Don't Struggle, Just ask!

Training…..It’s a word that triathletes all over the world talk about and if you listen close enough it’s almost all they talk about, but with good reason. Training for sprints, a half, or full Ironman requires hours upon hours of training. You have three very different disciplines and all three require a certain unique aspect that doesn’t lend itself to the others. It’s not like you can train for the swim and greatly improve your bike time. Sure, your cardio will get better and swimming is certainly a great way to tone your muscles, but bike training requires bike time. Having said all this, the focus of today’s blog has less to do with what type of training you are doing, but how are you doing it?

Do you train by yourself, with a coach/mentor, or group training? If you were to ask 10 different triathletes this question you would probably get ten different answers. I’ll describe my approach and look forward to everyone’s unique insight.

Since the beginning I have trained the vast majority of the time by myself. I’m not sure if it is my work schedule, me being anti-social (just kidding…….sort of), or the fact that I have no friends (just kidding again….sort of). All I know is that it is usually me against me everyday. I occasionally go for a bike ride with a couple of friends or see someone I know at the pool, but I wouldn’t say I really train with them. For new triathletes this can be a big mistake and I’ll tell you why. By working out at least once a week with an experienced triathlete your learning curve for the sport will increase ten fold. A book, magazine, or website can only tell you so much, but an experienced triathlete can make your introduction into the sport a much more pleasant one. Now I’m not saying that finding a workout in a book or website is a bad thing, but I will tell you that most of your triathlons will be regionally based and an experienced racer will be able to tell you what to train for specifically for each race. For example, if you are going to race in the Super Sully in Alpine you might want to do some hill training in your runs or if you are going to race in the Santa Fe triathlon you will need to spend some time on hill training with your bike. Of course, training with someone or a group is also helpful for motivation and encouragement.

Now having spouted off about the benefits of training at least some of the time with a group or another individual, I want to bring up a point that I feel strongly about. Triathlons are an individual sport and to succeed you have to be physically fit, but more important you have to be mentally strong. Out on the course it is you against everyone else and if you can’t push yourself or convince yourself that the pain is worth it, you are going to have a difficult time being successful. You have to be the type of person that is very self motivated and can’t be the type of person that needs the encouragement of a group in order to work out. During the past off-season I literally asked myself everyday; what is Cody Hanson doing right now? Cody is a tremendous triathlete that has dominated his age group for the past couple years in the Southwest Challenge Series. So every time I wanted to watch TV or skip a work out I just asked myself; what is Cody doing? I would usually imagine Cody on a long bike ride or running up steep hills with fifty pound sacks of sand, and as silly as that sounds it made me want to push myself even harder.

So for everyone starting out get the help or advice of an experienced triathlete. Bobby Gonzalez has been my mentor and I can’t express how grateful I am for all the help he has provided me. After you get your workout plan set then it’s time for you to find YOUR Cody Hanson!