Let it go

Coming very much to that festive time of season now, Christmas is so close you can almost taste it.

This time of year can be a tough one for the southern hemisphere triathlete. All the major races are done for the season and generally the next big races are quite some time off, so there is a low focus on training. To make that more difficult there are increasing demands on an athlete's time as Christmas parties, family functions etc start occurring at an alarming rate. The final straw to break the back of any training plan is the fact that there is more and more tasty but less than healthy food available. This all combines to make a perfect storm of poor quality training, high number of missed sessions and bad eating. Phew...

So, coming into this time of year, what is a triathlete to do?

Well to be honest, what I tell most of my athletes is this.

Let it go.

Well okay, that advice obviously to be taken with a grain of salt. When I say let it go, it is within reason. Don't become a couch living, beer swilling, Christmas pudding devouring monster of Christmas past. But at the same time, you don't to be the training scrooge who doesn't enjoy the Festive season because it is going to interfere with 'the plan'. Blowing off family time and events with friends because it is going to get in the way of the training ride you had planned shouldn't be the focus for the next couple of weeks. Sure, eat smart and don't overindulge, but if you have to miss a session on Christmas Eve, really is it a big deal?

The degree to which an athlete might 'let it go' will vary too. There used to be a race called the Albany Half Ironman, which I did for a few years. This race used to be on in the first week of January, which basically meant training through Christmas. I remember going for a training run on Christmas morning at least once (very early). However, even during those years there was still an emphasis of putting family and friends first. I would make sure I was eating sensibly and getting in what training I could that didn't interfere with my family time, but it was never the tip top priority. Enjoying Christmas with loved ones came first.

For most people Christmas is an incredibly important time to take a step back and enjoy some time with friends and family. While Triathlon is a great pursuit and does require dedication and focus, it shouldn't get in the way of the things that really are important in life.

So my advice for athletes for the next couple of weeks?

Take a step back, let things go a little and make sure you enjoy life.