Weekly Poll – Training Excuses

This weeks poll and article are intended to stir debate on what excuses we use in our training.  It’s also a chance for me to brag on some of my teammates on TRS Racing.  Finally it will hopefully remind all of us that there is always someone better/faster/smarter than us. (Unless you are Aaron Webstey.  He is practically perfect in every way.) [Editor’s note: the preceding statement was not an editor’s note]

 

I just spent 4 days in The Woodlands, Texas with some really fantastic people from TRS Racing.  We swam, we ran, we biked, we sent Webstey HJE pictures.  It was a true bonding experience for all of us.  To be honest, I was a little nervous about this trip.  I haven’t done anything remotely like this since high school cross country camp.  Even though the training schedule wasn’t daunting, I knew that some of the pacing could be a challenge.  I follow most of the TRS gang on Strava, so I knew we had some FAST people in our group.  Trust me, they did not disappoint.  In all 3 disciplines, TRS Racing has some impressive competitors.

Still we all had our excuses.  They would usually fall into 1 of 3 categories: Over trained, Under trained, or It Hurts.

 

 

Over trained:  Ah! The #humblebrag of excuses.  Sometimes this excuse sneaks up on us because it sounds so positive.  We talk about the massive training block we did just last week or the long run we did with the local ultra runner.  It can even be used in the same day if we are particularly proud of an earlier effort.

 

Under trained:  This is my favorite because we usually use this in conjunction with potential success, if only we were in race shape.  This excuse usually gets flung around in the earlier part of the year.  Still ashamed of our holiday weight gain, we try to regain last seasons form, while trying to summon paces and workouts that were much easier just last fall.

 

It Hurts:  Now let us be honest about this one.  Sometimes we just get laid flat by a serious injury.  Broken bones and torn muscles require rest and time to heal.  Then there are the little nagging injuries that can cause a tempo run to become a recovery run real quick.  I’m not really talking about either one of those.  I’m talking about things like cramps, headaches, and nausea.  They usually present when we are pushing ourselves to the limit.  But isn’t that the point?  Push past the limit, recover, the body adapts, we get faster.  I use this excuse way too often.  Do you?

 

 

So let’s hear it!  Are excuses limiting your training?  Do you fall into one of the 3 categories or can you think of another?  So vote in this weeks poll and discuss on the forum.  TRS Triathlon wants to know.