My Journey: An Interview with Australian Triathlete Matthew Renée van Pelt

My Journey: An Interview with Australian Triathlete Matthew Renée van Pelt

Australian Triathlete Matthew Renee van Pelt is a strong part of the triathlon community Down Under. I first found Matt on Instagram a few years back as he documented his adventures in multi-sport and his journey as a father. I found it really encouraging to see Matt work hard to better himself both as a Father as well as an athlete. This is the journey of Australian triathlete Matthew Renee van Pelt.

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Yesterday we had our swim and wow this girl is coming along fast, she can swim unassisted for up to 20m, it may be a mix of strokes but she definitely outperforming myself at her age, and with cross country on today I am wishing her luck. Myself I had a great swim, struggling with my swim fitness, however the first few hundred metres were at decent speed #teamsst #journey #trilife #triathlete #triathlon #swimbikerun #tri365 #imoz #ironmantri #tri #exercise #fitness #instafitness #swim #qldfit #brisbanehealthandfitness #ironman #afternoonswim #eveningswim #fitness #endurance #swimmer #noexcuses #swimming #swimming #thetriclub

A post shared by Matthew Renée van Pelt (@tri_dad_matt) on Mar 4, 2019 at 2:10pm PST

You have been a big part of the triathlon community. Tell us a little about your journey in triathlon and where it has taken you today?

I got into Triathlon because at the age of 25 I didn’t know how to swim, so a friend asked me to do one with him and that got me hooked, over the next few years I lost 25kg went from struggling to swim 20 meters to be able to complete the Ironman swim leg, having a 5km run time of about 34 minutes and taking that down to 21:29 whilst pushing my daughter in the stroller and introducing me to a healthier lifestyle and forcing me to see some of the beautiful nature of the country I live in through training and racing. Finally, I have always followed a Mantra “Children should be your reason to exercise not your excuse not to!”

Australian Triathlete Matthew Renée van Pelt crushing it Down Under

When the world begins to open up again. Do you have any future goals or races you want to manifest for the future?

I would like to just start with a few smaller ones as I have just restarted my weight loss journey after 2 years away from the sport and lifestyle, but my main destination races would be Saipan 70.3, Kona (especially if it was on the 50th anniversary), Escape from Alcatraz and the Coast to Coast in NZ 

Every athlete is a nerd when it comes to training. What is your favorite gear to train with or rest & nutrition?

I love my power meter, it’s just a cheap left crank stages meter but it really makes the difference when training, especially at home, being a solo dad, when training for long-distance tri’s you spend a lot of time on the wind trainer

Any words of wisdom for people looking to begin their athletic journey?

Warning, Triathlon is addictive!!!

How can our readers follow your adventures?

My Instagram and Facebook is @Tri_dad_matt and https://smallestelf.wixsite.com/tri-dad-matt

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Another shot from the weekend, thanks for the great race @triathlonqueensland #sbtc_greenarmy #teamsst #fitness #trilife #triathlon #cycling

A post shared by Matthew Renée van Pelt (@tri_dad_matt) on Aug 3, 2016 at 12:48am PDT

A big Thank you to Australian Triathlete Matthew Renee van Pelt. We look forward to following the adventures of our triathlon community around the globe. If you have a journey you would like to share with us and our global community please feel free to contact us through our social media platforms.