The Lonely Triathlete - triathlon training and motivation for the masses

I'm always trying to get more organized. But even if I were to succeed, would it help me in triathlon?Come be more organized with me at www.patreon.com/thelonelytriathleteTRANSCRIPTThere's something I've been thinking about lately, and it has to do with organization.And I know, organization isn't exactly the most exciting topic in the world.But I've been thinking about it in a slightly different way.Because I've realized that I tend to think of organization as something that happens when my life gets too messy.I've got a desk covered in papers.I've got things on my calendar that I haven't dealt with.I've got little projects that I've started but haven't finished.I've got receipts that need to be submitted, notes that I wrote down because I didn't want to forget them, things that I need to file away, things that I need to follow up on.And my first reaction is usually:"God, I really need to get organized."And I think that's true.But a few days ago, I was looking at all of this stuff and I had a slightly different thought.Maybe all of this stuff is also evidence of a life that's being lived.Because those papers didn't just magically appear on my desk.They're there because I'm doing things.I'm interested in things.I'm starting things.I'm trying things.I'm thinking about things.And that doesn't mean that I should leave my desk looking like a disaster forever.But maybe I don't have to look at the mess and immediately see evidence that I'm failing at being organized.Maybe I can look at it and see evidence of a life with some interest in it.And that got me thinking about triathlon.Because if there's one hobby that can generate an absolutely ridiculous amount of stuff, it's triathlon.Three sports.Three sets of equipment.Training plans.Nutrition.Clothing.Shoes.Bikes.Goggles.Fins.Paddles.Snorkels.Heart-rate monitors.Power meters.Bike computers.Lights.Radar.Bottles.Gels.Electrolytes.And then you've got all the little things that have to happen before you actually do the workout.And sometimes I think that's one of the reasons training can feel overwhelming.You don't just have to do the workout.You have to prepare to do the workout.Take swimming, for example.I might have a swim scheduled.And in my head, that sounds pretty simple."Okay, I'm going swimming."But then I actually think about what that involves.I've got to get my swim bag.I've got to make sure I've got my goggles.I've got my cap.I've got my towel.I've got my snorkel.Maybe I've got paddles.Maybe I've got a pull buoy.I've got to know what the workout is.Maybe I've printed it out.And if I'm putting the workout beside the pool, I might even put the damn thing in a Ziploc bag so it doesn't get soaked.And suddenly, "I'm going swimming" has become this little logistical operation.And you can look at that and think:"Jesus. This is a lot of work just to go swimming."And that's where I think organization becomes really important.Because one of the great things about being organized is that it removes friction.If I put my running shoes by the door the night before, that's one less decision I have to make in the morning.If I've already prepared my bike bottles, that's one less thing I have to think about.If my watch is charged, I don't have to discover at the last minute that it's sitting at 14 percent.If my swim bag is already packed, I don't have to go hunting around the house looking for my snorkel.And these things sound incredibly trivial.But they're not.Because motivation is a funny thing.Sometimes you have plenty of motivation.You actually want to go for the run.You actually want to ride your bike.You actually want to get in the pool.And then you encounter five little obstacles.Where are my shoes?My watch is dead.I haven't made my drink.Where's my towel?What am I supposed to do for this workout?And suddenly that little bit of motivation has been chipped away.So I think one of the great purposes of organization is not necessarily to make you more motivated.It's to protect the motivation that you already have.And I really like that idea.But I think there's another layer to this.And that's where the idea of ritual comes in.Because there's a difference between doing something because you have to do it and doing something as part of a ritual.Think about making your coffee in the morning.You could describe it as a series of chores.Fill the machine.Grind the beans.Put the coffee in.Turn it on.Clean it up.Or you could think of it as a little morning ritual.And somehow, that changes the experience.And I think the same thing can happen with training.Take preparing a bottle of carb drink.You can think:"God, I have to make this stupid drink again."Or you can think:"Okay. I'm getting ready for my ride."And you get the bottle.You put the water in.You measure out the carbs.You add the electrolytes.You shake it up.You put it in the fridge.And that's not just a chore anymore.It's part of the ride.It's the beginning of the ride.The same thing with charging your watch.The same thing with laying out your clothes.The same thing with getting your shoes ready.The same thing with packing your swim bag.The same thing with putting that workout into the Ziploc bag.You can look at every one of those things and say:"This is stuff I have to do before I can train."Or you can say:"This is how I prepare to train."And those two sentences sound almost identical.But emotionally, they're completely different.One is a burden.The other is a ritual.And I think there's something really powerful in that distinction.Because we spend so much of our time trying to get to the thing we actually want to do.We rush through the preparation.We rush through getting ready.We think the preparation is just an annoying obstacle between us and the good part.But maybe the preparation is part of the good part.Maybe there's actually some pleasure in getting ready.There's something satisfying about seeing the bike bottles lined up.There's something satisfying about getting your kit laid out.There's something satisfying about knowing that everything is ready to go.And I think that's particularly true in triathlon because there are so many little rituals.You put on the cycling shoes.You get the bottles into the cages.You turn on the trainer.You pull up the workout.You put your headphones on.You get on the bike.And there's a transition that happens.You're no longer sitting around thinking about everything else in your life.You're becoming the person who's about to train.And maybe that's part of the value of ritual.It tells your brain:"Okay. We're doing this now."And I think this also changes the way we think about all of the equipment.Because if you're not careful, all of the stuff that comes with triathlon can feel overwhelming.You start thinking:Why do I have all this stuff?Why do I have five different kinds of nutrition?Why do I have all these swim toys?Why do I need this bike computer?Why do I have a radar?Why do I have this light?Why do I have these shoes?And you can certainly take it too far.Triathlon is an excellent hobby if you want to become an obsessive consumer of tiny improvements.There's always another piece of equipment.There's always another gadget.There's always another thing that might make you three percent faster.And I'm certainly not immune to that.But I've also started thinking that some of that stuff is part of what makes the sport interesting.Take swimming.Maybe you've got a snorkel.You can use it to work on your body position.You've got paddles.You can feel what your catch is doing.You've got fins.You've got a pull buoy.And suddenly swimming isn't just:"Get in the pool and swim back and forth."There's this whole little world of things to explore.And the bike is the same.You can get interested in power.You can get interested in aerodynamics.You can get interested in tires.You can get interested in nutrition.You can get interested in bike fit.You can get interested in training.And I think that's one of the things I love about triathlon.There's always something to be curious about.And that brings me back to my messy desk.Because maybe the desk and the triathlon gear aren't actually that different.The desk is covered with evidence of all the things I'm interested in.And the garage, or the swim bag, or the training calendar, is covered with evidence of all the things I'm interested in as well.And I don't think the answer is to eliminate all of that.I think the answer is to organize it.Not because those things are bad.But because I want to be able to enjoy them.And that's an important distinction.Organization shouldn't necessarily be about simplifying your life to the point where there's nothing left in it.Maybe it's about organizing your life well enough that you can enjoy its complexity.Because triathlon is complex.And that's part of the fun.But there's a danger here, too.Because you can take this idea of preparation and ritual too far.You can become so focused on preparing that you never actually do the workout.You can spend an hour researching the perfect nutrition strategy for a 45-minute run.You can spend all day organizing your training instead of training.You can convince yourself that you need one more piece of equipment before you can really get started.And that's not what I'm talking about.The ritual is supposed to lead you into the activity.It's not supposed to replace the activity.So I think there's a balance.Prepare enough that you remove the friction.Organize enough that you don't have to make a hundred little decisions.But then actually go and do the thing.And maybe that's the real purpose of organization.It's not about having a perfect desk.It's not about having a perfect calendar.It's not about having everything checked off.It's about making room for the things you care about.And that brings me back to something I've been thinking about a lot lately.Sometimes I look at my calendar and I see all of these unfinished things.And my immediate reaction is:"There's too much here."But maybe another way to look at it is:"Look at all the things I get to be interested in."And I think the same thing can happen with triathlon.You look at your training calendar and you think:"Oh my God. I've got all these workouts."You look at your swim bag and think:"Look at all this stuff I have to carry."You look at your bike and think:"Look at all these things I have to check."You look at your nutrition and think:"I have to prepare all of this again."Or you can take a moment and think:"How cool is this?"I get to swim.I get to ride my bike.I get to run.I get to learn about my body.I get to experiment with training.I get to figure out what works.I get to prepare for a race.And all of these little rituals are part of that experience.So maybe the goal isn't to get rid of the complexity.Maybe the goal is to make the complexity manageable.And maybe the goal isn't to eliminate all of the unfinished things on my desk.Maybe it's to give those things a place to live.Because there's a difference between being overwhelmed by your life and being surrounded by evidence that you're living an interesting life.And sometimes, honestly, I think I confuse the two.So the next time I'm standing in the kitchen making a bottle of carb drink before a ride, or charging my watch, or putting my shoes beside the door, or stuffing my swim workout into a Ziploc bag...Maybe I'll try not to think:"God, I have to do all this stuff before I can train."Maybe I'll think:"This is the beginning of my training."And maybe that's a small shift.But I think sometimes the small shifts are the ones that change the way we experience our lives.Because the training isn't just the hour on the bike.It's the preparation.It's the anticipation.It's the ritual.It's the workout.It's the recovery.It's thinking about what you're going to do next time.It's all of it.And maybe that's one of the reasons I love this ridiculous sport so much.There's just so much to it.And instead of seeing all of that as one more thing to organize...Maybe I can see it as one more thing to enjoy.

I'm always trying to get more organized. But even if I were to succeed, would it help me in triathlon?TRANSCRIPTThere's something I've been thinking about lately, and it has to do with organization.And I know, organization isn't exactly the most exciting topic in the world.But I've been thinking about it in a slightly different way.Because I've realized that I tend to think of organization as something that happens when my life gets too messy.I've got a desk covered in papers.I've got things on my calendar that I haven't dealt with.I've got little projects that I've started but haven't finished.I've got receipts that need to be submitted, notes that I wrote down because I didn't want to forget them, things that I need to file away, things that I need to follow up on.And my first reaction is usually:"God, I really need to get organized."And I think that's true.But a few days ago, I was looking at all of this stuff and I had a slightly different thought.Maybe all of this stuff is also evidence of a life that's being lived.Because those papers didn't just magically appear on my desk.They're there because I'm doing things.I'm interested in things.I'm starting things.I'm trying things.I'm thinking about things.And that doesn't mean that I should leave my desk looking like a disaster forever.But maybe I don't have to look at the mess and immediately see evidence that I'm failing at being organized.Maybe I can look at it and see evidence of a life with some interest in it.And that got me thinking about triathlon.Because if there's one hobby that can generate an absolutely ridiculous amount of stuff, it's triathlon.Three sports.Three sets of equipment.Training plans.Nutrition.Clothing.Shoes.Bikes.Goggles.Fins.Paddles.Snorkels.Heart-rate monitors.Power meters.Bike computers.Lights.Radar.Bottles.Gels.Electrolytes.And then you've got all the little things that have to happen before you actually do the workout.And sometimes I think that's one of the reasons training can feel overwhelming.You don't just have to do the workout.You have to prepare to do the workout.Take swimming, for example.I might have a swim scheduled.And in my head, that sounds pretty simple."Okay, I'm going swimming."But then I actually think about what that involves.I've got to get my swim bag.I've got to make sure I've got my goggles.I've got my cap.I've got my towel.I've got my snorkel.Maybe I've got paddles.Maybe I've got a pull buoy.I've got to know what the workout is.Maybe I've printed it out.And if I'm putting the workout beside the pool, I might even put the damn thing in a Ziploc bag so it doesn't get soaked.And suddenly, "I'm going swimming" has become this little logistical operation.And you can look at that and think:"Jesus. This is a lot of work just to go swimming."And that's where I think organization becomes really important.Because one of the great things about being organized is that it removes friction.If I put my running shoes by the door the night before, that's one less decision I have to make in the morning.If I've already prepared my bike bottles, that's one less thing I have to think about.If my watch is charged, I don't have to discover at the last minute that it's sitting at 14 percent.If my swim bag is already packed, I don't have to go hunting around the house looking for my snorkel.And these things sound incredibly trivial.But they're not.Because motivation is a funny thing.Sometimes you have plenty of motivation.You actually want to go for the run.You actually want to ride your bike.You actually want to get in the pool.And then you encounter five little obstacles.Where are my shoes?My watch is dead.I haven't made my drink.Where's my towel?What am I supposed to do for this workout?And suddenly that little bit of motivation has been chipped away.So I think one of the great purposes of organization is not necessarily to make you more motivated.It's to protect the motivation that you already have.And I really like that idea.But I think there's another layer to this.And that's where the idea of ritual comes in.Because there's a difference between doing something because you have to do it and doing something as part of a ritual.Think about making your coffee in the morning.You could describe it as a series of chores.Fill the machine.Grind the beans.Put the coffee in.Turn it on.Clean it up.Or you could think of it as a little morning ritual.And somehow, that changes the experience.And I think the same thing can happen with training.Take preparing a bottle of carb drink.You can think:"God, I have to make this stupid drink again."Or you can think:"Okay. I'm getting ready for my ride."And you get the bottle.You put the water in.You measure out the carbs.You add the electrolytes.You shake it up.You put it in the fridge.And that's not just a chore anymore.It's part of the ride.It's the beginning of the ride.The same thing with charging your watch.The same thing with laying out your clothes.The same thing with getting your shoes ready.The same thing with packing your swim bag.The same thing with putting that workout into the Ziploc bag.You can look at every one of those things and say:"This is stuff I have to do before I can train."Or you can say:"This is how I prepare to train."And those two sentences sound almost identical.But emotionally, they're completely different.One is a burden.The other is a ritual.And I think there's something really powerful in that distinction.Because we spend so much of our time trying to get to the thing we actually want to do.We rush through the preparation.We rush through getting ready.We think the preparation is just an annoying obstacle between us and the good part.But maybe the preparation is part of the good part.Maybe there's actually some pleasure in getting ready.There's something satisfying about seeing the bike bottles lined up.There's something satisfying about getting your kit laid out.There's something satisfying about knowing that everything is ready to go.And I think that's particularly true in triathlon because there are so many little rituals.You put on the cycling shoes.You get the bottles into the cages.You turn on the trainer.You pull up the workout.You put your headphones on.You get on the bike.And there's a transition that happens.You're no longer sitting around thinking about everything else in your life.You're becoming the person who's about to train.And maybe that's part of the value of ritual.It tells your brain:"Okay. We're doing this now."And I think this also changes the way we think about all of the equipment.Because if you're not careful, all of the stuff that comes with triathlon can feel overwhelming.You start thinking:Why do I have all this stuff?Why do I have five different kinds of nutrition?Why do I have all these swim toys?Why do I need this bike computer?Why do I have a radar?Why do I have this light?Why do I have these shoes?And you can certainly take it too far.Triathlon is an excellent hobby if you want to become an obsessive consumer of tiny improvements.There's always another piece of equipment.There's always another gadget.There's always another thing that might make you three percent faster.And I'm certainly not immune to that.But I've also started thinking that some of that stuff is part of what makes the sport interesting.Take swimming.Maybe you've got a snorkel.You can use it to work on your body position.You've got paddles.You can feel what your catch is doing.You've got fins.You've got a pull buoy.And suddenly swimming isn't just:"Get in the pool and swim back and forth."There's this whole little world of things to explore.And the bike is the same.You can get interested in power.You can get interested in aerodynamics.You can get interested in tires.You can get interested in nutrition.You can get interested in bike fit.You can get interested in training.And I think that's one of the things I love about triathlon.There's always something to be curious about.And that brings me back to my messy desk.Because maybe the desk and the triathlon gear aren't actually that different.The desk is covered with evidence of all the things I'm interested in.And the garage, or the swim bag, or the training calendar, is covered with evidence of all the things I'm interested in as well.And I don't think the answer is to eliminate all of that.I think the answer is to organize it.Not because those things are bad.But because I want to be able to enjoy them.And that's an important distinction.Organization shouldn't necessarily be about simplifying your life to the point where there's nothing left in it.Maybe it's about organizing your life well enough that you can enjoy its complexity.Because triathlon is complex.And that's part of the fun.But there's a danger here, too.Because you can take this idea of preparation and ritual too far.You can become so focused on preparing that you never actually do the workout.You can spend an hour researching the perfect nutrition strategy for a 45-minute run.You can spend all day organizing your training instead of training.You can convince yourself that you need one more piece of equipment before you can really get started.And that's not what I'm talking about.The ritual is supposed to lead you into the activity.It's not supposed to replace the activity.So I think there's a balance.Prepare enough that you remove the friction.Organize enough that you don't have to make a hundred little decisions.But then actually go and do the thing.And maybe that's the real purpose of organization.It's not about having a perfect desk.It's not about having a perfect calendar.It's not about having everything checked off.It's about making room for the things you care about.And that brings me back to something I've been thinking about a lot lately.Sometimes I look at my calendar and I see all of these unfinished things.And my immediate reaction is:"There's too much here."But maybe another way to look at it is:"Look at all the things I get to be interested in."And I think the same thing can happen with triathlon.You look at your training calendar and you think:"Oh my God. I've got all these workouts."You look at your swim bag and think:"Look at all this stuff I have to carry."You look at your bike and think:"Look at all these things I have to check."You look at your nutrition and think:"I have to prepare all of this again."Or you can take a moment and think:"How cool is this?"I get to swim.I get to ride my bike.I get to run.I get to learn about my body.I get to experiment with training.I get to figure out what works.I get to prepare for a race.And all of these little rituals are part of that experience.So maybe the goal isn't to get rid of the complexity.Maybe the goal is to make the complexity manageable.And maybe the goal isn't to eliminate all of the unfinished things on my desk.Maybe it's to give those things a place to live.Because there's a difference between being overwhelmed by your life and being surrounded by evidence that you're living an interesting life.And sometimes, honestly, I think I confuse the two.So the next time I'm standing in the kitchen making a bottle of carb drink before a ride, or charging my watch, or putting my shoes beside the door, or stuffing my swim workout into a Ziploc bag...Maybe I'll try not to think:"God, I have to do all this stuff before I can train."Maybe I'll think:"This is the beginning of my training."And maybe that's a small shift.But I think sometimes the small shifts are the ones that change the way we experience our lives.Because the training isn't just the hour on the bike.It's the preparation.It's the anticipation.It's the ritual.It's the workout.It's the recovery.It's thinking about what you're going to do next time.It's all of it.And maybe that's one of the reasons I love this ridiculous sport so much.There's just so much to it.And instead of seeing all of that as one more thing to organize...Maybe I can see it as one more thing to enjoy.

I don't want to leave any stone unturned for my turn at the World Championships. I need a professional that can help me spot weaknesses before they cause a problem. So, who does that type of work? Finding them has proven a bit of a challenge.Come join the fun at www.patreon.com/thelonelytriathleteTRANSCRIPTTHE LONELY TRIATHLETEEpisode: Finding the Right Athletic TherapistThere's a funny thing I've discovered about being a triathlete as I get older.I'm becoming increasingly interested in things that have absolutely nothing to do with going faster.Well... that's not entirely true.I'm becoming increasingly interested in things that will allow me to go faster without breaking myself in the process.And that has led me down a bit of a rabbit hole lately.I've been trying to find an athletic therapist—or physiotherapist, or whatever the appropriate professional is—who can look at me and say:"Okay, Todd. You're 58. You're doing all this swimming, cycling and running. Here's what you're doing well, here's what you're doing badly, here's what's missing, and here's what I'd change."Not because I have an injury.I don't.And that's actually the point.I'm looking for somebody who can help me be proactive about my strength and conditioning and injury prevention.And I've discovered that finding that person is apparently harder than I thought.So let me tell you about my first attempt.THE ASSIGNMENTI went looking for a physiotherapist because I figured physiotherapists know bodies.They understand movement. They understand injuries. They understand rehabilitation.And I thought, surely there are physiotherapists who also work with athletes who aren't injured.That's what I wanted.I wasn't looking for somebody to tell me how to recover from a torn Achilles.I wanted somebody to look at my current strength program and say:"Does this make sense for a triathlete?"Because I've spent a fair amount of time developing my strength routine.I'm not interested in becoming a bodybuilder.I'm not trying to see how much I can deadlift.I want the minimum necessary strength stimulus that produces the maximum possible benefit for triathlon performance, while minimizing the risk of injury.That's the sweet spot I'm looking for.And I wanted somebody with enough expertise to tell me whether I've actually found it.Maybe I'm missing something obvious.Maybe I'm doing an exercise that provides almost no benefit for triathlon.Maybe I'm doing too much.Maybe I'm not doing enough.Maybe there's some glaring imbalance in my mobility or strength that I'm completely unaware of.That's the kind of professional eye I wanted.And I also wanted to talk about my injury history and perhaps get some advice about injury prevention.And, somewhat optimistically, I was also hoping to have somebody look at my supplements.Not necessarily prescribe anything—just look at what I'm taking and say:"Yeah, that makes sense."Or:"Why on earth are you taking that?"Because there's an awful lot of nonsense in the supplement world, and I'd rather have an informed professional challenge some of my assumptions.So that's what I thought I was going to get.WHAT I ACTUALLY GOTI went to see this physiotherapist.We did an intake.We talked about my history. We talked about injuries. We talked about what I was looking for.And then...I squatted.And squatted.And squatted some more.And at some point I found myself wondering:How many squats are we doing here?[Laugh]And then there was some walking around the office.And some twisting.And some questions about whether I felt tight here or tight there."Does that feel tight?""Does that feel different?""How about when you rotate?"And I'm thinking...Okay.I'm not a physiotherapist.I don't pretend to know what an appropriate physical assessment should look like.But this didn't feel particularly objective to me.It felt very cursory.Very rudimentary.And I didn't come away thinking:"Wow. This person has identified three things about my body that I never would have known."Instead, I was thinking:"I just did a lot of squats."[Laugh]And then things took a turn that I wasn't really expecting.I ended up on the massage table.And he performed something called visceral massage.Now, I'm going to be careful here because I'm not interested in turning this into a podcast episode about something I don't fully understand.There are people who believe visceral manipulation or visceral massage can have therapeutic benefits.Fine.But it wasn't what I had come looking for.And what really confused me was the explanation I was given for how problems with your internal organs could potentially contribute to pain elsewhere in your body.The basic idea, as it was explained to me, was that inflammation or tension involving your organs could somehow contribute to systemic inflammation and ultimately manifest itself as things like back or neck pain.And I remember sitting there thinking:Okay...[Laugh]I'm going to need a little more evidence before I'm signing up for a regular organ massage program.And again, maybe there's something to it.I'm not qualified to say there isn't.But that's another important distinction I've learned through this whole process.I don't necessarily want somebody who believes the same things I believe.I want somebody who can explain to me what they believe, what the evidence says, and how confident they are that it applies to me.That's a very different thing.AND THEN... NOTHINGAt the end of the appointment, we talked about potentially working together.He said he could help me with massage.He said we'd talk about my exercise program.He said we'd talk about my supplements.He even mentioned hydrogen water.And I thought:Okay. Maybe this is going somewhere.And then...Nothing.I never heard from him again.No email.No follow-up.Nothing.And I was disappointed.But after thinking about it, I don't actually think the lesson is:"That physiotherapist was terrible."Maybe he wasn't.Maybe he would be fantastic for somebody with a completely different set of needs.Maybe his approach works very well for some people.Maybe I just wasn't his ideal client.And maybe—and this is important—I didn't do a particularly good job of explaining what I wanted.Because I think I had this idea in my head that when I said:"I want a performance-oriented assessment of my strength and conditioning program, with injury prevention as a secondary goal..."that would be self-explanatory.Maybe it wasn't.WHAT AM I ACTUALLY LOOKING FOR?So I started doing some research.And I've spent a surprising amount of time trying to figure out what the hell I'm actually looking for.Because I think I've realized that I'm not really looking for a conventional physiotherapy appointment.I'm not injured.I don't need rehabilitation.I'm looking for somebody who understands endurance athletes.Ideally somebody who understands triathlon.And even better, somebody who understands the particular problems that come with being a middle-aged—or, apparently, officially an older—triathlete.[Laugh]Because the questions I'm asking aren't necessarily:"Why does my knee hurt?"They're more like:"Is my right side weaker than my left?""Is there something about my hip mobility that could eventually cause a problem?""Is my strength program addressing the things that matter most for swimming, cycling and running?""Am I wasting time doing exercises that aren't giving me much return?""Is there something I'm neglecting?""Does my strength program complement my endurance training—or is it interfering with it?"Those are the questions I want answered.And perhaps most importantly:Is there something about me that I can't see because I'm too close to the problem?That's where I think a good professional can be incredibly valuable.TRY NUMBER TWOSo I've gone back to the drawing board.I've been looking at physiotherapists in the Victoria area, and I've found somebody at the University of Victoria who seems much more closely aligned with what I'm looking for.She has experience working with endurance athletes—triathletes, cyclists, runners, rowers.And she has connections to the triathlon world as well.So suddenly I'm seeing some green flags.And I'm about to make another appointment.And I'm going into this one with a much clearer idea of what I want.I'm not looking for a massage.I'm not looking for somebody to tell me that something feels tight.I'm not looking for a treatment plan because I'm injured.I want an assessment.I want somebody to look at me from the perspective of an endurance athlete and identify anything that's potentially limiting my performance or increasing my injury risk.And then I want them to look at my strength program.Here's what I'm doing.Here's how often I'm doing it.Here's what I'm trying to accomplish.Does it make sense?Is there anything missing?Is there anything unnecessary?And is there anything that you would change based on what you've seen in the physical assessment?That's it.I don't think that's an unreasonable request.AND MAYBE I'VE BEEN THINKING ABOUT THIS BACKWARDSThere's another thing I've realized through this.I've always thought of physiotherapists as people you go see when something goes wrong.You hurt your shoulder.You hurt your knee.Your back is killing you.You go to the physiotherapist.They fix you.You go home.But maybe that's a little too simplistic.Maybe as I get older, having a good physiotherapist or athletic therapist in my toolbox is actually part of being a responsible athlete.Not because I expect to get injured.Quite the opposite.Because I don't want to get injured.And if somebody who understands endurance sports can spend an hour looking at me and identify something that I haven't noticed, that could potentially save me months of frustration down the road.And it might improve my performance today.That's a pretty good return on investment.THE BIGGER LESSONI think the bigger lesson for me is that the right professional is just as important as the profession."Physiotherapist" is a pretty broad label.There are physiotherapists who specialize in post-surgical rehabilitation.There are physiotherapists who work with chronic pain.There are physiotherapists who work with professional athletes.There are physiotherapists who are experts in pelvic health.There are physiotherapists who are fantastic manual therapists.And there are people who specialize in performance.Those aren't necessarily interchangeable.So if you're an athlete looking for this kind of help, I think you need to be very specific about what you're asking for.Don't just say:"I want to see a physiotherapist."Say:"I'm an endurance athlete. I'm not currently injured. I'm looking for a performance-oriented assessment. I want somebody to evaluate movement, strength, mobility and asymmetries, and then review my strength and conditioning program with an emphasis on performance and injury prevention."That's a much better description of what I'm looking for.And that's what I'm going to ask for this time.I'LL LET YOU KNOW HOW IT GOESSo...Attempt number one: not a great success.Attempt number two: coming up.And I'm actually quite interested to see what happens.Because maybe the answer is:"Todd, your strength program is actually pretty good. Don't change much."That would be great.Maybe she'll find something obvious that I've completely missed.That would also be great.And maybe she'll tell me:"You don't need to be doing half the stuff you're doing."Honestly?That might be the best outcome of all.Because one of the things I'm increasingly conscious of as I get older is that more training isn't necessarily better training.I want every piece of my training program to have a purpose.Swimming has a purpose.Cycling has a purpose.Running has a purpose.Strength training has a purpose.Recovery has a purpose.And if I'm going to spend 30 or 40 minutes in the gym, I want to know that those 30 or 40 minutes are actually making me a better triathlete.So that's the experiment.I'm going to find somebody who understands the athlete I'm trying to become—not just the body I happen to have today.And we'll see what she says.I'll report back.Because if I finally find the person I've been looking for, I suspect there are a lot of other aging triathletes who would like to know about them too.And maybe that's the real lesson here.Sometimes the hardest part of injury prevention isn't doing the exercises.It's finding somebody who can tell you which exercises you should actually be doing in the first place.

