Ironmind Tri – Mental Prep Part 1 – Let the countdown begin

As the 9th July approaches, many of you may be starting to feel the ‘butterflies fluttering’ and your ‘negative inner voice’ getting a little louder. Today, next Thursday and on Thursday the 7th July, I will aim to provide you with some practical mental strategies that may help to keep you ‘on-track’ in these final weeks of your training for this event. These strategies may also assist you during the event itself to reach the finish-line of Ironman Tri 2016.

One of the first things to remember in these last three weeks before the event is that you are a member of a very special group. You signed up to complete this challenge. You knew it would be difficult, physically and mentally, but you did it anyway, so well done! Taking on such a challenge usually indicates you have a high degree of something we psychologists call self-efficacy, which is generally considered a positive quality for a person to possess. It refers to your belief in your ability to complete a task no matter how hard it might be, or how much time it may take you. Such belief in your ability also indicates that you probably possess other positive traits such as persistence (a trait strongly linked to resilience; See my previous A Lust for Life piece on Building Resilience), a low fear of failure, a high degree of curiosity and a willingness to try out new things.

At this stage in their preparations, triathletes often want to know two key things: (1) how to keep motivated and focused during the last few weeks of training, and (2) how to remain confident and positive in their sporting endeavours. Today I am going to provide you with some mental preparation tips that perhaps address the first of these two key issues. Next week I will focus on the second issue, of confidence and maintaining a positive mind-set, as we enter the final week before the triathlon itself.

1. How do you stay motivated and focused on your training, when all you really want to do is stay tucked up in bed (in the morning), or lounging on the couch (in the evening)?

Tip #1: Remember, you probably signed up for this event because you are curious to see how far you can push yourself, to see what your true potential might be. Taking part in this event will hurt, but these last few training sessions you commit to will help you to cope with that pain, both mentally and physically. So develop some ‘self-talk’ phrases to help get you out to those final training sessions. Phrases such as “Let’s see what this body of mine can really achieve!” or “I’m going to prove to myself I have the determination to do this!” might be helpful statements to say to yourself, just to get you out that door to your next training session.

Tip #2: Set SMART goals for each session from now until the 9th July (See my previous post on Goal Setting on A Lust for Life). Remember, make each goal Specific (e.g., a run session; Measurable (e.g., 5km); Action based (‘running’); Realistic (e.g., ask yourself: Is 5km achievable for you today?); Time-phased (e.g., completed by 8pm tonight). Perhaps even break the 5km run down into mini-goals and aim for a specific time for each km – at 1km, 2km, 3km, 4km and 5km. Such mini-goals have been shown in psychological research to help athletes stay focused during their longer sessions. They typically make the larger goal seem much more manageable – by making it five smaller and much more manageable goals, as above.

Tip #3: Try out some methods of distraction to get you through the painful parts of your sessions. For example, count your strokes as you swim until you reach a certain point in the water, then ‘re-set’ the number to zero and start all over again until you reach your next point and so on. Another example could be to recite a song or poem you like in your head as you run/swim/cycle. An alternative strategy might be to play a mental game with yourself – For example, create a mental image in your mind of an animal for every letter of the alphabet, as you recite it to yourself.

Tip #4: Reward yourself for your efforts after each session – that might be having a nice coffee, going to see a movie or getting a relaxing massage J

I hope you find some of these mental preparation tips useful. I’ll finish today’s piece with the words of Dean Karnazes (who completed 50 marathons, in 50 US States, in 50 consecutive days, and wrote about his experiences in his book 50/50) – “Moderation bores me”.

Do ‘check-in’ again with me here on A Lust for Life next Thursday, the 30th June, for Ironmind Tri 2016: Mental Prep (Part II), and in the meantime, Happy Training all you Tri Heroes!