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How to train when you’re in the midst of a pandemic

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While we’ve all been enjoying the uninterrupted company of our families and loved ones, many of us have forgotten what our bikes look like, where our running shoes are and are wondering whether our swimmers still fit.

As Government guidelines restricting our activities and movements outside our homes have begun to relax, it’s almost time to get back into training!

We are busily trying to arrange some lane space for you so we can get back into the pool, we will need a little more patience till we figure that out. But we can soon get back running and riding, with a few modifications as to how we do things.

We are now required to follow some additional rules to allow us to safely train together. TWA has provided some great guidelines for us to follow. The Committee and Coaches are developing plans to ensure the rules are adhered to during training to keep us all healthy and well. Once complete, we will get that information out to everyone and we will get started with training sessions. So watch this space!

In the meantime, it’s a great opportunity to get some feedback from our members as to when you want training sessions. Complete the survey at the link below to have your say. It’s only 6 questions and should only take about 2 minutes to complete.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/WVHYBWT

Get ready for your summer of Tri

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Our novice course starts on October 5 and will provide a fun and supportive atmosphere for people of all abilities to give tri a try.

You will get 10 weeks of coached training, advice on equipment and fitness, and be ready to do your first triathlon on December 15.

All abilities are welcome. We want everyone to achieve their goals and our coaches and athletes provide a friendly and fun atmosphere.

Find out more by visiting our Novice Page

Switzerland ITU with Diana

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Diana representing team Australia at the Switzerland ITU Grand Final 2019

Member Diana recently took on the 2019 ITU World Triathlon Grand Final in Lausanne. She reflects on this amazing experience.

“This was my first World Champs & international race and boy was it a thrilling and proud experience. To be in the presence of such great athletes was also quite humbling.

The warm waters meant it was a non-wetsuit swim in Lake Geneva, unfortunately come race morning it was rough and choppy…bad for me and I had a terrible swim.

The bike I loved, with punchy climbs and fast decents, it was a two loop course. The run was also hilly with 3 hard climbs per lap (two lap course) – many walked. I finished 53/94, 35th fastest on the bike and  4/10 Aussies in my AG. That’s the most impressive stats I have to tell you.

This was a technical course and different to any race I have done so far.The best part of all was just to wear the Green and Gold, make some new friends and be part of the Australian team.”

Congratulations Diana

Wolf v Kona – Mike takes on world Ironman championships

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One of the best parts of being in the Wolf Pack is that we pride ourselves on having fun, enjoying great friendships and supporting each other to our individual goals – whether that is Kona or your first enticer. That is why I loved reading Mike’s Kona wrap up. He is one of the nicest guys around and gives us an honest picture of his experience racing but also enjoys his trip to Hawaii. All work and no play is NOT our motto. Read and enjoy!

Mike:

After training through the Perth winter I wanted to get to Hawaii as early as possible. Even though I wanted to train and get acclimatised, being able to escape work and freshen up was a priority this close to the race!! My partner Sophie and I left Perth on the 24th September, 3 weeks before the race.

After a week in Waikiki, we headed for the big island. When we arrived, the island was quiet and beautiful, we were away from the hustle and bustle of Waikiki, living the true Hawaiian Island life!! I spent my training time exploring and familiarising myself with the course with my tour guide/Coach who was also racing. The down time was spent eating Açai, drinking the Kona coffee, pro spotting and putting my feet up by the pool! White sand beaches are hard to come by around Kona, it’s all black lava rock!! As race day approached the quiet island transformed into a Triathlon mecca.. The expo was three times the size of IMWA expo and opened a week before the race!! There were athletes and supporters everywhere.

Race day: Started with a light breakky and bottle of Gatorade. The day was amazing, it was cool and no wind! I normally cope well with nerves but this race was next level!! I set the bike up, chucked the bottle on and realised I had forgot the Garmin. First minor hiccup but not the end of the world!! I went back out to say a final goodbye to Sophie and the family. I walked back into transition for race start, I was nervous and honestly, scared!

The mass swim start was incredible. Roughly 100m across, 20 people deep, treading water and waiting for the canon. I went out too hard in the swim, I just tried and tried to get some clean water, find a rhythm and hopefully some faster feet! I never found the clear water, a rhythm or fast feet, I was beaten up and destroyed by the other competitors from the Canon firing until T1.