I don't want to leave any stone unturned for my turn at the World Championships. I need a professional that can help me spot weaknesses before they cause a problem. So, who does that type of work? Finding them has proven a bit of a challenge.TRANSCRIPTTHE LONELY TRIATHLETEEpisode: Finding the Right Athletic TherapistThere's a funny thing I've discovered about being a triathlete as I get older.I'm becoming increasingly interested in things that have absolutely nothing to do with going faster.Well... that's not entirely true.I'm becoming increasingly interested in things that will allow me to go faster without breaking myself in the process.And that has led me down a bit of a rabbit hole lately.I've been trying to find an athletic therapist—or physiotherapist, or whatever the appropriate professional is—who can look at me and say:"Okay, Todd. You're 58. You're doing all this swimming, cycling and running. Here's what you're doing well, here's what you're doing badly, here's what's missing, and here's what I'd change."Not because I have an injury.I don't.And that's actually the point.I'm looking for somebody who can help me be proactive about my strength and conditioning and injury prevention.And I've discovered that finding that person is apparently harder than I thought.So let me tell you about my first attempt.THE ASSIGNMENTI went looking for a physiotherapist because I figured physiotherapists know bodies.They understand movement. They understand injuries. They understand rehabilitation.And I thought, surely there are physiotherapists who also work with athletes who aren't injured.That's what I wanted.I wasn't looking for somebody to tell me how to recover from a torn Achilles.I wanted somebody to look at my current strength program and say:"Does this make sense for a triathlete?"Because I've spent a fair amount of time developing my strength routine.I'm not interested in becoming a bodybuilder.I'm not trying to see how much I can deadlift.I want the minimum necessary strength stimulus that produces the maximum possible benefit for triathlon performance, while minimizing the risk of injury.That's the sweet spot I'm looking for.And I wanted somebody with enough expertise to tell me whether I've actually found it.Maybe I'm missing something obvious.Maybe I'm doing an exercise that provides almost no benefit for triathlon.Maybe I'm doing too much.Maybe I'm not doing enough.Maybe there's some glaring imbalance in my mobility or strength that I'm completely unaware of.That's the kind of professional eye I wanted.And I also wanted to talk about my injury history and perhaps get some advice about injury prevention.And, somewhat optimistically, I was also hoping to have somebody look at my supplements.Not necessarily prescribe anything—just look at what I'm taking and say:"Yeah, that makes sense."Or:"Why on earth are you taking that?"Because there's an awful lot of nonsense in the supplement world, and I'd rather have an informed professional challenge some of my assumptions.So that's what I thought I was going to get.WHAT I ACTUALLY GOTI went to see this physiotherapist.We did an intake.We talked about my history. We talked about injuries. We talked about what I was looking for.And then...I squatted.And squatted.And squatted some more.And at some point I found myself wondering:How many squats are we doing here?[Laugh]And then there was some walking around the office.And some twisting.And some questions about whether I felt tight here or tight there."Does that feel tight?""Does that feel different?""How about when you rotate?"And I'm thinking...Okay.I'm not a physiotherapist.I don't pretend to know what an appropriate physical assessment should look like.But this didn't feel particularly objective to me.It felt very cursory.Very rudimentary.And I didn't come away thinking:"Wow. This person has identified three things about my body that I never would have known."Instead, I was thinking:"I just did a lot of squats."[Laugh]And then things took a turn that I wasn't really expecting.I ended up on the massage table.And he performed something called visceral massage.Now, I'm going to be careful here because I'm not interested in turning this into a podcast episode about something I don't fully understand.There are people who believe visceral manipulation or visceral massage can have therapeutic benefits.Fine.But it wasn't what I had come looking for.And what really confused me was the explanation I was given for how problems with your internal organs could potentially contribute to pain elsewhere in your body.The basic idea, as it was explained to me, was that inflammation or tension involving your organs could somehow contribute to systemic inflammation and ultimately manifest itself as things like back or neck pain.And I remember sitting there thinking:Okay...[Laugh]I'm going to need a little more evidence before I'm signing up for a regular organ massage program.And again, maybe there's something to it.I'm not qualified to say there isn't.But that's another important distinction I've learned through this whole process.I don't necessarily want somebody who believes the same things I believe.I want somebody who can explain to me what they believe, what the evidence says, and how confident they are that it applies to me.That's a very different thing.AND THEN... NOTHINGAt the end of the appointment, we talked about potentially working together.He said he could help me with massage.He said we'd talk about my exercise program.He said we'd talk about my supplements.He even mentioned hydrogen water.And I thought:Okay. Maybe this is going somewhere.And then...Nothing.I never heard from him again.No email.No follow-up.Nothing.And I was disappointed.But after thinking about it, I don't actually think the lesson is:"That physiotherapist was terrible."Maybe he wasn't.Maybe he would be fantastic for somebody with a completely different set of needs.Maybe his approach works very well for some people.Maybe I just wasn't his ideal client.And maybe—and this is important—I didn't do a particularly good job of explaining what I wanted.Because I think I had this idea in my head that when I said:"I want a performance-oriented assessment of my strength and conditioning program, with injury prevention as a secondary goal..."that would be self-explanatory.Maybe it wasn't.WHAT AM I ACTUALLY LOOKING FOR?So I started doing some research.And I've spent a surprising amount of time trying to figure out what the hell I'm actually looking for.Because I think I've realized that I'm not really looking for a conventional physiotherapy appointment.I'm not injured.I don't need rehabilitation.I'm looking for somebody who understands endurance athletes.Ideally somebody who understands triathlon.And even better, somebody who understands the particular problems that come with being a middle-aged—or, apparently, officially an older—triathlete.[Laugh]Because the questions I'm asking aren't necessarily:"Why does my knee hurt?"They're more like:"Is my right side weaker than my left?""Is there something about my hip mobility that could eventually cause a problem?""Is my strength program addressing the things that matter most for swimming, cycling and running?""Am I wasting time doing exercises that aren't giving me much return?""Is there something I'm neglecting?""Does my strength program complement my endurance training—or is it interfering with it?"Those are the questions I want answered.And perhaps most importantly:Is there something about me that I can't see because I'm too close to the problem?That's where I think a good professional can be incredibly valuable.TRY NUMBER TWOSo I've gone back to the drawing board.I've been looking at physiotherapists in the Victoria area, and I've found somebody at the University of Victoria who seems much more closely aligned with what I'm looking for.She has experience working with endurance athletes—triathletes, cyclists, runners, rowers.And she has connections to the triathlon world as well.So suddenly I'm seeing some green flags.And I'm about to make another appointment.And I'm going into this one with a much clearer idea of what I want.I'm not looking for a massage.I'm not looking for somebody to tell me that something feels tight.I'm not looking for a treatment plan because I'm injured.I want an assessment.I want somebody to look at me from the perspective of an endurance athlete and identify anything that's potentially limiting my performance or increasing my injury risk.And then I want them to look at my strength program.Here's what I'm doing.Here's how often I'm doing it.Here's what I'm trying to accomplish.Does it make sense?Is there anything missing?Is there anything unnecessary?And is there anything that you would change based on what you've seen in the physical assessment?That's it.I don't think that's an unreasonable request.AND MAYBE I'VE BEEN THINKING ABOUT THIS BACKWARDSThere's another thing I've realized through this.I've always thought of physiotherapists as people you go see when something goes wrong.You hurt your shoulder.You hurt your knee.Your back is killing you.You go to the physiotherapist.They fix you.You go home.But maybe that's a little too simplistic.Maybe as I get older, having a good physiotherapist or athletic therapist in my toolbox is actually part of being a responsible athlete.Not because I expect to get injured.Quite the opposite.Because I don't want to get injured.And if somebody who understands endurance sports can spend an hour looking at me and identify something that I haven't noticed, that could potentially save me months of frustration down the road.And it might improve my performance today.That's a pretty good return on investment.THE BIGGER LESSONI think the bigger lesson for me is that the right professional is just as important as the profession."Physiotherapist" is a pretty broad label.There are physiotherapists who specialize in post-surgical rehabilitation.There are physiotherapists who work with chronic pain.There are physiotherapists who work with professional athletes.There are physiotherapists who are experts in pelvic health.There are physiotherapists who are fantastic manual therapists.And there are people who specialize in performance.Those aren't necessarily interchangeable.So if you're an athlete looking for this kind of help, I think you need to be very specific about what you're asking for.Don't just say:"I want to see a physiotherapist."Say:"I'm an endurance athlete. I'm not currently injured. I'm looking for a performance-oriented assessment. I want somebody to evaluate movement, strength, mobility and asymmetries, and then review my strength and conditioning program with an emphasis on performance and injury prevention."That's a much better description of what I'm looking for.And that's what I'm going to ask for this time.I'LL LET YOU KNOW HOW IT GOESSo...Attempt number one: not a great success.Attempt number two: coming up.And I'm actually quite interested to see what happens.Because maybe the answer is:"Todd, your strength program is actually pretty good. Don't change much."That would be great.Maybe she'll find something obvious that I've completely missed.That would also be great.And maybe she'll tell me:"You don't need to be doing half the stuff you're doing."Honestly?That might be the best outcome of all.Because one of the things I'm increasingly conscious of as I get older is that more training isn't necessarily better training.I want every piece of my training program to have a purpose.Swimming has a purpose.Cycling has a purpose.Running has a purpose.Strength training has a purpose.Recovery has a purpose.And if I'm going to spend 30 or 40 minutes in the gym, I want to know that those 30 or 40 minutes are actually making me a better triathlete.So that's the experiment.I'm going to find somebody who understands the athlete I'm trying to become—not just the body I happen to have today.And we'll see what she says.I'll report back.Because if I finally find the person I've been looking for, I suspect there are a lot of other aging triathletes who would like to know about them too.And maybe that's the real lesson here.Sometimes the hardest part of injury prevention isn't doing the exercises.It's finding somebody who can tell you which exercises you should actually be doing in the first place.

I learned some things about myself in my week of easier training last week (the so-called rest week). Maybe you can relate?Join us at www.patreon.com/thelonelytriathlete.comTRANSCRIPTLast week I completed my 1st "rest week" of my year long program. Not rest week, easy week. Not even easy week, easier week. Still keep the same frequency but drop a bit of volume and drop lots of intensity. Happened to coincide with a vacation week which made it a little harder to execute (once got in trouble at work for saying that word, same with "pitting" someone against each other.) But aaaaaaanyway.Here's what was on my mind: I missed the structure of a normal week - getting up early, doing my training, having it done before the rest of the demands of my day piled up. As it was also vacation, I also missed a couple of workouts because I was into other things or I was out all day and not home until late evening. And that bothered me. I don't like missing planned workouts. But when I really thought about it, I realized IT WAS NOT A BIG DEAL. After all, if you are going to miss any workout, at least let it be an easy "non-critical" or what we use in triathlon training paracme a non-breakthrough effort. After all, the rest week (sorry, easier week) is supposed to reduce stress not only on your body but also on your mind. But this doesn't come naturally to me, I know how important training is, how its a slippery slope to let one workout go because that can easily become 2 then 3 then your whole year is shot! A least, that's the fear lurking in the back of my mind.So, I continue to remind myself that a missed easier week workout is simply not a big deal. I also re-learned that as much as I might grumble about early morning training sessions, they really are the best time to do them for me. However, I still don't want to get blindly "get them over with" for two reasons: I think I get more from a session if I understand the WHY of the session, if I prepare myself for the session as in being ready if someone goes wrong (like suddenly struggling with an effort) and second, and probably most importantly, I want to ENJOY these sessions! This is how I'm choosing to spend some of my life force, my precious time on this earth. I want to be mindful and present in the effort, I don't want to go on auto pilot and just "get it done".Another thing I learned about myself last week was how naturally lazy I am, haha. On one hand, I am extremely dedicated and committed to this sport, I am very organized and show tremendous willpower and fortitude and grit. On the other hand, I can't always be bothered to use my foam roller or my IR sauna blanket or my ventilatory inhalation thing-a-ma-bob, or even do those special stretches my PT gave me. SIGH. And once again, it's because I leave certain behaviours down to change, I'll get to them when I feel inspired or have a bit of time. No, that doesn't work, I need to SCHEDULE them into my day. I need to pair them with something else that I have either scheduled or do regularly. Otherwise, the chances are good that I just won't do them.Who knew I'd learn so much about myself during a easy week?Thanks for listening to my insights, I hope you found some of them valuable and perhaps applicable to you. As always, I wish you the best training and/or racing week and I'll talk to you again soon.Peace!

I learned some things about myself in my week of easier training last week (the so-called rest week). Maybe you can relate?TRANSCRIPTLast week I completed my 1st "rest week" of my year long program. Not rest week, easy week. Not even easy week, easier week. Still keep the same frequency but drop a bit of volume and drop lots of intensity. Happened to coincide with a vacation week which made it a little harder to execute (once got in trouble at work for saying that word, same with "pitting" someone against each other.) But aaaaaaanyway.Here's what was on my mind: I missed the structure of a normal week - getting up early, doing my training, having it done before the rest of the demands of my day piled up. As it was also vacation, I also missed a couple of workouts because I was into other things or I was out all day and not home until late evening. And that bothered me. I don't like missing planned workouts. But when I really thought about it, I realized IT WAS NOT A BIG DEAL. After all, if you are going to miss any workout, at least let it be an easy "non-critical" or what we use in triathlon training paracme a non-breakthrough effort. After all, the rest week (sorry, easier week) is supposed to reduce stress not only on your body but also on your mind. But this doesn't come naturally to me, I know how important training is, how its a slippery slope to let one workout go because that can easily become 2 then 3 then your whole year is shot! A least, that's the fear lurking in the back of my mind.So, I continue to remind myself that a missed easier week workout is simply not a big deal. I also re-learned that as much as I might grumble about early morning training sessions, they really are the best time to do them for me. However, I still don't want to get blindly "get them over with" for two reasons: I think I get more from a session if I understand the WHY of the session, if I prepare myself for the session as in being ready if someone goes wrong (like suddenly struggling with an effort) and second, and probably most importantly, I want to ENJOY these sessions! This is how I'm choosing to spend some of my life force, my precious time on this earth. I want to be mindful and present in the effort, I don't want to go on auto pilot and just "get it done".Another thing I learned about myself last week was how naturally lazy I am, haha. On one hand, I am extremely dedicated and committed to this sport, I am very organized and show tremendous willpower and fortitude and grit. On the other hand, I can't always be bothered to use my foam roller or my IR sauna blanket or my ventilatory inhalation thing-a-ma-bob, or even do those special stretches my PT gave me. SIGH. And once again, it's because I leave certain behaviours down to change, I'll get to them when I feel inspired or have a bit of time. No, that doesn't work, I need to SCHEDULE them into my day. I need to pair them with something else that I have either scheduled or do regularly. Otherwise, the chances are good that I just won't do them.Who knew I'd learn so much about myself during a easy week?Thanks for listening to my insights, I hope you found some of them valuable and perhaps applicable to you. As always, I wish you the best training and/or racing week and I'll talk to you again soon.Peace!

I used to race according to a bunch of different metrics including the old stand-byes of heart rate and power. Then I got rid of my watch and raced with a new super power!Come join the fun at www.patreon.com/thelonelytriathleteTRANSCRIPTApologies to everyone for a screw up I made last week. You see, I thought I had uploaded the audio to my podcast but I didn't. So what you would have seen was my written transcript only. I corrected that mistake yesterday so if you haven't heard last week's podcast, it's there now.And now, onto this weeks' thoughts.When to comes to your race performance during a race, how do you know if you are doing well? How do you know if you are hitting your splits or your power curve or your heart rate? In other words, what measurement are you using to track how things are going?You see, when I first started I needed to know a few metrics in each sport so I could determine if I was doing my training (and, or course, racing) as prescribed.In the swim, I tracked distance. Warm up xM, drills for xM, main set x lengths with x rest. The problem was, I didn't know how fast or slow I was supposed to go. So then I moved into tracking speed - xM "on" :45, which meant swim a certain distance and if I had time left from the initial :45, I would rest and then do another length, resting until the :45 was used up, etc. The problem with that was sometimes the ":45" was too long -Id arrive at the end of the length and just sit there for such a long time. In oher cases, the interval was to short because I'd just finish my length and have 3 seonds of rest before I'd have to take off again. Eventually, I stuck with RPE and would swim a certain distance at an effort of x/10, 4 being quite relaxed, 7 being confortable fast and 9 or 10 full out sprint. Problem was, how fast was "relaxed"? How fast was "hard"? I knew what all out was. For a time I even trained by heart rate, almost like I was running but in the water. I sorta worked? But not really. It was hard to figure out what do do so I ended up just focusing on the distace and effort was either EASY or HARD.On the bike, I trained exclusievly by heart rate. I made the assupmtion that my maximum heart rate was 15 beats/min less than my run max and treated my bike just like a run. It worked pretty well, until I got into situations where it seemed that I was biking harder or slower than I wanted to because of hills or wind. I then shifted to focussing on distace with effort alteranating between EASY and HARD.Running was the easiest. I trained by heart rate. Forget pace, I did a maximum heart test by running uo and down a hill 5 times inceasngly faster each time until the final all=out effort where I imagined a bear was chasing me, then I added 3 bpm to extra measure. My training was then set according to 5 ZONES. It was simple and measurable. Then I read a few books on running by heart rate and realized that I needed to be setting my zone by heart rate reserve. All of a sudden, things started to feel complicated again. But my and large, training by heart rate was the way I went.During races, I was lost as to my effort in the swim. On the bike, I focussed on heart rate and on the run, I watched heart rate and pace. I raced this way for years and grew comfortable with the measurements. In the bike and run, if I saw my heart rate too high, I'd pull back. Conversely, if I saw my HR too low, I'd convince myself to speed up.About 10 years ago, I realized something that revolutionized my racing. With my experience in traing and racing and tracking a number of metrics, I started getitng very good at perceiving, without looking at a watch, how fast or hard I was going. Even better, I was able to sense how hard I was able to push muself without bonking by just listeing to my body. At any given time in a race, I could tell you within 2 bpm what my HR was or within 1-2kmhr what my speed was. After I had trained for a while accoding to POWER on the bike, I could also estimate by current power output with incredible prescision. But again, the important point wasn;t that I knew my number it was that I knew how sustainable that effort was given my envoronment - wind, hills, heat, energy. And this changed everythign for me 5 years ago.I raced for the first time without my watch or power meter. I raced 100% by feel. I knew how fast I could swim at a 7/10 effort so that was my goal. I knew what an 8/10 felt like on the bike - I knew what it felt like on the flats, up a hill, into the wind, early or late in a race. So an 8/10 was by goal. But I also knew if I was havig a day where I could push an 8 earlier, or an 8.5 later. I was no longer help back by a number. And on the run, I knew how hard I could and SHOULD push myself according to how I felt, I didn't race according to what the numbers told me. I think in years past, I may have held myself back with an artificial ceiling, limiting myself to a specific HR number rather than trusting my feelings.My racing friends thought I was crazy! You are cycling and running without a watch? How will you know if you are on plan? How will you know when you can push harder or determine if you aren't pusing hard engouh. And I get it, I was very nervous to get into a race and "fly blind" so to speak. But the reality is, without a watch, without tracking my metrics in a race, I'm racing more free than ever before. I can decide to speed up, maintain, or slow down based entirely on my subjective feeling. It was and continues to be an incredibly FREEING feeling! It no longer feels like I am racing without a plan, it feels like I am always in the driver's seat, not a GPS watch or some pre-determined numbers but ME, deciding on a moment by moment basis how I am doing. I trust my feelings. After each race I think about how I executed my strategy. Did I have more gas in the tank after the run? How did I feel in the last 2 KM? Upon reflection, I may realize that I am able to suffer more in the final 2km and so I rest what I expect to feel for the next race. And I've made mistakes, I cycled at much too fast a speed for my 70.3 last year and I know how I FELT (I felt great) but the next time I do a 70.3, that sensation needs to feel even less strenuous than "great", it needs to feel "really good and I have a a bunch left over in the tank."All this to say, I encourage you, even challenge you, to do a race without your measuremnt devices. Go based on feel and perception of effort. Once you make the association between approprite effort and performance that day, you will have gained a new super power. You can race anywhere, unshakled by devices, to great effect. You just have to trust yourself. Until next time,Peace

I used to race according to hard metrics - hear rate, power, you name it. Then I got rid of my watch and gained a super power.TRANSCRIPTApologies to everyone for a screw up I made last week. You see, I thought I had uploaded the audio to my podcast but I didn't. So what you would have seen was my written transcript only. I corrected that mistake yesterday so if you haven't heard last week's podcast, it's there now.And now, onto this weeks' thoughts.When to comes to your race performance during a race, how do you know if you are doing well? How do you know if you are hitting your splits or your power curve or your heart rate? In other words, what measurement are you using to track how things are going?You see, when I first started I needed to know a few metrics in each sport so I could determine if I was doing my training (and, or course, racing) as prescribed.In the swim, I tracked distance. Warm up xM, drills for xM, main set x lengths with x rest. The problem was, I didn't know how fast or slow I was supposed to go. So then I moved into tracking speed - xM "on" :45, which meant swim a certain distance and if I had time left from the initial :45, I would rest and then do another length, resting until the :45 was used up, etc. The problem with that was sometimes the ":45" was too long -Id arrive at the end of the length and just sit there for such a long time. In oher cases, the interval was to short because I'd just finish my length and have 3 seonds of rest before I'd have to take off again. Eventually, I stuck with RPE and would swim a certain distance at an effort of x/10, 4 being quite relaxed, 7 being confortable fast and 9 or 10 full out sprint. Problem was, how fast was "relaxed"? How fast was "hard"? I knew what all out was. For a time I even trained by heart rate, almost like I was running but in the water. I sorta worked? But not really. It was hard to figure out what do do so I ended up just focusing on the distace and effort was either EASY or HARD.On the bike, I trained exclusievly by heart rate. I made the assupmtion that my maximum heart rate was 15 beats/min less than my run max and treated my bike just like a run. It worked pretty well, until I got into situations where it seemed that I was biking harder or slower than I wanted to because of hills or wind. I then shifted to focussing on distace with effort alteranating between EASY and HARD.Running was the easiest. I trained by heart rate. Forget pace, I did a maximum heart test by running uo and down a hill 5 times inceasngly faster each time until the final all=out effort where I imagined a bear was chasing me, then I added 3 bpm to extra measure. My training was then set according to 5 ZONES. It was simple and measurable. Then I read a few books on running by heart rate and realized that I needed to be setting my zone by heart rate reserve. All of a sudden, things started to feel complicated again. But my and large, training by heart rate was the way I went.During races, I was lost as to my effort in the swim. On the bike, I focussed on heart rate and on the run, I watched heart rate and pace. I raced this way for years and grew comfortable with the measurements. In the bike and run, if I saw my heart rate too high, I'd pull back. Conversely, if I saw my HR too low, I'd convince myself to speed up.About 10 years ago, I realized something that revolutionized my racing. With my experience in traing and racing and tracking a number of metrics, I started getitng very good at perceiving, without looking at a watch, how fast or hard I was going. Even better, I was able to sense how hard I was able to push muself without bonking by just listeing to my body. At any given time in a race, I could tell you within 2 bpm what my HR was or within 1-2kmhr what my speed was. After I had trained for a while accoding to POWER on the bike, I could also estimate by current power output with incredible prescision. But again, the important point wasn;t that I knew my number it was that I knew how sustainable that effort was given my envoronment - wind, hills, heat, energy. And this changed everythign for me 5 years ago.I raced for the first time without my watch or power meter. I raced 100% by feel. I knew how fast I could swim at a 7/10 effort so that was my goal. I knew what an 8/10 felt like on the bike - I knew what it felt like on the flats, up a hill, into the wind, early or late in a race. So an 8/10 was by goal. But I also knew if I was havig a day where I could push an 8 earlier, or an 8.5 later. I was no longer help back by a number. And on the run, I knew how hard I could and SHOULD push myself according to how I felt, I didn't race according to what the numbers told me. I think in years past, I may have held myself back with an artificial ceiling, limiting myself to a specific HR number rather than trusting my feelings.My racing friends thought I was crazy! You are cycling and running without a watch? How will you know if you are on plan? How will you know when you can push harder or determine if you aren't pusing hard engouh. And I get it, I was very nervous to get into a race and "fly blind" so to speak. But the reality is, without a watch, without tracking my metrics in a race, I'm racing more free than ever before. I can decide to speed up, maintain, or slow down based entirely on my subjective feeling. It was and continues to be an incredibly FREEING feeling! It no longer feels like I am racing without a plan, it feels like I am always in the driver's seat, not a GPS watch or some pre-determined numbers but ME, deciding on a moment by moment basis how I am doing. I trust my feelings. After each race I think about how I executed my strategy. Did I have more gas in the tank after the run? How did I feel in the last 2 KM? Upon reflection, I may realize that I am able to suffer more in the final 2km and so I rest what I expect to feel for the next race. And I've made mistakes, I cycled at much too fast a speed for my 70.3 last year and I know how I FELT (I felt great) but the next time I do a 70.3, that sensation needs to feel even less strenuous than "great", it needs to feel "really good and I have a a bunch left over in the tank."All this to say, I encourage you, even challenge you, to do a race without your measuremnt devices. Go based on feel and perception of effort. Once you make the association between approprite effort and performance that day, you will have gained a new super power. You can race anywhere, unshakled by devices, to great effect. You just have to trust yourself. Until next time,Peace

As I embark on an ambitious (overly ambitious?) new triathlon plan I am discovering that it is going to be its very own challenge. How do I fit in more workouts than ever yet maintain my sanity and health?Check out more at www.patreon.com/thelonelytriathleteTRANSCRIPTSo, this week concludes the first week of my training season in my journey to Germany. Where I am taking things to another level.Specifically, I'm going to be taking things to another level in terms of exercise VOLUME.For most days of the week, I'm going to be doing two workouts a day. And I have to find a way—or, I should say, I AM finding a way—to also squeeze in two strength-training sessions into my week.At first, I thought this was ambitious but doable.And after one week under my belt, I now realize how truly ambitious it's going to be. In a number of ways.The first way is just schedule-wise.Trying to fit in two workouts a day doesn't seem that hard. It doesn't sound that hard. And I've done it before with no real problem.But I've only done it before occasionally.I've never had it comprise five of my six training days.And doing double workouts for five of your six training days is a COMPLETELY different experience than trying to fit in one or two doubles in a week.So, schedule-wise, I'm going to have to figure this out.So far, doing an early-morning SOMETHING—usually a bike—followed by an afternoon, or a noon, sorry, a LUNCHTIME run, works very well because I can eat at my desk while I work.I can blast out at noon for a 30-minute workout, get back to my desk, and I can eat and work.And that leaves the evening free for personal things, and for relationship stuff, and for other things.And that's important to me.Because one of the things I'm trying to figure out with this training block isn't simply, “How much training can I cram into my life?”It's, “How much training can I do while still HAVING a life?”Those are two very different questions.When it comes to swimming, though, most days I'm going to have to try to get out for an early-morning swim.And that means I've got to get out of the house earlier than normal—maybe 7:15 at the latest—in order to be back in time for work.So I could do an early-morning swim and then an afternoon cycle or an afternoon run.And I keep saying “afternoon.”I mean lunchtime.Because I'm working.I can't just take the time off and go do these long sessions whenever I want.I have to find some way to squeeze them in.And that's what I mean about scheduling.It's going to be a challenge.I think I can do it.I mean, I did it this last week.But I had some hiccups.I went to the lake at 7:30 in the morning, and there was blue-green algae.So I couldn't swim in the lake.I had to turn around, drive all the way back home, and figure out another way of doing things.And that's going to happen.There are going to be these constant little scheduling challenges.And I hope, for the most part, I CAN figure out something that works for most days so I'm not always having to figure out how to do it.Because that would get really old really fast.If I had to wake up every day and think, “Okay, how am I going to make this work today?”I'm not sure that's sustainable.So that's challenge number one.*Challenge number two is the ENERGY required to do two workouts a day.*I was fine this week until Thursday.And then it all really started hitting me.I was feeling quite fatigued.And TrainerRoad thankfully gave me Friday off and offered me up some easier workouts.And I was grateful for that.Because I could feel the fatigue.And that's something I'm going to have to learn to manage, not just REACT to.I'm going to have to manage it PROACTIVELY.Because I can see how, over the course of even a couple of months of this, I could bury myself in a hole that I would have a hard time getting out of.And that's not the objective.The objective isn't to see how tired I can make myself.The objective is to train, recover, adapt, and get better.And if I don't recover, then I'm missing a really important part of that equation.So focusing on energy preservation when I'm not working out is going to be really key.And that may mean adding an extra half hour to my sleep.Which is not easy for me to do.Because I don't LIKE sleeping.I'm too busy having fun to sleep. Heh hehI get eight hours a night and that's pretty good.But I'm going to have to be really, really cognizant of whether eight hours is going to cut it.And I'm going to have to be prepared to go to eight and a half hours—or even longer—if required.And certainly all of my recovery protocols need to be put into play.My infrared sauna blanket.My red-light therapy.My massage gun.My nutrition.Extra protein.You name it.That all has to be on point.Because if I'm going to increase the training load, I can't just increase the training load.I have to increase the recovery that supports that training load.And that's ANOTHER thing I'm learning this week.The training itself is actually only part of the challenge.There's the training.There's the scheduling.There's the recovery.There's the sleep.There's the nutrition.And then there's everything else going on in life.And that brings me to what I think may actually be the BIGGEST challenge of all.And that's not something that's easy to quantify.It's the fact that triathlon is on my mind all the time now.And don't get me wrong.I love it.I love thinking about it.I love talking about it.I love engaging in it.I love the process.I love the idea of starting with a body that's rested from good sleep, providing it some good pre-workout nutrition, giving it a training stimulus, and then responding with nutrition and hydration and recovery.I LOVE all of that.But I really don't want to become IMBALANCED.I don't want to give up too much of my mental real estate for triathlon-related stuff when I am also wanting to work on my novel.I'm also wanting to engage with my brother and my kids and my wife.I want to do some reading.There's lots of reading.There are a lot of things I want to do.Triathlon is not my life.It's merely a significant, important part of it.And I think that's something I'm going to have to keep reminding myself of over the course of this training season.Because there's a common joke that goes around:How can you tell a triathlete if you're at a party?It's the person who's always talking about triathlon.I think that's the punchline.I probably butchered it.But you know what I mean.Triathletes can become quite obsessed.Or maybe “obsessed” isn't even the right word.They become very, very focused.And there's a reason for that.Triathlon requires so much from you.It requires planning.It requires effort.It requires gear.It requires nutrition.It requires recovery.It requires travel.It requires time.And when you put all of those things together, it's really easy for the sport to become the main part of your life.And then, when you get to a party and somebody asks you what you've been up to, well...You've been running.You've been biking.You've been swimming.You've been thinking about running, biking, and swimming.You've been thinking about what you're going to eat while you're running, biking, and swimming.You've been thinking about what equipment you're going to use.You've been thinking about your next race.You've been thinking about your training plan.And suddenly, that's what you have to talk about.And I don't want to be THAT GUY.I want to be able to talk about other things.I want to read.I want to write.I want to spend time with the people I love.I want to be engaged with the world outside of triathlon.And I think that's particularly important for me because this is going to be a big training year.I'm on a journey to Germany.I've got a goal.I've got a destination.And I'm going to be taking the training seriously.But taking something seriously doesn't necessarily mean allowing it to consume you.And I think that's going to be one of the interesting experiments of this year.Can I train at a level that I've never trained at before while still maintaining balance in the rest of my life?Can I become better at triathlon without making triathlon my entire identity?Can I pursue something with real ambition while still being flexible when other things matter more?Because there are going to be days when training has to take a back seat.There are going to be days when life gets in the way.And I don't necessarily mean that in a negative sense.Sometimes life is more important.Sometimes relationships are more important.Sometimes your mental health is more important.Sometimes you need to go do something completely unrelated to triathlon.And I think that's okay.Actually, I think that's necessary.So this first week has been a really interesting lesson.I started out thinking, “Okay, this is ambitious but doable.”And now I'm thinking, “Okay... this is really ambitious.”But that's not necessarily a bad thing.I'm excited.I am VERY excited.This is going to be a challenge, much like the sport itself is a challenge.And I think the training season is going to be another unique sport, per se.Another unique challenge.I don't know how to DO all the things I want to do.I'm not sure if I can excel at all of the things I want to do.But I'm going to try.And I'm curious.And I'm interested in how it goes.And I'm going to be flexible and adaptable.That's probably the biggest lesson from this first week.I don't need to have the entire year figured out right now.I need to figure out what works.I need to pay attention to what doesn't work.I need to make adjustments.And then I need to keep moving forward.Because that's really what this journey to Germany is about.It's not just about the race.It's about the process of becoming the athlete who can show up in Germany and perform at the level that I want to perform at.And becoming that athlete isn't simply about putting more hours into training.It's about learning how to manage my time.Learning how to manage fatigue.Learning how to recover.Learning how to prioritize.And learning how to maintain balance.And maybe that's the real challenge.Not whether I can do two workouts a day.I can do two workouts a day.The question is whether I can do two workouts a day, five days a week, for months and months, while still being the person I want to be outside of those workouts.That's a much more interesting question.And I don't know the answer yet.And that's okay.I'm going to find out.And I'm going to share that process with you.Because that's what I love about this podcast.I don't have all the answers.I'm figuring this out as I go.And I suspect that many of you listening are doing the same thing in your own sports and your own lives.Maybe you're a triathlete.Maybe you're a cyclist.Maybe you're a runner.Maybe you lift weights.Maybe your challenge has nothing to do with sport at all.But whatever sport you're into, whatever activity you're passionate about, you're into it because it fills something in you.It fills a need.Maybe it's competition.Maybe it's good health.Maybe it's time outside.Maybe it's social time.Maybe it's the feeling of getting better at something.Maybe it's simply the feeling of challenging yourself.Whatever it is, we do these things because they are worthy of being done.And I think that's worth remembering.Because sometimes, when you're trying to improve, it's easy to turn something you love into another obligation.And I don't want to do that.I want to keep the fun.I want to keep the curiosity.I want to keep the challenge.I want to keep the feeling that I'm lucky to be able to do this.Because I am.So, that's where I am after week one.A little tired.A little trepidatious—if that's a word.But excited.Invested.Interested.Motivated.And having fun.I don't know exactly how I'm going to make all of this work.But I'm going to try.And I'm going to pay attention.And I'm going to adapt.And every week, I'll share with you the things I think about on this journey.The things I struggle with.The things I have victories over.The things I learn.And hopefully, every once in a while, something I learn will resonate with you.Maybe you'll identify with me here and there.And maybe you can take something from my journey and use it to enhance your own.That's the whole point.So, week one is in the books.The journey to Germany has officially begun.And apparently, I have a lot to learn.Until next time.Peace.

