1. It’s hard. Durr, no shit Sherlock. No, I mean it, it’s hard. You will need to make sacrifices. You will need as much mental determination as physical fitness. There are only 24 hours in every day and I’m guessing you have a job, a family, hopefully some friends as well? Do the maths….. And, no, sleep isn’t the thing that you sacrifice. That’s the quickest route to sickness.
Plan how you are going to do it, be realistic that you aren’t a superhuman and you can’t do everything perfectly, and most importantly ensure your family is on your side. Waking the house up at 5am when you go to train, or missing a family function because you’ve been riding for 6 hours and are collapsed on the couch, isn’t ever easy, and it’s even harder if it causes angst amongst the household. And don’t use triathlon as an excuse not to pull your weight around the house.
2. Learn from others. There are so many things you don’t know. You might think you do. You don’t. Even if you’ve done a couple of longer distances races before. Asking questions and learning from others is so important. Soak up the knowledge of those around you who are more experienced. Ask the dumb questions. Ask the embarrassing questions (yes, I’m talking bodily functions, pains etc). And use your coaches. You don’t really pay them for the training plan they write, you could get that for free off the internet, you pay them for their wisdom, experience and advice. And it’s what your coaches enjoy most of all, they certainly don’t do this job for the money, they do it for the satisfaction they get from helping you to succeed.
3. Riding long distances in a pack is not going to help. 180km riding solitary with no drafting allowed, and with the wind, rain and/or heat pummelling you is tough. By all means warm up with a group of friends, and be in close proximity so you can support each other from a safety perspective, and have some rides where you let yourself be social, if that’s important to you. But, as much as you can, train on your own: no windbreak, no cruising; no chatting. And make sure you are down on the aerobars of your time trial bike, so your body becomes familiar with what 180km in that position actually feels like. Otherwise, believe me, it will hurt when it comes to race day (particularly for us older athletes)!
4. Swimming in a pool will give you false comfort. You may think you’re a good swimmer. But until you get out into the ocean and practice consistently, you’re missing the point. It’s almost an entirely different sport.
5. Crossing that finish line is the most amazing feeling. It becomes addictive. Unless you have rushed too quickly into an Ironman (refer next point). As much as you were swearing to yourself during the race “why the f@&k am I doing this”, it will likely be days / hours / minutes / seconds before you decide you want to do another.
6. You need to give your body time to become ready to do an Ironman. Do not get the idea in your head in January and then try and race an Ironman in November. You’ll get through it, but your body (and your mind) will be wrecked and you won’t do another. Each year you spend in this sport is a year where your body is accumulating “training age” – the strength and resilience to cope with the volume you’re going to load it up with, without breaking down. This is Year 10 for me in this sport and the base fitness I have built by training consistently over that time means I’m the strongest now that I’ve ever been.
7. The friends and community you surround yourself with will fundamentally change your experience. I’ve had races where 20+ of us have been building for the same race and, regardless of our ability, it has felt like a true family. And I’ve had other races where it hasn’t, and it’s felt like everyone is treating it like a solo sport, and I’ve felt lonely and less motivated as a result. It makes a huge difference. I still look back on the builds for Ironman Melbourne in 2013 and 2014 with my club Tri-Alliance with real nostalgia – they were such good times together, the group of athletes really connected in a way that I’ve not seen to that level since. Be there for each other, support each other, train as a group together and build that sense of being part of an awesome team. Triathlon can be a solo sport if you let it be, but it’s heaps more fun doing it with your triathlon family around you.
Image: Delly Carr (the one and only)
8. You need to do this for yourself. Not because you’re trying to prove yourself to someone else or please someone else. You need to be 100% committed and that won’t happen sustainable if you’re not doing this for the right reasons. Make sure you understand your “Why”. Why are you doing this? Do you know?
And stop judging yourself based on those around you. This is your race. It doesn’t matter whether your friends are quicker or slower, skinnier or fatter. This is about you and what you are going to achieve. Just because your friend is running 4 minute kms, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be equally proud of your 6 minute kms, if that’s a huge achievement for you.
9. Resist the desire to be a perfectionist. You can’t do everything. Sometimes you can juggle work, family and training successfully. And other times, there just aren’t enough hours in the day. And the training program isn’t smart enough to know how you are feeling. If you need to rest, then rest. Far more triathletes over-train, than get the proper rest and recovery. Don’t blindly follow the program. And don’t follow somebody else’s program – just because they’re doing 150km ride doesn’t mean you have to. Talk to your coach, adjust it to fit you. If you miss a training session, get over it and move on. Don’t play catch up. If you miss several training sessions, reflect on why that is happening. Are there other life stresses getting in the way, in which case don’t be a hero, adjust to reflect the reality of the shit you are dealing with. Or if you just need a kick up the arse, do exactly that, suck it up princess and get back into the training. Consistency not perfection is key.
10. And stop procrastinating and over-thinking. Don’t sit on the couch or at your desk for hours mulling over the fact you need to go for a run but don’t feel like it. Lace up those shoes and get it done. The more you procrastinate, the less likely you are to do it. Stop thinking, just do it.
Triathlon is an amazing sport and I love it as much now after 10 Ironman and 13 Half Ironman races as when I first started. I hope that you too can find a way to make it an important and rewarding part of your own lives.
Determination. Consistency. No Excuses.
Work, Train, Do Awesome Shit 
Insightful as always – great read on the absolutely reality of triathlon 👍