Little Known Ways to Plan for the Big Day

It’s the last installment of my blogathon as the triathlon is on Saturday. There are no more days to worry about form or technique. There are no more days to worry if I am training to the best of my ability. The best advice that I have heard from seasoned triathletes is that at this stage do not change a thing. So this week my training routine is the same, I plan on eating the same foods and my trusted equipment is seeing the light of day.

So here is my list of ways that I planned my big day:

Involve the Right People in the Planning Process - I found a training buddy, Jeffy, and although he cannot complete the race with me due to an injury, he was the RIGHT person to be on my bus. Teaming with him made me slow down and plan my training schedule, evaluate my technique for each sport, and I found him to be a great asset for support and as a digital resource. Everyday he would send me a new link to online articles that were extremely helpful.

Goals/Strategies - The overall goal was clear; to complete the race. But my strategies were to be disciplined, to learn from others and if this can be a strategy enjoy the training process.

Objectives - Setting myself milestones along the way has been really helpful and has kept me motivated. I designed my training plans to increase strength and pace and it really worked.

Tasks - This is where having the right people to support you is so important. This week I designed a race checklist and it created yet another list of tasks to be done before heading to the race this weekend. Divide and conquer has always been something I adhere to and with that I have assigned many of the tasks to my boyfriend, Allan, to help with. Is that really dividing or just conquering?

Resources and Budgets - I won’t lie, there is a lot involved in training for a triathlon at any level. Resources take many forms; my local tri-club and its members have been an amazing resource to tap into for advice and support, my budget has been a major resource that has been dipped into many times from race fees, to equipment purchases and even gym membership, but the best resource is my family. 2 years ago my parents flew from England to be at my first race and endured the heat, rain and mosquitoes to see me cross the finish line with a smile.

Build in Accountability and Evaluate the Planning Process and the Plan - You know I nearly forgot about this most important factor and therefore next week’s blog will be a look back, a review of that training plan and an evaluation of my performance and next steps for the next big race.

Acknowledgment and Celebration - A big thank you to everyone who has supported me. My co-workers who woke me up during my afternoon lull, (getting up at 5am plays havoc on your body), my boyfriend who helped cook wonderful meals (I am also a vegetarian and can never eat enough as it is), and who now knows how to apply Bio-Freeze and has become my own personal masseuse, and also to my friends whom many of which have no idea why I do what I do but continue to listen to the MANY triathlon stories I share.

This week I am focused on performance and with that I am off to plan my last meal on Friday to enhance that performance.

><(("> Emma