As I embark on an ambitious (overly ambitious?) new triathlon plan I am discovering that it is going to be its very own challenge. How do I fit in more workouts than ever yet maintain my sanity and health?TRANSCRIPTSo, this week concludes the first week of my training season in my journey to Germany. Where I am taking things to another level.Specifically, I'm going to be taking things to another level in terms of exercise VOLUME.For most days of the week, I'm going to be doing two workouts a day. And I have to find a way—or, I should say, I AM finding a way—to also squeeze in two strength-training sessions into my week.At first, I thought this was ambitious but doable.And after one week under my belt, I now realize how truly ambitious it's going to be. In a number of ways.The first way is just schedule-wise.Trying to fit in two workouts a day doesn't seem that hard. It doesn't sound that hard. And I've done it before with no real problem.But I've only done it before occasionally.I've never had it comprise five of my six training days.And doing double workouts for five of your six training days is a COMPLETELY different experience than trying to fit in one or two doubles in a week.So, schedule-wise, I'm going to have to figure this out.So far, doing an early-morning SOMETHING—usually a bike—followed by an afternoon, or a noon, sorry, a LUNCHTIME run, works very well because I can eat at my desk while I work.I can blast out at noon for a 30-minute workout, get back to my desk, and I can eat and work.And that leaves the evening free for personal things, and for relationship stuff, and for other things.And that's important to me.Because one of the things I'm trying to figure out with this training block isn't simply, “How much training can I cram into my life?”It's, “How much training can I do while still HAVING a life?”Those are two very different questions.When it comes to swimming, though, most days I'm going to have to try to get out for an early-morning swim.And that means I've got to get out of the house earlier than normal—maybe 7:15 at the latest—in order to be back in time for work.So I could do an early-morning swim and then an afternoon cycle or an afternoon run.And I keep saying “afternoon.”I mean lunchtime.Because I'm working.I can't just take the time off and go do these long sessions whenever I want.I have to find some way to squeeze them in.And that's what I mean about scheduling.It's going to be a challenge.I think I can do it.I mean, I did it this last week.But I had some hiccups.I went to the lake at 7:30 in the morning, and there was blue-green algae.So I couldn't swim in the lake.I had to turn around, drive all the way back home, and figure out another way of doing things.And that's going to happen.There are going to be these constant little scheduling challenges.And I hope, for the most part, I CAN figure out something that works for most days so I'm not always having to figure out how to do it.Because that would get really old really fast.If I had to wake up every day and think, “Okay, how am I going to make this work today?”I'm not sure that's sustainable.So that's challenge number one.*Challenge number two is the ENERGY required to do two workouts a day.*I was fine this week until Thursday.And then it all really started hitting me.I was feeling quite fatigued.And TrainerRoad thankfully gave me Friday off and offered me up some easier workouts.And I was grateful for that.Because I could feel the fatigue.And that's something I'm going to have to learn to manage, not just REACT to.I'm going to have to manage it PROACTIVELY.Because I can see how, over the course of even a couple of months of this, I could bury myself in a hole that I would have a hard time getting out of.And that's not the objective.The objective isn't to see how tired I can make myself.The objective is to train, recover, adapt, and get better.And if I don't recover, then I'm missing a really important part of that equation.So focusing on energy preservation when I'm not working out is going to be really key.And that may mean adding an extra half hour to my sleep.Which is not easy for me to do.Because I don't LIKE sleeping.I'm too busy having fun to sleep. Heh hehI get eight hours a night and that's pretty good.But I'm going to have to be really, really cognizant of whether eight hours is going to cut it.And I'm going to have to be prepared to go to eight and a half hours—or even longer—if required.And certainly all of my recovery protocols need to be put into play.My infrared sauna blanket.My red-light therapy.My massage gun.My nutrition.Extra protein.You name it.That all has to be on point.Because if I'm going to increase the training load, I can't just increase the training load.I have to increase the recovery that supports that training load.And that's ANOTHER thing I'm learning this week.The training itself is actually only part of the challenge.There's the training.There's the scheduling.There's the recovery.There's the sleep.There's the nutrition.And then there's everything else going on in life.And that brings me to what I think may actually be the BIGGEST challenge of all.And that's not something that's easy to quantify.It's the fact that triathlon is on my mind all the time now.And don't get me wrong.I love it.I love thinking about it.I love talking about it.I love engaging in it.I love the process.I love the idea of starting with a body that's rested from good sleep, providing it some good pre-workout nutrition, giving it a training stimulus, and then responding with nutrition and hydration and recovery.I LOVE all of that.But I really don't want to become IMBALANCED.I don't want to give up too much of my mental real estate for triathlon-related stuff when I am also wanting to work on my novel.I'm also wanting to engage with my brother and my kids and my wife.I want to do some reading.There's lots of reading.There are a lot of things I want to do.Triathlon is not my life.It's merely a significant, important part of it.And I think that's something I'm going to have to keep reminding myself of over the course of this training season.Because there's a common joke that goes around:How can you tell a triathlete if you're at a party?It's the person who's always talking about triathlon.I think that's the punchline.I probably butchered it.But you know what I mean.Triathletes can become quite obsessed.Or maybe “obsessed” isn't even the right word.They become very, very focused.And there's a reason for that.Triathlon requires so much from you.It requires planning.It requires effort.It requires gear.It requires nutrition.It requires recovery.It requires travel.It requires time.And when you put all of those things together, it's really easy for the sport to become the main part of your life.And then, when you get to a party and somebody asks you what you've been up to, well...You've been running.You've been biking.You've been swimming.You've been thinking about running, biking, and swimming.You've been thinking about what you're going to eat while you're running, biking, and swimming.You've been thinking about what equipment you're going to use.You've been thinking about your next race.You've been thinking about your training plan.And suddenly, that's what you have to talk about.And I don't want to be THAT GUY.I want to be able to talk about other things.I want to read.I want to write.I want to spend time with the people I love.I want to be engaged with the world outside of triathlon.And I think that's particularly important for me because this is going to be a big training year.I'm on a journey to Germany.I've got a goal.I've got a destination.And I'm going to be taking the training seriously.But taking something seriously doesn't necessarily mean allowing it to consume you.And I think that's going to be one of the interesting experiments of this year.Can I train at a level that I've never trained at before while still maintaining balance in the rest of my life?Can I become better at triathlon without making triathlon my entire identity?Can I pursue something with real ambition while still being flexible when other things matter more?Because there are going to be days when training has to take a back seat.There are going to be days when life gets in the way.And I don't necessarily mean that in a negative sense.Sometimes life is more important.Sometimes relationships are more important.Sometimes your mental health is more important.Sometimes you need to go do something completely unrelated to triathlon.And I think that's okay.Actually, I think that's necessary.So this first week has been a really interesting lesson.I started out thinking, “Okay, this is ambitious but doable.”And now I'm thinking, “Okay... this is really ambitious.”But that's not necessarily a bad thing.I'm excited.I am VERY excited.This is going to be a challenge, much like the sport itself is a challenge.And I think the training season is going to be another unique sport, per se.Another unique challenge.I don't know how to DO all the things I want to do.I'm not sure if I can excel at all of the things I want to do.But I'm going to try.And I'm curious.And I'm interested in how it goes.And I'm going to be flexible and adaptable.That's probably the biggest lesson from this first week.I don't need to have the entire year figured out right now.I need to figure out what works.I need to pay attention to what doesn't work.I need to make adjustments.And then I need to keep moving forward.Because that's really what this journey to Germany is about.It's not just about the race.It's about the process of becoming the athlete who can show up in Germany and perform at the level that I want to perform at.And becoming that athlete isn't simply about putting more hours into training.It's about learning how to manage my time.Learning how to manage fatigue.Learning how to recover.Learning how to prioritize.And learning how to maintain balance.And maybe that's the real challenge.Not whether I can do two workouts a day.I can do two workouts a day.The question is whether I can do two workouts a day, five days a week, for months and months, while still being the person I want to be outside of those workouts.That's a much more interesting question.And I don't know the answer yet.And that's okay.I'm going to find out.And I'm going to share that process with you.Because that's what I love about this podcast.I don't have all the answers.I'm figuring this out as I go.And I suspect that many of you listening are doing the same thing in your own sports and your own lives.Maybe you're a triathlete.Maybe you're a cyclist.Maybe you're a runner.Maybe you lift weights.Maybe your challenge has nothing to do with sport at all.But whatever sport you're into, whatever activity you're passionate about, you're into it because it fills something in you.It fills a need.Maybe it's competition.Maybe it's good health.Maybe it's time outside.Maybe it's social time.Maybe it's the feeling of getting better at something.Maybe it's simply the feeling of challenging yourself.Whatever it is, we do these things because they are worthy of being done.And I think that's worth remembering.Because sometimes, when you're trying to improve, it's easy to turn something you love into another obligation.And I don't want to do that.I want to keep the fun.I want to keep the curiosity.I want to keep the challenge.I want to keep the feeling that I'm lucky to be able to do this.Because I am.So, that's where I am after week one.A little tired.A little trepidatious—if that's a word.But excited.Invested.Interested.Motivated.And having fun.I don't know exactly how I'm going to make all of this work.But I'm going to try.And I'm going to pay attention.And I'm going to adapt.And every week, I'll share with you the things I think about on this journey.The things I struggle with.The things I have victories over.The things I learn.And hopefully, every once in a while, something I learn will resonate with you.Maybe you'll identify with me here and there.And maybe you can take something from my journey and use it to enhance your own.That's the whole point.So, week one is in the books.The journey to Germany has officially begun.And apparently, I have a lot to learn.Until next time.Peace.

A year of training lies ahead of me. What should I focus on? What is my plan? How am I going to get through this massive year of effort?Join the club on Patreon www.patreon.com/thelonelytriathleteTRANSCRIPTAs I get ready to start a brand-new one-year training block, I've been thinking a lot less about the actual workouts and a lot more about how I want to approach the year.Because one year is a long time.And I think that's the first thing I want to remember.A year is long enough that individual workouts really don't matter all that much.I'm going to have bad workouts.I'm going to have great workouts.There will be weeks where everything comes together perfectly, and there will be weeks where life gets in the way.And I don't want to stress about that.I want to focus on the workout that's in front of me.What am I trying to accomplish today?And what can I do to give myself the best chance of accomplishing it?And, bonus points if I think about that the day before.Get a good night's sleep.Make sure my gear is clean.Get the bottles ready.Have whatever nutrition I need ready to go.Know what the workout is.Remove as much friction as possible.Because I think there's a difference between being disciplined and making things unnecessarily difficult for yourself.If I can prepare today so that tomorrow's workout is easier to execute, that's a win.Give the new plan a chanceI'm also stepping up my training volume.I'm moving from what I'd call a medium-volume plan to a high-volume plan.And that might turn out to be too much.I honestly don't know yet.But I don't need to know yet.I want to give it a solid few months before I start deciding whether it's working.I think athletes can sometimes make the mistake of constantly adjusting the experiment before they've actually given the experiment enough time to produce a result.So I'm going to try to resist that.I'm going to train.I'm going to pay attention to how I feel.I'm going to pay attention to my performance and recovery.And then, after I've accumulated enough information, I'll make some decisions.Keep triathlon in perspectiveThe other thing I really want to remember is that triathlon isn't my life.It's an important part of my life.I love it.But it's not my life.My relationships and my mental health come first.Triathlon comes second.And that means I need to be willing to be flexible when those things conflict.If something important comes up with my partner, or with family, or I'm having a difficult day mentally, I don't want to look at my training plan and think, Well, I've got to get this workout done.Sometimes the workout loses.And that's okay.In fact, I think that's part of being a serious athlete.A training plan is a tool for supporting your life.Your life isn't supposed to become a tool for supporting your training plan.Habit stackingOne thing I want to experiment with this year is habit stacking.I've got a lot of training.But I've also got travel time to and from the pool or gym, preparation, cleanup, nutrition, recovery, stretching, mobility—all of those little things surrounding the actual workout.And if I treat every one of those things as a completely separate task, it can start to feel like training takes over my entire day.So I want to find ways to attach those things to things that are already happening.Maybe I listen to something specific during the drive.Maybe certain recovery habits happen immediately after training.Maybe my weekly training reflection happens alongside my personal journaling.The idea is to make these things part of an existing rhythm rather than creating ten more things I have to remember to do.Routine is a tool, not a prisonAnd that leads into another one.I really like routine.Probably too much sometimes.Routine makes life efficient.You know what you're doing.You know when you're doing it.You don't have to make a decision every time.But I don't want to become fixed on my routine.Because life isn't always efficient.Sometimes the weather changes.Sometimes plans change.Sometimes somebody needs something from you.Sometimes you just wake up and realize that today isn't going to go according to plan.And I want to be able to adapt without feeling like I've somehow failed.Routine is a mechanism for efficiency.It's not the objective.Actually enjoy the trainingThis one might be the most important.I want to enjoy the training.Because there are definitely days when I just get the workout done.I look at the clock.I look at the intervals.I get through the session.Check.Done.And there's value in consistency. Absolutely.But sometimes I think I'm missing the experience itself.I'm swimming.I'm riding my bike.I'm running.I'm lifting weights.My body is moving.And I want to notice that.Notice how it feels.Notice the movement.Notice the thoughts that come into my head.Notice the emotion.Notice the feeling of being outside.Notice the feeling of getting stronger.Because this isn't just a transaction where I put in 60 minutes and receive some future fitness benefit.This is my life happening right now.And I want to enjoy more of it.Reflect—but don't create another choreI also think it would be useful to spend a little time at the end of each week reflecting.What went well?What didn't?What did I learn?Was there anything I could do differently next week?But—and this is important—I don't want to turn that into another item on my productivity checklist.Weekly reflection: DONE.That defeats the purpose.Maybe I habit-stack it with personal journaling.I've wanted to become more consistent with journaling anyway, so perhaps that's where the training reflection belongs.A few minutes to step back and look at the week.Not judge it.Just notice it.Food should be more than fuelI also want to periodically revisit my nutrition.Not constantly.Not obsessively.But every once in a while, step back and ask:Is this actually working for me?Am I enjoying what I'm eating?Am I making food fun?Because food is fuel, especially when you're training a lot.But food is also one of the great pleasures of life.And I don't want every meal to become a calculation of protein, carbohydrates, sodium and calories.There should be room for enjoying food.Share the experienceAnother thing I want to do this year is find new ways to share the experience.That's one reason I'm interested in video.I've been podcasting for years now, but there's something really fun about telling the story visually.Showing the training.Showing the places I ride.Showing the process.Being creative.And I think that's another way of enjoying the sport.Not everything has to be about performance.Sometimes it's just fun to create something.Stay organizedAnd finally: stay organized.Because nothing makes training more stressful than getting to the moment when you're supposed to train and realizing:Oh crap. My gear isn't washed.Or:Where's that piece of equipment?Or:I wish I'd bought that thing three weeks ago.Or:I forgot to charge this.All of those little things create friction.And yes, staying organized takes time.Washing the gear.Putting things away.Replacing things before they run out.Charging things.Preparing nutrition.Getting tomorrow's stuff ready tonight.But I don't think that time is wasted.I think it's an investment in making the actual experience of training smoother and more enjoyable.And ultimately, that's what I want this year to be about.Not just getting fitter.Not just hitting numbers.Not just completing workouts.I want to build a year of training that fits into my life.A year where I'm prepared, but flexible.Disciplined, but not rigid.Focused, but not obsessive.Where I take the training seriously, but remember that triathlon isn't the most important thing in my life.And where, as much as possible, I actually enjoy the experience of doing it.Because I've got a whole year ahead of me.There's no need to rush it.I just need to show up today and make today a good day to train.

The time seems right. It's now or never. This might be the end. We never know what tomorrow will bring, or next month or next year. Since that is the case, maybe I should start documenting my exploits sooner rather than later.Join us on Patreon! www.patreon.com/thelonelytriathleteTRANSCRIPTIt's funny...this week I sat down to think about what I was going to talk about, and I realized I don't actually have a lot of exciting training news.Which, I suppose, is exactly the point.I'm still in this maintenance phase. Three rides a week. Two VO₂ max sessions and one endurance ride. That's it.TrainerRoad is predicting I'll lose maybe two or three percent of my FTP over the next week or so. And I'm actually okay with that. If I lose five or six watts over a month, that's a small price to pay for getting some physical and mental recovery after a long season.Because the alternative is doing nothing.And if I stop riding altogether, I know what happens. I lose thirty, forty, maybe even fifty watts. Then it takes me three or four months to earn that fitness back again.So right now my goal isn't to get stronger.It's simply to stay close enough to where I finished this season that, when I start my next training block, I can hit the ground running.Which makes for a pretty boring podcast.There really isn't much to say.The workouts are getting done.Fitness is staying relatively stable.Everything is...fine.But then something happened this week that completely took over my attention.I bought a drone.Well...not just a drone.I bought the new DJI Neo 2.I bought a DJI Osmo Action camera.I picked up a chest harness so I can record rides from my perspective.I already had the DJI Mic Mini, so now I can actually narrate while I'm riding or running without sounding like I'm talking through a hurricane.And ever since these boxes showed up at my house, I've been like a kid with a new toy.I've been testing them.Learning how they work.Figuring out camera angles.Learning how the drone follows me.Seeing what kind of footage I can get while riding and running.And the interesting part is...I don't think this is actually about the cameras.It's about what the cameras allow me to do.For years this podcast has documented what's happening inside my head.You've listened to me talk about races.Training.Self-doubt.Confidence.Injuries.Motivation.Discipline.All of those things work incredibly well in an audio format.But this week I realized something.Audio only tells half the story.I've spent years saying things like..."I had an amazing ride today.""The climb was brutal.""The ocean was calm.""The sunrise was incredible."You hear those words......but you've never actually seen any of it.You've never seen the roads I ride every week.You've never seen the climbs.You've never seen the places where I run.You've never stood beside the ocean where I swim.You've only experienced them through my descriptions.And that's when it hit me.Maybe this journey deserves more than words.Maybe it deserves pictures.Maybe it deserves video.Not because I think video is somehow better than audio.It's just......different.There are things that video can communicate that words simply can't.Imagine watching a drone slowly pull away as I'm climbing one of my local hills.No narration.Just breathing.Wind.The sound of tires on pavement.Sometimes silence tells the story better than words ever could.Or imagine seeing the roads that I've talked about for years.Instead of picturing them in your imagination......you'd actually be there.You'd see where I train.You'd see what I see.You'd experience a little piece of the journey alongside me.And I find that incredibly exciting.Now...I don't know exactly what this becomes.I'm experimenting.I'm learning.I'm making mistakes.I'm trying different shots.Trying different editing styles.Trying to figure out what feels authentic.I don't even know where these videos will eventually live.I'm intentionally not overthinking that part.Right now the important thing is simply documenting.Capturing.Recording.Because I realized something else this week.One day...this version of me won't exist anymore.I'm fifty-eight years old.Hopefully my best race is still ahead of me.Hopefully Germany in 2027 is the peak.That's certainly what I'm training toward.But none of us really know.Maybe Germany will be the highest point of my athletic life.Maybe it won't.Maybe I'll surprise myself.Maybe life has other plans.I honestly don't know.But wouldn't it be incredible to have a visual record of this entire journey?Not just race day.Everybody records race day.I'm talking about the Tuesday morning interval session.The rainy ride when I didn't feel like training.The quiet endurance ride where nothing special happened.The run where I questioned everything.The swim where everything finally clicked.Those ordinary moments...Those are actually the story.The race is just the ending.The story is everything that happens beforehand.And maybe that's really why these cameras excite me so much.Because they're giving me a chance to preserve something that otherwise would disappear.Five years from now...I'll be able to look back and remember exactly where I was.Not because Strava says I rode 82 kilometres.Not because Garmin tells me my average heart rate.But because I'll actually be able to see it.I'll see the roads.The weather.My posture on the bike.The way I moved.The expression on my face.I'll remember things that numbers could never capture.And maybe that's something we all lose sight of as endurance athletes.We're surrounded by data.FTP.Power.Heart rate.Pace.Cadence.VO₂ max.Training Stress Score.Recovery scores.Sleep scores.We measure everything.But the numbers don't remember the experience.The numbers don't remember the sunrise.They don't remember the laughter with training partners.They don't remember the eagle flying overhead during an early morning ride.They don't remember the feeling of finally reaching the top of a climb.The numbers tell us what happened.They don't tell us what it felt like.And maybe...that's what I want these cameras to capture.Not better workouts.Better memories.Because this isn't just a training plan anymore.This is becoming a chapter of my life.It's my road to Germany.Or maybe...my Highway to Hamburg.I haven't decided what to call it yet.But whatever the title ends up being, I know one thing.I don't want to remember this journey only through graphs on Garmin Connect.I want to remember what it looked like.I want to remember what it sounded like.I want to remember how it felt.And maybe, someday, some of you will come along for that ride too.I don't know exactly what this is going to become. Maybe it's a video diary. Maybe it's a documentary. Maybe it's just a collection of moments that only I end up appreciating. But I do know this: if I'm going to spend the next year chasing one of the biggest goals of my athletic life, I don't want to remember it only through numbers on a Garmin screen. I want to remember what the roads looked like, what the water looked like, what the climbs looked like, and maybe even what I looked like. Because one day, this version of me won't exist anymore. And I think it's worth preserving while it does.Until then, I'm not replacing the podcast, not at all. I think audio works formany or you, most of you. It allows you join me on your commute, your own runs, or while doing dishes. Video is simply another window into the same journey.One where you might see a drone image of me cycling from behind up a steep hill, switching to a first person POV as I race down the other side, followed by me stading at a lookout and waxing poetic on the difficulties of rear derailluers or my favourite flavour of carb drink.That's it from me.Until next time, peace.

The time seems right. It's now or never. This might be the end. We never know what tomorrow will bring, or next month or next year. Since that is the case, maybe I should start documenting my exploits sooner rather than later.TRANSCRIPTIt's funny...this week I sat down to think about what I was going to talk about, and I realized I don't actually have a lot of exciting training news.Which, I suppose, is exactly the point.I'm still in this maintenance phase. Three rides a week. Two VO₂ max sessions and one endurance ride. That's it.TrainerRoad is predicting I'll lose maybe two or three percent of my FTP over the next week or so. And I'm actually okay with that. If I lose five or six watts over a month, that's a small price to pay for getting some physical and mental recovery after a long season.Because the alternative is doing nothing.And if I stop riding altogether, I know what happens. I lose thirty, forty, maybe even fifty watts. Then it takes me three or four months to earn that fitness back again.So right now my goal isn't to get stronger.It's simply to stay close enough to where I finished this season that, when I start my next training block, I can hit the ground running.Which makes for a pretty boring podcast.There really isn't much to say.The workouts are getting done.Fitness is staying relatively stable.Everything is...fine.But then something happened this week that completely took over my attention.I bought a drone.Well...not just a drone.I bought the new DJI Neo 2.I bought a DJI Osmo Action camera.I picked up a chest harness so I can record rides from my perspective.I already had the DJI Mic Mini, so now I can actually narrate while I'm riding or running without sounding like I'm talking through a hurricane.And ever since these boxes showed up at my house, I've been like a kid with a new toy.I've been testing them.Learning how they work.Figuring out camera angles.Learning how the drone follows me.Seeing what kind of footage I can get while riding and running.And the interesting part is...I don't think this is actually about the cameras.It's about what the cameras allow me to do.For years this podcast has documented what's happening inside my head.You've listened to me talk about races.Training.Self-doubt.Confidence.Injuries.Motivation.Discipline.All of those things work incredibly well in an audio format.But this week I realized something.Audio only tells half the story.I've spent years saying things like..."I had an amazing ride today.""The climb was brutal.""The ocean was calm.""The sunrise was incredible."You hear those words......but you've never actually seen any of it.You've never seen the roads I ride every week.You've never seen the climbs.You've never seen the places where I run.You've never stood beside the ocean where I swim.You've only experienced them through my descriptions.And that's when it hit me.Maybe this journey deserves more than words.Maybe it deserves pictures.Maybe it deserves video.Not because I think video is somehow better than audio.It's just......different.There are things that video can communicate that words simply can't.Imagine watching a drone slowly pull away as I'm climbing one of my local hills.No narration.Just breathing.Wind.The sound of tires on pavement.Sometimes silence tells the story better than words ever could.Or imagine seeing the roads that I've talked about for years.Instead of picturing them in your imagination......you'd actually be there.You'd see where I train.You'd see what I see.You'd experience a little piece of the journey alongside me.And I find that incredibly exciting.Now...I don't know exactly what this becomes.I'm experimenting.I'm learning.I'm making mistakes.I'm trying different shots.Trying different editing styles.Trying to figure out what feels authentic.I don't even know where these videos will eventually live.I'm intentionally not overthinking that part.Right now the important thing is simply documenting.Capturing.Recording.Because I realized something else this week.One day...this version of me won't exist anymore.I'm fifty-eight years old.Hopefully my best race is still ahead of me.Hopefully Germany in 2027 is the peak.That's certainly what I'm training toward.But none of us really know.Maybe Germany will be the highest point of my athletic life.Maybe it won't.Maybe I'll surprise myself.Maybe life has other plans.I honestly don't know.But wouldn't it be incredible to have a visual record of this entire journey?Not just race day.Everybody records race day.I'm talking about the Tuesday morning interval session.The rainy ride when I didn't feel like training.The quiet endurance ride where nothing special happened.The run where I questioned everything.The swim where everything finally clicked.Those ordinary moments...Those are actually the story.The race is just the ending.The story is everything that happens beforehand.And maybe that's really why these cameras excite me so much.Because they're giving me a chance to preserve something that otherwise would disappear.Five years from now...I'll be able to look back and remember exactly where I was.Not because Strava says I rode 82 kilometres.Not because Garmin tells me my average heart rate.But because I'll actually be able to see it.I'll see the roads.The weather.My posture on the bike.The way I moved.The expression on my face.I'll remember things that numbers could never capture.And maybe that's something we all lose sight of as endurance athletes.We're surrounded by data.FTP.Power.Heart rate.Pace.Cadence.VO₂ max.Training Stress Score.Recovery scores.Sleep scores.We measure everything.But the numbers don't remember the experience.The numbers don't remember the sunrise.They don't remember the laughter with training partners.They don't remember the eagle flying overhead during an early morning ride.They don't remember the feeling of finally reaching the top of a climb.The numbers tell us what happened.They don't tell us what it felt like.And maybe...that's what I want these cameras to capture.Not better workouts.Better memories.Because this isn't just a training plan anymore.This is becoming a chapter of my life.It's my road to Germany.Or maybe...my Highway to Hamburg.I haven't decided what to call it yet.But whatever the title ends up being, I know one thing.I don't want to remember this journey only through graphs on Garmin Connect.I want to remember what it looked like.I want to remember what it sounded like.I want to remember how it felt.And maybe, someday, some of you will come along for that ride too.I don't know exactly what this is going to become. Maybe it's a video diary. Maybe it's a documentary. Maybe it's just a collection of moments that only I end up appreciating. But I do know this: if I'm going to spend the next year chasing one of the biggest goals of my athletic life, I don't want to remember it only through numbers on a Garmin screen. I want to remember what the roads looked like, what the water looked like, what the climbs looked like, and maybe even what I looked like. Because one day, this version of me won't exist anymore. And I think it's worth preserving while it does.Until then, I'm not replacing the podcast, not at all. I think audio works formany or you, most of you. It allows you join me on your commute, your own runs, or while doing dishes. Video is simply another window into the same journey.One where you might see a drone image of me cycling from behind up a steep hill, switching to a first person POV as I race down the other side, followed by me stading at a lookout and waxing poetic on the difficulties of rear derailluers or my favourite flavour of carb drink.That's it from me.Until next time, peace.

