{"id":15876,"date":"2021-09-23T08:00:57","date_gmt":"2021-09-23T15:00:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.drjimtaylor.com\/4.0\/?p=15876"},"modified":"2025-06-20T07:14:32","modified_gmt":"2025-06-20T07:14:32","slug":"sprint-dont-stagger-to-the-finish-of-your-triathlon-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.drjimtaylor.com\/4.0\/sprint-dont-stagger-to-the-finish-of-your-triathlon-season\/","title":{"rendered":"Sprint, Don\u2019t Stagger, to the Finish of Your Triathlon Season"},"content":{"rendered":"

At this late point in the season, you will have fallen into one of three camps as far as how your season has gone. First, you may be having a break-out season in which you are absolutely thrilled with the progress in your racing and race results. You would be perfectly content if the season ended today. Perhaps you finished your first triathlon, podiumed for the first time in local race, qualified for Age-group Nationals or Worlds, or, for the rare few, crushed it in Milwaukee in August.<\/p>\n

But why wouldn\u2019t you want to continue your great season by seeing if you can take it to an even higher level? Gosh, with a great season under your belt, at this point, you have nothing to lose and more to gain by making a conscious decision to \u201cbring it\u201d every race and see how fast you can swim, bike, and run. If you bonk, it\u2019s no big deal because you\u2019ve already achieved your seasonal goals. If you do finish when you\u2019re leaving it all out on the course, only good things can happen. Not only might you add more good results to your season but may find that you have another gear in you that you can carry into the winter and next season.<\/p>\n

Second, you\u2019ve had an okay season in which you\u2019ve shown improvement in both your triathlon efforts and your results, but you haven\u2019t done as well as you had hoped. Though you wouldn\u2019t be entirely happy if the season ended today, you wouldn\u2019t be entirely upset either. For you, there\u2019s still time to take a decent season and turn it into a great one. So, again, you might as well make a commitment to training hard and racing your fastest.<\/p>\n

Finally, your season to date has been a real disappointment filled with setbacks or plateaus in your training and races, unsatisfying results, and a strong sense of frustration. If the season ended today, you would be one unhappy camper. Though you may wish for the season to end today\u2014just to put you out of your misery\u2014as the saying goes, \u201cIt ain\u2019t over till it\u2019s over.\u201d With some races ahead, it\u2019s not too late to not only salvage your season, but to actually have it conclude on a high note. Same as with a mediocre season so far, if you keep doing what you\u2019ve done, you\u2019re probably going to get the same results. Why not decide to try something new and see what happens? You certainly don\u2019t have anything more to lose at what has, unfortunately, been a downer season.<\/p>\n

As for the season that still lies ahead, you will fall into one of two camps. Either you are already thinking about the off-season and jonesing to hang up your tri-bike and just do some fun biking and running. Or you are still chomping at the bit for the upcoming races and are committed to do everything possible to finish your race season strong.<\/p>\n

Let me assure you that if you fall into the first camp, you might as well end your season now because you\u2019re chances of having a good end of season is just about zero. Why? Because you won\u2019t bring the necessary drive, intensity, or focus to get much out of your training or for you to give it your best effort in races. Though there are no guarantees, your only chance to finish strong is to make the commitment to getting the most out of your training and deciding to do nothing less that swimming, biking, and running your fastest in races during the final weeks of the season.<\/p>\n

How this part of the season plays out depends on your attitude and your actions between now and when cross the finish line of your last race.<\/p>\n

If You\u2019re Racing Well<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you\u2019re racing well, my gosh, keep doing what you\u2019re doing. You are in an ideal position for the last races for several reasons. First, because your season is already a success, the rest of the season is just icing on the cake for you. Second, the pressure is off to get results, so you can race with reckless abandon and not care about what happens. Just trust your racing and focus entirely on what you need to do to swim, bike, and run your fastest. If you keep doing what has worked so far, the chances are good that you will finish strong.<\/p>\n

If Your Racing is \u2018Meh\u2019 or Worse<\/strong><\/p>\n

If your season to date lies somewhere between disappointing and devastating, there\u2019s one thing you should definitely not do: panic! If you panic, some very bad things will happen. First, you will shift entirely into result mode, meaning you will focus on the results you need to salvage your season. This result focus will cause you to feel immense pressure every time you race. This pressure will trigger negative thoughts (\u201cIf I don\u2019t get a good result, my season will be an absolute fail.\u201d), even worse emotions (fear!), and so much anxiety that you will be physically incapable of racing fast.<\/p>\n

As hard as it will be, you must let go of the pressure (\u201cEven if I have a lousy season, I will be okay.\u201d) and maintain a process focus (\u201cWhat do I need to do to race fast?\u201d). This point in the season is the time to step back, take a long and hard look at your triathlon efforts, and see if you can identify any changes that will help you get your season back on track.<\/p>\n

At times like this, you have two choices. You can choose to fight. This means that, instead of having a pity party and giving up, you need to get really mad and direct that anger into attacking the race course. The reality is that \u201cbringing it\u201d won\u2019t necessarily produce a good result; your aggressiveness may lead to going out to fast and blowing up. But going for it is your only chance of getting the results you want. Or, you can say, \u201cF&%# it!\u201d and choose to let go of everything, relax, and let your body do what you\u2019ve trained it to do without your mind trying to control every little thing. You certainly will swim, bike, and run better than if your mind is trying to control your body. In either case, I can assure you that, whatever the outcome, you will feel much better having ended your season with a bang rather than a whimper.<\/p>\n

Back to Basics<\/strong><\/p>\n

Whether you\u2019ve had a stellar, mediocre, or awful season so far, there are some things you can do that may help you finish the season strong. Go back to basics. In other words, do things that have helped you race fast in the past:<\/p>\n