These two years have been a steep learning curve for me but also A LOT of fun. They’ve changed my perception on sport (well, now sports 😂)and enabled some fantastic personal growth. So with the risk of repetition, thanks again for the guidance and patience!
Now, from the realm of the cheesy to that of the concrete stuff and what I actually got out of this:
- Training which pushed what I thought I was / could be capable of physically and mentally, and which was built on strengths but also pushed me to address my s*** bits. This includes, more recently, dealing with and balancing really different levels of ‘maturity’ in the disciplines - never touched a road bike before this year (incl. not clipping out and falling at lights 🙈) and hadn’t been swimming in 1.5 years before (+ a dislocated shoulder which still isn’t as jolly as it previously was).
- A training plan which made the most of the time that I had available, and flexed around work and my personal life without compromising on progress / fitness - this is something I couldn’t have a) balanced so well effort and intensity wise, and b) ‘enforced’ upon myself despite being freakishly organised - it’s just too subjective.
- Goal clarity and flexibility - I started this year aiming for two marathons and a ‘taster’ olympic tri, and ended up doing a 70.3 and 5 and 10km TTs. We made it all count, and fit with what was possible.
- Confidence on race day - There wasn’t a single moment during the 70.3 in Turkey (valid for all my previous races) when I didn’t know what I’m supposed to be doing and how it will feel. For a chronic over-thinker like me this is invaluable and takes a huge load off my mind. I was far more worried about mechanical issues and riding on the wrong side than not knowing how to approach the race.
- Wealth of knowledge and expertise to tap into - whether it was on nutrition, kit, physio, feeling etc. it was there and it was always accurate and top quality.
So if you’re looking to up your game and don’t know what will help the most, this where it’s at!