One week out of structured training and I already feel like a lazy slouch. But maybe that's natural?Please join us over at wwwpatreon.com/thelonelytriathleteTRANSCRIPTHey everybody, and welcome back to The Lonely Triathlete.I've been in a bit of an unusual place over the last couple of weeks.My racing season is over. I had my final race on July 12th, and now I'm in what coaches would call a maintenance phase. Instead of training six days a week, I'm only riding three. Two VO₂ max sessions and one endurance ride. That's it. The goal isn't to get faster right now. The goal is simply to hold onto the fitness I've built before I begin my next training block for the 2027 World Championships in Germany.On paper, this should be easy.Three rides a week.No swimming.No running.No pressure.And yet...I'm finding it harder to motivate myself to do three workouts than I was when I was doing six.That got me thinking.Is the human body actually designed to be...lazy?Now, "lazy" is probably the wrong word, but it's the word that came to mind.Why does taking just a little time off seem to wake up this voice in our heads that says, "You could skip today. You've earned it."If you've ever taken a week off because of vacation, illness, or simply burnout, you've probably experienced the same thing.The amazing thing is that physiologically, you haven't lost much fitness at all.Research consistently shows that if you've built a strong aerobic base, one or even two weeks of reduced training causes surprisingly little decline—especially if you keep a little intensity in the program. That's exactly why I'm still doing those VO₂ max intervals. They're enough to remind my body, "Hey, we're still athletes over here."So the body isn't falling apart.The interesting part is that the mind often changes faster than the body.Why?Because your brain is constantly trying to manage energy.For almost all of human history, calories weren't unlimited. They were precious. Our ancestors weren't rewarded for going out and doing hill repeats for fun. They were rewarded for surviving, conserving energy when they could, and spending it only when there was a good reason.So in many ways, our brains evolved to be efficient, not enthusiastic.When your brain senses that there isn't an urgent reason to burn energy, it starts negotiating."Maybe tomorrow.""One more cup of coffee.""You've had a busy day."Sound familiar?What's fascinating is that during a structured training block, those negotiations almost disappear.Why?Because you're no longer making decisions.You're following a routine.Monday is intervals.Tuesday is easy.Wednesday is strength.Thursday is another hard session.The routine does the thinking for you.But remove the structure for just a week, and suddenly every workout becomes a fresh decision.And decisions require motivation.I actually think that's why maintenance can feel harder than full training.It's not because the workouts are harder.It's because momentum has slowed down.I've often said that motivation is overrated.Identity is much more powerful.I'm not someone who trains because I feel motivated.I'm someone who trains because that's who I am.Right now, my schedule has changed.My identity hasn't.I'm still a triathlete.I'm simply in a different season.I think that's an important reminder for all of us.Not every month is about building fitness.Some months are about absorbing the work.Some months are about recovery.Some months are about letting your body and mind catch up.And that's exactly where I am.The funny thing is, I know this intellectually.I've read the research.I've experienced it before.And yet I'm still having the same conversations with myself before each ride.That's comforting in a strange way.It reminds me that discipline isn't something you achieve once.It's something you practice over and over again.Now, speaking of the next season...I've been working on something that I'm REALLY excited about.Some of you know that I qualified for the 2027 World Age Group Championships in Hamburg, Germany.Over the next year, I want to document that journey in a way I've never done before.I've ordered a follow-me sports drone.I've got a new action camera on the way.And I'm going to start experimenting with video.I'm calling the project—at least for now—Journey to Germany.I don't know exactly what form it's going to take.Some of it may end up on YouTube.Some might be exclusive to Patreon.I'm still figuring all of that out.But what excites me isn't the equipment.It's the opportunity to let you experience the process with me.Not just race day.Not just podiums.The rainy Tuesday morning ride.The workout that almost didn't happen.The trail runs.The recovery days.The small victories that nobody else usually sees.I've spent years talking into a microphone about training.Now I'd like to show you what that training actually looks like.And maybe that's fitting, because this next chapter feels different.I'm 58 years old, heading toward 59.For more than twenty-five years, I've somehow continued setting personal bests.Every few years I think, "Well...this is probably it. This is where improvement finally stops."And then somehow...Another personal best.I honestly don't know where my ceiling is anymore.Maybe I've already found it.Maybe it's still ahead of me.I don't know.But I don't want to spend the next year wondering.I'd rather find out.And if I'm going to find out, I thought it might be fun to bring all of you along for the ride.Thanks so much for listening. And if you want to hear more from me and even drop me a line, why don'tyou head on over to patreon.com and search for the lonely triathlete.If today's episode resonated with you—especially if you're struggling with motivation after taking some time off—I hope it reminds you that nothing is wrong with you. Your brain is simply doing what it evolved to do.Our job as endurance athletes isn't to eliminate that resistance.It's to gently, consistently, keep showing up anyway.Until next time...I'll be on my personal road to Germany.Peace

One week off structured training and already I feel like a lazy slob. Maybe that's natural?TRANSCRIPTHey everybody, and welcome back to The Lonely Triathlete.I've been in a bit of an unusual place over the last couple of weeks.My racing season is over. I had my final race on July 12th, and now I'm in what coaches would call a maintenance phase. Instead of training six days a week, I'm only riding three. Two VO₂ max sessions and one endurance ride. That's it. The goal isn't to get faster right now. The goal is simply to hold onto the fitness I've built before I begin my next training block for the 2027 World Championships in Germany.On paper, this should be easy.Three rides a week.No swimming.No running.No pressure.And yet...I'm finding it harder to motivate myself to do three workouts than I was when I was doing six.That got me thinking.Is the human body actually designed to be...lazy?Now, "lazy" is probably the wrong word, but it's the word that came to mind.Why does taking just a little time off seem to wake up this voice in our heads that says, "You could skip today. You've earned it."If you've ever taken a week off because of vacation, illness, or simply burnout, you've probably experienced the same thing.The amazing thing is that physiologically, you haven't lost much fitness at all.Research consistently shows that if you've built a strong aerobic base, one or even two weeks of reduced training causes surprisingly little decline—especially if you keep a little intensity in the program. That's exactly why I'm still doing those VO₂ max intervals. They're enough to remind my body, "Hey, we're still athletes over here."So the body isn't falling apart.The interesting part is that the mind often changes faster than the body.Why?Because your brain is constantly trying to manage energy.For almost all of human history, calories weren't unlimited. They were precious. Our ancestors weren't rewarded for going out and doing hill repeats for fun. They were rewarded for surviving, conserving energy when they could, and spending it only when there was a good reason.So in many ways, our brains evolved to be efficient, not enthusiastic.When your brain senses that there isn't an urgent reason to burn energy, it starts negotiating."Maybe tomorrow.""One more cup of coffee.""You've had a busy day."Sound familiar?What's fascinating is that during a structured training block, those negotiations almost disappear.Why?Because you're no longer making decisions.You're following a routine.Monday is intervals.Tuesday is easy.Wednesday is strength.Thursday is another hard session.The routine does the thinking for you.But remove the structure for just a week, and suddenly every workout becomes a fresh decision.And decisions require motivation.I actually think that's why maintenance can feel harder than full training.It's not because the workouts are harder.It's because momentum has slowed down.I've often said that motivation is overrated.Identity is much more powerful.I'm not someone who trains because I feel motivated.I'm someone who trains because that's who I am.Right now, my schedule has changed.My identity hasn't.I'm still a triathlete.I'm simply in a different season.I think that's an important reminder for all of us.Not every month is about building fitness.Some months are about absorbing the work.Some months are about recovery.Some months are about letting your body and mind catch up.And that's exactly where I am.The funny thing is, I know this intellectually.I've read the research.I've experienced it before.And yet I'm still having the same conversations with myself before each ride.That's comforting in a strange way.It reminds me that discipline isn't something you achieve once.It's something you practice over and over again.Now, speaking of the next season...I've been working on something that I'm REALLY excited about.Some of you know that I qualified for the 2027 World Age Group Championships in Hamburg, Germany.Over the next year, I want to document that journey in a way I've never done before.I've ordered a follow-me sports drone.I've got a new action camera on the way.And I'm going to start experimenting with video.I'm calling the project—at least for now—Journey to Germany.I don't know exactly what form it's going to take.Some of it may end up on YouTube.Some might be exclusive to Patreon.I'm still figuring all of that out.But what excites me isn't the equipment.It's the opportunity to let you experience the process with me.Not just race day.Not just podiums.The rainy Tuesday morning ride.The workout that almost didn't happen.The trail runs.The recovery days.The small victories that nobody else usually sees.I've spent years talking into a microphone about training.Now I'd like to show you what that training actually looks like.And maybe that's fitting, because this next chapter feels different.I'm 58 years old, heading toward 59.For more than twenty-five years, I've somehow continued setting personal bests.Every few years I think, "Well...this is probably it. This is where improvement finally stops."And then somehow...Another personal best.I honestly don't know where my ceiling is anymore.Maybe I've already found it.Maybe it's still ahead of me.I don't know.But I don't want to spend the next year wondering.I'd rather find out.And if I'm going to find out, I thought it might be fun to bring all of you along for the ride.Thanks so much for listening. And if you want to hear more from me and even drop me a line, why don'tyou head on over to patreon.com and search for the lonely triathlete.If today's episode resonated with you—especially if you're struggling with motivation after taking some time off—I hope it reminds you that nothing is wrong with you. Your brain is simply doing what it evolved to do.Our job as endurance athletes isn't to eliminate that resistance.It's to gently, consistently, keep showing up anyway.Until next time...I'll be on my personal road to Germany.Peace

What do we do when the racing season ends? Put our feet up and chill out? And lose all that hard earned fitness? Not this time.Come join the fun at www.patreon.com/thelonelytriathleteTRANSCRIPTWhat do you do when your race season is over?I've been asking myself that question all week.For almost an entire year, my life revolved around one goal: qualify for the World Championships.Six days a week I trained. Every workout had a purpose. Every interval session, every endurance ride, every swim, every run—it all pointed toward one day on the calendar.When my alarm went off at 6:00 a.m., I didn't have to negotiate with myself. I knew why I was getting up.There was no debate.The goal made the decision for me.And after nearly a year of consistent training...I qualified.It was one of the most satisfying athletic achievements of my life.Then, because I'm human—and because my ego wasn't quite finished—I signed up for one more race.I wanted to prove to myself that qualifying wasn't a fluke.Fortunately, that race went well too.Mission accomplished.And now...The triathlon season around here is over.So now what?For years, I've handled the offseason the same way.I take the entire month of August off.No structured training.No TrainerRoad.No worrying about fitness.I sleep in.Go for casual rides.Eat a little more.Enjoy life.Honestly...It's wonderful.I think every athlete deserves periods of genuine recovery.The body needs it.The mind definitely needs it.But over the years I've noticed something.Recovery quietly turns into detraining.By September my FTP has usually dropped about thirty watts.Thirty watts doesn't sound dramatic.But here's what I've learned.The problem isn't losing thirty watts.The problem is how long it takes to earn them back.Every autumn I spend two or three months simply returning to where I was before I stopped training.Only then can I begin building new fitness.It's like climbing halfway up a mountain, hiking back down to the parking lot, and then spending weeks just getting back to the place where you turned around.This year...I don't want to do that.Instead, I'm going to experiment.Rather than stopping completely, I'm going to shift into what I'd call a maintenance phase.Just three rides each week.One longer endurance ride.Two quality sessions—threshold or VO₂ max work.The objective isn't to improve.The objective is simply to hold onto as much fitness as I reasonably can while giving both my body and mind a chance to recover.It sounds simple.But psychologically...It's proving much harder than I expected.I just got back from a five-day cycling trip with friends.And I say "cycling" in quotation marks because we were riding e-bikes at a wonderfully relaxed pace.Before I go any further, let me just say this...Seattle is an incredible cycling city.Bike lanes everywhere.Protected paths through parks.Trails beside rivers.Routes along the ocean.It feels like a city designed by people who actually ride bikes.If you've never cycled there, I highly recommend it.But once I got home...Reality hit.Only one week has passed since my last race.One week.And already I feel...Less motivated.Less fit.Which is funny because physiologically I probably haven't lost very much fitness at all.Fitness doesn't disappear in seven days.Research on endurance athletes consistently shows that most aerobic adaptations are remarkably resilient over short breaks. You may notice your legs feel a little flat, but meaningful losses in aerobic capacity and threshold power usually take several weeks—not several days—to develop.So if my body hasn't changed very much...Why do I already feel different?I think the answer has very little to do with physiology.I think it has everything to do with purpose.Sports psychologists often talk about the power of goal-directed behavior. Clear goals don't just tell us what to do—they organize our attention, our habits, and even our identity. When we know why we're training, our brains spend far less energy debating whether we should train.Motivation isn't something we magically possess.It's something our goals create.There's another concept in psychology called Self-Determination Theory. It suggests that people stay motivated when three basic psychological needs are being met: autonomy, competence, and relatedness.Autonomy means we feel we're choosing our actions.Competence means we feel ourselves improving.Relatedness means we feel connected to other people through what we're doing.During race season, triathlon checks every one of those boxes.I choose to train.Every workout gives me evidence that I'm improving.And every race connects me to a community of people pursuing similar goals.Then suddenly...The season ends.The races disappear.The training plan ends.The improvements become harder to measure.And without realizing it, one or more of those psychological needs begins to fade.No wonder motivation feels different.I don't think I'm losing discipline.I think I've temporarily lost direction.Last week I knew exactly who I was.I was someone trying to qualify for Worlds.Today...I'm just a guy standing in the garage wondering if I really need to ride the trainer tonight.That identity shift is surprisingly unsettling.I suspect many athletes experience this after a major goal.Maybe runners after a marathon.Cyclists after a gran fondo.Parents after their kids leave home.Professionals after retirement.When a chapter ends, we're left asking a surprisingly uncomfortable question:"Who am I now?"Maybe that's the real challenge of the offseason.Not maintaining fitness.Maintaining purpose.I've been thinking a lot about how to solve that.And I don't think the answer is to immediately find another massive goal.I think it's smaller than that.I think I simply need a plan.Not a vague intention.A written plan.For the next couple of months that means maintenance riding, a few local 10K races just for fun, and volunteering at some triathlon events so I stay connected to the community.After that...I'll begin building my roadmap toward next year's World Championships.But this time I want to do something I've never really done before.I'm going to write the entire thing out.The milestones.The training blocks.The recovery periods.The races.Everything.Because visible plans reduce decision fatigue.When the workout is already on paper, you don't wake up asking, "Should I train today?"You simply execute the next step.That's what goals do.They remove uncertainty.They replace motivation with routine.And maybe that's the lesson I'm learning this week.Purpose isn't something that accidentally appears.It's something we intentionally build.When one season ends, another one doesn't magically begin.We have to create it.So that's my project this week.Not increasing my FTP.Not becoming fitter.Simply creating enough structure that, when September arrives, I haven't lost the fitness—or the sense of purpose—that took an entire year to build.I'll let you know how it goes.Until next time...Peace.

What do we do when the racing season ends? Put our feet up and chill out? And lose all that hard earned fitness? Not this time.TRANSCRIPTWhat do you do when your race season is over?I've been asking myself that question all week.For almost an entire year, my life revolved around one goal: qualify for the World Championships.Six days a week I trained. Every workout had a purpose. Every interval session, every endurance ride, every swim, every run—it all pointed toward one day on the calendar.When my alarm went off at 6:00 a.m., I didn't have to negotiate with myself. I knew why I was getting up.There was no debate.The goal made the decision for me.And after nearly a year of consistent training...I qualified.It was one of the most satisfying athletic achievements of my life.Then, because I'm human—and because my ego wasn't quite finished—I signed up for one more race.I wanted to prove to myself that qualifying wasn't a fluke.Fortunately, that race went well too.Mission accomplished.And now...The triathlon season around here is over.So now what?For years, I've handled the offseason the same way.I take the entire month of August off.No structured training.No TrainerRoad.No worrying about fitness.I sleep in.Go for casual rides.Eat a little more.Enjoy life.Honestly...It's wonderful.I think every athlete deserves periods of genuine recovery.The body needs it.The mind definitely needs it.But over the years I've noticed something.Recovery quietly turns into detraining.By September my FTP has usually dropped about thirty watts.Thirty watts doesn't sound dramatic.But here's what I've learned.The problem isn't losing thirty watts.The problem is how long it takes to earn them back.Every autumn I spend two or three months simply returning to where I was before I stopped training.Only then can I begin building new fitness.It's like climbing halfway up a mountain, hiking back down to the parking lot, and then spending weeks just getting back to the place where you turned around.This year...I don't want to do that.Instead, I'm going to experiment.Rather than stopping completely, I'm going to shift into what I'd call a maintenance phase.Just three rides each week.One longer endurance ride.Two quality sessions—threshold or VO₂ max work.The objective isn't to improve.The objective is simply to hold onto as much fitness as I reasonably can while giving both my body and mind a chance to recover.It sounds simple.But psychologically...It's proving much harder than I expected.I just got back from a five-day cycling trip with friends.And I say "cycling" in quotation marks because we were riding e-bikes at a wonderfully relaxed pace.Before I go any further, let me just say this...Seattle is an incredible cycling city.Bike lanes everywhere.Protected paths through parks.Trails beside rivers.Routes along the ocean.It feels like a city designed by people who actually ride bikes.If you've never cycled there, I highly recommend it.But once I got home...Reality hit.Only one week has passed since my last race.One week.And already I feel...Less motivated.Less fit.Which is funny because physiologically I probably haven't lost very much fitness at all.Fitness doesn't disappear in seven days.Research on endurance athletes consistently shows that most aerobic adaptations are remarkably resilient over short breaks. You may notice your legs feel a little flat, but meaningful losses in aerobic capacity and threshold power usually take several weeks—not several days—to develop.So if my body hasn't changed very much...Why do I already feel different?I think the answer has very little to do with physiology.I think it has everything to do with purpose.Sports psychologists often talk about the power of goal-directed behavior. Clear goals don't just tell us what to do—they organize our attention, our habits, and even our identity. When we know why we're training, our brains spend far less energy debating whether we should train.Motivation isn't something we magically possess.It's something our goals create.There's another concept in psychology called Self-Determination Theory. It suggests that people stay motivated when three basic psychological needs are being met: autonomy, competence, and relatedness.Autonomy means we feel we're choosing our actions.Competence means we feel ourselves improving.Relatedness means we feel connected to other people through what we're doing.During race season, triathlon checks every one of those boxes.I choose to train.Every workout gives me evidence that I'm improving.And every race connects me to a community of people pursuing similar goals.Then suddenly...The season ends.The races disappear.The training plan ends.The improvements become harder to measure.And without realizing it, one or more of those psychological needs begins to fade.No wonder motivation feels different.I don't think I'm losing discipline.I think I've temporarily lost direction.Last week I knew exactly who I was.I was someone trying to qualify for Worlds.Today...I'm just a guy standing in the garage wondering if I really need to ride the trainer tonight.That identity shift is surprisingly unsettling.I suspect many athletes experience this after a major goal.Maybe runners after a marathon.Cyclists after a gran fondo.Parents after their kids leave home.Professionals after retirement.When a chapter ends, we're left asking a surprisingly uncomfortable question:"Who am I now?"Maybe that's the real challenge of the offseason.Not maintaining fitness.Maintaining purpose.I've been thinking a lot about how to solve that.And I don't think the answer is to immediately find another massive goal.I think it's smaller than that.I think I simply need a plan.Not a vague intention.A written plan.For the next couple of months that means maintenance riding, a few local 10K races just for fun, and volunteering at some triathlon events so I stay connected to the community.After that...I'll begin building my roadmap toward next year's World Championships.But this time I want to do something I've never really done before.I'm going to write the entire thing out.The milestones.The training blocks.The recovery periods.The races.Everything.Because visible plans reduce decision fatigue.When the workout is already on paper, you don't wake up asking, "Should I train today?"You simply execute the next step.That's what goals do.They remove uncertainty.They replace motivation with routine.And maybe that's the lesson I'm learning this week.Purpose isn't something that accidentally appears.It's something we intentionally build.When one season ends, another one doesn't magically begin.We have to create it.So that's my project this week.Not increasing my FTP.Not becoming fitter.Simply creating enough structure that, when September arrives, I haven't lost the fitness—or the sense of purpose—that took an entire year to build.I'll let you know how it goes.Until next time...Peace.

2nd race in 2 weeks! Was I able to bounce back and race hard or did I crash and burn? listen to find out.Join the fun at www.patreon.com/thelonelytriathlete

2nd race in 2 weeks! Was I able to bounce back and race hard or did I crash and burn? listen to find out.Join the fun at www.patreon.com/thelonelytriathlete

We all get injured and we all deal with it differently. It recently occurred to me that I seem to go through stages of grief when I am injured. And I don't make the best decisions for my long term health until I reach the last stage.Join the fun at www.patreon.com/thelonelytriathleteTRANSCRIPTTriathlon Injuries and The 5 Stages of Grief Today I want to use the 5 Stages of Grief as a framework to talk about how we, as triathletes, often experience injuries.The Five Stages of Grief weren't actually created to explain sports injuries—or even the grief we feel after someone dies. They were originally observations of people facing their own mortality. Modern psychology tells us grief isn't nearly that tidy. But I've found those five emotions to be a surprisingly useful lens for understanding what happens in my own head every time an injury threatens a session or perhaps a season.As a quick recap, 3 weeks before my end of June race, I hurt my back. And I mean, I really hurt it. I had to take 8 complete days away from training and there were a few moments where I entertained the possibility that I might not be able to race in the World Championship qualifying race that I had been training for for 9 months. With all of my focus on rest, recovery, nutrition, medical attention and every marginally effective treatment I could think of, I managed to get to a place where I thought I might be able to race pain-free. And then, on the Friday before the Sunday race I hurt a different part of my back or neck. Once again, I faced difficult emotions but with luck on my side (and a million units of pain killer in my system) I managed to perform an all-time best race and secure my invitation to join Team Canada and represent at the World Triathlon Championships in Germany next year.My plan was to recover this past week, then get in some short hard efforts next week and once again race a Standard Distance here in Victoria. A race where I came 2nd in my category last year.Yet when I woke up this morning, I had difficuly walking due to a really sore hip. So, once again, I am forced to take extra time off for injury. And it reminded me that I seem to go through the same emotional journey every single time I get injured. I don't think it's just disappointment—I think it's grief.Not grief because someone died, but grief because, in a way, the athlete I thought I was for the next few weeks suddenly disappeared.So, what are the 5 Stage of Grief? And remember, we don't always go through them all and we don't necessarily go through them in a linear order.Stage 1: Denial"I'll be fine."My typical thoughts:It's just tight.I'll loosen up tomorrow.I'll still do my long run.Maybe I'll just bike instead.As triathletes, or simply very motivated people, we often tend to ignore warning signs because training has taught us to push through discomfort. No pain, no gain, right?And if you are anything like me, you've probably Googled 'Can I run on a torn [blank]?' hoping the internet says yes. You know who you are.Stage 2: Anger"This isn't fair."This is where frustration appears.Examples:Why now?I was finally getting fit.Everyone else is training.I did everything right.The timing is unbelievable!If you find yourself in this stage my advice to you would be to avoid social media because it can be almost unbearable to see friends and competitors on Strava crushing their workouts.Stage 3: BargainingThis is probably the funniest stage."If I only run easy...""What if I skip intervals and do some Base work instead?""I'll wear compression sleeves.""I'll ice it.""I'll take one more recovery day.""I'll only run downhill."This is where athletes become expert negotiators with themselves. Now, there is nothing wrong with trying to find a logical, reasonable compromise to work around an injury but realize this is a very dangerous place to be. There is a fine line between "getting through an injury" and "making it much worse".Stage 4: SadnessThis is the hardest part.The realization sets in:I'm going to lose fitness.That race might be over.My routine is gone.My identity takes a hit.We feel this way because training isn't just exercise — it's structure, stress relief, community, and confidence. Losing it feels much bigger than just missing a workout.Finally, Stage 5: AcceptanceThis is where good decisions FINALLY happen.Instead of asking:"How do I save this race?"You begin asking:"What's the smartest way forward?"Examples:Seeing a physiotherapist.Following a rehab plan.Adjusting goals.Cross-training.Sleeping more.Letting HEALING become the training.I've noticed that I can't skip straight to LOGIC. My brain wants to BARGAIN first. It wants to find shortcuts and loopholes. But eventually I reach acceptance, and that's when I actually start making good decisions. The sooner I recognize the emotional process, the sooner I stop fighting reality and start healing.I think it's been the realization that I need to go through these stages of grief when I am injured that have allowed me to stay calmer, cooler, less emotionally charged from my recent setbacks. It isn't easy at any level but the more quickly I move to acceptance, the more quickly I can begin to heal. And while we can't always control how quickly we get to that level the mere fact of recognizing what is happening to us emotionally is one of the biggest pieces of that puzzle.So, if you're injured right now, maybe give yourself a little grace. You might not just be dealing with sore muscles—you might be grieving the session, sessions or even season you thought you were going to have. That's normal. Just don't make permanent training decisions based on TEMPORARY EMOTIONS.Until next time,Peace

We all get injured and we all deal with it differently. It recently occurred to me that I seem to go through stages of grief when I am injured. And I don't make the best decisions for my long term health until I reach the last stage.Join the fun at www.patreon.com/thelonelytriathleteTRANSCRIPTTriathlon Injuries and The 5 Stages of Grief Today I want to use the 5 Stages of Grief as a framework to talk about how we, as triathletes, often experience injuries.The Five Stages of Grief weren't actually created to explain sports injuries—or even the grief we feel after someone dies. They were originally observations of people facing their own mortality. Modern psychology tells us grief isn't nearly that tidy. But I've found those five emotions to be a surprisingly useful lens for understanding what happens in my own head every time an injury threatens a session or perhaps a season.As a quick recap, 3 weeks before my end of June race, I hurt my back. And I mean, I really hurt it. I had to take 8 complete days away from training and there were a few moments where I entertained the possibility that I might not be able to race in the World Championship qualifying race that I had been training for for 9 months. With all of my focus on rest, recovery, nutrition, medical attention and every marginally effective treatment I could think of, I managed to get to a place where I thought I might be able to race pain-free. And then, on the Friday before the Sunday race I hurt a different part of my back or neck. Once again, I faced difficult emotions but with luck on my side (and a million units of pain killer in my system) I managed to perform an all-time best race and secure my invitation to join Team Canada and represent at the World Triathlon Championships in Germany next year.My plan was to recover this past week, then get in some short hard efforts next week and once again race a Standard Distance here in Victoria. A race where I came 2nd in my category last year.Yet when I woke up this morning, I had difficuly walking due to a really sore hip. So, once again, I am forced to take extra time off for injury. And it reminded me that I seem to go through the same emotional journey every single time I get injured. I don't think it's just disappointment—I think it's grief.Not grief because someone died, but grief because, in a way, the athlete I thought I was for the next few weeks suddenly disappeared.So, what are the 5 Stage of Grief? And remember, we don't always go through them all and we don't necessarily go through them in a linear order.Stage 1: Denial"I'll be fine."My typical thoughts:It's just tight.I'll loosen up tomorrow.I'll still do my long run.Maybe I'll just bike instead.As triathletes, or simply very motivated people, we often tend to ignore warning signs because training has taught us to push through discomfort. No pain, no gain, right?And if you are anything like me, you've probably Googled 'Can I run on a torn [blank]?' hoping the internet says yes. You know who you are.Stage 2: Anger"This isn't fair."This is where frustration appears.Examples:Why now?I was finally getting fit.Everyone else is training.I did everything right.The timing is unbelievable!If you find yourself in this stage my advice to you would be to avoid social media because it can be almost unbearable to see friends and competitors on Strava crushing their workouts.Stage 3: BargainingThis is probably the funniest stage."If I only run easy...""What if I skip intervals and do some Base work instead?""I'll wear compression sleeves.""I'll ice it.""I'll take one more recovery day.""I'll only run downhill."This is where athletes become expert negotiators with themselves. Now, there is nothing wrong with trying to find a logical, reasonable compromise to work around an injury but realize this is a very dangerous place to be. There is a fine line between "getting through an injury" and "making it much worse".Stage 4: SadnessThis is the hardest part.The realization sets in:I'm going to lose fitness.That race might be over.My routine is gone.My identity takes a hit.We feel this way because training isn't just exercise — it's structure, stress relief, community, and confidence. Losing it feels much bigger than just missing a workout.Finally, Stage 5: AcceptanceThis is where good decisions FINALLY happen.Instead of asking:"How do I save this race?"You begin asking:"What's the smartest way forward?"Examples:Seeing a physiotherapist.Following a rehab plan.Adjusting goals.Cross-training.Sleeping more.Letting HEALING become the training.I've noticed that I can't skip straight to LOGIC. My brain wants to BARGAIN first. It wants to find shortcuts and loopholes. But eventually I reach acceptance, and that's when I actually start making good decisions. The sooner I recognize the emotional process, the sooner I stop fighting reality and start healing.I think it's been the realization that I need to go through these stages of grief when I am injured that have allowed me to stay calmer, cooler, less emotionally charged from my recent setbacks. It isn't easy at any level but the more quickly I move to acceptance, the more quickly I can begin to heal. And while we can't always control how quickly we get to that level the mere fact of recognizing what is happening to us emotionally is one of the biggest pieces of that puzzle.So, if you're injured right now, maybe give yourself a little grace. You might not just be dealing with sore muscles—you might be grieving the session, sessions or even season you thought you were going to have. That's normal. Just don't make permanent training decisions based on TEMPORARY EMOTIONS.Until next time,Peace

