Pro triathlete and professional Coach Kevin Collington recently chatted to JET and shared some tips on how to #beyourbest.
1. Don’t stress any single workout too much. Consistency is king.
2. Sleep hygiene. You can increase nightly sleep by sticking to a routine and having a good setup. Pick a “shut down” time at night. For me it’s 7pm – no more work, only dinner and lounge time. Winding down for sleep. Make sure your bedroom is dark and the correct temperature (for me 20C is great). Limit phone screen or TV screen exposure (I wear blue-light filtering glasses at night). Don’t use your bed for computer time or TV time – train your mind to know that bed=sleep. This has increased my nightly sleep from ~7 hour to more like 9.5.
3. When it’s time to train hard you have to train hard. Post-season and pre-season are necessary periods and have some good work in them, but when it comes to race prep you have to be prepared for higher hours and going “all in.” Whatever that means to you for YOUR optimum performance. For pros that can mean ~35 hours/week for 4 to 6 weeks. For amateurs it will mean an increase but nothing nuts – but it will just require higher levels of focus.
4. Keep your equipment clean and running well!
5. Training partners help a lot. Wolves are more successful in packs. For us it could be someone that pushes us to go harder (for me – Sam Appleton), or just someone to socialize with.
6. Leave the ego at home during training. Save your superhuman performances for race day. No racing in training! And somewhat related – everyone wants to train their strengths – but you have to train the weaknesses the most.
7. Make sure to have time for some socializing and other hobbies. My “triathlon is my whole life” friends are struggling right now in the pandemic, but in normal life it is good for the mind to switch gears sometimes.