in her small New Jersey town, but all of America. Her journalistic memoir is both inspirational and informative as it explores the popularity, psychology, subculture, and transformative power of triathlons among “ordinary” women.

Weaving together the insights of a psychologist, the research of a journalist, and the deep insecurities of a daunted newbie, Women Who Tri follows DiFabio’s journey from nervous newcomer to triathlon finisher. DiFabio offers moving profiles of a dozen women who tri, sharing their reasons for coming to triathlon, which are as diverse as their ages and body types. But this book is neither training journal nor year-in-the-life immersion memoir. Rather, each chapter explores a fascinating, inspiring, and sometimes controversial topic of triathlon.

Women Who Tri investigates one of the world’s most challenging and inspiring sports, focusing on the group most responsible for its explosion into the mainstream—the recreational female triathlete. Filled with research, expert interviews, and real stories, Women Who Tri will entertain, enlighten and inspire any triathlon enthusiast, from tri-addict to tri-curious.

Alicia DiFabio, Psy.D. finished her first triathlon at age 45. She is a member of the 900-woman strong Mullica Hill Women’s Tri Club and a member of its board of directors. DiFabio has a doctorate in Clinical Psychology from Loyola University Maryland. On hiatus from the practice of psychology to raise her four young children, she writes on health and wellness, women’s issues, parenting, and education for newspapers, magazines, and literary journals. She is a contributing editor of the literary magazine, Pentimento. An active blogger, Dr. DiFabio chronicles her adventures as a special needs mother to four children, one who has been diagnosed with autism and epilepsy. Her blog, Lost in Holland, has been featured in the Examiner.com, a network serving over 20 million monthly readers and her posts have been picked up for syndication by McClatchy Tribune.