It has now been almost
three weeks since I started to train for my triathlon or as I still think about
it, started to exercise again. I’ll need to change my thinking soon if I want
to succeed! Especially after Ben Hallam
has challenged me (indirectly), by saying that I will be left behind if he
decides to do the race with me. (Growl!)
In the beginning there was
a joy of doing something again. It didn’t matter what the weather was or how
early I had to get up. Swimming is easy to fit in my weekly routine because I
am doing it on my day off and I am running either before or after work. I was
just going and doing and not really thinking about it.
Then this past Wednesday I
woke up in the morning and felt broken. I was cold, tired and didn’t want to
move. I had to drag myself out while arguing all the pros and cons. But I did
it and it was my little victory!!!
I’ve read a lot about how
to motivate myself and I have trained other people, and done my best to
motivate them. After many years experience I can only say that everyone has to
find their own way. I do not like to fail and I don’t like others see me fail.
I told people I entered a half marathon in 2012 so I didn’t have any choice but
to follow through with it. I did no real training but still managed to finish
in 2hrs 15mins!
So, my motivation is
simple. I tell my other half that I will go for a run next morning and if I
don’t I would feel bad about it. I keep my kit next to bed so I don’t put on
any nice warm clothes first. That way I don’t have to battle with myself to get
changed. I try not to run in the evening, unless I have no other choice,
because like a lot of other people after a long day I am hungry, tired, and
cold and just want to go home and do nothing.
Another thing I should
tell is about my book. I got my hands on second-hand book, “The Triathlete’s
Training Bible” by Joe Friel. There is a more recent publication of this book
but all I needed was a bit of an insight into training to help me get started.
I have found this book to be brilliant. I am hardly finished with it but I am
getting a better understanding of what I should be doing, and most importantly,
what I should not be doing. I know myself; I want to push myself hard but I
have to take into account my health. This book is helping me to understand how
to plan my training bit by bit and how to put it all together into an annual
plan. I will share a picture of my training plan soon.
The point I am trying to
make is that excitement driven training is great, but it will only get you so
far. There is a bigger picture to triathlon training than just getting ready to
finish one race, especially if you want to succeed. Every day counts! I want to
go further than just doing one triathlon and I want to go for a longer
distance! Finding a way to get out for a run, swim or ride is crucial, but can
be difficult without a clear thought of where you are going! Plan, plan, plan
and train!
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