Mr Smith Talks Triathlon

The Christmas holiday period is coming and whilst it's meant to be an opportunity for R&R it can involve stress about work, families, travel, and training. So here are a few strategies to think about so you can hit the right balance.

Finally an event is happening! With all the uncertainty our minds probably haven't been in “race prep mode”, but it's time to switch into that now. Here's my take on what to expect from the event.

Walking in an event is seen as failure by so many people. But have you ever thought about how you can use walking to go faster in an event? Most people doing Ironman and Half IM events are going to benefit from walk breaks and achieve faster overall times.

Open water swimming has a lot in common with pool swimming, but there are a number of differences too. We'll go through what those differences are, and what to do about them, so you can make the most of both your pool and open water swimming.

It's really disappointing to see December Half Ironman events being cancelled. We're all affected in different ways, and once we start processing that disappointment we can start to see there are opportunities that come from this. Find those opportunities and make the most of them

We are always looking for those “magic workouts” that will change everything, and I'm here to tell you there are in fact 2 magic workouts. Kind of...

Guaranteed success is a big claim, but if you choose one word (a mantra), constantly reinforce that word to yourself, and live or act out that word, it can massively influence an outcome.

Obviously you can already ride a bike, but I'm going to give you a few foundational things to check, reminders about key skills on the bike, and triathlon-specific things to work on

The line between training nutrition and day to day nutrition can be very blurry. But if we separate the two, and address what's needed for each individually, we can build both health and great performance

Coaches always talk about the importance of recovery, but the most important thing we are after is actually adaptation. Adaptation comes from an appropriate balance of training load / stress, AND an appropriate level of recovery. Find out how the two of those work together, and how to make sure you are benefitting from your training.

A lot of people try to improve their performance by simply training harder. The problem is they get stuck in a middle "grey zone" of training that feels good but is not improving performance. Listen in to understand why you should use the full range of intensities, and specially the importance of LOW intensity.

Triathlon is an expensive sport and everyone seems to have the flashest equipment out there. But you don't need all the fancy stuff to enjoy the sport and perform well. Listen in as I talk through the important pieces of equipment so you can decide what's right for you and where to spend your money.

Every coach has a different approach to training, so it's important you understand the thinking behind your training plan. By understanding that, and knowing yourself, you can make sure the two parts marry up to make training successful for you

Last week I talked about the importance of consistency, but consistency is not about being perfect. It's about adapting to stuff going on around us, whilst staying on track towards our master goal. I'll give you six ways to be more adaptable, so you can be more consistent over time.

We all know consistency over time in training is important, but do you know why? And do you know how to help make it happen. Take 13min out of your day to listen to this podcast, and you'll be armed with ways to achieve great consistency and great results from your training.

This is the final in the nutrition podcast series. To date we have talked veges, protein, mindful behaviours, and training and recovery nutrition. Your ongoing challenge is to put that into practice consistently over time, and slowly keep working at opportunities to improve the quality of your nutrition.

Now that we have established our day to day nutrition foundations, it’s time to consider how training fits in with those, and what we do differently to support our training.

Having focussed on the basics of day to day nutrition the last couple of weeks, this week it’s all about behaviours and HOW you are eating. Are you making conscious choices? Are you paying attention as you eat? Are you enjoying your food?

We started by recording a food log. Last week we put the focus on meeting the 5+ a day fruit and vege goal. And this week we add on one more thing: protein - an absolute essential for day to day health and nutrition.

This podcast is specifically for the Wellington squad. Talking about important etiquette and safety when training together, plus tips about your training plan, training zones, and thinking ahead to events.

Week 1 of the challenge was to simply record what you eat and drink for the week. Even if you have an imperfect record, you still have really useful data to review. And this week we review it, looking for one specific thing that will make the biggest difference to your health and performance.

Good nutrition practices are a foundation for good health and performance. So here is a simple six week challenge to learn about yourself, and adjust your nutrition practices. No fad diets. No magic pills and potions. Just good simple practices consistently.

A half marathon can seem only a “small” event compared with Ironman or a Half Ironman. But it is still an endurance event worthy of some fore-planning. A little thought into goals, pacing, nutrition, and mental strategy goes a long way towards your best possible performance on the day.

Having just done a big technique focus in swim squad, I want to pull back from the details and look at the big concepts we’re trying to achieve. So six swim tips coming up, but explained in different / unusual ways.

True peak performance doesn't come in a 12 week training plan. So stand back from the details of a training plan, and lets build habits that will help you be successful in the long term: nutrition, sleep, strength work, and all other other things that contribute to your success.

