GAG REEL FOR 2008 (new gear bloopers, distracting cows bike crashes, soggy drawers and much more)

The great thing about triathlons is that you are always schooling yourself. Experiential learning. So here are the top 10 things I learned from my 2008 season.

1. NEVER, never, ever eat 3 Ghirardelli double chocolate brownies at 8pm the night before your first season race. No matter how seducing they look coming out of the oven all hot and gooey waiting to be eaten as a post race celebration...it just is not a smart idea. (I was up all night, and I mean all night, I slept from 4am-5am, a whopping 1 hour from the sugar, caffeine, and pre-race nerves.

2. You CAN complete a sprint triathlon on 1 hour sleep. By no means is it fun or PR breaker but completing it is doable. One foot in front of the other.

3. Do NOT ride with your hard-core mountain biker friend (who you haven't seen in a year and was hoping to impress with your new riding skillz) 2 days before race day, zone out ("oh it's so pretty out here, hey look there's a cow, blah, blah, more mental chatter...) and CRASH on the side of the road. OUCH!!! (Tom, thanks for pushing me!)

4. Do NOT try new gear race day. How many articles, books, advice columns, coaches, friends have told you this???!!! Clearly, not enough!!!! I tried my new aero water bottle on race day and since I didn't install it correctly or try it out before the race, I spent the entire bike ride trying to prevent my ONLY source of hydration from being roadkill. ( I placed 4th in AG...hmmm could I have taken 3rd if I wasn't fussing with my water bottle the entire ride??!!)

5. DO have really funny (gross) conversations with your training partners on the tail end of a very hot Brick workout to get you through it. Topic of choice: When/How many times you pooped a little (or prevented an even bigger accident) while racing. (M and J, you know who you are!)

6. DO remember to bring the keys to the bike rack when traveling to a different town for a training ride. (Good times, M!)

7. Do NOT have your children (who, you found out didn't understand what mommy was doing and why everyone was yelling so were scared to death and started crying) waiting to see you mile 4 on the run of an Olympic Distance that you were killing and feeling good....just to completely lose your composure and bomb the last 2 miles. Note: Post coming soon about "composure" with pictures for dramatic effect.

8. Do CHOOSE to share a pool lane with the absolute worst swimmer you have ever come across, no matter how chaotic things get (splashing, kicking, zigzagging in every direction). It is great practice for any wrestle-mania triathlon swim start.

9. DO find a really great training partner. Maybe someone who is a little bit better than you in all 3 sports but is equally as nutty...which makes for a great combination of fun and friendly competition. (Molly, we had quite a season!)

10. DO celebrate all your hard work with all your family, friends and an ice cold beer. Thanks to all for your support and encouragement!!!!!

Here's to a successful 2009 Season!!!

THE ART AND GRACE OF TRANSITIONS

Sunday night standing in Lupo's, completely enraptured by the beautiful music of Iron and Wine, I couldn't help but notice the graceful way they transitioned between songs. While some bands end a song with a thank you and a small break before beginning the next; Iron and Wine creates an art of their transitions, they are songs unto themselves. As one reviewer writes "The songs and their interweaving transitions create a summery air that disappears into the forest for a lone sunny Sunday morning walk; sparrows chirping, blips of sun momentarily peaking through the fern branches whilst strolling below the shadows of the trees".

So, I starting thinking about the transitions between postures in yoga practice and the transitions between sports in triathlon. There is an art and grace in both of these spaces that that can be achieved through awareness.


In yoga we tend to focus on the actual postures and either ignore or rush through the small intimate places between. "The posture never ends. The illusion is that there is separation, levels of importance, beginnings and endings." Next time you are there, notice your inhale and exhale and work on bringing grace to your movement and honor to that space. You will be able to find flow, an unbroken meditation even in a non-flow class.


In triathlon, getting in/out of the transition area quickly and efficiently can cut time off your race and give you an advantage over your competition. The annals of triathlon lore are filled with transition disaster stories where racers of all levels gave back precious minutes in fumbling haste toward the next leg. The key lies in awareness: practice, preparation and visualization of that space and what to do when you are in it. Don’t think about or look at anything else. Concentrate solely on getting in and out as fast as possible. Find the art and grace in the middle of the race.


