Triathlon: CTS MultiSport - Ending Season on a Positive Note

By Lance Watson & Stefan Timms

In the movies they are called "Hollywood Endings"; the protagonist struggles and perseveres through adversity to triumph over all the obstacles that were thrown in his/her path. The protagonist is shown as happy moments before the credits roll, and the audience rises from their seats, brushes the residual popcorn from their lap, and leaves with a look of contentment on their face. The movie has once again ended on a positive note.

The face of triathlon is quite different; "Hollywood Endings" are not a dime a dozen. In fact, due to the nature of the sport, in which there can only be one champion among the thousands competing, the likelihood of a "Hollywood Ending" is not only remote, but almost non-existent. So, why then, do people continue to devote a significant portion of their lives to training and racing? The answer is simple. Unlike Hollywood, triathlon has many different formulas, which lead to a happy ending.

While Hollywood scriptwriters have a formula to follow, triathletes make up their script as they move from one transition to the next. There is no formula to follow and the path to a positive season is as individual as a snowflake. If the only criterion for a successful season was winning your last race, psychiatrists would experience a huge spike in patients every October…and we all realize that is not the case. So with that in mind, let's look at some strategies you can integrate into your mental outlook so that you can end your season on a positive note.

Ending your season on a positive begins at the start of the season. Goal setting is an integral part of completing any objective, especially a triathlon-related one. At the beginning of the season you should set out long term, seasonal, and short term goals. These goals will serve as your lighthouse when you get lost in the fog that tends to creep into our everyday. They will keep you training on those days that the pillow is calling your name in the early morning. Be realistic with these goals. They should challenge you to improve, but be within the realm of achievement. Long term goals are ones that you would like to achieve within the next few years or even within your triathlon career. Seasonal goals are ones that you will achieve by the end of the season and short term goals are the goals that will lead to the achievement of seasonal goals. Short term is connected to the…Seasonal. Seasonal is connected to the…long term. Long term is connected to the…short term. AND just like our body, each set of goals is related to and dependent upon the other.

It is through the achievement of these goals that we are able to evaluate, and ultimately, end our season on a positive note. But there are other ways to put a positive stamp on the season. For example: your significant other wants a vacation; you want to race -well…marry the two! Find a late season race in an exotic locale or a prestigious race that you have always wanted to be a part of. Races such as "Escape from Alcatraz" in San Francisco, "Mrs. T's in Chicago, or an Ironman in another part of the world are experiences unto themselves. Regardless of the race, being in a transition area with thousands of others will give you an overwhelming sense of being part of something very special. For many triathletes, these races serve as the highlight of their season. And being in great cities or foreign countries allows for your traveling companions to have some fun as well. All these events will permit you to have an experience unlike anything you have done before. Not only will the prospect of these races help motivate you to train but the memory of the event and experience will serve as a positive reminder of everything that can be done with the sport of triathlon. What better way is there to end a season positively than getting a tan in a tropical locale with the one you love?

Ending your season on a positive note does not mean you have to win your last race, or even have a good result. There are people that will beat themselves up all winter over a mistake that was made in their final race of the season. It can be difficult to avoid this temptation because the last race is the freshest in your memory. When approaching any race it is important to look at your goals for the race. For some, it will be to win. For others, it will be to finish. While these are good goals, it may serve you better to have more specific goals so that you are better able to evaluate the race. You may want to work specifically on a certain aspect of transition or part of your swim. You may want to stay with a certain pack or run a certain time. Or, for some, like Peter Reid at Kona last year, it will be to enjoy the experience. After having disappointing results, Peter took some time away from triathlon. This separation from the sport allowed Peter to regain perspective that was lost from months and years of training and racing. Triathlon is fun. And if it isn't, then why do it? With a different perspective, Peter entered Kona and had a great race. If "Hollywood" had written the script, Peter would have caught Tim deBoom on Alii Drive and crossed the line a champion. However, as we all know, Tim had a great race as well, and won his second straight Ironman World Championship. But I challenge anyone to tell Peter that his race wasn't overwhelmingly successful and positive. And it wasn't because he finished second either. Peter had achieved his goal - racing was fun again! And whether he finished first, second, or 575th, he achieved his goal and was ecstatic about that.

For a season to end on a positive note you want to be able to reflect back on your choices and experiences and be happy. This means that when looking at your training and racing you want to be content that you did everything you could to achieve the results that you earned. Obviously, in every triathlete's season, there are going to be moments of disappointment and regret; a flat tire, a mistake made in transition, forgetting a shoe at home. These will happen. What is important is that as you look back on the season, you see that you didn't cut (m)any corners in your training and you learned from nay mistakes. You "tried your hardest" and thus are content with the results of the season. It is in this way that triathlon separates itself from Hollywood. There is not single event in a triathlete's season, which solely determines success. Success is achieved everyday in the pool, or on your bike or in your running shoes. Success is achieved every time you overcome inertia and made it out the door to complete that long ride in the rain. Success in triathlon is determined individually and achieved with the support of that train with you and those that love you. One race does not a positive season make, nor does one race a positive season break. It is a daily reaffirmation that you are committed to improving yourself. If you can look back at your season and see all of that, then I would say that would be an overwhelmingly positive season. And while that might make for a pretty boring "Hollywood" movie, I would say most of your audience would love that ending.

CTS Multisport Head Coach Lance Watson is the personal coach of Olympic Champions Simon Whitfield and Brigitte McMahon; Ironman star Lisa Bentley; and top ranked Olympic Distance athletes Laura Reback and Greg Bennett, to name a few. He can be reached at lwatson@trainright.com.