ERG mode is switched on by default for most smart trainers. There are some great benefits from using ERG mode and obvious reasons to use it. But there are also times where it’s better not to use it. Listen in to understand the different situations

What’s the difference between exercise, training, and racing? Purpose or intent. Being clear on what your purpose is for each session means you can get the most out of it, whether that is exercising for fun and fitness, training towards an outcome, or racing at maximum effort.

6min of sunshine in Wellington last week. That’s enough to give anyone the blues. But the mid winter blues are a real thing right now, so don’t try and fight it. Recognise it might be happening, be kind to yourself, and be prepared to take a break from “training” so you can come back to it fresh and keen for more.

Do you train plenty but don’t seem to get a lot faster? Has performance plateaued and you’re not sure why? It could be that you are stuck in a rut like many “average” or “typical” athletes are. Here are 4 common “curses of the average athlete”, and what to do about each of them.

MEDIUM intensity training has a distinct purpose and place in a training plan. So the trap is to make sure it’s not your only or main intensity used. Make sure there is plenty of LOW intensity, a little HIGH intensity, and some MEDIUM intensity across the course of your training

Yes high intensity training is tough, but it’s not something to be avoided. There are big benefits to had from small amounts of intense training. New athletes, older athletes, and everyone in between should have some level of high intensity in your training.

Slow down to speed up. It can be a really hard concept to get your head around, but time spent going slower has huge benefits to your long term performance: health, base efficiency, and a platform to achieve more. Don’t be in a rush to be a little bit fast now - be truly fast when it counts.

We might not have events happening right now, but hearing people’s experiences are so valuable to help focus on what’s important now, to give us the best results for those events in the future.

Even though we’re not trying to be in peak form at this time of year, it’s important to remind ourselves how important recovery is. If we can set up some recovery habits and behaviours now, those will will be hugely beneficial throughout all levels of training.

Do we need to warm up and cool down? Traditional thinking says yes but there is evidence to suggest it may not be necessary. So if you’re not big on warmups or cooldowns don’t assume you’re doing it “wrong”. Stay in touch with your body, be prepared to try different things, and figure out what’s right for you.

Right now is the perfect time to be laying foundations to make your next season even more successful. Are you making the most of that opportunity? Health, strength and durability, skills, etc are things we can all work on to make the swim bike run training even more successful

COVID19 means disruption, change, and stress for just about everyone at the moment. That can affect both mental and physical health, so we have to be very purposeful about adding extra training stress on top. Be very clear about when is the right time for you to “train” for performance, and when is the right time for you to “exercise” for health and wellbeing

After a few weeks of post-season downtime, a few weeks of getting back into training, and a few weeks of adapting to life under lockdown, it’s now time to do some bike and run benchmark testing. We outline what testing we are doing, why, and how to get the most out of it.

With so much unknown about the future it’s time to establish some certainty. And that certainty is 2 key things our squad is training towards: Wuu2k ultramarathon, and the Wellington Tri Club Winterman. Whether the planned events happen or not, we will do whatever version of them we can - be it together, solo, online, or whatever. And anyone can joins us no matter where in the country you live. The dates are fixed, so lets go!

We never imagined it would come to this, but now we’re under lockdown we need to make the most of the situation. Yes there are actually some positives and plenty of opportunities - sometimes we just need to go looking for them

COVID-19, and particularly Alert Level 4, changes how we need to train right now. But there are plenty of ways to make the most of this time. Are you going to make the most of this opportunity?

The world has changed massively in the last 2 weeks. How do we adapt?

Last weekend were the two biggest events of the season for our team: Ironman and 70.3 in Taupo. We talk through some of the things that led to PBs for Doug and Gerrard, plus observations from the sidelines.

We all know that written race plans lead to greater success. Visualisation is the next step on, where you dedicate time to playing through that plan, seeing, smelling, and feeling the experience. That reinforces it to your brain, then your subconscious will help you achieve it on the day.

By now your physical training is done - you can’t get any fitter or faster. What you can do is prepare to execute the best possible day you can, and that comes almost entirely from mindset. Remember: “How you feel at any point in time does not dictate what you are capable of”

Being clear on your goals is critical to achieving what you want out of a race. But there is a big difference between goals that will help you achieve success, versus goals that may sabotage your success.

Whether you are racing for glory or just aiming to cross that finish line you will need a pacing plan so you get to that finish line with your best possible result

You probably have all the equipment already (if not get it NOW!), but you may have to make some choices about exactly what to use on the day, and make sure it is ready for the day

The quantity and types of nutrition you’ll need on race day is different for each person. But there are some important guidelines we can all use

We're close to December Half Ironman events so it's time to do a readiness check

Quick update to explain podcast on hold for a few weeks while Gerrard juggles priorities. We'll be back early November