I've trained consistently for years. I've dialed in my nutrition. I've focused on recovery. I've managed last minute injuries. And it all came down to today's race.Come join our community at www.patreon.com/thelonelytriathlete

I've trained consistently for years. I've dialed in my nutrition. I've focused on recovery. I've managed last minute injuries. And it all came down to today's race.Come join our community at www.patreon.com/thelonelytriathlete

Getting race ready requires a plan and patience. It requires consistency. It requires boring determination. Then you have to show up on race day and swim, bike and run to the best of your ability. Simple, isn't it?Are you a member yet? Check membership options at www.patreon.com/thelonelytriathleteTRANSCRIPTHappy Fathers Day and Welcome back to The Lonely Triathlete.Well… this is it.Eight months of training comes down to this.In just over a week, on June 28th, I'll be lining up at the start line with a goal that, honestly, would have seemed pretty ambitious a few years ago.I'm going to attempt to qualify for the Triathlon Age Group World Championships.And the funny thing is… I actually think I have a shot.Now, before anyone thinks I'm getting ahead of myself, let me explain.Last year at this same race, I finished first in my age category.Which sounds pretty impressive.Except there's a small detail.I was the only person in my category.So technically, yes, I was first.But I was also first because I was the only one.And that's one of the funny things about endurance sports. You can prepare, you can train, you can execute — but there are still so many things completely outside your control.Who shows up.Who is having the race of their life.Who has been training specifically for that event.And that's why I'm trying not to obsess about the competition.That said, I do think there are a few things that could work in my favour.This qualifier has not been heavily promoted. In fact, even knowing that this was a qualification race, I had trouble finding much information about it.So maybe that means fewer people are chasing those qualification spots.Maybe someone fast shows up and beats me — but they didn't realize there were extra steps required to actually qualify.Who knows?The other thing is there is a potential rival I'm watching.He beat me by about a minute at the Vancouver Standard distance race in 2024.A minute.That's not a huge gap.That's the difference between a good transition and a slow one.A slightly better swim.A smarter bike.A stronger run.But he is also racing at the World Championships at the Sprint distance in Spain later this year, so it's possible he won't be targeting this Standard distance race.Again though — all of that is speculation.And that brings me to the only thing I actually control.The preparation.So what have I done since October to give myself the best possible chance?Number one: consistency.I started training back in October and I have put in six days a week of training consistently.And that is the thing I'm probably most proud of.Not one huge workout.Not one heroic training week.Just showing up.Week after week.The swim sessions.The bike sessions.The runs.The recovery.The boring stuff.Because that's where endurance fitness is built.The race is just the final exam.The work happened months ago.The second thing I'm really excited about is my bike fitness.My FTP is the highest it has ever been.I'm sitting around 270 watts.And my watts per kilogram is also the highest it has ever been — around 3.43 watts per kilogram.For me, that's a huge milestone.Because the goal isn't just to be fit.The goal is to be fit enough that I can swim, bike, and still run well.That's the challenge of triathlon.Then there are the little things.The marginal gains.Because if you're a triathlete, you know exactly what I mean.At some point you start looking for every possible advantage.This year I added aerodynamic calf sleeves.Will they make a difference?Hopefully.Maybe they save me a few watts.Maybe those few watts add up.I've also got a new pair of Speed Laces ready for my race shoes.Because it makes absolutely no sense to spend eight months training and then waste 15 seconds in transition tying your shoes.I am fully aware of how silly it is to spend money on marginal gains but the reality is, as a mid or back-of-the-packer while these things don't matter, once you've done everything in your power to hit the podium and yet fall 1 minute short, it is an option to try and squeeze that minute from a slightly faster pair of shoes or by shaving your foreams or by getting those extra massage sessions. What else? Well, I've also got my new pair of TheMagic5 Vector goggles ready to go.A leak-free swim and clear vision is a pretty good way to start the race.And nutrition is another big focus this year.I've switched to Precision Fuel and Hydration.I'm loading more electrolytes before the race, and I'm carrying more electrolytes with me on the bike and run.Now, can I say for certain that electrolytes were a limiter for me?No.Especially at the Olympic distance.But I strongly suspect they hurt me during my 70.3 last year.So this year I'd rather go into the race slightly overprepared than underprepared.Speaking of things outside the plan…If you follow my Patreon, you'll know I had a bit of a scare two weeks ago.I hurt my back.I think it happened during swimming, and for about three days I was in significant discomfort.It affected my sleep.It affected my ability to train.And the decision I made was probably one of the hardest decisions for an athlete:I stopped.I took eight full days completely off training.And in hindsight hat was the right decision.I've also seen a chiropractor twice.And I'll admit — I've had reservations about chiropractors in the past.That's probably a topic for another episode.But I have to say, I've been really impressed with the care I received.Not just the treatment itself, but the exercise recommendations and stretching protocols afterward.That homework has probably been just as valuable as the treatment.The other little experiment I've added is supplementing with 200 milligrams a day of Ubiquinol.This is the more bioavailable form of CoQ10.There are some studies suggesting potential benefits for endurance and recovery.Now, the frustrating part is that these things take time.Apparently four to six weeks for meaningful levels in the body.So I'm probably not going to see some magical transformation before race day.But if it gives me even the smallest advantage?I'll take it.At this point, there really isn't much more I can do.Other than one thing.Stay calm.There is a fine line between preparation and obsession.Between having a plan and trying to control every single variable.The weather.The competition.The exact race conditions.You can't control those things.You can only control how you respond.Im happy to see that at the moent the forecast is looking pretty ideal.Cool temperatures.Blue skies.A great day for racing.So my goal for the final week is to be Zen about the things I can't control.I want to show up prepared.I want to execute my race.I want to challenge myself.Yes, I want to qualify for Worlds.That's the goal.But at the end of the day, the reason I do this sport is bigger than a result.It's the feeling of pushing myself.It's being surrounded by other people who live this strange triathlon lifestyle.It's knowing that I gave my best.And regardless of the outcome, I know I'll come away with either satisfaction, insight, or both.And why does any of this matter to me as a 58 year old amateur? Because as I age it is becoming increasingly clear that life is not forever. Every day brings a headline that a childhood hero or celebrity has passed away. More and more often I'm hearing of friends with sudden health issues. Personally, I'm experiencing injuries at a higher rate than ever. I realize that our time in this sport has a limit and while we never can never know where that limit is, it's out there somewhere on the horizon.So…The countdown begins once again.June 28th.Let's see what happens.Until next time, peace

Getting race ready requires a plan and patience. It requires consistency. It requires boring determination. Then you have to show up on race day and swim, bike and run to the best of your ability. Simple, isn't it?TRANSCRIPTHappy Fathers Day and Welcome back to The Lonely Triathlete.Well… this is it.Eight months of training comes down to this.In just over a week, on June 28th, I'll be lining up at the start line with a goal that, honestly, would have seemed pretty ambitious a few years ago.I'm going to attempt to qualify for the Triathlon Age Group World Championships.And the funny thing is… I actually think I have a shot.Now, before anyone thinks I'm getting ahead of myself, let me explain.Last year at this same race, I finished first in my age category.Which sounds pretty impressive.Except there's a small detail.I was the only person in my category.So technically, yes, I was first.But I was also first because I was the only one.And that's one of the funny things about endurance sports. You can prepare, you can train, you can execute — but there are still so many things completely outside your control.Who shows up.Who is having the race of their life.Who has been training specifically for that event.And that's why I'm trying not to obsess about the competition.That said, I do think there are a few things that could work in my favour.This qualifier has not been heavily promoted. In fact, even knowing that this was a qualification race, I had trouble finding much information about it.So maybe that means fewer people are chasing those qualification spots.Maybe someone fast shows up and beats me — but they didn't realize there were extra steps required to actually qualify.Who knows?The other thing is there is a potential rival I'm watching.He beat me by about a minute at the Vancouver Standard distance race in 2024.A minute.That's not a huge gap.That's the difference between a good transition and a slow one.A slightly better swim.A smarter bike.A stronger run.But he is also racing at the World Championships at the Sprint distance in Spain later this year, so it's possible he won't be targeting this Standard distance race.Again though — all of that is speculation.And that brings me to the only thing I actually control.The preparation.So what have I done since October to give myself the best possible chance?Number one: consistency.I started training back in October and I have put in six days a week of training consistently.And that is the thing I'm probably most proud of.Not one huge workout.Not one heroic training week.Just showing up.Week after week.The swim sessions.The bike sessions.The runs.The recovery.The boring stuff.Because that's where endurance fitness is built.The race is just the final exam.The work happened months ago.The second thing I'm really excited about is my bike fitness.My FTP is the highest it has ever been.I'm sitting around 270 watts.And my watts per kilogram is also the highest it has ever been — around 3.43 watts per kilogram.For me, that's a huge milestone.Because the goal isn't just to be fit.The goal is to be fit enough that I can swim, bike, and still run well.That's the challenge of triathlon.Then there are the little things.The marginal gains.Because if you're a triathlete, you know exactly what I mean.At some point you start looking for every possible advantage.This year I added aerodynamic calf sleeves.Will they make a difference?Hopefully.Maybe they save me a few watts.Maybe those few watts add up.I've also got a new pair of Speed Laces ready for my race shoes.Because it makes absolutely no sense to spend eight months training and then waste 15 seconds in transition tying your shoes.I am fully aware of how silly it is to spend money on marginal gains but the reality is, as a mid or back-of-the-packer while these things don't matter, once you've done everything in your power to hit the podium and yet fall 1 minute short, it is an option to try and squeeze that minute from a slightly faster pair of shoes or by shaving your foreams or by getting those extra massage sessions. What else? Well, I've also got my new pair of TheMagic5 Vector goggles ready to go.A leak-free swim and clear vision is a pretty good way to start the race.And nutrition is another big focus this year.I've switched to Precision Fuel and Hydration.I'm loading more electrolytes before the race, and I'm carrying more electrolytes with me on the bike and run.Now, can I say for certain that electrolytes were a limiter for me?No.Especially at the Olympic distance.But I strongly suspect they hurt me during my 70.3 last year.So this year I'd rather go into the race slightly overprepared than underprepared.Speaking of things outside the plan…If you follow my Patreon, you'll know I had a bit of a scare two weeks ago.I hurt my back.I think it happened during swimming, and for about three days I was in significant discomfort.It affected my sleep.It affected my ability to train.And the decision I made was probably one of the hardest decisions for an athlete:I stopped.I took eight full days completely off training.And in hindsight hat was the right decision.I've also seen a chiropractor twice.And I'll admit — I've had reservations about chiropractors in the past.That's probably a topic for another episode.But I have to say, I've been really impressed with the care I received.Not just the treatment itself, but the exercise recommendations and stretching protocols afterward.That homework has probably been just as valuable as the treatment.The other little experiment I've added is supplementing with 200 milligrams a day of Ubiquinol.This is the more bioavailable form of CoQ10.There are some studies suggesting potential benefits for endurance and recovery.Now, the frustrating part is that these things take time.Apparently four to six weeks for meaningful levels in the body.So I'm probably not going to see some magical transformation before race day.But if it gives me even the smallest advantage?I'll take it.At this point, there really isn't much more I can do.Other than one thing.Stay calm.There is a fine line between preparation and obsession.Between having a plan and trying to control every single variable.The weather.The competition.The exact race conditions.You can't control those things.You can only control how you respond.Im happy to see that at the moent the forecast is looking pretty ideal.Cool temperatures.Blue skies.A great day for racing.So my goal for the final week is to be Zen about the things I can't control.I want to show up prepared.I want to execute my race.I want to challenge myself.Yes, I want to qualify for Worlds.That's the goal.But at the end of the day, the reason I do this sport is bigger than a result.It's the feeling of pushing myself.It's being surrounded by other people who live this strange triathlon lifestyle.It's knowing that I gave my best.And regardless of the outcome, I know I'll come away with either satisfaction, insight, or both.And why does any of this matter to me as a 58 year old amateur? Because as I age it is becoming increasingly clear that life is not forever. Every day brings a headline that a childhood hero or celebrity has passed away. More and more often I'm hearing of friends with sudden health issues. Personally, I'm experiencing injuries at a higher rate than ever. I realize that our time in this sport has a limit and while we never can never know where that limit is, it's out there somewhere on the horizon.So…The countdown begins once again.June 28th.Let's see what happens.Until next time, peace

Let's face it, swimming 3.9km is no easy feat. Let's say you can easily swim 1.9km but find the IM swim cutoff challenging, what can be done. Well, it depends on your particular obstacles so let's get into it.Head on over to www.patreon.com/thelonelytriathlete for more lonely content!TRANSCRIPTA few weeks ago, my awesome patron on Patreon reached out with a question. Hi Ron, hope you are doing well.Ron is turning 74 years old.He's completed four Ironman 70.3 races.Four.Let's just pause there for a moment. What a freaking inspiration!Most people his age aren't training for endurance events. Many aren't exercising at all. Yet here's a guy still swimming, biking, running, racing, and setting ambitious goals.His question to me was simple.Why can he complete a 70.3 swim, but can't seem to make to swim cutoff in an Ironman swim?It's a fascinating question because on the surface it sounds like a swimming problem.But I don't think it is.At least not entirely.And the more I thought about it, the more I realized this episode isn't really about swimming.It's about something all endurance athletes eventually face.The point where determination alone is no longer enough.The point where we have to get smarter.Not just tougher.Now before we go any further, let's acknowledge something.A 74-year-old athlete attempting an Ironman deserves respect.Period.It would be easy to focus on what isn't working.But I'd rather focus on what already is.This athlete has completed four 70.3 races. That tells me he has discipline, consistency, courage, and experience.The question isn't whether he's capable of hard things.Clearly he is.The question is whether the approach that got him through a half Ironman can get him through a full one.And those are not always the same thing.The first thing I'd want to know is whether he can comfortably swim 3.8 kilometres in a pool.Not race it.Not hammer it.Just swim it continuously.Because if the answer is no, then we're dealing primarily with swim fitness.The Ironman swim is nearly four kilometres long.That's a long way.And while it looks like exactly twice the distance of a 70.3 swim, anyone who's raced long enough knows it doesn't feel like twice the distance.Fatigue compounds.Small inefficiencies become major inefficiencies.Little mistakes become quite expensive.And if you've never developed the fitness to comfortably cover that distance, the water will expose you.But let's imagine he CAN swim the distance in the pool.NOW things get interesting.Because that means the problem may not be fitness at all.It may be EFFICIENCY.One of the most important lessons I've learned in endurance sports is that fitness and efficiency are not the same thing.And nowhere is that more obvious than in swimming.You can be incredibly fit and still struggle in the water.I've heard coaches say something that stuck with me. "The water doesn't care how fit you are."And it's true.You can bully your way through a run.You can overpower mistakes on the bike.Swimming doesn't negotiate.If your technique is inefficient, the water collects payment on every single stroke.And those payments add up over nearly four kilometres.This reminds me of something from my own swimming journey.I was new to distance swimming when I took up triathlon around 25 years ago. I had a swimming background although not comptetitive and I'd never ever swam 100M straight witout stopping because...why would I? So I self taught myself how to swim. I watched videos and read a few books. I went to the pool 3-4 ays a week and swamd swam and swam until I could cover the race distace of 1500M. My times were slow, around 3:00/100M, maybe a bit faster but not much. And I figured that as I contiued to swim over the years I would naturally get faster.I was so wrong. I could muscle myself to a 2:30 pace formaybe 1000M but then I was gassed, no way I could cycle after an effort like that. Something was holding me back and I didn't know what, so I enrolled in a Masters swim class at the local pool.During one of those workouts the coach walked alongside my lane, calling out technical issues with my stroke. He kept yelling "deeper, deeper" and at the end of the class told me that on my breathing side I tended to pull very shallow, my arm didn't go deep in the water so I was effectively swimming with one hand. Over the course of a few evenings I corrected that. Then end of one of the last sessions he pulled me aside an commended me for dropping both arms deeper in the water but he said "Todd, you tend to push down with your hands and only pull towards the back half of your stroke. Remember those high elbow drills (the ones that I did but didnt really make sense to me), we do those to encourgee you to catch the water much earlier in your stroke and to PULL yourself thorugh the water rather than push down so much." Huh. Suddenly, everything made sense and as I pulled raher than pushed, I got my swim time down to 2:00/100M. A massive improvement in minimal time.What struck me afterward was how obvious those flaws seemed once they were pointed out.Yet I never would have found them on my own.I had convinced myself that the solution was more swimming.More fitness.More effort.Instead, the solution was seeing something I couldn't see.And I think that's an important lesson.Sometimes we're too close to our own problems to diagnose them accurately.The very thing holding us back may be completely invisible to us.Especially in swimming.Now there's another possibility.And this one is surprisingly common.Anxiety.I've seen athletes who can easily swim the required distance in a pool.Then race day arrives.The water is colder.There are hundreds of athletes around them.They're getting bumped and kicked.Their breathing feels different.Their wetsuit feels restrictive.Suddenly they're swimming at an intensity they would never sustain in training.Their heart rate climbs.Their stroke shortens.Their efficiency disappears.And twenty minutes later they're paying the price.Many Ironman swim struggles aren't actually swimming struggles.They're pacing struggles.They're anxiety struggles.They're energy management struggles.The athlete is burning matches far too early.When people talk about Ironman, they often focus on speed.But for many athletes, especially older athletes, the goal isn't speed.It's economy.How LITTLE energy can you spend to move through the water?How relaxed can you stay?How efficiently can you convert effort into forward motion?Those questions become increasingly important as we age.At 25 years old, we can often compensate for technical flaws.At 74, every unnecessary movement has a cost.Every inefficient stroke carries a penalty.Which brings me to the part of this conversation I find most interesting.There comes a point in every endurance athlete's life when we must decide whether we are trying harder or trying smarter.And that's not always an easy distinction to make.Most of us love hard work.We trust hard work.Hard work feels noble.If something isn't working, our instinct is often to do more.More miles.More intervals.More volume.More suffering.But sometimes the breakthrough isn't on the other side of more effort.Sometimes it's on the other side of better information.A coach notices something.A training partner sees something.A video reveals something.An expert identifies a flaw we've been carrying for years.And suddenly progress happens.Not because we're working harder.Because we're finally working on the right thing.I don't know whether Ron's challenge is fitness, technique, pacing, anxiety, or some combination of all four.But I do know this.The goal is not to SURVIVE the Ironman swim.The goal is to become the kind of swimmer for whom the Ironman swim is MANAGEBLE.That's a different objective entirely.And I think that's true outside of triathlon too.The challenges we struggle with for years are not always asking for more determination.Sometimes they're asking for a new perspective.Sometimes they're asking for better guidance.Sometimes they're asking us to admit that we don't know what we don't know.And that might be one of the hardest lessons in endurance sports.Not that we need to work harder.But that we might need help.If you're listening today and you're chasing a goal that's been stubbornly out of reach, maybe ask yourself this question.Am I missing effort?Or am I missing insight?Because those are very different problems.And one of them is often easier to solve than we think.Thanks for listening.And remember, whether you're training for your first sprint triathlon, your fifth Ironman, or simply trying to stay active and healthy as the years go by, you're not training alone.You're just another lonely triathlete.Until next time,Peace

Let's face it, swimming 3.9km is no easy feat. Let's say you can easily swim 1.9km but find the IM swim cutoff challenging, what can be done. Well, it depends on your particular obstacles so let's get into it.TRANSCRIPTA few weeks ago, my awesome patron on Patreon reached out with a question. Hi Ron, hope you are doing well.Ron is turning 74 years old.He's completed four Ironman 70.3 races.Four.Let's just pause there for a moment. What a freaking inspiration!Most people his age aren't training for endurance events. Many aren't exercising at all. Yet here's a guy still swimming, biking, running, racing, and setting ambitious goals.His question to me was simple.Why can he complete a 70.3 swim, but can't seem to make to swim cutoff in an Ironman swim?It's a fascinating question because on the surface it sounds like a swimming problem.But I don't think it is.At least not entirely.And the more I thought about it, the more I realized this episode isn't really about swimming.It's about something all endurance athletes eventually face.The point where determination alone is no longer enough.The point where we have to get smarter.Not just tougher.Now before we go any further, let's acknowledge something.A 74-year-old athlete attempting an Ironman deserves respect.Period.It would be easy to focus on what isn't working.But I'd rather focus on what already is.This athlete has completed four 70.3 races. That tells me he has discipline, consistency, courage, and experience.The question isn't whether he's capable of hard things.Clearly he is.The question is whether the approach that got him through a half Ironman can get him through a full one.And those are not always the same thing.The first thing I'd want to know is whether he can comfortably swim 3.8 kilometres in a pool.Not race it.Not hammer it.Just swim it continuously.Because if the answer is no, then we're dealing primarily with swim fitness.The Ironman swim is nearly four kilometres long.That's a long way.And while it looks like exactly twice the distance of a 70.3 swim, anyone who's raced long enough knows it doesn't feel like twice the distance.Fatigue compounds.Small inefficiencies become major inefficiencies.Little mistakes become quite expensive.And if you've never developed the fitness to comfortably cover that distance, the water will expose you.But let's imagine he CAN swim the distance in the pool.NOW things get interesting.Because that means the problem may not be fitness at all.It may be EFFICIENCY.One of the most important lessons I've learned in endurance sports is that fitness and efficiency are not the same thing.And nowhere is that more obvious than in swimming.You can be incredibly fit and still struggle in the water.I've heard coaches say something that stuck with me. "The water doesn't care how fit you are."And it's true.You can bully your way through a run.You can overpower mistakes on the bike.Swimming doesn't negotiate.If your technique is inefficient, the water collects payment on every single stroke.And those payments add up over nearly four kilometres.This reminds me of something from my own swimming journey.I was new to distance swimming when I took up triathlon around 25 years ago. I had a swimming background although not comptetitive and I'd never ever swam 100M straight witout stopping because...why would I? So I self taught myself how to swim. I watched videos and read a few books. I went to the pool 3-4 ays a week and swamd swam and swam until I could cover the race distace of 1500M. My times were slow, around 3:00/100M, maybe a bit faster but not much. And I figured that as I contiued to swim over the years I would naturally get faster.I was so wrong. I could muscle myself to a 2:30 pace formaybe 1000M but then I was gassed, no way I could cycle after an effort like that. Something was holding me back and I didn't know what, so I enrolled in a Masters swim class at the local pool.During one of those workouts the coach walked alongside my lane, calling out technical issues with my stroke. He kept yelling "deeper, deeper" and at the end of the class told me that on my breathing side I tended to pull very shallow, my arm didn't go deep in the water so I was effectively swimming with one hand. Over the course of a few evenings I corrected that. Then end of one of the last sessions he pulled me aside an commended me for dropping both arms deeper in the water but he said "Todd, you tend to push down with your hands and only pull towards the back half of your stroke. Remember those high elbow drills (the ones that I did but didnt really make sense to me), we do those to encourgee you to catch the water much earlier in your stroke and to PULL yourself thorugh the water rather than push down so much." Huh. Suddenly, everything made sense and as I pulled raher than pushed, I got my swim time down to 2:00/100M. A massive improvement in minimal time.What struck me afterward was how obvious those flaws seemed once they were pointed out.Yet I never would have found them on my own.I had convinced myself that the solution was more swimming.More fitness.More effort.Instead, the solution was seeing something I couldn't see.And I think that's an important lesson.Sometimes we're too close to our own problems to diagnose them accurately.The very thing holding us back may be completely invisible to us.Especially in swimming.Now there's another possibility.And this one is surprisingly common.Anxiety.I've seen athletes who can easily swim the required distance in a pool.Then race day arrives.The water is colder.There are hundreds of athletes around them.They're getting bumped and kicked.Their breathing feels different.Their wetsuit feels restrictive.Suddenly they're swimming at an intensity they would never sustain in training.Their heart rate climbs.Their stroke shortens.Their efficiency disappears.And twenty minutes later they're paying the price.Many Ironman swim struggles aren't actually swimming struggles.They're pacing struggles.They're anxiety struggles.They're energy management struggles.The athlete is burning matches far too early.When people talk about Ironman, they often focus on speed.But for many athletes, especially older athletes, the goal isn't speed.It's economy.How LITTLE energy can you spend to move through the water?How relaxed can you stay?How efficiently can you convert effort into forward motion?Those questions become increasingly important as we age.At 25 years old, we can often compensate for technical flaws.At 74, every unnecessary movement has a cost.Every inefficient stroke carries a penalty.Which brings me to the part of this conversation I find most interesting.There comes a point in every endurance athlete's life when we must decide whether we are trying harder or trying smarter.And that's not always an easy distinction to make.Most of us love hard work.We trust hard work.Hard work feels noble.If something isn't working, our instinct is often to do more.More miles.More intervals.More volume.More suffering.But sometimes the breakthrough isn't on the other side of more effort.Sometimes it's on the other side of better information.A coach notices something.A training partner sees something.A video reveals something.An expert identifies a flaw we've been carrying for years.And suddenly progress happens.Not because we're working harder.Because we're finally working on the right thing.I don't know whether Ron's challenge is fitness, technique, pacing, anxiety, or some combination of all four.But I do know this.The goal is not to SURVIVE the Ironman swim.The goal is to become the kind of swimmer for whom the Ironman swim is MANAGEBLE.That's a different objective entirely.And I think that's true outside of triathlon too.The challenges we struggle with for years are not always asking for more determination.Sometimes they're asking for a new perspective.Sometimes they're asking for better guidance.Sometimes they're asking us to admit that we don't know what we don't know.And that might be one of the hardest lessons in endurance sports.Not that we need to work harder.But that we might need help.If you're listening today and you're chasing a goal that's been stubbornly out of reach, maybe ask yourself this question.Am I missing effort?Or am I missing insight?Because those are very different problems.And one of them is often easier to solve than we think.Thanks for listening.And remember, whether you're training for your first sprint triathlon, your fifth Ironman, or simply trying to stay active and healthy as the years go by, you're not training alone.You're just another lonely triathlete.Until next time,Peace

