How to get the most out of group training
At this point in the summer, races are being cancelled left and right and, unless you’re a liar, your motivation to train is dropping! This is the perfect time to find a training group and give yourself the motivation you need to keep yourself fit, healthy and ready to race! Here are some tips to help you find the right group for you (it’s MIssion Multisport obviously!), and provide you with advice on when you should be training with a group and when you need to go solo!
WHEN TO TRAIN WITH A GROUP
1) You need to be pushed.
This applies to everyone. Everyone has a triathlon “limiter”, and there is a good chance that your weakest of the 3 sports is also your least favorite. You need to attack that weakness in order to turn it into a strength and a group can do wonders in helping you overcome that limiter. My example of this for myself is swimming.
I didn’t grow up swimming but I was always comfortable in the water and through a lot of hard work I became a good swimmer...for a triathlete. Until recently I swam alone or with one other athlete max and that was only if our schedules linked up perfectly. I was a big fish in a small YMCA pool to the point that one of the employees asked me where I swam in college. I didn’t... but I was *very* flattered and my ego grew 10 times that day. Over the winter I promised a friend I’d join the masters group he swims with over the summer as he assured me it could take my swimming to the next level. Day 1 I thought I was doing pretty well coming to the wall at the same time as everyone else, until I realized I was coming in with the group that left 5 seconds after me and I was getting smoked by everyone in the pool! My ego shrank back down to it’s *normal* inflated size that day but I showed up the next day and the next. It sucks, I hang on to the intervals for dear life, I swallow water, I try to act like I enjoy it when really I hate it but I realize I NEED it! That group is pushing me to a new level.
2) You need to control your training.
A popular multisports watch and cycling computer company has an ad out right now that states athletes should “beat yesterday”. If only real progression happened over the course of 24 hours! I’ve done it; I’ve gone out and tried to run harder than the day before, day after day. What happens is you’ll get burnt out or injured within a year. There are plenty of times you need to swim, bike or run slower than yesterday. This is where our team group runs come in handy in my training schedule. I run easy with my friends, not caring about my pace or effort. I just have fun running while connecting with my community. It’s become something that I actually look forward to each week and it helps me control my training rather than feeling the pressure to push hard day in and day out.
3) You want to have fun and make friends
You’ll be hard pressed to find a more accepting group of people than triathletes. No one cares how fast you are, what your background is or where you from, everyone is just happy to be there and ready to congratulate you for finishing. Mission Multisport is a team that consists of every kind of athlete; from first timer to professional, and everyone is treated exactly the same as long as they just keep showing up, smiling and having fun. Becoming a team member of your local triathlon club is something you won’t regret.
4) You’re a beginner.
When I was just starting out in triathlon I happened to live only 3 blocks from the ocean. Every weekend there were group ocean swims, bike rides, or runs and during the season you could race 3-4 times a month if you desired in the local community. I didn’t know how fortunate I was at the time but now I realize that the majority of athletes aren’t lucky enough to be surrounded by other athletes constantly.
Sure the typical first timer is usually motivated by a friend or relative who is involved in the sport but after that it can be difficult to find your way in endurance sports. We take pride in assisting beginners in every way possible, there are literally no dumb questions! What’s dumb is not asking the questions and making a mistake (like buying a disc wheel for your road bike - which I’ve seen happen) because the industry is pushing you into that purchase!
5) Safety in numbers
While training for triathlons is possible indoors you still need to get outside and going at it alone can be risky. Cars are everywhere and drivers are distracted at best and malicious and distracted at worst. Riding with a group gives you an advantage over the solo rider who may be difficult to see.
Running can also be dangerous alone especially if you live in a city. Before moving to the less populated Macungie PA my girlfriend lived in Philadelphia and before she stepped out the door to run she needed to consider her route, if the sun was setting or when it would be rising to provide her with light. Too dark and her favorite paths and trails would be dangerous as several times a year women were followed or attacked along those routes. I hate to break it to you but our world isn’t safe and it’s not going to get any safer but as athletes we can protect ourselves by training in groups.
WHEN YOU NEED TO GO SOLO
1) You’re going long!
Ever ask one of your cyclist friends if they want to ride for 5-7 hours on a Saturday? If you haven’t, don’t ...because getting laughed at isn’t fun. If you’re lucky enough to know another athlete at a similar level, training for a similar distance, that you can get some long rides with, the motivation and accountability will help, especially for your first few rides or runs of a new distance. But, in all honesty, it still benefits you to get used to the solidarity of race day.
Ironman is a unique animal - when compared to my girlfriend’s Chicago marathon experience, she ran 26.2 miles with wall-to-wall spectators screaming. The run leg of Louisville or Mont Tremblant can have miles and miles of lonely road and your brain plays no less than 1,000 tricks on you to get you to slow down, feel uncomfortable or even stop. Getting used to those feelings and thoughts during your training is essential and the long distance work is as much a mental exercise as it is physical. Ultimately, you race alone, so don’t get discouraged from training just because you don’t have a training partner.
If you have competitive goals the long ride or run is going to have a structured plan based on power, pace, HR or effort and that can make sharing your long workouts tricky.
Lastly, and this is a shocker for a lot of age group athletes, you can’t draft in an Ironman and I firmly believe that you need to train how you fight.
2) It’s a key workout.
In this sport no one is the same. No two athletes have the same schedule, the same FTP, the same structure, the same goals, the same coach, etc. This makes your key workouts individualized to you and executing them with a training partner gets complicated. I’ve done it when it’s worked out well and I’ve done it when the work has suffered. You just have to suck it up and do these select workouts alone if you want to get the most training benefit.
I have found that developing rituals for my key workouts has helped me accomplish them with a high rate of success. I’ll do the same things before my long run every single time. I wake up at the same time, eat the same thing, warm up the same, etc. This routine has allowed me to mentally connect those pre run activities with my long run, and as a result I don’t need a training partner for motivation now. Before an FTP test or hard bike workout I am getting pumped up all day! I have a playlist just for hard workouts if I’m indoors and if I’m outside I plan my route so my intervals hit at just the right time. “Every battle is won before it’s ever fought” and if you fail to plan out your key workouts and try to rely on others you’ll likely not hit your numbers.
3) You’re a lone wolf.
Triathlon and endurance sports are tailor made for the introverted athlete. Some part of you actually enjoys the hours and hours of isolation on the bike, running, or under the water. Personally I can honestly say some of the most satisfying and rewarding moments of my athletic career have happened when I’m alone for 6 hours on the bike or during hour 2 of a long run on a perfect summer morning. You get to be alone inside your head and work out all the problems or issues that you may be having. There is no limit to the moments of clarity you’ll have when you get into a good grove of solo training. Plus sometimes you just need to turn off all distractions, zone out and not think about all the stress in your life. It’s OK if your favorite part of your weekly long run is that you’re alone for 90 minutes.
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-Ben Rotherham
Head Coach, MIssion Multisport