Twenty years ago I was new to triathlon…and I was looking for results.  When those results did not come as expected, I began looking for answers.  At the time, I felt there must be a missing workout, a special diet, a supplement, or a missing gadget that would vault my performance to the next level.  I read every book, blog & article I could find.  My workouts were focused on hitting a specific pace that I felt was necessary to accomplish my goals, regardless of what my body had to give that day.  The drive & passion was there, but the performance gains were minimal & slow to come. Early in my triathlon career my happiest race memory came from my first race – a race I went into with minimal expectations. It was almost a decade before I felt that level of satisfaction with racing again.

Twenty years ago I was looking for a result. Now…I look for a path. 

When you are new to triathlon it is easy to fixate on a desired result. I can’t blame you, I’ve been there. But the problem isn’t your ambitious goal. The problem is your misplaced focus.

If you want to become keenly aware of what you do not have, focus on results. A focus on what you DON’T have today is the same as ignoring what you DO have. If you ignore what you do have (like the effort you can give a workout today), then you are ignoring reality. And as Ayn Rand once said, “You can ignore reality, but you cannot ignore the consequences of reality.” 

As a young athlete hoping to one day race professionally, I would conduct workouts at a pace or power typical of the professional athletes of that time – and I found it unfathomably difficult. If the local pro athlete said it was a hard run day, I ran hard. If the local cycling legend said it was long ride day, I rode long. Ultimately, I had no path, because I was too busy following the paths of others.

You cannot be truly satisfied with your athletic journey until you acknowledge that your path will be unique to you…and to you alone. This is not to say you must blaze your own path entirely – compatriots will undoubtedly share a similar journey from time to time. But at all times you must have the courage to part ways and go your own way. 

This is especially hard if you realize that your path may be counter to the popular trends of the time. For example, it took me years to realize that I cannot do the same amount of high intensity training as others. It took me years to realize I have issues with a high carbohydrate diet. And I still struggle with the realization that I cannot train as much as others without injury. 

The tragedy is not that my path was meandering & full of mistakes – it was that I tried so hard to make someone else’s path work for me. A mistake made on your terms is no mistake at all – that’s simply called “learning”. The sooner you embrace your unique path the sooner you can begin the process of discovering what works for you. Every bend & turn in the road becomes an exciting opportunity to learn something new about yourself. The standard you hold yourself to no longer is your training partner or a random elite athlete. The standard becomes the person you were yesterday & how well you are holding up to what you are capable of being. If you can do this, not only will your journey be more satisfying, but you will uncover who you really are!

Feel free to visit Antonio at his shop in Hyde Park, TriTown (Tri Town Bicycles – Tri Town Bicycles (tritownboise.com).

He can be reached at antonio@tritownboise.com.