I’d love to hire you as a coach!  Then I won’t have to think!  I can just swim, bike and run!”

WHAT???

Last week, a potential client said this to me in conversation and it seems to sum up what many athletes think about once they are in a coach-athlete relationship.   Other coaches I talk to routinely say that they  bump up against this, so perhaps it’s time to get this out in cyberspace once and for all:

WE WANT YOU TO THINK!!!

Any coach wants an athlete who cares, questions, trusts and even obsesses.   We are in the profession of coaching because we want to see athletes develop and we cannot do this with just your bodies!   Of course we simplify your life by writing you a custom program and manipulating the myriad training factors of intensity, volume, training time, recovery sequencing, strength, speed, agility, peaking, racing etc.  But ultimately, we want you to train mindfully and to grow.   You need to hear our voice inside your head when you swim, bike, run and repeat. And you need to let a coach’s wisdom into your thoughts and actions.   Only then can you fully apply it.

What has your coach done to change your mindset, thoughts, and insight about about your training?

Ask.

Listen.

Think.

Apply!

2012 your best season ever

stacey@tristacey.com

the face says it all

“If you hate it, it’s good for you!”

Never short on words, I recently tossed this out to a disgruntled athlete and over the weekend,  it stayed in my head as a refrain.  I watched, proudly, as my 25 proud campers dug so deep in their deliberate suffering and faced their “I hate this” demons…  They rediscovered workouts that they neglect or despise and came away wiser and stronger.  Too busy for yoga but too tight to touch your toes?  Really!?

If you give some serious thought to your training regime, you may see that this applies to you.   Do you train the things you “hate” or simply the things you like.  Something like that old adage about training to your strengths and neglecting your weaknesses…

Coaches have the tough job, of making you love the workouts you despise.  We look at the big picture and your long-term development.  With the wave of a wand and a little art to coaching, a good coach can make you love the workouts you hate and avoid.   We help you understand why you hate the workouts you do, and how they are most likely your performance limiters as well.

A big shout out to all the campers who came and  conquered.  It was epic:  they rode in the rain, baked in the sun, sustained body blows in mass start work, and walked away smiling.   How fun to watch them sort out that love/hate relationship with all the elements of their training and to return home with a new perspective on workouts they hate.

Time for you to do the same to make 2012 your breakthrough year.

For many of us, it is terrifying and the most dreaded part of any race.   Read more about how you can conquer your fears and take concrete steps to stay safe, manage your fear, and to master the technical art of open water swimming.   For more fun, see my video on u tube on race day mental preparation.   Make 2012 the year your rule your over your fears, not them over you.

http://youtu.be/yuBqIxuqDqE  Mental skills for triathlon, specifics about open water

http://www.active.com/triathlon/Articles/Psych-Yourself-Up-for-Open-Water.htm

Go me, Racing Elite and afraid of the waves!

“I’d like to lose weight coach, but…”

” I was on pace to run ___  but then…”

“I could have been top in my ____  but…”

” I would have made Kona but…”

“I wish I had more time to train but…”

We all love to explain away our shortcomings and are quite skilled at it.  It’s how we protect our egos, recover from disappointment,  and cover up what might be a lack of  preparation for achieving our goals.   It’s part of being human and we all do it.. BUT…

What if this is the year that you listen to yourself and define what are your limiters.  Listen to yourself in conversation with other athletes and listen for the BUT.  Once you do that, you have the beginnings of your 2012 training plan.   If you need an ear, hire a coach to listen for an hour or get yourself a great journal and get started!  ; )

Coach Stacey on the hand cycle:  reconstructive surgery, 8 weeks on crutches, blah blah blah.   Could have eaten bonbons but….

I

In 2012, be an athlete who is satisfied but motivated to do more.   Motivate yourself to kick your BUTs butt in 2012.  No more excuses.

A few good tips for your game from the neck up.  Please email and share your additional thoughts.