8 Ways to Motivate Yourself When You Think Exercise Sucks

I do triathlon. Which means that rather than being good at one sport, I am mediocre at three sports.

I do generally like doing all three, particularly when I'm not doing any of them and I'm remembering warm trail runs in the sunshine (rather than miserable February miles reps when there's sideways rain), cafe stops and rolling lanes on the bike (rather than headwinds, broken ribs and frozen fingers) and sunny days spent splashing around in a river with the promise of a hot chocolate afterwards (rather than getting kicked by a breaststroker while doing 400m reps with chlorine up my nose).

In fact, my favourite of the three disciplines tends to be either one of the two I'm not doing at that particular moment in time.

However, I have found that there are ways to motivate myself and talk myself into doing whatever horrific session my coach has dreamed up for me that day.

1. Track - Pretend you're a pro. Flounce around at track, take your stretches VERY seriously and absolutely do not do ANYTHING without first swigging a beetroot shot. Warning: Your street cred may plummet when you're dropped on the very first rep. If you have NO street cred … nothing to worry about. Otherwise just title your Strava workout 'Easy Run.'

'Easy Run' *puff, pant*

2. Pool – drop a Mars bar into the water and scream “Oh my God! Those kids have been in here with dodgy tummies again!” and point at it. Then when everyone is looking and scrambling to get out of the pool, casually hook it out and eat it. Guaranteed to clear the pool AND you've eaten the evidence. Ta-da – a lane (and pool!) all to yourself.

Is That a Mars Bar ..?

3. Cycling – think of the cake. Always the cake. If anyone comes with you on a bike ride and doesn't stop for cake, drop them. You don't need friends like that.

4. Running – get some very beautiful trainers. Then when everyone is distracted by looking at your beautiful shoes, shout “See you later, suckers!” and drop them in a sprint finish. People may say that this is unethical, but I can't help it if my shoes are very lovely.

Wow, Truly a Shoe of Beauty

5. Open Water Swimming – Get your lake practise done by going swimming in places that have enormous pike. This does wonders for your speed, cadence AND for 'warming up your wetsuit'. Don't get eaten though as this does tend to be distracting. Top Tip: To avoid this, swim quicker. Note: Don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about when I mentioned how we warm up our wetsuits.  

I Hear There Are REALLY Big Fish in Here

6. Transition – The gaps between swimming and cycling and cycling and running are called transitions. These are where we do NOT dry our feet, brush our hair or generally fanny around. Transitions are to be done quickly and elegantly. Practise transitions by leaping out of the shower wet and running around the house before work in the mornings while looking for your bike and the towel you will not use. Your husband will be highly supportive and will definitely not say “Stop running around like a lunatic, the neighbours will think you're on drugs. AND You've dripped shower water in my coffee.”

7. Strength Work – This can be achieved by getting bigger portions of cake at the cake shop and lifting the fork repeatedly to your mouth. It's fuelling. FUELLING.

Road Closures: Stretching & Strength Work!

8. Stretching – This can be achieved by dropping your phone on the floor when on the indoor bike trainer and picking it up off the floor while still pedalling. This is top level stretching. Alternatively, if you can reach most places on your back when you have an itch, then you are probably stretchy enough.

I hope you've enjoyed my top class exercise tips for the keen runners and triathletes among us. You can't go wrong with these.

8 Things That Put Me On The Podium At Triathlon

I’m not the quickest triathlete and I never will be. I train regularly and consistently … and more importantly I follow these simple guidelines ...

1. Know your numbers. 

What is the best pace you can hold and finish? Know your stats. If you go too hard and blow up, it’s going to be a long, sore walk home … so know what your hard numbers are. Also think about your trade-offs … if you slow down on the bike, does that mean a quicker run and quicker overall time for you?  Find out. You’ve got months of training and this is the perfect time to try out your race scenarios. 

Alternatively, if you’re chasing cut offs what can you do to improve your times? Is a run walk quicker than blowing up at the end of the race? A friend and I ended up placing at an ultra by following a 9 min run, 3 min walk on a multi-day event and ended up passing multiple competitors who were following a ‘run the whole way’ tactic but who were running slower and not getting the recoveries that we were. 

Also are your transitions shocking? Find out what it is that is taking up your time? If you’re 5 minutes in transition, how do you cut that down to 2 minutes? That’s 3 free minutes right there. If you knocked 3 minutes off your swim time you’d be ecstatic. 

2. Practise your nutrition. 

Don’t eat too much beforehand … no one wants to have to stop for 3 poos. And when you have under-fuelled, the feeling that you’re going to crash-and-burn is horrific. When you stand on the start line for a race, you need to be confident, that you have done all of this before. You need to know when to take your gels, your pies, whatever works for you but you need to know what it is and that it works for you. Personally, I have a large bowl of porridge and marmalade a few hours before, a snack while I’m setting up in transition and then a flapjack style bar or two on the bike plus jelly shots and gels on the run – 1 every 2.5 miles. That might sound a lot, but I’ve practised with that and know it works for me. 