This year, if you could perform one behavior over and over (that you aren't currently doing) that you think would most positively impact your triathlon performance, what would that be? It would be a powerful habit, is what I think!Come join our community at www.patreon.com/thelonelytriathleteTRANSCRIPTToday I want to talk about something that might be more important than your training plan, more important than your latest piece of gear, and maybe even more important than your motivation.I want to talk about habits.Because if you've been in this sport long enough, you've probably noticed something.The athletes who succeed year after year aren't necessarily the most talented.They aren't always the fastest.They aren't always the most motivated.They're often just the ones with the best habits.And that's because habits do something incredibly valuable.They reduce the number of decisions we have to make.Every decision requires energy.Should I go to bed now or watch one more episode?Should I do my workout before work or after work?Should I eat the apple or the doughnut?Should I stretch?Should I hydrate?Should I foam roll?Should I prepare tomorrow's workout?If every one of those actions requires a fresh decision every day, eventually decision fatigue wins.Life gets busy.Work gets stressful.The kids need something.The weather is lousy.And suddenly all those good intentions disappear.But habits are different.Habits automate behavior.When something becomes a habit, we stop negotiating with ourselves.We simply do it.And that's where long-term performance gains come from.Not heroic efforts.Not occasional bursts of motivation.Consistency.The compound interest of athletic performance.So today I want to walk through some of the most valuable habits a triathlete can build.Not workouts.Not race strategies.Habits.The small recurring actions that quietly improve performance over time.Before we get into the specific habits that improve performance, I want to share something.For a long time, I wrestled with the whole idea of habits.They sounded boring.They sounded restrictive.I like spontaneity.I like making decisions off the cuff.I like the feeling that I'm in control of my time and free to do whatever I want in a given moment.For years, I looked at highly structured routines and thought, "That doesn't sound like a very interesting way to live."I thought habits would make life feel scripted.Like I was following a checklist instead of actually living.But over time, I came to realize a couple of things.The first was that finding an effective action and repeating it over and over again is incredibly productive.Far more productive than constantly making mistakes and trying to reinvent the wheel.Think about triathlon training.Once you discover a workout structure that works, you don't throw it away and invent an entirely new training philosophy every Tuesday.You repeat what works.You build on it.You let consistency create results.So why wouldn't the same principle apply to sleep, nutrition, recovery, and the rest of life?The second realization was even more important.I discovered that I was already living a life full of habits.I just wasn't calling them habits.I showered at roughly the same time every morning.I ate many of the same breakfasts.I arrived at work at roughly the same time.I watched many of the same television shows.I read many of the same types of books.I followed dozens of patterns every single day without even thinking about them.In other words, habits weren't something I needed to add to my life.They were already there.The difference was that most of them had developed unconsciously.And that's when the light bulb went on.If habits already exist in my life, why not examine them?Why not identify which ones are helping me and which ones are holding me back?Why not intentionally select the habits that support my goals?Why not add the ones that are missing?Instead of letting habits happen by accident, why not consciously design them?That's when habits stopped feeling restrictive to me.They started feeling empowering.Because habits aren't really about removing freedom.They're about using today's decisions to make tomorrow easier.And for endurance athletes, that's a pretty powerful advantage.Sleep HabitsLet's start with the foundation.Sleep.I know.Sleep isn't exciting.Nobody posts screenshots of their bedtime on social media.But if there was a legal performance-enhancing drug available to every athlete, sleep would probably be it.The problem is that many athletes treat sleep like whatever time is left over after everything else is done.Instead, high-performing athletes often reverse the equation.Sleep comes first.Everything else fits around it.One habit that can dramatically improve sleep quality is having a consistent bedtime.Not just on weekdays.Every day.Your body loves routine.Going to bed at roughly the same time each night trains your body to expect sleep.Another powerful habit is reducing screen time before bed.I'm not perfect at this one.In fact, I suspect many of us are not.But we all know the difference between drifting off peacefully and scrolling through social media until midnight.A third habit is preparing for tomorrow before going to bed.Lay out your workout clothes.Charge your watch.Fill your water bottle.When you wake up, there is less friction between you and the workout.And less friction means more consistency.Training HabitsNow let's talk about training.Most athletes focus on the big sessions.The long ride.The key run.The hard intervals.But the athletes who improve year after year tend to have strong training habits.One of the best habits is simply protecting training time.Treating workouts like appointments.We don't skip dentist appointments because we don't feel like going.We shouldn't casually skip important workouts either.Another habit is beginning workouts at a consistent time whenever possible.If you always run at 6:00 AM, eventually your brain stops debating whether you're going.It's just what you do.The same way brushing your teeth is what you do.One habit I've come to appreciate is tracking workouts immediately after completion.A few notes.How did it feel?What worked?What didn't?Those little observations accumulate over months and years.They help us become smarter athletes.And perhaps the most important training habit of all:Show up on the days you don't feel like it.Not every workout needs to be amazing.Sometimes success is simply putting on the shoes and starting.Many workouts that begin reluctantly end up being perfectly fine.Recovery HabitsRecovery is where a lot of age-group athletes leave performance on the table.We spend hours thinking about training.Minutes thinking about recovery.Yet recovery is where adaptation actually happens.One valuable habit is doing a short recovery routine immediately after training.Not someday later.Immediately.Five minutes.Stretching.Foam rolling.Walking.Whatever works for you.The key is consistency.Another habit is paying attention to recovery markers.How's your energy?How's your mood?How's your motivation?How's your resting heart rate?How are you sleeping?Elite athletes monitor recovery because they understand that training stress only creates improvement if recovery keeps pace.One recovery habit I've become a fan of is scheduling recovery before you think you need it.Not after you're exhausted.Before.Because once fatigue becomes obvious, you've often been accumulating it for quite some time.Nutrition HabitsNow let's move to nutrition.If you're anything like me, you may have spent years looking for nutrition secrets.But most successful athletes aren't relying on secrets.They're relying on habits.For example, having a protein-rich breakfast.Hydrating first thing in the morning.Bringing healthy snacks to work.Eating vegetables with most meals.None of these habits are revolutionary.But together they become powerful.One nutrition habit that made a huge difference for me was becoming more aware of evening snacking.It's amazing how many calories can sneak in between dinner and bedtime.A handful of chips becomes a bowl.A bowl becomes several hundred calories.And suddenly we're wondering why training isn't producing the body composition changes we expected.Another critical habit is fueling workouts properly.Especially longer sessions.Many athletes train hard but under-fuel.Then wonder why performance stalls.Consistent fueling is a habit.Just like consistent hydration.And just like recovery.The Habit That Connects EverythingThere's one habit that may be more important than any other.Planning.Every successful athlete I know plans.Maybe not obsessively.But intentionally.They know when they're training.They know what they're eating.They know where recovery fits into the week.They don't leave important behaviors to chance.Because chance is usually where inconsistency lives.A few minutes of planning each week can eliminate dozens of decisions.And remember, every decision you eliminate preserves mental energy.How Do We Identify the Right Habits?So how do we decide which habits to build?Here's a simple question.What behavior, if repeated consistently for the next year, would have the biggest positive impact on my performance?Notice I didn't say biggest workout.I said behavior.Maybe it's going to bed 30 minutes earlier.Maybe it's drinking more water.Maybe it's strength training twice a week.Maybe it's eliminating late-night snacking.The best habit is often not the most impressive one.It's the one that addresses your biggest weakness.And it's the one you're actually willing to do.How Do We Turn Behaviors Into Habits?The mistake many athletes make is trying to change everything at once.More training.Better nutrition.Earlier bedtime.Daily stretching.Strength training.Meditation.Hydration.Reading.Journaling.By next Tuesday they're exhausted.So, start small. Ridiculously small.If you want to stretch more, start with five minutes.If you want to improve sleep, move bedtime earlier by fifteen minutes.If you want to hydrate better, put a water bottle where you'll see it.Make the habit easy.Attach it to something you already do.This is called habit stacking.After I brush my teeth, I stretch for five minutes.After I finish a workout, I drink a recovery shake.After dinner, I prepare tomorrow's training gear.The more automatic the sequence becomes, the less motivation is required.And that's the goal.Because motivation comes and goes.Habits stay.Closing ThoughtsAs triathletes, we spend a lot of time chasing breakthroughs.The perfect workout.The perfect race.The perfect piece of equipment.But most breakthroughs aren't dramatic.They're quiet.They're the result of hundreds of small actions repeated over and over again.A consistent bedtime.A prepared water bottle.A planned workout.A healthy snack.Five minutes of stretching.Nothing spectacular on its own.But together?They create the athlete you become.So this week, don't ask yourself what huge change you need to make.Ask yourself:What's one habit that future me will be grateful I started today?Build that habit.Protect it.Repeat it.And then let consistency do what consistency always does.Compound.

This year, if you could perform one behavior over and over (that you aren't currently doing) that you think would most positively impact your triathlon performance, what would that be? It would be a powerful habit, is what I think!TRANSCRIPTToday I want to talk about something that might be more important than your training plan, more important than your latest piece of gear, and maybe even more important than your motivation.I want to talk about habits.Because if you've been in this sport long enough, you've probably noticed something.The athletes who succeed year after year aren't necessarily the most talented.They aren't always the fastest.They aren't always the most motivated.They're often just the ones with the best habits.And that's because habits do something incredibly valuable.They reduce the number of decisions we have to make.Every decision requires energy.Should I go to bed now or watch one more episode?Should I do my workout before work or after work?Should I eat the apple or the doughnut?Should I stretch?Should I hydrate?Should I foam roll?Should I prepare tomorrow's workout?If every one of those actions requires a fresh decision every day, eventually decision fatigue wins.Life gets busy.Work gets stressful.The kids need something.The weather is lousy.And suddenly all those good intentions disappear.But habits are different.Habits automate behavior.When something becomes a habit, we stop negotiating with ourselves.We simply do it.And that's where long-term performance gains come from.Not heroic efforts.Not occasional bursts of motivation.Consistency.The compound interest of athletic performance.So today I want to walk through some of the most valuable habits a triathlete can build.Not workouts.Not race strategies.Habits.The small recurring actions that quietly improve performance over time.Before we get into the specific habits that improve performance, I want to share something.For a long time, I wrestled with the whole idea of habits.They sounded boring.They sounded restrictive.I like spontaneity.I like making decisions off the cuff.I like the feeling that I'm in control of my time and free to do whatever I want in a given moment.For years, I looked at highly structured routines and thought, "That doesn't sound like a very interesting way to live."I thought habits would make life feel scripted.Like I was following a checklist instead of actually living.But over time, I came to realize a couple of things.The first was that finding an effective action and repeating it over and over again is incredibly productive.Far more productive than constantly making mistakes and trying to reinvent the wheel.Think about triathlon training.Once you discover a workout structure that works, you don't throw it away and invent an entirely new training philosophy every Tuesday.You repeat what works.You build on it.You let consistency create results.So why wouldn't the same principle apply to sleep, nutrition, recovery, and the rest of life?The second realization was even more important.I discovered that I was already living a life full of habits.I just wasn't calling them habits.I showered at roughly the same time every morning.I ate many of the same breakfasts.I arrived at work at roughly the same time.I watched many of the same television shows.I read many of the same types of books.I followed dozens of patterns every single day without even thinking about them.In other words, habits weren't something I needed to add to my life.They were already there.The difference was that most of them had developed unconsciously.And that's when the light bulb went on.If habits already exist in my life, why not examine them?Why not identify which ones are helping me and which ones are holding me back?Why not intentionally select the habits that support my goals?Why not add the ones that are missing?Instead of letting habits happen by accident, why not consciously design them?That's when habits stopped feeling restrictive to me.They started feeling empowering.Because habits aren't really about removing freedom.They're about using today's decisions to make tomorrow easier.And for endurance athletes, that's a pretty powerful advantage.Sleep HabitsLet's start with the foundation.Sleep.I know.Sleep isn't exciting.Nobody posts screenshots of their bedtime on social media.But if there was a legal performance-enhancing drug available to every athlete, sleep would probably be it.The problem is that many athletes treat sleep like whatever time is left over after everything else is done.Instead, high-performing athletes often reverse the equation.Sleep comes first.Everything else fits around it.One habit that can dramatically improve sleep quality is having a consistent bedtime.Not just on weekdays.Every day.Your body loves routine.Going to bed at roughly the same time each night trains your body to expect sleep.Another powerful habit is reducing screen time before bed.I'm not perfect at this one.In fact, I suspect many of us are not.But we all know the difference between drifting off peacefully and scrolling through social media until midnight.A third habit is preparing for tomorrow before going to bed.Lay out your workout clothes.Charge your watch.Fill your water bottle.When you wake up, there is less friction between you and the workout.And less friction means more consistency.Training HabitsNow let's talk about training.Most athletes focus on the big sessions.The long ride.The key run.The hard intervals.But the athletes who improve year after year tend to have strong training habits.One of the best habits is simply protecting training time.Treating workouts like appointments.We don't skip dentist appointments because we don't feel like going.We shouldn't casually skip important workouts either.Another habit is beginning workouts at a consistent time whenever possible.If you always run at 6:00 AM, eventually your brain stops debating whether you're going.It's just what you do.The same way brushing your teeth is what you do.One habit I've come to appreciate is tracking workouts immediately after completion.A few notes.How did it feel?What worked?What didn't?Those little observations accumulate over months and years.They help us become smarter athletes.And perhaps the most important training habit of all:Show up on the days you don't feel like it.Not every workout needs to be amazing.Sometimes success is simply putting on the shoes and starting.Many workouts that begin reluctantly end up being perfectly fine.Recovery HabitsRecovery is where a lot of age-group athletes leave performance on the table.We spend hours thinking about training.Minutes thinking about recovery.Yet recovery is where adaptation actually happens.One valuable habit is doing a short recovery routine immediately after training.Not someday later.Immediately.Five minutes.Stretching.Foam rolling.Walking.Whatever works for you.The key is consistency.Another habit is paying attention to recovery markers.How's your energy?How's your mood?How's your motivation?How's your resting heart rate?How are you sleeping?Elite athletes monitor recovery because they understand that training stress only creates improvement if recovery keeps pace.One recovery habit I've become a fan of is scheduling recovery before you think you need it.Not after you're exhausted.Before.Because once fatigue becomes obvious, you've often been accumulating it for quite some time.Nutrition HabitsNow let's move to nutrition.If you're anything like me, you may have spent years looking for nutrition secrets.But most successful athletes aren't relying on secrets.They're relying on habits.For example, having a protein-rich breakfast.Hydrating first thing in the morning.Bringing healthy snacks to work.Eating vegetables with most meals.None of these habits are revolutionary.But together they become powerful.One nutrition habit that made a huge difference for me was becoming more aware of evening snacking.It's amazing how many calories can sneak in between dinner and bedtime.A handful of chips becomes a bowl.A bowl becomes several hundred calories.And suddenly we're wondering why training isn't producing the body composition changes we expected.Another critical habit is fueling workouts properly.Especially longer sessions.Many athletes train hard but under-fuel.Then wonder why performance stalls.Consistent fueling is a habit.Just like consistent hydration.And just like recovery.The Habit That Connects EverythingThere's one habit that may be more important than any other.Planning.Every successful athlete I know plans.Maybe not obsessively.But intentionally.They know when they're training.They know what they're eating.They know where recovery fits into the week.They don't leave important behaviors to chance.Because chance is usually where inconsistency lives.A few minutes of planning each week can eliminate dozens of decisions.And remember, every decision you eliminate preserves mental energy.How Do We Identify the Right Habits?So how do we decide which habits to build?Here's a simple question.What behavior, if repeated consistently for the next year, would have the biggest positive impact on my performance?Notice I didn't say biggest workout.I said behavior.Maybe it's going to bed 30 minutes earlier.Maybe it's drinking more water.Maybe it's strength training twice a week.Maybe it's eliminating late-night snacking.The best habit is often not the most impressive one.It's the one that addresses your biggest weakness.And it's the one you're actually willing to do.How Do We Turn Behaviors Into Habits?The mistake many athletes make is trying to change everything at once.More training.Better nutrition.Earlier bedtime.Daily stretching.Strength training.Meditation.Hydration.Reading.Journaling.By next Tuesday they're exhausted.So, start small. Ridiculously small.If you want to stretch more, start with five minutes.If you want to improve sleep, move bedtime earlier by fifteen minutes.If you want to hydrate better, put a water bottle where you'll see it.Make the habit easy.Attach it to something you already do.This is called habit stacking.After I brush my teeth, I stretch for five minutes.After I finish a workout, I drink a recovery shake.After dinner, I prepare tomorrow's training gear.The more automatic the sequence becomes, the less motivation is required.And that's the goal.Because motivation comes and goes.Habits stay.Closing ThoughtsAs triathletes, we spend a lot of time chasing breakthroughs.The perfect workout.The perfect race.The perfect piece of equipment.But most breakthroughs aren't dramatic.They're quiet.They're the result of hundreds of small actions repeated over and over again.A consistent bedtime.A prepared water bottle.A planned workout.A healthy snack.Five minutes of stretching.Nothing spectacular on its own.But together?They create the athlete you become.So this week, don't ask yourself what huge change you need to make.Ask yourself:What's one habit that future me will be grateful I started today?Build that habit.Protect it.Repeat it.And then let consistency do what consistency always does.Compound.

Don't most of us want to be the most optimal weight for racing? Don't most of us love eating? Don't most of us just let nature take its course and we'll then just race at whatever weight we happened to get to? It doesn't have to be that way.Come join our growing community at www.patreon.com/thelonelytriathleteTRANSCRIPTWelcome back to The Lonely Triathlete.On January 2nd, 2026, I stepped on the scale and saw a number I wasn't expecting: 193 pounds.The strange part wasn't the number itself.The strange part was that I was already training again.I had restarted my triathlon training at the end of October. I was doing dryland swim training, cycling, running, and doing all the things endurance athletes are supposed to do. Yet somehow I was carrying around an extra 23 pounds compared to where I sit today.And you know the strangest part of all?I didn't really think I needed to lose weight. I mean, I knew I was way heavier than I wanted to be for race performance but...I didn't look overweight.I wasn't struggling to fit into my clothes.Nobody was pulling me aside to express concern.The weight was distributed evenly enough that I simply looked like a bigger version of myself.Today I'm hovering very close to 170 pounds.So how does a reasonably fit triathlete gain more than 20 pounds while continuing to train?And what happens when those pounds gradually disappear?That's what I want to talk about today.Because this isn't really a story about weight loss.It's a story about habits, performance, health, and a few uncomfortable truths that many endurance athletes probably don't want to hear.One of the biggest mistakes I made was believing that training alone would solve the problem.I had stopped training consistently for a period of time and gained some weight. When I restarted my training in October, I assumed the extra pounds would simply melt away.After all, that's what seemed to happen when I was younger.More training meant more calories burned.More calories burned meant less weight.Simple.Except this time it wasn't.The scale barely moved.Months went by.The training continued.The weight stayed.Looking back, I think I was relying on an old formula that no longer applied.Age changes things.Habits matter more.And unfortunately, there is no amount of Zone 2 riding that can completely erase poor nutritional habits.If I had to identify the single biggest contributor to my weight gain, it would be evening snacking.Potato chips.Pie.Doughnuts.Simple carbohydrates.The kinds of foods that are easy to justify after a hard workout.You tell yourself you've earned it.You tell yourself you've burned enough calories.You tell yourself it's only one snack.And then that one snack becomes a daily habit.The funny thing about gradual weight gain is that it becomes invisible.You adapt.You normalize it.You continue to think of yourself as the athlete you were ten or twenty pounds ago.The scale tells a different story.Eventually I decided it was time to stop guessing and start paying attention.The first thing I did was download the free version of MyFitnessPal and begin tracking calories.That single step changed everything.Not because I became obsessed with numbers.Quite the opposite.It simply gave me awareness.And awareness tends to change behaviour.The second thing I did was increase my protein intake.For me, that mostly came from whey protein shakes.One of the biggest discoveries I made was identifying my danger zone.For me, it wasn't breakfast.It wasn't lunch.It wasn't immediately after training.It was around 8 p.m.That's when the cravings showed up.That's when the urge to snack would hit.That's when good intentions became vulnerable.So instead of waiting until I was hungry enough to make poor choices, I started getting ahead of the problem.I'd drink a protein shake.I'd eat carrots, broccoli, or cauliflower.I'd pour myself a naturally flavoured sparkling water.And something interesting happened.The cravings lost much of their power.They didn't disappear.But they became manageable.Looking back, I honestly think that evening protein shake was one of the most important tools in my entire weight-loss journey.Not because it magically burned fat.Because it reduced the likelihood that I'd reach for something far more calorie-dense.The third change involved alcohol.I didn't eliminate it.I reduced it.I limited myself mostly to weekends and generally capped it at about three drinks in an evening.Again, nothing dramatic.No radical diets.No extreme restrictions.Just a series of small behavioural changes repeated consistently.And that's really the lesson.The weight came off steadily over five months.Not perfectly.Some weeks I lost weight.Some weeks I didn't.Some weeks the scale actually went up.But the overall trend continued downward.That's an important point because so many people expect weight loss to look like a straight line.It doesn't.Neither does fitness.Neither does triathlon training.Neither does life.Progress is messy.What matters is the trend.Now let's talk about performance.Because this is where things became impossible to ignore.The biggest difference has been running.I feel lighter.Not metaphorically.Literally.My feet seem to float across the ground.My stride feels smoother.My footfalls feel softer.Less pounding.Less plodding.More efficiency.Last September I ran a 10K in roughly 47 and a half minutes.Recently I ran a 46-minute 10K.About a minute and a half faster.Now, weight loss isn't the entire explanation.I've also trained consistently.My fitness has improved.But it's difficult to imagine that losing 23 pounds hasn't played a significant role.When you think about it, every step in a run requires lifting and moving your body weight forward.When you remove 23 pounds from that equation, the savings accumulate over thousands of steps.Cycling has been a little different.On flat terrain I don't notice a dramatic difference.But my watts-per-kilogram have steadily increased.Partly because my FTP has improved.Partly because there's simply less of me to move.On climbs, physics becomes your friend.Swimming?Honestly, I don't notice much difference.If there is a performance gain there, it's subtle compared to what I've experienced on the run.This naturally leads to the concept of race weight.One of the books that influenced my thinking on this topic is Race Weight by Matt Fitzgerald.One of Fitzgerald's key points is that race weight is not the lightest possible version of yourself.That's important.Because chasing the lowest number on the scale can become unhealthy very quickly.Instead, Fitzgerald describes race weight as the weight that naturally results from consistently practicing high-quality nutrition habits.In other words, race weight is an outcome.Not a target.I love that idea because it shifts the focus away from appearance and toward behaviour.The goal isn't to become skinny.The goal isn't to look good in a mirror.The goal is to become the healthiest and most capable athlete you can be.That brings me to another question.What are the health implications of carrying an extra 20-plus pounds?Now, I haven't had my blood work done yet.I'm planning to do that at the end of race season, along with another DEXA scan.So I don't have hard numbers to compare.But we do know that excess body weight—even in people who are relatively fit—can influence important health markers.It can reduce insulin sensitivity.It can elevate triglycerides.It can increase systemic inflammation.It can place additional strain on joints.It can contribute to higher blood pressure over time.Interestingly, my blood pressure has remained stable throughout this process, which is great.But I'll be fascinated to see whether my DEXA scan and blood work reveal improvements that mirror the changes I've already noticed in training and performance.Perhaps the most interesting reaction I've received came from my brother.I showed him my weight-loss graph.He looked at it and asked if the graph also represented my happiness level.In other words, as the weight went down, was I becoming less happy?I laughed because I think that question captures how many people view weight loss.They imagine deprivation.Sacrifice.Misery.Constant hunger.A joyless existence.That wasn't my experience at all.Was I hungrier in the evenings?Absolutely.But I managed it.I drank water.I had vegetables ready to go.I used protein strategically.I worked with my hunger rather than pretending it didn't exist.And the result wasn't unhappiness.It was actually the opposite.I feel better.I move better.My clothes fit better.My running feels better.My confidence is higher.My strength has improved despite eating fewer calories because I also began a twice-weekly strength training routine back in January.That's another lesson worth mentioning.Weight loss doesn't have to mean becoming weaker.When approached properly, you can improve body composition while becoming stronger.Finally, I think it's important to discuss the difference between pursuing performance and becoming obsessed with body image.These are not the same thing.Endurance athletes need to be careful here.A desire to optimize race weight can be healthy.An obsession with every pound can be unhealthy.The question I like to ask myself is this:If nobody could see my body, would I still want to lose this weight?For me, the answer was yes.Because this wasn't about appearance.It was about performance.Health.Longevity.Feeling better.Moving better.Becoming a stronger athlete.Those motivations feel healthy and sustainable.So where should someone start if they want to move closer to an ideal race weight?Keep it simple.Track what you're eating for a week.Not to judge yourself.To learn.Increase protein.Reduce liquid calories.Find healthier substitutes for your biggest nutritional weaknesses.Focus on food quality before obsessing over quantity.Aim for consistency rather than perfection.And most importantly, think in months rather than weeks.Nobody expects to go from couch to Ironman in six weeks.Yet people routinely expect dramatic body composition changes in that amount of time.The same principles apply.Small actions.Repeated consistently.Over long periods of time.Five months ago I weighed 193 pounds.Today I'm very close to 170.And the biggest lesson I've learned is that I wasn't carrying 23 pounds.I was carrying 23 pounds and a collection of habits.The habits were the real weight.Once those changed, everything else started to follow.In September I'll be getting another DEXA scan and blood work.I'm genuinely curious to see whether the improvements I've noticed in performance show up in the data as well.When those results come in, I'll share them here on the podcast.Until then, thanks for listening to The Lonely Triathlete.Keep showing up.Keep training.And remember that sometimes the biggest gains don't come from working harder.They come from making a few better choices and repeating them long enough for them to matter.

After my disastrous run in last year's 70.3 I decided to take a closer look at my fueling strategy. It needed some work. And I found a new favourite carb/electrolyte drink from No-Nonsense Nutrition. Check them out at www.nnfuel.comAnd come join our growing triathlete community at www.patreon.com/thelonelytriathleteTRANSCRIPTEpisode: Fueling the Engine — Hydration, Electrolytes, and Why Simpler Might Be BetterINTROSun, May 24, Victoria BC , CanadaWelcomeIf you are a Patreon member remember to stick around after the episode ends for some bonus content.If you aren't a Patreon member, what's wrong with you? Kidding. But go to patreon.com and check out my membership options and join a growing community of triathletes so you don't have to be a lonely triathlete anymore.Today we're talking about one of the biggest performance limiters in endurance sports — and often one of the most overlooked.Fueling.Not just carbs.Not just hydration.But the balance between carbohydrates, fluids, and electrolytes… and how getting this wrong can completely derail your training and your racing.Because here's the thing:You can have the perfect bike.The perfect aero helmet.The perfect pacing strategy.But if your fueling plan falls apart halfway through a race… your race could be over.Like last year during my Victoria 70.3. In retrospect, I am pretty sure I didn't hydrate enough during the bike. But even if I did (and I didn't) I was definitely low on electrolytes. I even added salt capsules to my drink but clearly not enough because my legs almost did not function for my run. The entire run my quads would not relax. There were moments I thought I'd fall on my face. I was in agony for the whole 2+ hours of that run. Now, I can't say for certain that it was related to electrolyte loss but I have a pretty strong suspicion that it was.So, since that race I've been rethinking my own fueling strategy.For the last couple of years, I've been using Allmax Nutrition CARBION+ as my primary carb drink during training and racing.I've loved it.I think it tastes fantastic.But recently I started asking myself a bigger question:“Am I actually getting enough electrolytes for the amount of work I'm doing?”And that question sent me down a pretty deep rabbit hole.Eventually, I came across a company called No-Nonsense Nutrition and their product called Race Day Formula.And today's episode is really about what I learned through that whole process.Not just comparing two drink mixes……but understanding:how much fluid you actually need,how much sodium you probably need,how to estimate your sweat rate,how to know if you're a salty sweater,and why simpler fueling formulas may actually work better when intensity gets really high.So let's get into it.Part 1 — Why Fueling Gets Harder As Fitness ImprovesOne thing I've noticed as my training volume and intensity have increased……is that fueling becomes WAY more important.Because when you're training easy?Almost anything works.You can survive on water and vibes.But once you start doing:long tempo rides,threshold intervals,race simulations,brick workouts,or hard long runs in heat……suddenly your stomach matters.Your gut matters.Your hydration strategy matters.And one of the biggest issues endurance athletes run into is simply this:They stop being able to tolerate sweet drinks.Especially when intensity gets high.You're breathing hard.Your heart rate is elevated.Your stomach is bouncing around.And suddenly that super sugary drink that tasted amazing sitting on the couch……starts tasting like melted candy syrup.That “too sweet” feeling can become nauseating.And once your gut shuts down, everything falls apart:carb absorption drops,hydration drops,energy drops,pacing drops.It becomes a domino effect.Part 2 — My Experience with CARBION+Now to be fair…I actually really liked CARBION+.It tastes good.It mixes easily.And it's definitely designed for endurance athletes.Looking at the formula, it uses a combination of highly branched cyclic dextrin and maltodextrin-style carbohydrates, along with a hydration blend containing sodium, potassium, magnesium, and calcium.Each serving provides:25 grams of carbohydrate190 mg sodium100 mg potassiumplus smaller amounts of magnesium and calcium.But as I started training harder and increasing carb intake……I realized something.To hit modern fueling recommendations — somewhere around 60 to 90 grams of carbs per hour — I had to drink a LOT of CARBION+.And even then……the sodium numbers weren't especially high.And the formula itself is pretty engineered.It has:absorption blends,specialized dextrins,sweeteners,flavoring systems,and a whole bunch of extras.Now maybe that works fantastically for some athletes.But I started craving simplicity.Part 3 — Discovering No-Nonsense NutritionThat's when I found No-Nonsense Nutrition Race Day Formula.And what immediately stood out to me was how simple it was.Basically:two carbohydrate sources,electrolytes,done.No giant ingredient panel.No “hyper-performance absorption matrix.”Just carbs and electrolytes.And honestly?That simplicity really appealed to me.But the biggest difference……was the taste.Or more accurately:The lack of taste.It's incredibly mild.And that turned out to be a huge advantage.Because now I can mix:60 grams,75 grams,even 90 grams of carbs into a bottle……and it still doesn't taste overwhelmingly sweet.That's massive.Because modern endurance fueling science has shifted pretty dramatically over the last several years.A lot of athletes are now targeting:60–90 grams of carbs per hour,and some elite athletes go even higher.But your gut has to tolerate it.That's the key.And a lightly flavored drink can make a gigantic difference in gut comfort.Part 4 — Electrolytes: The Missing PieceNow let's talk electrolytes.Specifically sodium.Because this is where a LOT of endurance athletes underfuel.When we sweat, we lose:water,sodium,potassium,chloride,magnesium,and calcium.But sodium is the big one.And here's the tricky part:Sweat rate varies wildly between athletes.And sodium concentration varies wildly too.Some people lose relatively little sodium.Other people are absolute salt factories.You know who you are.If:sweat burns your eyes,your sweat tastes insanely salty,your clothes dry with white streaks,your skin feels gritty after workouts……you're probably a salty sweater.And those athletes often struggle the most in long races.Especially in heat.Part 5 — Estimating Sweat RateNow ideally, you'd get professionally tested.There are actual sweat testing services that can analyze:sweat sodium concentration,sweat rate,fluid loss,and help create a customized hydration strategy.But honestly?You can get surprisingly useful data yourself.Here's the simple DIY method.Before your workout:weigh yourself naked.Then:do your ride or run,track exactly how much fluid you drank.Afterward:towel off,weigh yourself again naked.The difference tells you how much fluid you lost.For example:If you lost:1 kilogram of body weight,and drank 500 mL during the workout……your total sweat loss was about 1.5 liters.If that workout lasted one hour……your sweat rate is roughly:1.5 liters per hour.And that's incredibly useful information.Because now you can start replacing fluids more accurately instead of just guessing.Part 6 — How Much Sodium Do You Need?Now this is where things get interesting.Average sodium losses during endurance exercise are often estimated somewhere around:500 to 1,000 mg per liter of sweat.But some athletes lose MUCH more.Especially heavy or salty sweaters.So where should you start?For many endurance athletes, somewhere around:500–1,000 mg sodium per hour…is a reasonable starting point during long or intense sessions.Then you experiment.Because this is highly individual.And symptoms matter.Things that MAY suggest inadequate sodium or hydration intake include:headaches,excessive fatigue,dizziness,declining performance,nausea,feeling “flat,”or severe cramping late in long events.Now to be clear:cramping is complicated.It's not always sodium-related.Fatigue and pacing play huge roles too.But sodium intake absolutely matters for fluid balance and maintaining performance during long efforts.Some athletes — especially very heavy sweaters — may end up closer to:1200,1400,even 1500 mg sodium per hour.But again:You TEST this in training.Never on race day.Part 7 — Why This Matters for Training TooAnd this is important.This isn't just about racing.Good fueling improves training quality too.If you fuel properly during training:you maintain power better,pace better,recover faster,reduce post-workout fatigue,and probably improve consistency.And consistency is everything in endurance sports.The athlete who recovers better…usually trains better.And the athlete who trains better consistently…usually races better.Fueling is not just survival.Fueling is performance.Part 8 — Cost Matters TooNow here's another thing I noticed.Cost.Because endurance fueling can get expensive FAST.Especially if you're training:10,12,15 hours a week.And when I compared the cost per 30 grams of carbohydrate……I found the No-Nonsense formula was actually cheaper than CARBION+.And over:multiple bottles,long rides,race prep blocks,Ironman training……that difference adds up.So now we're checking a lot of boxes:tastes lighter,easier on the stomach,simpler ingredients,higher electrolyte content,easier to hit modern carb targets,and cheaper.That's a pretty compelling combination.Part 9 — The Bigger LessonBut honestly……the bigger lesson here isn't about one brand versus another.It's about learning your body.Because hydration and fueling are incredibly individual.Your sweat rate is different than mine.Your sodium losses are different than mine.Your gut tolerance is different than mine.And the only way to really dial this stuff in……is to practice during training.Experiment.Track.Adjust.Repeat.That's how you build a race nutrition plan.ClosingSo if there's one takeaway from today's episode, it's this:Don't just train your legs.Train your fueling strategy too.Because the stronger and faster you become……the more important fueling becomes.And sometimes…simpler is actually better.If you're interested in checking out the Race Day Formula I mentioned, you can find it at No-Nonsense Nutrition. I'll also put a link in the show notes.That's it for me today.Thanks for listening to The Lonely Triathlete.Until next time…Peace.