My overall goal for the bike leg was not to ‘over’ bike. After talking to some Kona veterans, this was the thing that catches everyone out on the first attempt! The goal for first portion of the bike was to get the fluids in and not get done drafting! With so many people coming out of the water at the same time, it was nearly impossible to be outside the draft zone. I was really happy with the ride, the temperature was good, the wind was down, I had definitely held back and saved the legs.

For the first time ever, I felt a million dollars coming out of T2… I started the run exactly how I had planned, I was well hydrated and feeling great. The first third of the run is up Ali’i Drive, a sheltered road covered with supporters! The only problem was that it was sheltered, hot, windless and steamy! As you leave town, you run up Palani Street, a nice punchy hill, about 500m long with an aid station in the middle then on to the Queen K Highway.

My pace dropped a little as I started to run on the Queen K but it was something I expected. Long undulating hills and it was extremely hot! As I entered the energy lab I started to feel a bit gassed, the gels weren’t going down well and I could feel the cramping already. My pace slowed as I started the mental battle with my fatiguing body and by 25km both my legs locked up and I was in trouble.

I spent the rest of the race battling the cramps and run/walking. With 5km’s to go I spotted my coach and waited for her to come by me, I needed that familiar face to distract me and get me to the finish line before the sun went down (backup goal)! As you get to the top of Palani you begin to hear the finish line and Mike Reilly belting out those famous words.. There is still 2.5 km’s to go from the top of Palani but the roads are covered with spectators! Pete Murray calls you down the hill and gives that final pump up, before a couple more turns and into the massive finish shoot. I found Sophie half way down the finish shoot with my Aussie flag, a quick hug and off I went to cross that line!!

Overall it was an amazing experience and one etched in my memory for the rest of my life. The build up, the race and the finish is like no other. If you ever have the opportunity to race in Kona, TAKE IT!!

Thanks to all the wolves that reached out, I appreciated all the support.

The Ten Week Ironman

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Coach Travis is the perfect example of how to be a serious triathlete without being too serious. In this special series of articles he chronicles his return to Ironman…in just 10 weeks

Last Sunday I showed up to the club ride with a course that I knew was going to challenge me, in fact if I’m honest I wasn’t entirely sure that I would be able to complete it having done pretty much zero training since early December last year.  For whatever reason only Shane showed up and with him having a session already set by his coach and being a much stronger rider than me I sent him on his way.  Truth be told in the recent past I probably would have turned around and ridden the ten kay home but for some reason I decided to set off on the planned route by myself, at least for a bit.  Maybe it was because I’d publicly posted the route on the club page and felt like showing everyone that the they should get back in the swing.  Hey if the lazy Prez can get off his arse and train then you should too…

Well something unexpected happened while I was out there.  I began to really enjoy myself.  Riding solo I had nobody pushing me yet I was working my backside off. The sun was shining, the hills were looking massive and the endorphins were kicking in.  With only about half the ride done and plenty of elevation in front of me before I headed homeward I went to replace my empty bidon with a full bottle and hit a bump at the wrong time.  BAM, down goes the bidon and I’m stuck in the middle of Death Valley on a warm day facing 30km home with no water.  That just made me smile and push on happy to face the challenge.  Luckily I saw Kellie and Carley on the way home and they provided me with some cool, fresh water so I didn’t melt.  Even the couple of swoops I received couldn’t darken my spirits.


Where I found my mojo

I guess what I learned last weekend was that I just love a challenge.  I live for pushing myself to see exactly how much I can hack when the going gets tough.  Last year at Ironman I thought I’d found that point but with hindsight my problem that day wasn’t that it was too hard, it was that I’d forgotten how to have fun with hurting.  Sunday I found my happy (hurty) place.  It was like flipping a light switch.

When I got home I guess Simone could see something had changed.  That evening we were sitting on the couch and she asked me whether I was training for something.  I made the mistake of smiling and she knew.  Ten weeks out and I was making a play at Ironman WA.

Now me deciding to Ironman at late notice isn’t anything new.  The first time I raced Cairns (2014) I signed up less than six weeks out. The third time I graced the course it was more like seven days, so what’s the big deal?  I guess what I want to show is that there is no big deal. Not that finishing an Ironman isn’t a major achievement because it is.  I mean that it isn’t beyond the reach of the average person (trust me I’m very average.)

So for the lead in to Ironman WA I am going to keep you all in the loop.  You’ll hear what’s gone well and what hasn’t in my week, a rough outline of my training, a few funny (or perhaps tragic) anecdotes and a lot of the weird things that go through my head.  I want to show you all that it doesn’t take a perfect life, incredible discipline or crazy hours to become an Ironman.