Great live songs by Iron and Wine:
Each Coming Night
He Lays in the Reigns
House by the Sea
Boy with Coin

MENTAL PEAKS AND VALLEYS

A few months back, as I was gearing up for the Mighty Hamptons Triathlon, I was on the hunt for some new mental training techniques. You see, I know my body will perform at the level in which I prepare and train...and sometimes in those special moments my body will exceed or excel... but it is my mind (oh that nasty little doubtful mind) that can so easily and quickly halt my beautiful momentum. So off I went to my local REI to hear Arno Ilgner talk about his book The Rock Warrior's Way: Mental Training for Climbers. Rock climbing is a magnificent sport where when done well, the climber looks as graceful as a professional dancer while scaling a 500 foot vertical wall. Although I am not a rock climber, I derive a lot of value from learning tips and techniques from other sports. I find when I only read Triathlon-related materials, I don't get that a-ha moment I need in order for something to stick.

"We have nothing to fear but....donuts?"

1. "Poor use of attention creates fear, which can manifest itself as anything from performance anxiety to sheer terror". For me, this lesson applies to the swim portion of any race. How many of you, while you are actually swimming think "Oh I can't wait for this to be over, I hate this part, I am a terrible swimmer, sh** i just got kicked in the head and lost my goggles"?

Arno says by wishing/hoping/praying you were somewhere else (I wish I were home in bed, I hope I don't see any sharks, please God just get me through this swim) that you are actually creating a gap in your attention that lets big bad FEAR in to take over. "By using attention more purposefully we can understand how fear is created, deal with it effectively, and free ourselves to get back in touch with a far more powerful motivating force: our love of (triathlon)". We can then create the kind of unbending intention that leads to outstanding performance. Isn't that what we all want anyway??

2. Think of your world as a donut: the inner circle as your "comfort zone" (races that you know you can do) and the outer circle as your "risk zone" (races that you don't know you can do). The idea is to expand the inner circle by gradually taking on training sessions and races that are challenging and unknown to you. That way you are freeing your mind from the fear of the unknown and being able to focus more on the task at hand.

The happy ending to all this mental examination is that in utilizing Arno's tools , I had the best swim of my season at the Mighty Hamptons (a race I had never done before). I was relaxed, strong and focused. What a great feeling to come out of the swim feeling like I crushed it instead of just being thankful is was over.

Thank you Arno!!!

DEMYSTIFYING THE CORE

“In all 3 sports (of triathlon), efficient and graceful form begins with body alignment and position. Functional and articulate core strength is the most essential requisite for this, creating a stable platform from which to move the arms and legs biomechanically through efficient strokes and strides”
--Zendurance by Shane Eversfield

Why is my core such a hard thing to find? I feel like its the wizard behind the curtain, the Holy Grail (or the G-spot !) in that through it, great power will be revealed. In spin class, you are told to engage your core. In yoga, it is activate your core. In triathlon, it’s strengthen your TVA. There are a lot of different ways to encounter your core, and my mission this off-season is to find the damn thing and engage, activate and strengthen it.

As many of you triathletes know, between all the pool time, bike training, long runs, mental preparation, nutrition analysis, (did anyone say recovery time?) who has any time left for core work?

I’m looking for a quick fix and I am not ashamed to admit it. I’ve tried Pilates (too long and a little boring for my taste), I have an 8 minute Ab Blaster DVD (too short and unsatisfying) but I’ve continued searching for the happy medium.

Voila! My method of attack will be the (slightly expensive) Runner- Core System DVD by Coach Al Lyman. According to the promotional materials “Runner Core is a new system of Functional Strength and Core Conditioning workouts for runners and triathletes. You will gain NEW Core Strength, Low Back Power, and Leg Endurance with 3 Progressively Challenging 15 Minute Runner-CORE Functional Strength Workouts.—Sounds delish!

I'll keep you posted on my progress.

YOGA AND TRIATHLON – Serenity in power

“It is the wisdom you bring back from your act of seasoned courage, not the ribbons or skins they hand you.”

Think back to one of your hardest training sessions, your most triumphant race finishes, holding a yoga pose or sequence to the very edge….did anything come up for you? It does for me. These sport/life epiphanies are what gets me out of bed for pre-dawn February swim training, what keeps me returning to an intensive yoga class that leaves me limp for days, and what gives me the tools to calm the butterflies before an anxiety-laden race start.

Throughout my career as a triathlete, the practice of yoga has been an essential component of my training. It has only been through my practice that I have been able to understand the power and grace of the mind/body connection. Learning how to incorporate intention, breath, and strength into movement has enhanced my racing (and my life) in innumerable ways

It is my mission to integrate the practice of yoga with the intense physical and mental preparation for triathlon. The two approaches to fitness are not different, but rather complementary, as the discipline, mental strength and ability to utilize your body to its greatest potential are indispensable parts of each.

This blog will serve as a vessel for me to share, training tips, yoga insights, inspirational stories and personal triumphs and through that, hopefully assist others on their journey toward their personal goals.

Hi-five and Namaste,
Tara