Is your mindset zapping the joy out of your training? Are you excited to improve in triathlon but feeling frustrated by a lack of progress despite all your hard work? It could be your mindset that’s holding you back!
Where you direct your mental energy can really make a difference in how effective your training sessions are. If you have big goals, you might have gone through a SMART goal-setting process, which is a great start! But sometimes, this approach can be a bit too focused on targets. While it can motivate you, it might also backfire.
When you focus only on the end result, you risk losing sight of the steps needed to get there. This narrow focus can steal the joy from both training and racing, as you become consumed with times, speeds, and distances.
Outcome Goals and Process Goals
Let’s break it down with outcome goals vs. process goals. An outcome goal is what you hope to achieve. For example running 5 kilometers in 25 minutes, swimming a mile, or finishing a marathon in under four hours.
On the flip side, a process goal focuses on the actions you need to take to reach that outcome. For instance, to run a 25-minute 5K, you might want to concentrate on lifting your legs or, like me, maintaining good posture.
It’s totally normal for beginners learning the front crawl to get caught up in just getting a breath. While that’s understandable, focusing solely on breathing can lead to mistakes that hold you back. Instead, we encourage swimmers to hone in on specific aspects of their stroke, trusting that the breath will come with practice. This could mean checking your head position or ensuring your body rotation is on point.
Instead of thinking, “I want to swim fast,” try focusing on what you need to do to achieve that speed.
Change your focus
During my last half marathon, I was fixated on hitting a specific time and thought I needed to start strong with precise mile splits in mind. For the first six miles, I stayed on track, but it felt gruelling, and I wasn’t enjoying it much.
Eventually, I realized I needed to shift my focus—thinking about how I was running rather than just the numbers. I began to concentrate on running tall, lifting my legs, and feeling the effort. Suddenly, I was maintaining the same pace, but it felt way easier and far more enjoyable. Getting too caught up in splits and times can create stress and obsession, which can slow you down.
At my triathlon club’s swim session, we did a 400-meter time trial. I was ready to give it my all, knowing it would be tough. After pushing hard, I was disappointed with my time. But the following week, during 400-meter repeats, I was delighted to find that each repeat was faster than my time trial effort! The difference? I focused on the process and my stroke mechanics instead of stressing about hitting a specific time.
In cycling, if you’re only focused on your average speed or the distance left, you might miss out on enjoying the scenery! Similarly, in a triathlon, if you’re just fixated on your final time goals, it’s easy to forget to eat and drink regularly or to push too hard early on. Common process goals for triathletes include remembering to refuel regularly, staying in aero bars as much as possible, and thinking about smooth, circular pedal strokes instead of just pushing down hard.
By shifting your focus from outcomes to processes, you can enhance your training experience and performance while rediscovering the joy in the journey!
Whether you’re looking to train hard or just enough to cross the finish line why not book a free no obligation Lets Chat with me to find out how I could help.
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