I
started with my coach about 3 and a half years ago. I had gone abroad for the
spring semester of my junior year and upon returning decided I did not want to
return to the crew team. I also knew I did not want to be without structure and
guidance. After a summer where I competed in a few triathlons and planned my
first Olympic up in Maine, The Lobsterman Triathlon, I decided to get a coach
that fall. I owe SO MUCH to Mideast Multisport. I decided it might be fun to
get certified to coach as something to do while in school so at the end of
February I went to Charlotte, NC for one of their coaching clinics.
It
was 2 full days of listening to lectures ranging from nutrition, bike skills,
periodization and planning, swimming, triathlon skills and strength training. I
most enjoyed Bob Seebohar’s talks. He was a super good speaker and after
reading his book about nutrition and metabolic efficiency it was nice to hear
everything he believes in first hand.
I
probably learned the most from the talk about “mental fitness”. One of the
things I struggle with most while racing is my thought process. This is
obviously common and goes along with all the things you hear, like:
-Sports
are 20% physical and 80% mental
-The
major difference between a great athlete and an Olympic athlete is their mind
-People
that can push themselves to athletic achievements have a better ability to
endure pain
Even
thought I have heard this over and over again it doesn’t make fighting the
mental demons any easier. Yeah, it’s a great fact and wonderful to know that
the person next to me also feels like crap but these facts do nothing to tell
me how to conquer my thoughts of sucky-ness. Dara, the instructor for this part
of the lecture, went over tools we can use like visualization and mental
mapping/preparation to try and turn situations where you are battling your
brain around. So once I start triathlon-ing again I will give these tricks a
go!
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