After my disastrous run in last year's 70.3 I decided to take a closer look at my fueling strategy. It needed some work. And I found a new favourite carb/electrolyte drink from No-Nonsense Nutrition. Check them out at www.nnfuel.comAnd come join our growing triathlete community at www.patreon.com/thelonelytriathleteTRANSCRIPTEpisode: Fueling the Engine — Hydration, Electrolytes, and Why Simpler Might Be BetterINTROSun, May 24, Victoria BC , CanadaWelcomeIf you are a Patreon member remember to stick around after the episode ends for some bonus content.If you aren't a Patreon member, what's wrong with you? Kidding. But go to patreon.com and check out my membership options and join a growing community of triathletes so you don't have to be a lonely triathlete anymore.Today we're talking about one of the biggest performance limiters in endurance sports — and often one of the most overlooked.Fueling.Not just carbs.Not just hydration.But the balance between carbohydrates, fluids, and electrolytes… and how getting this wrong can completely derail your training and your racing.Because here's the thing:You can have the perfect bike.The perfect aero helmet.The perfect pacing strategy.But if your fueling plan falls apart halfway through a race… your race could be over.Like last year during my Victoria 70.3. In retrospect, I am pretty sure I didn't hydrate enough during the bike. But even if I did (and I didn't) I was definitely low on electrolytes. I even added salt capsules to my drink but clearly not enough because my legs almost did not function for my run. The entire run my quads would not relax. There were moments I thought I'd fall on my face. I was in agony for the whole 2+ hours of that run. Now, I can't say for certain that it was related to electrolyte loss but I have a pretty strong suspicion that it was.So, since that race I've been rethinking my own fueling strategy.For the last couple of years, I've been using Allmax Nutrition CARBION+ as my primary carb drink during training and racing.I've loved it.I think it tastes fantastic.But recently I started asking myself a bigger question:“Am I actually getting enough electrolytes for the amount of work I'm doing?”And that question sent me down a pretty deep rabbit hole.Eventually, I came across a company called No-Nonsense Nutrition and their product called Race Day Formula.And today's episode is really about what I learned through that whole process.Not just comparing two drink mixes……but understanding:how much fluid you actually need,how much sodium you probably need,how to estimate your sweat rate,how to know if you're a salty sweater,and why simpler fueling formulas may actually work better when intensity gets really high.So let's get into it.Part 1 — Why Fueling Gets Harder As Fitness ImprovesOne thing I've noticed as my training volume and intensity have increased……is that fueling becomes WAY more important.Because when you're training easy?Almost anything works.You can survive on water and vibes.But once you start doing:long tempo rides,threshold intervals,race simulations,brick workouts,or hard long runs in heat……suddenly your stomach matters.Your gut matters.Your hydration strategy matters.And one of the biggest issues endurance athletes run into is simply this:They stop being able to tolerate sweet drinks.Especially when intensity gets high.You're breathing hard.Your heart rate is elevated.Your stomach is bouncing around.And suddenly that super sugary drink that tasted amazing sitting on the couch……starts tasting like melted candy syrup.That “too sweet” feeling can become nauseating.And once your gut shuts down, everything falls apart:carb absorption drops,hydration drops,energy drops,pacing drops.It becomes a domino effect.Part 2 — My Experience with CARBION+Now to be fair…I actually really liked CARBION+.It tastes good.It mixes easily.And it's definitely designed for endurance athletes.Looking at the formula, it uses a combination of highly branched cyclic dextrin and maltodextrin-style carbohydrates, along with a hydration blend containing sodium, potassium, magnesium, and calcium.Each serving provides:25 grams of carbohydrate190 mg sodium100 mg potassiumplus smaller amounts of magnesium and calcium.But as I started training harder and increasing carb intake……I realized something.To hit modern fueling recommendations — somewhere around 60 to 90 grams of carbs per hour — I had to drink a LOT of CARBION+.And even then……the sodium numbers weren't especially high.And the formula itself is pretty engineered.It has:absorption blends,specialized dextrins,sweeteners,flavoring systems,and a whole bunch of extras.Now maybe that works fantastically for some athletes.But I started craving simplicity.Part 3 — Discovering No-Nonsense NutritionThat's when I found No-Nonsense Nutrition Race Day Formula.And what immediately stood out to me was how simple it was.Basically:two carbohydrate sources,electrolytes,done.No giant ingredient panel.No “hyper-performance absorption matrix.”Just carbs and electrolytes.And honestly?That simplicity really appealed to me.But the biggest difference……was the taste.Or more accurately:The lack of taste.It's incredibly mild.And that turned out to be a huge advantage.Because now I can mix:60 grams,75 grams,even 90 grams of carbs into a bottle……and it still doesn't taste overwhelmingly sweet.That's massive.Because modern endurance fueling science has shifted pretty dramatically over the last several years.A lot of athletes are now targeting:60–90 grams of carbs per hour,and some elite athletes go even higher.But your gut has to tolerate it.That's the key.And a lightly flavored drink can make a gigantic difference in gut comfort.Part 4 — Electrolytes: The Missing PieceNow let's talk electrolytes.Specifically sodium.Because this is where a LOT of endurance athletes underfuel.When we sweat, we lose:water,sodium,potassium,chloride,magnesium,and calcium.But sodium is the big one.And here's the tricky part:Sweat rate varies wildly between athletes.And sodium concentration varies wildly too.Some people lose relatively little sodium.Other people are absolute salt factories.You know who you are.If:sweat burns your eyes,your sweat tastes insanely salty,your clothes dry with white streaks,your skin feels gritty after workouts……you're probably a salty sweater.And those athletes often struggle the most in long races.Especially in heat.Part 5 — Estimating Sweat RateNow ideally, you'd get professionally tested.There are actual sweat testing services that can analyze:sweat sodium concentration,sweat rate,fluid loss,and help create a customized hydration strategy.But honestly?You can get surprisingly useful data yourself.Here's the simple DIY method.Before your workout:weigh yourself naked.Then:do your ride or run,track exactly how much fluid you drank.Afterward:towel off,weigh yourself again naked.The difference tells you how much fluid you lost.For example:If you lost:1 kilogram of body weight,and drank 500 mL during the workout……your total sweat loss was about 1.5 liters.If that workout lasted one hour……your sweat rate is roughly:1.5 liters per hour.And that's incredibly useful information.Because now you can start replacing fluids more accurately instead of just guessing.Part 6 — How Much Sodium Do You Need?Now this is where things get interesting.Average sodium losses during endurance exercise are often estimated somewhere around:500 to 1,000 mg per liter of sweat.But some athletes lose MUCH more.Especially heavy or salty sweaters.So where should you start?For many endurance athletes, somewhere around:500–1,000 mg sodium per hour…is a reasonable starting point during long or intense sessions.Then you experiment.Because this is highly individual.And symptoms matter.Things that MAY suggest inadequate sodium or hydration intake include:headaches,excessive fatigue,dizziness,declining performance,nausea,feeling “flat,”or severe cramping late in long events.Now to be clear:cramping is complicated.It's not always sodium-related.Fatigue and pacing play huge roles too.But sodium intake absolutely matters for fluid balance and maintaining performance during long efforts.Some athletes — especially very heavy sweaters — may end up closer to:1200,1400,even 1500 mg sodium per hour.But again:You TEST this in training.Never on race day.Part 7 — Why This Matters for Training TooAnd this is important.This isn't just about racing.Good fueling improves training quality too.If you fuel properly during training:you maintain power better,pace better,recover faster,reduce post-workout fatigue,and probably improve consistency.And consistency is everything in endurance sports.The athlete who recovers better…usually trains better.And the athlete who trains better consistently…usually races better.Fueling is not just survival.Fueling is performance.Part 8 — Cost Matters TooNow here's another thing I noticed.Cost.Because endurance fueling can get expensive FAST.Especially if you're training:10,12,15 hours a week.And when I compared the cost per 30 grams of carbohydrate……I found the No-Nonsense formula was actually cheaper than CARBION+.And over:multiple bottles,long rides,race prep blocks,Ironman training……that difference adds up.So now we're checking a lot of boxes:tastes lighter,easier on the stomach,simpler ingredients,higher electrolyte content,easier to hit modern carb targets,and cheaper.That's a pretty compelling combination.Part 9 — The Bigger LessonBut honestly……the bigger lesson here isn't about one brand versus another.It's about learning your body.Because hydration and fueling are incredibly individual.Your sweat rate is different than mine.Your sodium losses are different than mine.Your gut tolerance is different than mine.And the only way to really dial this stuff in……is to practice during training.Experiment.Track.Adjust.Repeat.That's how you build a race nutrition plan.ClosingSo if there's one takeaway from today's episode, it's this:Don't just train your legs.Train your fueling strategy too.Because the stronger and faster you become……the more important fueling becomes.And sometimes…simpler is actually better.If you're interested in checking out the Race Day Formula I mentioned, you can find it at No-Nonsense Nutrition. I'll also put a link in the show notes.That's it for me today.Thanks for listening to The Lonely Triathlete.Until next time…Peace.

TheMAGIC5 swim goggles are, hands down, the best goggles I've ever used. That was true 4 years ago and that is still true today after using their latest version.APOLOGIES! I just discovered that my last 2 audio files were not recorded with my good microphone (those darn Windows settings!). I promise, better audio next week.Join the community at www.patreon.com/thelonelytriathleteTRANSCRIPTWelcome to the Lonely Triathlete where I share with you the thoughts, opinions, experiences and tips n tricks of a podium placing age-group triathlete. Should I say "aging" triathlete? Aren't we all aging, really? 'Nuff said.Before I get started, just a quick reminder that Patreon members get bonus content at the end of this episode AND if you head over to Patreon.com, you'll see that I am posting a couple of written blog posts per week so check that out and be sure to leave some comments.OKYou know what piece of triathlon equipment gets talked about the least?Not aero helmets.Not carbon shoes.Not race wheels.Swimming goggles.And honestly, that's ridiculous when you think about it.Because if your goggles don't fit properly, your swim can go sideways fast. I remember being absolutely paranoid before my 2008 Ironman Canada that my goggles would leak, whcih is why I bought a pair of visor-style Aquaspheres.But a leaking goggle during a race isn't just annoying — it completely breaks your rhythm. Suddenly you're stopping, adjusting, sighting poorly, getting frustrated, maybe even panicking a little in open water.And during training?A bad pair of goggles can turn an enjoyable swim into an irritating grind.Too tight?You get the raccoon-eye pressure marks.Too loose?Water leaks in every flip turn.Wrong shape?They dig into your eye sockets and give you headaches.For a piece of equipment that literally sits on your face for hours every month, comfort matters a lot more than most athletes realize.Now here's the funny thing.Most swimmers and triathletes are buying goggles in roughly the $25–$60 range.That's kind of the mainstream market:Speedo VanquishersArena gogglesTYRAqua SphereThese are all good goggles. Totally functional. Those Aquasphere I used for Ironman were fantastic. I felt like I was wearing a motorcycle helmet they were so big but they did their job.But most of them are still basically “best guess” sizing. They have:Different nose bridges.Different strap tensions.Maybe one fits your face better than another.BUTYou're still adapting YOURSELF to the goggles.Not the other way around.And honestly, a lot of swimmers just accept leaking as normal.Like:“Oh yeah, this pair only leaks on hard push-offs.”Or:“They're good once you adjust them three times.”We've normalized mediocre fit.What's funny is that swim goggles have actually evolved a lot over the last 30–35 years.If you started swimming in the late 80s or early 90s, you probably remember the old-school goggles that basically felt like torture devices strapped to your face.The classic design back then was:hard plastic lensesFOAM padding around the eyesbasic rubber strapsand almost zero ergonomic shapingAnd those foam gaskets?They absorbed water over time, degraded quickly, and eventually became DISGUSTING little sponges attached to your face.The fit philosophy back then was basically:“Just tighten them harder.”Which of course created those legendary deep red eye rings that lasted half the day. People at work always new when I started my day with a swim workout.Then through the 1990s and early 2000s, companies started introducing softer SILICONE seals instead of foam padding.And honestly, that was a huge leap forward.Silicone:lasted longersealed betterfelt softer against the skinand didn't absorb water.That era also brought interchangeable nose bridges, which suddenly allowed swimmers to customize fit a little more instead of relying on a one-size-fits-all design.Then came the rise of racing-oriented LOW-profile goggles.Brands like Speedo, Arena, and TYR started focusing heavily on HYDROdynamics:smaller lens profilesreduced dragsleeker shapesmirrored lenseswider peripheral visionOpen-water swimming also changed the market.Triathletes needed goggles that worked in:bright sunlightchoppy waterlong-distance comfort situationsSo companies began introducing:larger lenses (hello Aquasphere)curved panoramic visionsofter “air gasket” technologybetter anti-fog coatingsUV protectionAnd that air-gasket concept was another major step.Instead of hard pressure points around the eye socket, companies started using cushioned seals filled with air or softer silicone structures that distributed pressure more evenly.The result:less squeezing…less leakage…and way more comfort during long swims.And NOW we've entered the NEWEST phase of goggle evolution:custom-fit goggles.Instead of trying to create one shape that works “well enough” for millions of people, companies like THEMAGIC5 are using face scanning and manufacturing technology to create individualized fits.Which honestly makes sense when you think about it.Human faces are wildly different.Eye socket depth.Nose bridge width.Cheekbone structure.And yet for decades the industry basically said:“Here are three nose bridges. Good luck.”So when you look at the history of swim goggles, it's actually a story of comfort slowly catching up with performance.Because the ideal goggle isn't really the fastest one.It's the one you completely forget you're wearing.Now, get ready, I'm about to brag about the best pair of swimming goggles I have ever owned. The Magic5.I received my first and original pair of Magic5 goggles about 4 years ago as a birthday, and they were great. They were actually PERFECT. Comfortable (which was a new experience for me) and leak free, which is a rareity. After a while I almost stopped thinking about them entirely — which is probably the highest compliment you can give a pair of goggles.But after 4 years they've been showing some wear and tear. They are still leak-free but the anti-fog coating has pretty much disappeared. I've been getting around this by spitting into the goggles and rinsing them out before putting them on but that act has been getting old and just as I was deciding to go ahead and order a new pair, TheMagic5 reached out to me and offered to essentially give me a pair of their latest model, the VECTOR, with no strings attached. All I had to do was pay for the shipping. Talk about perfect timing and a no brainer. So, I just got a chance recently to test them out at my local lake. This new pair is...just...great. They've made some upgrades, which I'll mention, but honestly, how do you improve upon perfection? Some of the improvements the company highlights include:Refined gasket geometry for improved facial pressure distribution- Sure, enough, I feel little to no pressure on my face, just as beforeUpdated scanning and fit algorithms using a much larger facial data set, which leads to improved comfort around the eye sockets during long swims- Again, the result is little to no pressure around my eyesEnhanced peripheral vision depending on the model- I already experienced great peripheral vision, apparently it's even better nowUpgraded anti-fog performance- We shall see, so far so goodImproved strap design and overall adjustability- Never had a problem beforeMore durable lens coatings- We shall seeExpanded lens options for indoor, outdoor, mirrored, and open-water conditions- True, and I went with the all-rounder "gold" version - it's supposed to be good for indoor/outdoor use. If you swim in predominently sunny conditions I would definately go with the specialied version for that conditionTheir newer “Vector” design specifically focuses on reducing pressure points while maintaining a secure seal- Like I said, can't feel them on my face, never couldSo, the biggest compliment I can give the new pair is this:They still disappear while I'm swimming.No leaking.No fiddling.No overtightening.No mid-set adjustments.Just swim.And here's a bonus, let's say you do experience some fit issues? You can contact Support and they will do another scan and send you another pair. I've never had to do that but it's nice to know that is an option.Now to be fair, not every swimmer loves them.Some swimmers swear they're the best goggles they've ever owned.Others say the fit process can be hit-or-miss depending on the face scan or the model.And like basically every swim goggle ever made, anti-fog performance eventually fades over time.But the consistent theme from people who do love them is comfort and leak prevention.Isn't it weird that this is one of those areas where triathletes sometimes get weirdly cheap?We'll spend thousands chasing marginal aero gains……but tolerate goggles that leak every third lap.If you swim multiple times per week, comfort matters.Focus matters.Rhythm matters.And when your goggles disappear from your awareness entirely?That's probably the sign they're doing their job perfectly.At the end of the day, triathlon performance isn't only about the big flashy upgrades.Sometimes it's about removing friction.Physical friction.Mental friction.Emotional friction.And well-fitting goggles remove all three.Because when your goggles work perfectly, your attention stays where it belongs:on your stroke…your pacing…your breathing…and the simple rhythm of swimming.And honestly, after using leak-free goggles for years now, I don't think I could ever go back.Check the show notes to see if I managed to secure an affiliate link so you can get a discount off your pair of TheMagic5 goggles.That's it from me, until next time.PeaceOk, Patrons, time to dive into Reddit and see what the latest questions or issues are:

TheMAGIC5 swim goggles are, hands down, the best goggles I've ever used. That was true 4 years ago and that is still true today after using their latest version. APOLOGIES! I just discovered that my last 2 audio files were not recorded with my good microphone (those darn Windows settings!). I promise, better audio next week.Join the community at www.patreon.com/thelonelytriathleteTRANSCRIPTWelcome to the Lonely Triathlete where I share with you the thoughts, opinions, experiences and tips n tricks of a podium placing age-group triathlete. Should I say "aging" triathlete? Aren't we all aging, really? 'Nuff said.Before I get started, just a quick reminder that Patreon members get bonus content at the end of this episode AND if you head over to Patreon.com, you'll see that I am posting a couple of written blog posts per week so check that out and be sure to leave some comments.OKYou know what piece of triathlon equipment gets talked about the least?Not aero helmets.Not carbon shoes.Not race wheels.Swimming goggles.And honestly, that's ridiculous when you think about it.Because if your goggles don't fit properly, your swim can go sideways fast. I remember being absolutely paranoid before my 2008 Ironman Canada that my goggles would leak, whcih is why I bought a pair of visor-style Aquaspheres.But a leaking goggle during a race isn't just annoying — it completely breaks your rhythm. Suddenly you're stopping, adjusting, sighting poorly, getting frustrated, maybe even panicking a little in open water.And during training?A bad pair of goggles can turn an enjoyable swim into an irritating grind.Too tight?You get the raccoon-eye pressure marks.Too loose?Water leaks in every flip turn.Wrong shape?They dig into your eye sockets and give you headaches.For a piece of equipment that literally sits on your face for hours every month, comfort matters a lot more than most athletes realize.Now here's the funny thing.Most swimmers and triathletes are buying goggles in roughly the $25–$60 range.That's kind of the mainstream market:Speedo VanquishersArena gogglesTYRAqua SphereThese are all good goggles. Totally functional. Those Aquasphere I used for Ironman were fantastic. I felt like I was wearing a motorcycle helmet they were so big but they did their job.But most of them are still basically “best guess” sizing. They have:Different nose bridges.Different strap tensions.Maybe one fits your face better than another.BUTYou're still adapting YOURSELF to the goggles.Not the other way around.And honestly, a lot of swimmers just accept leaking as normal.Like:“Oh yeah, this pair only leaks on hard push-offs.”Or:“They're good once you adjust them three times.”We've normalized mediocre fit.What's funny is that swim goggles have actually evolved a lot over the last 30–35 years.If you started swimming in the late 80s or early 90s, you probably remember the old-school goggles that basically felt like torture devices strapped to your face.The classic design back then was:hard plastic lensesFOAM padding around the eyesbasic rubber strapsand almost zero ergonomic shapingAnd those foam gaskets?They absorbed water over time, degraded quickly, and eventually became DISGUSTING little sponges attached to your face.The fit philosophy back then was basically:“Just tighten them harder.”Which of course created those legendary deep red eye rings that lasted half the day. People at work always new when I started my day with a swim workout.Then through the 1990s and early 2000s, companies started introducing softer SILICONE seals instead of foam padding.And honestly, that was a huge leap forward.Silicone:lasted longersealed betterfelt softer against the skinand didn't absorb water.That era also brought interchangeable nose bridges, which suddenly allowed swimmers to customize fit a little more instead of relying on a one-size-fits-all design.Then came the rise of racing-oriented LOW-profile goggles.Brands like Speedo, Arena, and TYR started focusing heavily on HYDROdynamics:smaller lens profilesreduced dragsleeker shapesmirrored lenseswider peripheral visionOpen-water swimming also changed the market.Triathletes needed goggles that worked in:bright sunlightchoppy waterlong-distance comfort situationsSo companies began introducing:larger lenses (hello Aquasphere)curved panoramic visionsofter “air gasket” technologybetter anti-fog coatingsUV protectionAnd that air-gasket concept was another major step.Instead of hard pressure points around the eye socket, companies started using cushioned seals filled with air or softer silicone structures that distributed pressure more evenly.The result:less squeezing…less leakage…and way more comfort during long swims.And NOW we've entered the NEWEST phase of goggle evolution:custom-fit goggles.Instead of trying to create one shape that works “well enough” for millions of people, companies like THEMAGIC5 are using face scanning and manufacturing technology to create individualized fits.Which honestly makes sense when you think about it.Human faces are wildly different.Eye socket depth.Nose bridge width.Cheekbone structure.And yet for decades the industry basically said:“Here are three nose bridges. Good luck.”So when you look at the history of swim goggles, it's actually a story of comfort slowly catching up with performance.Because the ideal goggle isn't really the fastest one.It's the one you completely forget you're wearing.Now, get ready, I'm about to brag about the best pair of swimming goggles I have ever owned. The Magic5.I received my first and original pair of Magic5 goggles about 4 years ago as a birthday, and they were great. They were actually PERFECT. Comfortable (which was a new experience for me) and leak free, which is a rareity. After a while I almost stopped thinking about them entirely — which is probably the highest compliment you can give a pair of goggles.But after 4 years they've been showing some wear and tear. They are still leak-free but the anti-fog coating has pretty much disappeared. I've been getting around this by spitting into the goggles and rinsing them out before putting them on but that act has been getting old and just as I was deciding to go ahead and order a new pair, TheMagic5 reached out to me and offered to essentially give me a pair of their latest model, the VECTOR, with no strings attached. All I had to do was pay for the shipping. Talk about perfect timing and a no brainer. So, I just got a chance recently to test them out at my local lake. This new pair is...just...great. They've made some upgrades, which I'll mention, but honestly, how do you improve upon perfection? Some of the improvements the company highlights include:Refined gasket geometry for improved facial pressure distribution- Sure, enough, I feel little to no pressure on my face, just as beforeUpdated scanning and fit algorithms using a much larger facial data set, which leads to improved comfort around the eye sockets during long swims- Again, the result is little to no pressure around my eyesEnhanced peripheral vision depending on the model- I already experienced great peripheral vision, apparently it's even better nowUpgraded anti-fog performance- We shall see, so far so goodImproved strap design and overall adjustability- Never had a problem beforeMore durable lens coatings- We shall seeExpanded lens options for indoor, outdoor, mirrored, and open-water conditions- True, and I went with the all-rounder "gold" version - it's supposed to be good for indoor/outdoor use. If you swim in predominently sunny conditions I would definately go with the specialied version for that conditionTheir newer “Vector” design specifically focuses on reducing pressure points while maintaining a secure seal- Like I said, can't feel them on my face, never couldSo, the biggest compliment I can give the new pair is this:They still disappear while I'm swimming.No leaking.No fiddling.No overtightening.No mid-set adjustments.Just swim.And here's a bonus, let's say you do experience some fit issues? You can contact Support and they will do another scan and send you another pair. I've never had to do that but it's nice to know that is an option.Now to be fair, not every swimmer loves them.Some swimmers swear they're the best goggles they've ever owned.Others say the fit process can be hit-or-miss depending on the face scan or the model.And like basically every swim goggle ever made, anti-fog performance eventually fades over time.But the consistent theme from people who do love them is comfort and leak prevention.Isn't it weird that this is one of those areas where triathletes sometimes get weirdly cheap?We'll spend thousands chasing marginal aero gains……but tolerate goggles that leak every third lap.If you swim multiple times per week, comfort matters.Focus matters.Rhythm matters.And when your goggles disappear from your awareness entirely?That's probably the sign they're doing their job perfectly.At the end of the day, triathlon performance isn't only about the big flashy upgrades.Sometimes it's about removing friction.Physical friction.Mental friction.Emotional friction.And well-fitting goggles remove all three.Because when your goggles work perfectly, your attention stays where it belongs:on your stroke…your pacing…your breathing…and the simple rhythm of swimming.And honestly, after using leak-free goggles for years now, I don't think I could ever go back.Check the show notes to see if I managed to secure an affiliate link so you can get a discount off your pair of TheMagic5 goggles.That's it from me, until next time.PeaceOk, Patrons, time to dive into Reddit and see what the latest questions or issues are:

Do you want to optimize your race performance? Do you want to be the best, fastest triathlete that you can possibly be? Really? I mean, do you really want that? Are you prepared to do what it takes to achieve that? Because most of us are not and that's OK.

