It’s so crazy to think my first triathlon of the 2015 season is this Saturday. It seems like I just finished the Lake Powell Tri last October. I can still feel that podium. Oh yeah! But it’s a new year and it’s anyone’s game. This Saturday is the Icebreaker Tri by RaceTri. It is a fun sprint triathlon to kick off the season. The weather is always a crap shoot, but who cares- it’s fast and fun.
This off season was different than the last few years. I actually focused more instead of having a free-for-all during the off season. Here are 5 triathlete lessons I learned during the off season.
- Take time off and do something else. Following my last triathlon, I started to weight train more and absolutely loved it.
- Have a plan, even in the off season. Time off should be scheduled, or one day turns into two and next thing you know you haven’t worked out in 3 weeks. Yikes!
- Train with a group. When you have to meet people, you are more apt to show up! Plus, they give you crap when you don’t.
- Play around with your gear. New shoes, bike fit, new saddle, new fuel, etc. Use the off season to test and try new things. That way you’ll have plenty of time to see if it’s going to work before race day. Or in my case, by a new bike and spend the entire off season changing out parts and trying to get it to fit.
- Pick a weakness and work on it. I hate running. My feet hate it even more. I spent my off season doing short distances faster. Not only were my feet happier, but my long runs are now faster. YAY!
What my goal for this first race? Hit it hard! Go all out and see what I can do – to PR from last year and see where that puts me! Last year my bike broke, so anything is better than that and I feel even better than 2013.