Here in Austin the triathlon race season stretches from
early April to late October with many opportunities to race at sprint to
Ironman distances in between. That's a long season of training and racing! How does a person with a family, a job, a
life, manage to set PRs and not burn out? Sustainability, consistency, and
periodization.
Sustainability – Be
realistic about how much time you have to spend not just on actual workouts and
races, but on the preparation, the commuting, the showering, the refueling, the
visiting with teammates, the shopping online and in the real world for gear,
interacting with your coach, etc. Then figure out how to use this time as
effectively as possible by organizing your gear, finding ways to eliminate
commute time, or doing more interval training to pack more punch into less time.
At one time I could ride directly from my home to routes on
safe roads in nearly any direction. I kept my cycling gear in a heap in the
garage. Now I have to drive to the start of most of my outdoor rides, so I
purchased a 5 gallon bucket at Home Depot, and all my ride gear lives in it.
When I take my gloves, head band and vest out of the wash, they go right back
in the bucket with my shoes, helmet, chain lube, Road ID, sunglasses,
sunscreen, etc. All I have to do is get dressed, pump up my tires, grab my fuel,
phone and water bottles and pack my bike and bucket into the car.
If you’re a parent, you may need to train at odd hours
(early mornings, late at night) to avoid disrupting your kids’ schedule. Just
make sure that you are still able to get enough sleep, or your routine will not
be sustainable. Making sure your workouts are focused and short will help – a
bike trainer can be a life-saver in these cases since it keeps you close to
home and allows you to get more quality work done in a short period of time
using interval workouts. Keeping your sights set on shorter distance events
that require much less training time is also helpful.
Consistency/habituation
– It has been said that what defines you is not what you do every once in a
while, but what you do every day (or frequently). You will not become a better
swimmer or runner or cyclist if you only practice that discipline once a week
or less! And you will not have a stronger core if you only work on it only now
and then.
As you reflect back on last season or forward to the one
ahead, decide what part of your training you wish to change. What do you want
to do better? Set your goals, and then work steadily toward them. You will
become a better swimmer if you find out how to fix a stroke flaw or two and
then practice swimming correctly 3-4 times a week, even if just for 20 minutes
after finishing another workout at your gym. You will get stronger glutes for
running and climbing on your bike if you learn several ways to strengthen them,
and then work on these 3-4 times a week with a bit of rest in between when you feel
you need it. You will become a better runner if you increase your mileage from
6-10 mi/week spread over 2 runs to 15 or 20 mi/week spread over 3-4 runs, assuming
proper form and recovery. I like to use a check-list in Excel that has all the
items I want to do every day like roll-out and stretching, as well as those I
want to do frequently like core work, squats, lunges, etc. Every night I check
in with this list and do what I can to check things off for that day. I also
plan ahead for the next day before I head off to bed to make sure I know how I
will structure my day to get those things done.
Knowing if you prefer to train with a group or on your own
either with or without a coach can also help with consistency. If you attempt
to train on your own but really prefer to train with a group, you may find your
ability to get work done every day to be difficult, even with a coach to guide
and motivate you. Your preference may be different for each sport. For
instance, you may love to run alone but prefer to hit the road on your bike
with a group to feel more safe. Try out both environments, and be realistic
about which suits you best.
Periodization --
Because we all don’t have the time or energy to train everything well all the
time, we have to pick and choose what to emphasize at different points in the
season. You may decide that your pre-season will include much more strength
training than your regular session. You may pick one or two core strength moves
from your pre-season routine of 7 or 8 that you want to continue to do
throughout the season without having to spend a lot of time on it. If you have
an issue with open water swimming, you may want to focus heavily on that one
month, keeping running and cycling at maintenance level, and then switch focus
for the next month. You might not swim, bike or run at all for a while during
the off-season to make room for other pursuits like hiking, cross-country
skiing, rock-climbing, yoga, etc to keep your body and mind fresh. Decide how
you will approach your build-up to your goal events, and choose what to
emphasize at different points in your season so that you can build and maintain
strength, speed and endurance in all three sports as needed.
So this season as you think about what events you want to
do, be realistic about how much time you can spend on your training on a
consistent basis while still getting enough sleep and time for the rest of your
life, adjust your training schedule to optimize your consistency and motivation,
and then figure out how shift your emphasis on the swim/bike/run/strength
elements of triathlon throughout the season to keep your training moving you forward
and also fitting into the rest of your life.
If you need help balancing your training and figuring out
how to best use your training time, contact me for a consultation: casey at gothedistancecoaching.com.
