Win the Workout
The spring is a time of year when we all begin to think about the upcoming triathlon season with varying levels of anxiety, hope, excitement and enthusiasm. It’s well known that the early season base workouts lay the foundation and in many ways dictate how high our fitness will climb this year. However, due to our varying levels of excitement, many of us tend to make the mistake of going too hard, or doing too much too soon.
I coach an athlete, let’s call him Bill, who is very dedicated and is very consistent in his training. As the days get longer and warmer, for some, Bill has begun to train outside and has recent memories of late last season where he achieved a PR in his “A” race. Although consciously he knows that he is not in race shape during the off season, this spring he subconsciously expects to ride just like he did last season.
Bill recently went out for a bike ride that was supposed to be 3 hours of easy heart rate zone 2 to low 3 riding. However, within the first 20 minutes, he met up with a group of cyclists and his easy zone 2 ride went right out the window. Bill stayed with the pack and even tried to prove his worth by taking his turns pulling at the front. His heart rate ranged from zone 1 to zone 5!! After 2 hours with the group, Bill realized that he had ruined his workout and wearily rode home on his own. He was frustrated at having “wrecked” his workout, but also because last year he would have easily been able ride with the group in zone 3.
Although many of us stay active in the off-season, just like Bill, we can have some rust to shake off. It can be daunting to think about how “out of shape” we are and how much training needs to be completed to rebuild our fitness. Some may want to go out there and “hammer” to get back in shape. Instead, I encourage Bill, and all athletes, to focus on one workout at a time with the goal to “Win the Workout.” Complete every workout with at least a RPE and HR goal. Also, it is important to stay within your abilities at this point in the season and not rush back to late season fitness. If your coach says to run 4 miles in HR zone 2 you should do that, just that, and nothing more. By doing so, you “Win the Workout.”
There are many “Bills” out there and we all have workouts that don’t go according to plan. However, we can learn from those workouts and remember that fitness is built slowly and patience is required, especially in the early season as our bodies adapt to higher training loads or simply training outdoors. Every mile we run is one more than yesterday and one mile closer to our goals. Be patient and focus on steady progress and recovery between workouts. Our achievements this season are being built right now. Even as you read this, you are resting and letting your body rebuild itself for the next workout. Remember, don’t approach each session with the goal to win your next race, go to “Win the Workout.”
