Triathlon Training: Five Ways to Get More Time!

About a year ago, I reached out to y’all via a survey to find out what you all were looking for to help you with your triathlon training.

And this is what I heard:

I need more time
How do you “balance” it all
How do you organize training in life?

Check out the chart with the question about WHY you are not getting your workout in from 2017, and honestly, I think it is getting worse these days!

We ALL have the same hours in a day. There are plenty of people who not only will do Ironman Triathlons, work, family life and qualify for Kona but who are Stay at Home Moms, doctors, lawyers, night nurses, and entrepreneurs. Guess what, I have coached all of those athletes, along with living with a lawyer.

The one thing that I am excellent at is structuring my life around triathlon training, and today, I came up with five tips for you to “Get MO’ Time” in your schedule for your triathlon training, whether you are getting ready for your Ironman Triathlon, Age Group Nationals or a Sprint Triathlon!

“How to Get More TIME with Triathlon Training”

1. Rest day is just that!

Rest day is a COMPLETE rest day. Put your feet up.
Your body’s craving the rest, especially when you get closer to your Ironman. If you want to sit on the bed for 5 hours watching a movie, taking a nap and looking at your computer. IT IS OK!!!
Have kids? How a spouse? Adjust, so you have downtime to yourself. Here is an example: I have an athlete, who has two kids. I gave her Sunday off, to spend time with her family. She contacted me on Monday and said to me, “Why am I more tired from my “rest days” than not?” I said to her, “Two kids under 6…you are not even taking rest days!” We adjusted her day off to Thursday when both kids are in school and daycare. She gets a day off, does stuff at home and take a nap.
Have things to do? Clean house, laundry, and lawn. (See #3)

2. Plan your weeks with a Calendar (iCal/Google) and a do a Weekly “Brain Dump.”

iCal or Google Calendar will be the key to your success! You MUST plan your workouts. Check out my calendar.
I will plan almost everything via my calendar. Walk the dog. Personal appointments (eyebrows, hair cut, etc.) I will put my workouts in there as well. If I don’t, I may not get to it. I will be busy filling my time with other things.

Here is an example of a couple of weeks in July:

Brain Dump. Every Sunday, I will write out what I have to do for my business, my coaching, my workouts, home life, etc. I write down EVERYTHING! I go to bed on Sunday with a clear mind, and I LOVE it! It is a must, and even Chris knows when I am going to do my Brain Dump.

3. Hire People to Help You Out.

Plan a simple. Hire someone to clean your house. Do your lawn. Take your laundry to a laundromat. Yes, spend the money!
You spend how much $$ on your bike, clothing, and food for Ironman Triathlon Training? You can pay extra for help.
Trust me…it is WAY WORTH IT!

4. Hire a Coach to Plan your Workouts

If you are self-coached, good for you! Do you write out your plans on Sunday? By Thursday, you tend to move things around throughout the week according to your schedule and how you are feeling. By the end of the week, you have so many workouts to “make up” that you are overwhelmed and you want to sit and watch DVR of “Days of Our Lives?”
Yes, hire a coach. They will organize your workouts for your lifestyle (they should). They will keep you accountable! They will call you out if you are not getting workouts in (they should!).
Let the coaches do the guesswork of organizing your workouts around YOUR LIFE. Talk to them. Be open to them and tell them what your schedule looks like. That is what you pay them to do!
You spend how much $$ on your bike, clothing, and food for Ironman Triathlon Training? Now it is time to hire a coach.

5. Listen to Your Body!

So crucial! Your body’s a temple. You must listen to what you are going through and what your body is craving.
If you are tired but every Saturday, you do your long bike at 8 am with the group…it is OK to sleep in and ride later!
You have a swim and a lift, and you have to get them done back to back. That is OK but do your swim first, eat some protein/CHO (within 30 minutes) of your swim, you should be fine for your lift.
For example, I had an athlete, who like clockwork, will get up at 4:00 am to make sure she gets her workouts in before work. Sounds wonderful right? She will do it regardless; even when she hasn’t gotten enough sleep. So how is that going to help her in the long run? She is pushing through lack of sleep and not getting quality to her workouts…just quantity. She is getting better.

Bonus Tip: Find out YOUR Why Behind doing this triathlon training. I can tell you this, once you figured this out, it will make your life so much easier to get up at 5:00 am for specific workouts, to sleep in on Saturday and to hire someone to help you. It takes a Tribe to get to your goals. Utilize them!

As I said before, we all have the same number of hours in a day. I think the main lesson learned here is to find a Tribe to help you achieve your goals, whether it is a housekeeper, someone to mow the lawn, a community of AMAZING triathletes and yes, even a coach.

Are you interested in getting my “Nine Workouts to Save You Time”? Grab my FREE PDF TODAY!

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