3. No time or don't want to do it? Don’t overthink it.

Sometimes an attempt at a session or half a session is better than no session at all. You’ll end up surprising how much you can do most of the time ... and you’ll feel better for having done some than having done none. I don’t like training in hot sun … but I do because I know if a race is on a hot day, I’m going to HAVE to race in heat. Better to have practised in it and know how it feels. 

The exception to this is if you’re ill or overtired. 

4. You don’t need the top kit, the top bike but some good essentials will see you through. 

You don’t need a 5 grand bike. Mine cost me about £1400 4 years ago and she’s done plenty of miles and I love her. I know just how she corners in the wet, the dry and the ice and I also get regular bike services so I’m less likely to suffer a mechanical problem in an event. Trust me, this is worth the £35. And on that note, get a decent saddle - it’s a long time on your arse. 

Find a wetsuit that suits you. You’ll probably need to try a few out as they all fit differently and different suits for different folks. Everyone prefers a different one. A lot of the lakes will offer wetsuit hire and it’s worth trying a few out at different sessions to get a feel for which you prefer. They ARE pricey, but they’ll also last a few years if you keep on top of repairs and treat them carefully. 

Don’t skimp on trainers – it took me a while (and a few injuries!) to learn this lesson. it’s worth investing a few quid to get some specifically for running. A good running shop will be able to offer advice and guide you towards the right ones. And once you know which ones suit you, you can always order the same model again. 

5. Don’t rely on the training aids. 

I have fins but don’t need them. I’ve used a tempo trainer but don’t use it regularly. Sometimes simple is easier and forgetting a ‘crutch’ in a race will worry you. If you train with a nose clip and then forget it in a race, all you’re going to be able to think about before the swim is not having that nose clip. Get used to swimming without them.

6. Make life easy for yourself. 

Have some easy training routes nearby. It makes life simpler if you can just head out the door without having to think about routes if you know the 3 miles, 4, mile, 10 mile loops near you. 

7. Remember your mental strength.

Does it hurt? Of course it does. But everyone else is hurting too. Remember you’ve put the training in and you can do this … and you can keep doing it until the end of the race. Believe in your training. 

8. Get a coach. 

You can have the best plan but you need someone on the outside looking in. Are you overtraining? (Easy to miss this if you’re self coaching). A coach can spot what tweaks can make you more efficient, whether it’s time to add more reps or more power to your sessions … and when to drop it down. Also if you are happy to spend a couple of grand on a bike, then surely improving your times by getting a coach is a no-brainer, right? I truly believe that this is the best way to improve your training and racing – and it’s so simple but athletes don’t do it. And then wonder why they burn out, don’t hit the times or aren’t working to their full potential. Trust me on this. Worth it. 

Ok. Those are my top tips right there. You get those right and you’ll be smashing your targets and hopefully standing on that podium. 

Any other top tips, you’d like to add just drop me a comment and let me know how they’ve worked for you. 

Best Triathlon Tips: Lessons Learned

• Nothing beats local knowledge. Recce-ing the bike course and chatting to the marshals beforehand can give you some really good inside information. Even if it’s just ‘DON’T use the portaloo 3^rd from the end.” 
• Weeing in your wetsuit really does warm you up.

I'm in this picture somewhere. Concentrating.

• I can’t wee in my wetsuit if I’m moving. Avoid me if I look like I’m concentrating.
• Cracking the bike was all about practising. And practising. And practising. Even if it feels like I’m getting nowhere (If I’m on the turbo I probably AM getting nowhere) then keep at it. It’ll come.

Always know where the photographers are so you can avoid looking like THIS

• I still haven’t cracked the swim. I’m very definitely backpack and need to sort this out. 
• Open water swim starts are like WWE smackdowns. But with actual punching in the face. And no rules.
• Doesn’t matter how much I practise running off the bike I will always spend the first mile stumping along like a pirate with 2 pegs. I haven’t had a brown accident (well ... almost never). It’s just how I run the first mile off the bike. 
• My arse will always hurt no matter how long or short the bike ride. Apparently it will toughen up but I’m not sure I want a ‘tough arse’. 

My wetsuit pics are ALWAYS horrible. 

• Swimming in a lake feels cleaner than swimming pool despite the fact I KNOW that ducks do not get out to poo and fish do not get out to die. 
• It doesn’t matter how much lube you use. It is never enough. 
• Portaloos at triathlon starts are even worse than at running race starts. But not as bad as ‘halfway through ultra’ loos.
• Always take a hole punch to a race.
• I mustn’t be intimidated by all the posh bikes. At least 25% will be ‘borrowed from a mate’. 
• Someone will always be DQd for nudity at a race. 
• It is IMPOSSIBLE to carry your bike quietly through hotel corridors at 5am before the start of a race.