“Now, now” I hear you say, “you’ve got a long training history that must help” so let’s start by letting you know exactly where I was at when I made this decision.  In the prior 42 weeks (since IMWA 2017) I had done exactly 74 hours of training consisting of 36hrs of bike, 32 hours of run and a whopping 6 hours of swimming.  Of course that’s not spread evenly, almost half of those 42 weeks had no training at all. For those of you who know about such things my CTL was about 8.  So I guess we can say I’m kind of starting from scratch.

So what’s been going on this week?  Well in real Trav style my first day of “official” training was a rest day but otherwise every day has involved a swim, ride or run and getting some testing in to see exactly where I’m at, with some results way scarier than others.  It culminated in Sunday’s ride which was amazing. I got to kill myself riding up Great Eastern Highway to get to Mundaring in time to catch up with some great company for a steady aerobic ride for a couple of hours before taking the long way home throwing in some extra hills for good measure.


Some results were scarier than others

It’s important that I don’t ramp up too quickly because that’s a sure-fire way to injury or burnout. At the same time ten weeks isn’t a long time to go from bugger-all to Ironman fitness so every session is going to have to count.  I’m going to be attacking my fitness on three fronts to maximise my gains and beat the law of diminishing returns.

This coming week will be an effort fitting in three rides, three runs and three swims around a club meeting, coaching twice and trying to maintain the most important things like a relationship and remaining employed.  If you do manage to see me though, feel free to tell me what a dumb decision this is and how you could never do it.  I look forward to showing you that one of those statements is possibly right and the other undoubtedly wrong.

Trav (aka Stikman)

 

*Continue on to week two

Join our novice triathlon program!

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Hi Potential Triathlete,

From 10 weeks of fun training to your first triathlon race finish – this is the only Novice Triathlon course in Perth.

If you’re like most people, you don’t know where to start.   Perth Hills Triathlon Club novice sessions are specifically targeted – at your level. Fellow participants are triathlon novices – just like you – and for every swim, bike and run session there will be somebody who is at the same pace you work at best.

You’ll find Triathlon Australia accredited coaches at every PHTC session.  Lets face it –  they want YOU to feel the exhilaration of crossing that finish line.

You can’t lose!   Training, coaching AND friendships lasting beyond just a 10 week course.

Athlete Profile – Rob W

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Nickname: Slim, Slimbo, Slimshady, Slim Dusty

How long have you been in tri?: 25 years so far!

How did you get into tri?: I was trying to impress a girl so we agreed to do a triathlon, so I signed up, turned up on raceday (she didn’t) so I did the race and finished! So I thought I would train properly for one and improved heaps been doing them ever since.

How many bikes do you have?: 6 currently. It was 7 but sold one so looking at getting back to 7 next year hopefully.

Something we wouldn’t already know about you?: Most people don’t know that I am a qualified Masseur and I like both country and western music.

What do you want to achieve this season?: I want to enjoy another good season with PHTC and cheer my club mates on, share my knowledge with a new batch of novices and anyone else that wants help and keep training after the end of the season to help my recovery from my next surgery in July!

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Hi Potential Triathlete,

From 10 weeks of fun training to your first triathlon race finish – this is the only Novice Triathlon course in Perth.

If you’re like most people, you don’t know where to start.   Perth Hills Triathlon Club novice sessions are specifically targeted – at your level. Fellow participants are triathlon novices – just like you – and for every swim, bike and run session there will be somebody who is at the same pace you work at best.

You’ll find Triathlon Australia accredited coaches at every PHTC session.  Lets face it –  they want YOU to feel the exhilaration of crossing that finish line.

You can’t lose!   Training, coaching AND friendships lasting beyond just a 10 week course.

Your Triathlon journey starts October 15th – book here

PS – Book now to access confidence building Nutrition and Recovery seminars as you progress through the Novice Triathlon course.

The Art and Purpose of Suffering

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By Ian Hainsworth

Endurance Sport is something that we all love (after all that is why you took up this sport, right?).

Let’s face the reality – there is an element of suffering and struggle that goes with the territory.

Much has been written about suffering over the years, and I don’t want to bore you with a topic that others have covered in greater detail than I could hope to.

Instead I want to talk about that  poor cousin to suffering  – struggle.