Do you want to optimize your race performance? Do you want to be the best, fastest triathlete that you can possibly be? Really? I mean, do you really want that? Are you prepared to do what it takes to achieve that? Because most of us are not and that's OK.SummaryTriathlon has a unique way of making improvement feel possible, which is why so many athletes believe there's a faster, stronger version of themselves waiting to emerge. But this piece explores the uncomfortable reality that most athletes want the rewards of peak performance without fully paying the physical, emotional, social, financial, and lifestyle costs required to achieve it. It breaks down what true high-level amateur performance actually demands — consistent training, smart specificity, recovery, fueling, and relentless discipline — while also arguing that pursuing absolute optimization isn't necessarily the healthiest or happiest path. Ultimately, it suggests that the real goal may not be maximizing athletic potential at all costs, but finding the balance between excellence in triathlon and excellence in life.Join the community at www.patreon.com/thelonelytriathleteTranscript/Talk NotesThere's something almost magical about triathlon.Because unlike a lot of sports, improvement feels available. Tangible. Earned.You see someone cross the finish line of an Ironman and you think:“What if I actually committed? What if I really tried?”Most amateur triathletes carry around this quiet belief that somewhere inside them is a faster version of themselves. Leaner. Stronger. More disciplined. More capable.But here's the uncomfortable truth:Most athletes don't actually want optimal performance.They want the results of optimal performance without paying the full price for it.And I'm not saying that judgmentally. I include myself in this conversation.Because optimal performance has a cost.Not just physically. Emotionally. Socially. Financially.And most of us — wisely, honestly — are unwilling to pay all of it.So today I want to talk about:what the actual prescription for optimal triathlon performance looks like,the hidden prices athletes avoid paying,the difference between “doing your best” and “doing your physiological best,”and finally… what you can cut back on with the smallest performance penalty so you can still have a life outside triathlon.Part 1 — Everyone Wants Peak Performance… Until It Costs Something (3–4 minutes)Most athletes love the idea of excellence.Very few love the lifestyle required for it.People say:“I want to qualify for Kona.”“I want to podium.”“I want to unlock my potential.”But then reality shows up.Because performance is built on sacrifices that are often deeply unsexy.Not motivation. Not inspiration. Not buying carbon wheels.Sacrifice.You already mentioned some obvious ones:eating with purpose instead of entertainment,prioritizing sleep over Netflix,doing the session you need instead of the session you feel like doing,getting up at 5am,doing doubles or triples,reducing stress,training when nobody is watching.But there are other prices athletes quietly refuse to pay.The Emotional CostSome athletes don't want to confront weakness.They avoid swim sessions because they hate feeling incompetent.They avoid intervals because they expose limitations.They stay in Zone 2 forever because suffering threatens their self-image.Improvement requires repeatedly visiting the place where you are not yet good enough.That's emotionally expensive.The Social CostOptimal performance often makes you less available.You leave parties early.You stop drinking much.You say no to late nights.You disappear for long rides.You become “the triathlon person.”And many athletes unconsciously sabotage progress because they fear social separation more than they desire performance.The Identity CostThis one is huge.To truly improve, sometimes you have to let go of comforting stories:“I'm just not fast.”“I don't respond well to intensity.”“I'm too old.”“I'm too busy.”Or conversely:“I'm naturally talented so I don't need structure.”Your ego will often protect your identity before it protects your potential.The Financial CostNobody likes talking about this one.But performance costs money.Good nutrition.Race entries.A coach.Pool access.Bike maintenance.Recovery tools.Travel.More time means sometimes less earning.And ironically, some athletes spend thousands on gear while refusing to invest in the boring things that actually matter:sleep,consistency,coaching,nutrition,recovery,stress management.Because buying equipment feels easier than changing behavior.Part 2 — What Does Optimal Triathlon Performance Actually Require? (4–5 minutes)Let's strip away fantasy for a minute.What would it actually take for an amateur athlete to approach their physiological potential?Not perfection. But close.Here's the blueprint.1. Consistent Training VolumeThis is still king.Not hero workouts.Not occasional monster weeks.Consistent weekly volume over years.The aerobic engine responds to repeated exposure.There's no shortcut around accumulated work.2. Training SpecificityDoing what moves the needle.Not what's fun.Not what protects the ego.If your limiter is running durability:you probably need more running frequency.If your limiter is bike power:you probably need structured intervals.If your limiter is swimming:you probably need technique work and frequency.A lot of athletes train in the direction of preference instead of the direction of adaptation.3. Recovery DisciplineSleep is performance enhancement.Not optional recovery.Actual performance enhancement.Optimal athletes protect sleep almost aggressively.They also manage overall life stress because the body doesn't distinguish particularly well between:work stress,relationship stress,financial stress,and training stress.Stress is stress.4. Fueling CorrectlyNot just “eating healthy.”That's amateur thinking.High performance requires:enough carbohydrates,enough protein,sufficient calories,hydration,electrolyte management,timing nutrition around sessions.A shocking number of endurance athletes are chronically under-fueled and wonder why they plateau.5. Ruthless ConsistencyThis may be the biggest one.Elite-level age groupers are not magical.They are relentlessly consistent.They train when motivated.They train when unmotivated.They train when conditions are mediocre.They train when life is slightly inconvenient.Not perfectly.Consistently.Part 3 — The Marginal Gains That Actually Matter (3–4 minutes)Once the basics are solid, marginal gains start mattering.And here's the important distinction:Marginal gains only matter after the fundamentals are in place.People obsess over:ceramic bearings,aero socks,expensive supplements,ice baths,red light therapy,ketones,altitude tents……while sleeping 6 hours a night and skipping swim sessions.That's backwards.But once the basics are nailed?Then the marginal stuff can matter.For example:aero optimization on the bike,heat adaptation,carbohydrate optimization during races,body composition refinement,advanced pacing,recovery timing,improved aerodynamics,race-specific preparation,mental performance work.The difference is:Marginal gains are multipliers.But multiplying garbage still gives you garbage.Part 4 — But Maybe You Don't WANT Optimal (3–4 minutes)And this is where I want to be very careful.Because there's another side to this conversation.Maybe you don't want to organize your entire life around triathlon.Maybe you don't want:bedtime alarms,two-a-days,obsessing over macros,turning down vacations,scheduling your life around recovery.That's okay.Actually, more than okay.Because triathlon is supposed to fit into your life — unless you consciously choose otherwise.And I think many athletes quietly feel guilt because they're not maximizing their potential.But maybe they're maximizing something more important:family,relationships,career,creativity,balance,joy,mental health.There's honor in that too.The key is honesty.Don't expect elite outcomes from recreational commitments.But also:Don't diminish what recreational commitment can still achieve.You can become incredibly fit, incredibly capable, and incredibly fulfilled without turning triathlon into a second job.Part 5 — What Can You Cut Back On With Minimal Performance Loss? (2–3 minutes)This is probably the most practical part of the episode.If you want the best return on investment:Protect the fundamentals.Keep:consistency,sleep,reasonable fueling,frequency,key workouts.Cut:junk volume,unnecessary intensity,social media comparison,equipment obsession,complicated recovery protocols,optimization theater.You probably don't need:six-hour rides every weekend,twelve supplements,constant data analysis,or total life domination by triathlon.For most amateurs:80–90% of your potential comes from:consistency,adequate volume,smart workouts,recovery,nutrition,and patience.The final 5–10%?That's where the real sacrifices begin.And only you can decide whether that price is worth paying.Closing (1 minute)Maybe the goal isn't to become the best triathlete you could possibly be.Maybe the goal is to become the best triathlete you can be while still remaining the person you want to be.That's a different question.And maybe a wiser one.Because at the end of the day, triathlon is not life.It's something that's supposed to enhance life.And the athletes who last the longest in this sport are often the ones who learn exactly where excellence ends… and balance begins.If you are a Patreon member, stick around for some bonus content.Otherwise, until next time,Peace

In this episode I muse about all sorts of subjects while I take you along for an easy Sunday morning run. If you want to comment on today's episode, consider signing up on Patreon and join the Lonely Triathlete community!Join our community at www.patreon.com/TheLonelyTriathleteTranscriptAll right. Well, this is my first run of the year. in shorts and a t-shirt. And I am stoked. Absolutely love it. Now, I was thinking, how often do we really love our workouts? It's a great question, because I'm on an indoor bike, most of the year, and I like my workouts, but do I love them? No? I'm more interested in maybe the podcast I'm listening to or the movie I'm watching. But for the actual workout, curious about it, kind of like the feeling of sweat. But do I love it? No. Swimming in the winter. When you go to the pool at 6 in the morning, 6:30 in the morning, and it's dark and cold outside, it's fun to swim. But do you love it? Most of the time, I don't love it, but when you swim outside in a lake or the ocean with your wetsuit, that, that stuff that I love. And running in the dark and the cold, and sometimes the snow and the rain, don't love it. Don't even... don't even like it half the time. But now, in the sunshine, love it.Another thing I do love is running on trails. I never used to run the trails that much because, oh, you know, I didn't know the exact distances. This was before GPS watches, of course. And it was a very terrain, so I couldn't establish a solid pace. He just felt all too random for me. So I'd be running on the road a lot. In the last couple of years, I've really disliked running on the road. Not 'cause of the road. But because of the traffic. And there's a section here in Victoria, where I have to run on the road a bit, and, uh, it's starting to bug me. I'm feeling, uh, what's the word? Negative towards the loud trucks, the loud motorcycles, a blast by me. I don't know. I don't like running on the road as much as I used to. So that brings up the point. What do we do? to enjoy our workouts more? I think it starts with identifying what we like and then doing more of what we like. So I just said, I like trail running. I'm gonna focus more running on trails. I like swimming in the lakes in the ocean, well more lakes than ocean. I'm kind of dependent upon the weather and temperature, obviously, but I'm gonna be swimming in the lake, probably starting next weekend. So that's good. Now, riding my bike, that's a different story, because I get so much fitness riding indoors. So I really don't want to do training rides outside, necessarily, unless they're long. Long, and easy kind of rides. So I'll have to give that a thought.So I may have just inspired myself. I think if I can't get out for a training run on the road, then maybe I'll go out for at least a pleasurable, a pleasurable ride. Longer, easier ride, on the weekend, outside, just so I can enjoy being outside my bike more.Sunday morning, and I've already run past 15 dog walkers, 15 dogs, 15 kilos. Nothing, says Victoria, weekend mornings, like dog walking, that's for sure. A lot of dogs in this area.All right, my run has taken me down along the ocean, or just above the ocean. And I'm heading up about a one kilometre hill. Hello, Crow. I'm not talking to you. And, uh, yeah, so I'll be doing a slow jog up a hill with, guess what? More traffic. You can't escape it. But I was thinking as I have my eyes on the ocean here. running up this hill, how fortunate I am to be living in a location that is conducive to my passions, my interests, when it comes to sports. I go kayaking. I run, I can bike, I can swim in the lakes. Absolutely fantastic. Oh, I gotta run across this massive lane. I found myself in a bike lane. Not a run lane. Okay, across the ditch. Into the sidewalk. Yeah, how conducive it is to live in an area that... is conducive to, uh, doing the things I love. And I know that we all can't choose necessarily, very easily, the places that we live, especially if we've got a job, and we can't change locations easily.But it is a reminder that if, if we can, if it's possible to choose a location to live, the next time you're moving, I would give serious, serious thought. to the location, the geography, that you're moving to. Don't just, you know, move to a place that's 10 minutes close to the work. But maybe, maybe a place that's 15 minutes away from work, but puts you in the heart of a trail system. Or buy the water. I don't know, something to think about.All right, halfway up this hill, and the traffic is going by, and I realize another thing I can't stand about traffic is the pollution. Oh, man. When someone goes by me, I just smell gas and oil. I was going in my lungs. Can't stand it. Maybe every more reason to live out in the country, right? We all can't all be so lucky, but, oh, I tell you, being near the place near the places where you enjoy, it goes a long way in your life. It really does.Alright, head me to the top of the hill. And I am sweating now. It is so warm. It's not even summer yet. This is gonna be an awesome summer. There's something about good temperatures, like, shirts and T-shirt running. I feel like I can go for hours. But if it was windy and cold, I think I just want to quit. I just wanna get the workout done with. But at this point, I don't want the workout to end. Another thing... Oh, man, sweat's getting my eyes. Another thing about me is sweat is, I've got thick eyebrows. I got bushy eyebrows. And the plus... Yeah, everyone's out doing their yard work. The plus and minus of it is, when I first start working out, sweat's not dripping down my face at all. because it's being collected in my eyebrows. Great. But, at some point, the eyebrows become saturated. And then... and then the sweat starts to drip. It's like having these two sponges on my eyes, full of water, and they will drip and drip and drip, and never stop.No, you've obviously noticed that I'm recording while I'm running. So what am I recording on? Well, I got a, I got a brand new DJI, Mike Minnie, Bluetooth, microphone I've attached to my, my ball cap, and I'm recording through my phone, so just running with my phone in my hand, recording off this Mike Mini. And I bought this mic specifically to do more, more outdoor stuff. So you all can get a bit more of variety as you listen to the lonely triathlete, and I've got more in store. So if you head over to Patreon, check out the show notes, head the Patreon, join our one of our supporter tiers. And you'll be able to take advantage of more cool little things I'm doing this year. Video, droning, stuff on the bike, all sorts of stuff planned. So you want to go over and be a member? so that you can, uh, take part, take part in that, join the community. So here I am, about to take a halfway turn.All right, I'm getting close to my halfway point of this 45 minute run, and I climbed to the top of the major part of my elevation, and then the last half is mostly downhill. Which is fantastic. Kind of tired of sucking all the gas tumes on this main route. So, when I take my left hand turn, it's a slightly less driven route. But there will be cars, no doubt. And I passed 10 more dogs and two children in dollies, or whatever you call them. Try all these dollies, push carts, strollers. That's a word I'm looking for. Oh, my gosh. An 18 wheeler is gonna go by me. Wow. Where is everyone going on a Sunday morning? You know, I'll go to church. I'll tell you that. Uh... So, gotta talk about... the elephant that is in the room. Or, rather, the elephant that seems to be in my butt. I got another injury. Huh, fire truck. What a crazy morning. Don't know if you can hear that, but that's a one alarm fire. And here's my left turn. So, anyway, my injury. I have... a pretty good haemorrhoid. And I've really never had haemorrhoids before. I mean, maybe I've had something I thought was a haemorrhoid, but this, no doubt, this is a haemorrhoid. I felt it about four days ago. I was in the shower, washing myself. thoroughly, and now as I was getting in there, nice and personal like, I was like, ow. Ow, what is that in my butt? Oh, so I kind of felt around and said, Oh, geez. Does someone put, like, a grape in my butt? What the heck? Now, initially I thought, Oh, great. I've got rectal cancer. Because everything I see on social media these days is the rise in colorectal cancers. And, to be honest, it's something to be aware of. But I don't think, I mean, this isn't rectal. This is, like, anal. Like, I've got anal cancer. I guess it's possible. Just comes out of nowhere. don't know. But, you know, I'm, I don't know what I did to cause it. That's the problem. is I don't strain when I go to the bathroom, like, I'm very aware, 'cause, like I said, I've had prior run ins with the old capital H. So I'm really cautious about that. But I do sit a lot for work. I do sit on my bike every day, or every other day, and I'm running, and right now, as I'm running, I'm clenching a bit to make sure that I'm not putting any extra pressure on that region. Don't know if that's helping. or hurting. Oh, people. 50, 7 years old, turning 58, in 18 days. And now I'm getting the old people's problems. I came the old people's problems. I've gotten haemorrhoids. What's next? Oh, I'm sure there's stuff coming. I am sure I am in for a treat, as I continue to get older.ll right, here's here's the deal about walkers, especially dog walkers. I find the tend to take up the entire sidewalk, the entire walking lane. And I'm running against traffic. And I just came up upon, You guessed it, two more dogs, and their walker, and they took up the whole lane. And, you know, I may be too polite. I hate culling it like, On your right, on your left, come behind you. I have done that when I need to. But I don't know. Just feel like nice, quiet Sunday morning, and I'm shouting at someone that, get out of my way. But, uh, as I get closer, I just start to scrape my feet and pound my feet just a little bit louder. And 95% of people get that. Get that message, and they pull over. So, that's what I do. I just start clumping along louder. Gets the job done.So I tell you, my body is sore. Today, 'cause yesterday, I had a 19 minute indoor cycle, moderate, so that, you know, gets you a little bit sore, just by itself. And then I did two and a half hours of yard work. Now, for those gardeners, listening, they're like, Todd, two and a half hours. You're a baby. Yeah, maybe I am. What about it? But two and a half solid hours at my typical rushing pace, that I'm trying not to rush so much. But I wouldn't say I rushed, but it was definitely in the zone and didn't take really any breaks. So two and a half hours of cleaning my barbeque, cleaning off the back patio, flower pots, dumping organic flower waste into the forest. You know, us love back and forth and stretching my back. Oh, man, my back was really, really tight. Almost to the point where I thought, Did I did I hurt myself? What a dummy. I hurt myself. But, no, I'm not hurt. other than my butt. Uh, I'm just sore, and it shows up on runs. I'll tell you. All right, about now, I'm, what, 30 minutes in? And my low back is saying, yeah, I remember yesterday. Remember how hard? You worked yesterday? Well... But that's okay. Life is... life is overcoming pain. And this is just another pain I'm overcoming.All right, let's talk fuelling. I think some people fuel too much. I think some people don't feel enough. As for me, I try to strike a nice balance, where I feel, I add some fuel to every exercise. But I don't overdo it. So anything under an hour will typically get 25 or 30 grams of carbs. So it's, like, 100, just over 100 calories, like, 100, 120 calories. Especially if the effort isn't all that hard. If I'm doing, like, a major effort, then I'll probably ingest a few more carbs before I start, or maybe even a few more carbs, like, on the effort itself. But you gotta kind of find that balance. And so for this run, for instance, I even bring water. Why? Because it's 45 minutes. I'm not gonna get dehydrated in 45 minutes. I had a banana and coffee. And then, half an hour later, I'm out the door. So, what's a banana? 100, 100 calories, 120 calories, so? Yeah. It's easily enough to fuel. An endurance effort for 45 minutes. But one thing I've been thinking about lately is my salt intake for longer efforts. 'Cause I crammed up so bad last year, during the 70 3, where I could hardly, I could hardly run. And as part of that just muscular issues, I didn't train long enough on the bike, I didn't do enough bricks. I don't know. But it also could have been salt. So I'm thinking of, and I've been self solving for this for years. I add salt, tablets to my drinks. But it's kind of guesswork. It's like, oh, I had 500 milligrams per litre. And they don't have crapping issues. So, is that solving my problem? 'Cause I did not get it right in the 70.3. So, I'm thinking, maybe I start to go with something like precision, nutrition, because they're experts in electrolytes. Sodium. So I'm gonna be looking into that this year.All right, that's the conclusion of my running thoughts episode. I hope you all enjoyed it. You can tell me if you liked it. If you were a member of the podcast, over the Patreon, sign up, and then you can tell me, Todd, I can't stand when you run and talk. Or more of that, please. Or tell me exactly what brand of carbohydrate powder that you use, and because I'm sitting here right now with 25 grams of the best carb powder I've ever had in my life. I've been using it for the past 3 years at least, and I can't see every changing. I threw in 10 grams, no, 5 grams of creatine, and they're both 100 grams of magnesium. For a little after run rejuvenation. And now I'm sitting in the sun. I'm not wearing sunscreen, so that's gonna have a time limit. And I'm also with some bees. And if you know anything about me, I do not like bees. I mean, I like bees. Actually, I like bees, honey bees, mini tasted bee. I detest and loathe wasps. They are not anyone's friend. They are not kind to anyone. I don't care how good they are for the environment. I think they're a plague upon the earth. And yeah, unfortunately, I have to share my outdoor spaces with wasps every now and then. Wish me luck. All right, for real. until next time. peace.

Train faster run faster, right? Let's assume that is true, so how much faster? I've done the experiment on myself and I share with you the results.Join our community at www.patreon.com/TheLonelyTriathleteTranscript0:07 Hi and welcome to the lonely triathlete. My name is Todd, and I am the lonely triathlete coming to you live from Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, on this Sunday, April 26 2026.0:22 Welcome to the lonely triathlete. This is a podcast where I talk about age group, training and racing and promote community in an effort to help us all be a little less lonely. Now I'm suffering at the moment, and probably in a way in which you cannot guess. And I'm going to eliminate the guesswork right now - I feel like, for the past five minutes, I'm gonna burp just I can't, I can't get a burp out. So I would be shocked if I don't burp in the middle of this podcast. And this is an authentic podcast, I don't edit 99.9% of the time. I don't edit anything, so I'm not going to edit. I will. I will not burp in your ear. I guarantee you that. But I'm just telling you that feeling of having an impending burp,1:25 it's almost worse than an aerobic threshold. It's almost worse than VO2max intervals, I just found something that like hurts more than a triathlon experience.1:39 Okay, so let's get past the bodily issues and move on to this episode. You know there are a few things I have always wondered in my 25 years of racing, I've always wondered, can I produce or does Olympic distance standard course distance training, does it produce a decent 10k speed in and of itself, mixing in your swimming and your biking and your running and your strength training, like how? How close to your kind of optimal 10k speed do you really get with that kind of training? So that's always been in the back of my mind.2:26 Second is, how much faster could I get if I put triathlon training on the back burner for a while and just did dedicated run training, and then finally, would 70.3 training, or Ironman training, make me significantly faster or slower in a standalone 10k race? And how much faster or slower? I'm assuming it would be slower, but how much slower would I be Well, I have the answer to these questions, because for me, for many years, I have trained almost exclusively for Olympic distance triathlons. I did one Half Ironman. I did one Ironman, but mostly it's been Olympic distance. So I'm very familiar with how my body responds to Olympic distance training, and what my 10k times are within Olympic races. And so accounting for variability in run course elevation, my 10k times have been for the past decade, they've been between 45 minutes, which is really fast, like, almost so fast it makes me question the course distance, like, was it accurate or not? And 52 minutes on the other end, which is super slow. Like, what the heck happened? Did I just go too hard on the bike? Or what's going on? So 45 to 52 so let's call my average 10k speed in an Olympic distance 48 minutes. Okay, so you can almost bet on me being within plus or minus 10-15% of that in any race. Now I've also sprinkled in a few standalone 10k races in between triathlons, and those times have been consistently, on average, about one and a half to two minutes faster? Well, that makes sense. I didn't just swim for 30 minutes and bike for an hour and 10 minutes. So that makes sense. But the missing piece to this is I've also done dedicated run training leading up to some of these races anywhere from four weeks to twelve weeks, and that, by itself, improved my time another couple of minutes to the point where my personal best is 42:43.5:14 And that was achieved on about four months of Dedicated run training. So to answer the first question, Olympic distance training, from for me, I'm imagining, for most people, it does produce a pretty decent 10k time. However, standalone racing helps you go quite a bit faster, and if you add in some dedicated run training, maybe six weeks of run training prior to the race. That adds even more speed. I know it's not rocket science, but it's really it's really interesting to see it in action. It's like where theory meets meets practicality. Now, the only part of this experiment that I had been missing for the past 20 some years, is seeing how a switch to 70.3 training might affect my 10k Speed. Ah, that's interesting, because, as you would know, if you've ever done 70.3 or Ironman training, you don't do a lot of speed work in in in your run training. A little bit, but nothing like you would if you were dedicated to a 10k plan. So last year, as it happens, all I did was train and race a 70.3 Well, I raced in the Olympic afterwards, but my most of my training was completely centered around a 70.3 and ideally, I would have done the race and then a few weeks later, run a standalone 10k just to see what the difference is. But instead, what I did was I ran my 70.3 and then I trained a dedicated run plan. I trained with a dedicated run plan, and then posted a 49:53 last September.7:14 So I did the 70.3 and then did a little bit more racing and took some dedicated time to focus on my 10k and even after that, I barely broke 50 minutes when I just said my average in a triathlon is 48 minutes standalone is faster than that. So anyway, I can conclude, therefore that 70.3 training dropped my 10k speed by at least five minutes. So interesting. Now fast forward from last September to today, where this morning I ran the Times Colonist 10K race in Victoria. This is a huge run in this area. There were over 11,000 runners signed up for this race. It's the equivalent of the Vancouver Sun run, which draws like over 40,000 runners, so if we factor in Victoria's much, much smaller population, relatively speaking, it's probably of the same magnitude. Now, since last October,8:33 all I did was train for Olympic distance triathlon. So based on my past results, and with my reference point being that sub 50 10k I did last September, I thought, You know what? Today, based on all this Olympic distance training, I think I probably should run a somewhere around a 47:30 now today, the weather was amazing. It was incredible. blue sky, sun.10:29 I couldn't believe it. I mean, some of these people, I look at them and say, I would never have pegged you for a runner, and you're ahead of me, or some older gentleman in front of me I would normally pass in a triathlon, I couldn't pass them. I was like shaking my head, thinking there are some good runners in Victoria. Wow. Blew my mind. Very, very, very good legion of runners in this area. So anyway, I held on to my pace, nice rolling course. So up these long gradual hills, I just held to that threshold pace. And of course, I was not really able to take in much of the awe inspiring scenery through my haze of increasing agony. But every once in a while, I'd say to myself, "Oh, I've been here before. Oh, I know where this is" before, I retreated mentally back into my self preservation mantras. And then when I saw the nine kilometer sign, I stepped it up a notch, and it hurt a lot. I kept telling myself, this is this is the mantra I was repeating. "This pain is what you've been seeking. This pain is what you've been seeking. The pain is what you've been seeking". And then when I got tired of that one I'd go to, "you're in the pain you're looking for, you're in the pain you're looking for". And then my third mantra was around, around the the how do I lose my words right now? It was akin to saying, "relish it, relish it. Relish it. Enjoy it, enjoy it. This is what you wanted. Is what you needed". Anyway, I went into some haze of pain, and I recalled in that moment, as I was rounding the final turn for the finish line of the couple of kilometers back, I was passed by a guy that looked like a Gold's Gym bodybuilder, you know, the type thighs rubbing together, almost making fire with the inside of his thighs,12:48 Anyway, I had just written him off as one of these many freaks of nature, like how in the world he looked like he was easily 220 pounds to my 175 and yet somehow he was powering through faster than me. But in this final km I saw him up ahead of me, maybe with 500 meters to go, and then the finish line was in sight, and with a couple 100 meters to go, I just accelerated into a full sprint. Came up behind him. He started accelerating, not because of me. He didn't see me, but he saw the finish line coming up. And I just it's just as I was pulling even he started to accelerate, but I had the stronger kick, and I beat him to the finish line by about 10 feet. I went home today. That was my happy moment. I shouldn't be. I beat a bodybuilder in the 10k Oh my gosh. I wish I got his race number. I want to look him up. That was, it was a, it was an awe inspiring sight. I wish, I wish I actually had more of my wits about me. And I really like talked to him and found out what, how in the world is that possible? Anyhow, this is what you probably want to know. Maybe you don't want to know. I'm gonna tell you anyway, my finishing time. My finishing time was 461214:17 much, much faster than the 47:30 I'd anticipated, I ended up placing 12th out of 216 in my category. So top 6% I'm proud of that. I then looked ahead to the next category to see how much better I would have done, you know, if I was just as fast, but a bit older, turns out, I would have been done. I would have done about the same, like I said, Victoria has fast, fast runners. Wow. So in a nutshell, I confirmed, with my own experience that Olympic distance training can produce pretty decent 10k times, and that only dedicated training improves that even more, and that longer distance training, like for a 70.3 and I can only assume, for an Ironman, definitely makes you slower, and that's not a bad thing. But if running 10k races is your jam, then you're gonna want to add some dedicated run training time before you took that you take that 10k on. Anyhow, that is my experience this morning. 15:28 And now I want to get on to some other very exciting news. The Lonely triathlete Patreon page and membership option goes live now literally, now on Sunday night. So if you become a paid subscriber, you'll get ad free episodes, but you don't have ads. Todd, hmm, well, I might soon you never know. He said slyly. So you'll get ad free episodes. You'll have early episode releases. You'll have access to my entire 200 plus episode archive, and I just burped, and you never knew. And you'll have the ability to, this is what I'm excited about. You're going to have the ability to comment on every episode and have participation in polls and surveys that will help you shape this podcast, and starting with this episode and every one going forward, I'm going to make bonus content, bonus content who doesn't like bonus content.16:37 Now, if you want to keep listening for free, go for it. I'm going to always make the last 10 episodes of this podcast free, so don't worry, you'll have lots to listen to. It won't suddenly drop off your radar. So if you want to support this show and build with me, we're doing this together. I mean, I can't do it on my own. Build with me a community of like minded age group triathletes head on over the Patreon up with a link in the show notes, and let's get all get a little little less lonely together until next time. Peace.

Send us Fan MailYou've all heard the expression "less is more" and that is true for regular life as well as triathlon. I'll break down what this looks like in triathlon training, and ask yourself if you ever do a little (or a lot) more than necessary.Support the show

Send us Fan MailBig news. Big. News. I am taking The Lonely Triathlete to the next level. Support the show

Send us Fan MailAre you the type to rush through life? Do you always find yourself thinking of the future? Do you stub your toes a lot? Stub my toes, oh yeah, I used to because I was always rushing to the do the next thing. But not such much anymore.Support the show

Send us Fan MailDo you ever notice voices in your head? During a race do they ever try and convince you to slow down? Or tell you this hurts too much or that you are going too slow or that this is going to be a disappointing experience?If so, you can be prepared with a rebuttal. You can direct those voices in a certain direction. No arguing, no fretting, no agonizing doubts, only confident direction. You are in control!Support the show

Send us Fan MailFTP. Functional Threshold Power. The more the better, right? Sure, to a point. But you've no doubt been beaten by someone with a lower FTP than you. How is that possible? AI and I had a long conversation about this and I'm here to share what I learned.Support the show

Send a textI'm a very optimistic person but this week has been a struggle. Let me share with you a series of rants from back pain to congestion on my favourite running trail.Support the show

Send a textGiven that we swim, bike and run and lot it's inevitable that things happen to us that make for good stories. Today was one of those days, so strap in for story time! Support the show

Send a textWe've all been there - end of season and we are DONE. No more getting up early, no more watching what we eat, we are cooked! So, we take a couple of months off, gain  a bunch of weight until one day, we get excited about training again. But it takes us months to get back to where we were. But we do it and we have a fun season but then, by the end, we are DONE! Rinse and repeat. So, how do we get off that merry-go-round?Support the show

Send a textThis week is a real stream of consciousness episode! Buckle up! Support the show

Send a textWe lost another triathlete to an IDIOT driver! We need to do all we can to stay visible and alert out on the roads, RIP, Hannah Henry :(Support the show

Send us a textRed light, sauna, massage, supplements. These are all elements that can improve your training and recovery. But are they magic pills? Can they offset bad habits? No, they cannot. You will not enjoy the marginal gains you get from these things unless you've come to grips with the fundamentals of training. Let's dive in.Support the show

Send us a textDiet. Bad word? Doesn't have to be. I recently "got on one" to try and shed some extra bodyfat that mysteriously appeared on my torso over the past few months (it wasn't the kettle chips, it wasn't! Ok, it probably was.).In this episode I share with you some simple steps I take, when needed, to drop some unwanted bodyfat. So, grab your carrot sticks and settle in.Support the show

Send us a textWhat gets you out the door in the rain? Is it discipline? Ok then...Why can't you eat as well as you want? Lack of discipline?Why can't you go to bed when you intend to? Lack of discipline?It's a nuanced subject and one that I've grappled with for decades.Support the show