AustrAliAn triAthlete | 67fAvOUriTe gO-TO SAying
or MANTrA ThAT heLPS YoU
GeT ThroUGh SUfferING?McShane- “Be comfortable with the
uncomfortable.”
carfrae - “If it is to be, it’s up to
me.” But I never think of it when
I am suffering.
Bell - “How do I feel? What do
I need?” Keep answering those
questions repeatedly to stay
focused and on task.
Blatchford - I’d love to say it’s
something motivating like ‘pain
is temporary, glory forever!’ but I
often just repeat the word:
“Legs, legs, legs, legs.” I have no
idea why - sounds bizarre when
I tell other people!
Legh - “Don’t turn it off!” I think of
it as simple as a light switch. When it
gets tough, it’s quite simple to just
turn the switch off and give in. I like
to envisage my hand not even being
tempted to go near the switch.Training TOOLBOX
dAmien AngUS (ABOve): “Put yourself
through discomfort.”WhAT DoeS The foLLoWING
STATeMeNT SAY To YoU:“it’s only when we suffer, test and
trial ourselves that we can expect
to achieve any reward.”
McShane -That’s evolution!
carfrae - Not 100% true but a solid
statement.
Blatchford - Agree, anything that
comes too easily we don’t value.
There is nothing better than
achieving something that you’ve had
to work your butt off for.
Luxford - I don’t really agree.
Sometimes the best days are those
effortless days. Also, there are a lot
of times you’ll suffer and not get
rewarded.
I don’t see suffering as a positive
or negative.
Bell - I think it is more dependent
on what you want to achieve. The
‘reward’ for people is so different.
It is actually sort of a negative quote
to me, saying unless you do those
things you will not get rewarded.
Angus - One thing that’s nice is
when you push through and get
the result, it’s a good experience to
draw on in other situations in life.Bell - Focus on the ‘hear and now’; your
breathing, foot strike, pedal stroke,
nutrition - things that can help you in ‘the
moment’ and help you deflect the thinking
focused on the pain. Short-term goals like
“get to the next light pole”, bring the
thought pattern ‘in’ rather than leaving it
‘wide’. Stay focused to eliminate negative
thoughts - keep telling yourself that it will
come around.
Angus - I feel lucky to have the
opportunity to do triathlons. For this
reason, I’ll put myself through a lot of
discomfort but the level of discomfort has
to be proportional with what I’m striving
for. Knowing with life commitments I’ll
only get the opportunity to race Hawaii
once every five years - I’m motivated to
bury myself when that time comes. But for
a non-priority race, I’m not going to go to
the well.
Blatchford - I use distraction - focussing
on other parts of the process. This may be
as silly as what I am going to eat at the
next aid station, to mindlessly counting
my leg turnover. Or I will make deals with
myself. In training, it may be, “Finish this
rep at this speed or power and you don’t
have to get out of bed for the rest of the
day!” In racing, it may be rewards like going
shopping or taking a few days holiday.
Sometimes I just smile. I almost think of my
smiling like a big “up yours” to the pain, like:
“Is that all you got? Well, I am still smiling!”
Is there a limit to how many times can
you ‘go to the well’?
Carfrae - I don’t think so, but ask me
again in a few more years.
Luxford - Yes, and it has been decreasing
over the years. I’d say three to four times a
year now.
Blatchford - Probably. Toward the end of
the season I often just wake up feeling
tired of hurting myself every day. This is
more mental than physical. I sometimes
need to save that mental strength for
when it matters. So, things like cold water
and weather, which really crack me, I see
as pointless and avoid at all costs. I’d
rather expend that mental energy/
suffering on training hard or digging deep
in a race than battling the cold.
Bell - I don’t think there is. Some guys
keep doing it over and over. Look at Cam
Brown - fastest ever Ironman NZ
marathon run this year after 20+ years in
the sport - and Crowie keeps pumping out
1.12-3 run splits in Ironman 70.3.
Legh- Yes. There are times you just go too
deep, and you almost cry at the thought of
your ability to deal with it again. I recall
chatting to Crowie after one of his Hawaii
wins, and he mentioned that experience
took a great deal out of him. Peter Reid
also mentioned that a head-to-head
battle he had in Hawaii in the early 2000s
took the final edge off him. The fact that
athletes can recall these precise moments
in their careers exemplifies the toll suffering
has taken on them. Big wins come at a cost
both physically and mentally.In closing
Suffering is part and parcel of elite
physical performance. In working with it,
there are many different yet effective
approaches. A healthy dose of perspective,
mental strength and preparation, as well as
positive attitude seems to hold one in good
stead. As McShane puts it: “Suffer for the
right reasons, and it will be so much easier
to embrace it.” Bell also captures it well:
“Embrace the sport and everything that
goes with it, there is more positive than
negative. You are better off being a
positive than a negative one - in all
aspects of life! This is a one-time only
show. If it starts to ‘hurt’ in a triathlon just
remind yourself all you have to worry
about is swimming, biking and running.
Pretty simple!”