Suffering is somehow heroic (chest burning, quads screaming at you, shoulders on fire in the pool) and we can talk about it as a physical element.

Struggle often doesn’t have a physical expression that can be observed and recognised by others, but is those times when your expectations of just how that race or even training session would turn out,  is just NOT what reality is right now.

It can be accumulated fatigue of training load, not keeping your body fuelled with the nutrition it needs, mental fatigue of long hours at work.  Who knows, just what is causing it on the day.

But what your race or training session should be looking like is not what your Garmin is saying right now.

I would like to suggest that instead you celebrate those times, because making it out the other side of struggle is what really makes for a great performance.   The timing chip or Garmin may not say this, but deep down you KNOW that you made it out the other side of struggle-town and you still put in the required effort.

You see, struggle is all about focussing on the things you CAN control.  Yes, our human minds swiftly move to the negative side of the coin and look at what isn’t working, what isn’t happening and it tends to fuel further negative thoughts.

Struggle time is the time of choice.  The choice of working with what you CAN do to your absolute best and most excellent effort, or just “make it through”.   Nobody will know that you haven’t put in your best effort – except that person that you look at in the mirror every morning. They know the truth.

Listening to other athletes experiences and reflecting on my own, I suspect there are some real truths that we can apply at the time of struggle.  Effort.  And Focus. And Technique.

By listening to our bodies and knowing just where we are at in our training, we know just what outcome (speed, pace, power) occurs with certain efforts.   Yes, we can say on our Strava comments that our run was an “easy run” but for many of us it was actually moderate to hard effort and we wanted the numbers to look a certain way.

Effort

Honestly, far better to only glance at your Garmin occasionally,  and go from true effort assessment on the inside.  Become the true expert in listening to your body and knowing just what easy feels like, what moderate feels like and what hard feels like.  Then on struggle time, you can apply a correct effort with confidence, knowing that this consistent effort will get you to the end of that race or session with the best outcome.

Focus

Focus is (at least in my head) the application of your resources – your senses, willpower, knowledge, your intellect, your thoughts – on a single matter.  There is no such thing as success when we multi task, and there is no room for negative thoughts when desiring success.

When struggling, that is the perfect time to develop the mental muscles to choose to think only what you can do and choose to block out that voice of the devil on your shoulder whispering seductively that you can’t do it.  To block out external sensory input that minimises the pain and struggle. Honestly, better to embrace and accept the pain and struggle and learn to not only cohabit with those bedfellows, but respect that whilst they have a significant impact on you they are NOT your master unless you allow them to.

Much practice is required to achieve this (more practice than you may first think is possible), which is why those days of struggle in training are a wonderful opportunity to practice focus and positivity at the very time when you feel like crap.

Technique

It is said that nature abhors a vacuum.  So, if you CANT rely on Garmin or external sensory input, what can you do?

The answer is rely on technique and in fact choose to develop and refine technique at those times when you are struggling.

I don’t mean “perfect” technique (because that is not at all practical and will add to your frustration) but rather a technique of excellence that fits what you CAN do.

For example, choose to push circles on those bike pedals, choose to run tall and land lightly on your feet, choose to focus on stroke rate or pull through length with your swim.   These are all choices that allow your mind to focus on a positive. Without the availability of positive focus, it is even easier to succumb to going slower in the face of struggle than otherwise may be achieved.

Is dealing with struggle easy?  No, of course not.  It is frustrating, often unexpected and frankly it sucks.

However, the gift of struggle is that the same mental muscles that you implement and practice in your training session and raceday are the very muscles you use when life itself is a struggle also.

Athlete Profile – Abdul

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Nickname: Raf, Abs, Maddox, Dooley, Chocolate legs

How long have you been in tri?: My first event was an enticer in the Armadale Triathlon in 2013 where I stopped half way through the swim so I could catch my breath. I think the trisuit I’d never worn before was a little tight. My result

How did you get into tri?: I’ve always loved running, mainly sprinting. Started riding after signing up for the the inaugural Perth Ride to Conquer Cancer after my dad passed away. Never been a fan of swimming, as I was afraid of the deep end in school, but always wanted to improve. So I figured why not put all three together.

How many bikes do you have?: 3. One I bought, another I won a month later and my little brothers old one.

Something we wouldn’t already know about you?: I was a referee for a season in the WSBL, Womens State Basketball League.

What do you want to achieve this season?: Experience a few club events, especially the regional ones, and see what’s involved so I can hopefully help out with running a club event in the future.