Are you doing “what it takes?”

If you are following a triathlon training plan or have a triathlon coach then you maybe used to seeing your training get harder every 3-4 weeks. This seems to be the standard progression for most athletes and coaches but I think that there is a better way….

Probably about once per month I get an athlete who asks me if they can increase either the volume or intensity (and sometimes both) of training that they are doing. This tells me a lot about the way that individual and triathletes in general think about training and its relation to performance improvement.
It indicates to me as a coach that they think that it is the ONLY factor that will help them to achieve their goal.
I’ve never had anyone ask me for …
• More recovery time
• More stretching
• Less training
I’ve occasionally had athletes ask for….
• Tips for better nutrition
• How to make their recovery better
• More running drills
• More strength & conditioning

The questions I now ask all athletes who want more intensity or volume is

“Are you doing what it takes to get the most from your current training?”

For example
If you currently complete 10 hours of training per week and are thinking of gradually increasing the volume to 15 hours these are the questions I would have if I were your coach. (By the way if you are thinking of doing this you ought to have a better reason than just “because that’s what everyone else does” OR “I’m doing an Ironman so I need to do lots of volume”)

1. Could you increase the amount of quality sleep you get each night
a) Do you get at least 7 hours sleep per night
b) Is your sleep good quality restful sleep
2. Could you get better quality recovery after each session –
a) Could you introduce power naps to get more rest
b) Are you able to relax when you aren’t training or do you always find household tasks to do
c) Do you stretch regularly for at least 15 minutes per time
3. Is your nutrition programme 100% perfect and suitable for an athlete –
a) do you refuel within 30 minutes of each training session
b) do you eat a minimum of 5 portions of fruit and vegetables every day
c) Do you get enough carbs in during your long training sessions
d) If you need to lose weight are you really doing what it takes to alter your nutrition? Don’t just rely on increased training to burn the calories
4. Are your warm ups effective in each session
a) do you get the full warm up
b) Do you arrive at training sessions in good time
5. Are your cool downs effective
a) do you do a cool down
b) do you cool down for long enough or do you have to rush of to another commitment
6. Is your lifestyle conducive to your triathlon goals
a) do you have a lot of stress in your life
b) could you reduce your stress at all
c) Does your time management allow you to do all of the elements listed above
7. Do you invest much time in developing your mental skills
a) do you include visualisation into your training sessions
b) Are you able to be mentally present (this means being focussed on the task at hand rather than daydreaming) for 100% of the time in each training session

There are probably many more questions that I could be asking you but my main questions is
Are you doing what it takes to maximise the return on your current training investment.

It is either a YES or NO answer. There is no middle ground!!

If the answer is YES then by all means think about how you can increase intensity or volume
If the answer is NO then just head up to question 1 and figure out what you could be doing better at your current volume.

Just for your information I’ve worked with many elite athletes in different sports and I’ve yet to find one of them that were doing all they could.

So if you answered YES, congratulations. Post an outline of what you do to the blog below and I’ll send you a gift in return for sharing your secrets.
If you answered NO, then please share with me, the areas where you think that you can improve.

I really look forward to your responses

P.S. If you are looking for a Training programme for your BIG event of the year, we now have a programme for EVERY SINGLE triathlon in the world. If you can’t find your race on our list then just test out our claim by asking