"Structure, Routine and Reward" by Coach Melina

So here we are, it's April; at least I think it is! This ordinarily is when we start to shift our focus on our summertime A-Race. Only this year, it’s all very different. Instead, we are experiencing a period of high anxiety, and lots of unknowns. For us, as athletes (and as parents, professionals or whatever other role we fulfil) we thrive on structure and goals to work towards. We all had an amazing season planned with much excitement building towards it. And in what feels like a pretty surreal few weeks, all has changed. For now, at least.

• How do we even muster the motivation to train?
• It’s easy to wonder: Well, what’s the point?
• And even if we are motivated, how do we manage it?
• How do we fill our time without being overwhelmed?

The first thing to address here is the mental burden of everything currently going on, understand why we may be struggling, and figure out strategies to help mitigate the effect. This is a once in a generation thing (at least we hope so!). Its unchartered times and the primary issue is uncertainty. That alone can be extremely detrimental to our mental health. Limbo is not a nice place to be! So how do we deal with it? Churchill was famously noted to say: If you find yourself going through hell, just keep going! And he was right. We will get through this, we just don’t know when, so we need to keep moving. It doesn’t mean its easy but there are little things we can do to help alleviate the uncertainty.

Priority now is to keep our mental health in check. As we said previously, as athletes, we love structure. So, as much as possible add structure to your day and create boundaries where you can. We are used to having distinct areas of work, training, relaxation. Now, all these are one! We live, work, train, home-school, chill, in one space, and in many cases one small space. Create clear boundaries on which area is for what purpose.

Have a plan. Write out a structure to your day. Share that with your family, if possible, include them as well. So, you know (roughly) at any given point what you should be doing. This will help avoid wondering: “what now?”, “what next?’” Take yourself out of limbo. For this reason, exercise and training is now, more than ever before, important. This is no longer a case of keeping it going so that you’re ready when races start again.

• It’s about improving and protecting your mental health
• Giving yourself structure, routine and a sense of achievement too
• Having something to look forward to.

Structure, Routine and Reward are critical in coping with uncertainty.

And be mindful that we are all in a bit of a bubble right now. So, our emotions, our responses are heightened and amplified. But remember this may be the new normal, but it is a temporary normal. It will pass!

Training Goals: Usually, we have races to focus on. Right now, we don’t have any, and we don’t know when we will. But our goals haven’t changed. They are delayed but they are still there. And we are still working towards them. But in the meantime, it’s time to set some new ones. Effective goal setting can not only help performance directly, but it has a big impact on our psychological state so things like anxiety, confidence and motivation.

Consider the following three types of goals:

• Outcome goals: These are usually related to events, they are motivating, they are exciting and usually have our “Why”, but they are not usually goals that we have much control over.
• Performance goals: These are related to aspects of performance; they are usually easy to measure and monitor so they can provide you with feedback on your progress. Things like power, speed and pace.  And as we all know, can be a big boost in confidence and motivation. There’s nothing like that feeling when you hit all the numbers in a session!
• Can you think of any performance goals you would like to focus on right now? Maybe focusing on your FTP? Or finally breaking 25 or 20mins on a 5k run?
• Process goals: These are the foundation of any effective goal setting and they are the ones we mostly have control over. These are things we can do daily to help us achieve our performance goals. Committing to the process and focusing on all the little things, no matter how little, can have a direct impact on how your performance goes as well as your mindset. How often do we neglect core? Or flexibility and mobility? Technique in swimming and running? Now is the time to focus on these.
• What process goals could you set to help you get through the next few weeks?

Remember your “Why

One of the first things I ask athletes that I work with is ‘Why?” Are you for example doing an Ironman just because you can? Just because someone told you? These sorts of underlying motivations can make it all too easy to derail yourself when things get tough. Reminding ourselves what our why is and reconnecting with it, will help get us through the bad days. Knowing your why is a strategy that is consistently proven to help athletes achieve personal growth and peak performance.

• What is your why?

To move forward we need to develop a clear sense of purpose. So, Plan! Approach! And Challenge!

• One of the biggest obstacles we have in terms of our triathlon training is the lack of swimming. If you are lucky enough to have access to a pool, no matter how small…get some swim cords, secure them to something solid and swim!! You have your very own endless swimming pool. Set intervals based on time and off you go. Better yet, if you can place a mirror at the bottom of the pool directly below you, it’s a great opportunity to check your stroke.If you can’t run, then focus on strength work. Careful and considered at home plyo work is excellent for keeping running going and you don’t need a lot space! If you have resistance bands, some banded running can be extremely effective.
• If you don’t have a pool, stretch cords can help keep your swim going. They are easily available from many online stores and you can even make your own ones with old inner tubes. The key is to maintain functional strength and muscle memory. Again, place a mirror on the floor below you as you practice and check on your stroke. 

                                               

• If you’re struggling, remember you are part of a team. There’s over 80 of us on the WhatsApp group. And we are all in this together. You need support or encouragement, reach out.
• Set challenges to your day or your week? We’ve had the Everest Challenge and the 500s challenge. Now Ironman Virtual club has also added to it. If you are in a position to join, then do so. Let your coach know, and together you can work out the best option for you. We’re here to help you all.
• You can even add little silly challenges like, every time you go to the fridge, you have to do 5 push ups. Or if you’re going upstairs or downstairs, you do the staircase an extra once to twice.
• Break up your sessions if you have to, to fit around your day. Our schedules are all a bit out of whack right now. You may struggle to get 2-3 hours done in one go. Break it up. Its ok. It can be easy to let go, so now more than ever before, we need to push through, but we need to do it with structure, goals and above all balance! Sleep well, eat well, train smart, talk to your coach. And yes, life is a bit hectic in a different way right now, so remember when it comes to training and exercise, something is always better than nothing! So, if you don’t have time for the full thing, shorten it but do something. UNLESS YOU ARE FEELING UNWELL IN ANY WAY!

We, as your coaches, as your teammates, as your friends, are here to help you. Your plans can be adapted to suit current situations, and current goals. Take some time and reconnect with your “Why”. Take some time and figure out your current process and performance goals. Talk to your coaches. We can get through this together. We can set the plan and tackle the challenge ahead. Stay safe, stay home, stay sane, and keep moving. 1% better every day!