“A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new.” Albert Einstein (probable tri wannabe for sure, eh?)
Transition area just waiting for your bike. |
You're a triathlete, you're serious about this stuff.
What a great day January First is! We get a do over. Like in hop scotch when we were 10. Those flubs and missteps from last season? Pffft, gone just like that.
Use January 1 as a time to fix just one thing. If you just choose one thing, it's a lot easier to be successful. New Years resolutions are not about the grand or fantastic, they're about picking a goal that is worthwhile, viable and obtainable. It's important to be realistic. Maybe you'd like to lose 50 lbs but a realistic goal would be 20 lbs. Or perhaps you'd like to reduce or eliminate alcohol, finally sign up for masters swim lessons/stroke eval even though you know it will embarrass the living daylights out of you. Pick something very personal and selfish. It's all about you for today. You can work on world peace some other time.
"At the beginning of the year, it's good to know every race you're going to do," says 6 time Ironman World Champion Mark Allen. And what better day to plan it than today? I'll bet that many have already accomplished that task.
We get the opportunity to review what training/racing errors, nutrition challenges and perhaps over zealous goals that were chosen for 2014. And if Allen's comments are good for races, wouldn't they necessarily be good for key work outs as well? And, while we're at it, how about your Racing Weight plan per Matt Fitzgerald? As has been discussed previously, about 8 weeks before your base period is to start (somewhere about now, eh depending on your particular schedule?), if you can gradually reduce your caloric intake by 2-400 calories per day, remembering that crash diets seldom work, your upcoming work load and caloric needs will dovetail nicely.
Is this finally the year that you're going to practice open water swimming until you like it? (Like it? Is that even possible?) Even if there are fish and turtles in your hometown lake, and you're a tad uncomfortable sharing your Saturday swim with them, it's something that can be overcome. Think about getting one of your friends who's pretty comfortable in that environment to accompany you, perhaps several Saturdays in a row come Spring. And, after a few "desensitization" sessions, you'll surprise yourself at how possible this is.
You are fully in control of your 2015. Like fine wine, here's hoping you use it wisely.
Promises to self: 1) I will ride my race wheels more than just occasionally so when there's a problem during the race I've already solved it in training.
2) I will use my wet suit frequently so that it's just second nature come race day.
3) I will say thank you to all the volunteers who are there just to see you do your best.
4) If something starts to hurt, unlike my past, I will back off until it resolves or if it doesn't get it checked out.
5) I will help people new to the sport just like I was helped way back when.
6) And possibly most important for the long run, a quote from my boss at Ironman, "Race day didn’t feel monumental, but like a slightly more complicated Saturday long ride. Sure, I got a tiny bit stressed at gear drop-off (“S*** I forgot my gels … we can access these bags in the morning, right?!”) and battled the usual fitful sleep on race eve. But aside from those few expected blips, it was business as usual. I think this is a significant point to get to as an athlete—when [racing] becomes comfortable . Not ordinary, exactly, but the sort of thing that makes you shrug and say “this is just what I do.”
"This is just what I do!"
Happy New Year, happy training and I wish you a successful, thoughtful and most of all, injury free season. I will leave you with one quote from Colin Powell that has meant a lot to many: A dream doesn't become reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination, and hard work.
Here's a toast to all your dreams for 2015 and wishing you plenty of sweat, determination and hard work.
Thanks for reading,
John H. Post, III, MD.