H is for habits
When you enter the world of triathlon training, you will discover that there are some important habits that you must form in order to be successful. These habits span a number of different aspects of the sport, but if you want to be the best triathlete nonetheless, then create good habits in nutrition, training, research, and rest.
Nutrition:
Many people get into the sport of triathlon to try to lose weight or at least to be healthier. One of the first things you’ll discover is that you need to have proper nutrition for your workouts to produce what you want them to produce. You can’t go out for a double cheeseburger and drink a milk shake and hope to lose the weight you want to lose. You will want to develop some nutritional habits that will lead to ultimate success. You may want to start the habit of keeping a journal of what you eat so that you can keep track of your calories. You can use an application called MyFitnessPal.com for this very purpose. You can use the application on your phone that syncs with an online application. This habit will help you determine if you are getting adequate calorie intake, but also your fat, carbohydrate, and protein numbers. The habit of keeping up with the journal may fade over time as good nutrition habits are formed, but start with the journal and see your weight loss goals come true.
You’ll also want to form better nutrition habits in the foods you choose to boost your training. You can’t expect to go a long 10-mile run or a 30-mile bike without having the proper fuel. Develop some good habits to help you eat the right nutritional components. I use bananas to start and then I use fizz and endurolytes, both produced by hammer nutrition. I also use PowerGel Gels to give me calories and energy for workouts and races.
Training:
You need to form a good habit of participating in your workouts. Many people never start off with a training regimen because they feel like they don’t have enough time to do the workouts. You will need to form some good habits in terms of scheduling your workouts so you don’t miss a lot of them. You may need to have a different sleep schedule or a different work schedule, but you want to make missing a workout a big hassle. The reason you want this is because if you don’t have a healthy dissatisfaction with missing a workout, you will lose more than your share and will not be ready for race day. It can even have disappointing results to the point where you want to quit smoking.
Develop some good training habits to help you maximize your workouts. For example, have a good way to heat and cool. You’ll want to have a recovery drink or supplement to minimize pain and prepare for the next day. I use Accelerade for this purpose and have found that it provides me with the right amount of carbohydrates and protein to help me recover well for the next day and minimize pain. I can definitely tell when I don’t drink it. These warm-up and recovery habits will help keep you injury-free during your workout.
Investigate:
This is a difficult one. There is a constant barrage of information that is produced every day about triathlon. Taking just a few minutes to do a little research could help you find the right nutrition plan, the right workout plan, the right equipment, or just give you an inspirational boost. Subscribe to blogs like this or magazines that can help you understand this incredible sport of triathlon. Keep up a good deal of this research though, and don’t get too addicted, otherwise you’ll switch every few weeks to a new device or training plan and go broke.
Rest:
You have to form a good habit of rest. Rest is as important as any exercise. You have to get enough rest to be able to perform at the highest level. Find ways to get more rest or sleep more. You cannot function for long in this sport without the proper amount of rest. Too many triathletes are out of sport due to overuse injuries. It’s okay to miss a workout if you intentionally need to rest. If your body is overwhelmed, rest. Get into a good rest habit and you will see your training gains continue and continue to increase after each workout.
Forming some of these good habits in triathlon training will ensure that you will compete well and for a long time.
