Hitting the snooze button won’t end the world or make you a failure
Blue Monday isn’t real anyway.
We all start the year with a list of resolutions and expectations. Fuelled by the prospect of change, we set ourselves goals and targets; some realistic, some ridiculous.
As triathletes, hitting the new year is a turning point for our training and our attitudes: Strava resets. And we suddenly realise that this is the same year as our A race.
Everything quickly becomes more real. And herein lies the risk.
The third Monday of January is now known as ‘Blue Monday’, the “most miserable day” of the year. In 2005, psychologist Dr Cliff Arnall, who was behind the idea, was persuaded to articulate his theory in a scientific formula;
Where W is weather, D is debt, d monthly salary, T time since Christmas, Q time since failure of attempt to give something up, M low motivation level and NA the need to take action.
Turns out, Blue Monday is a total construct.
But feeling stressed, anxious or feeling a lack of motivation in these colder, darker months of the year is not.
After the holidays, during which we have undoubtedly let ourselves indulge more than usual, there is an urge to launch straight into a routine. The risk of phrases like, “new year, new me” is that we set ourselves up to fail. And although a lot can be learnt from failure in other areas of our life, it’s not a necessary experience to improve your training.
As amateur athletes we have to work our training around our already busy lives, the early months of the year can prove the most challenging. With the sun rising between 07:00–08:00 throughout January, finding the motivation to rise in the dark is tough.
More than half of us admit getting up during winter is a ‘struggle’ — and unsurprisingly, Monday mornings are the hardest.
So how can we improve our winter training experience?
At Got To Tri, we have read a number of other blogs and articles which share their thoughts on how to tackle the dark mornings — and we agree with them; buy warm kit, lay it out the night before, focus on strength work, join a club… But for the purpose of this blog, we wanted to highlight the importance of your mental preparation as well as your wardrobe.
Ease yourself back in
As mentioned, we often set ourselves unrealistic goals in the new year. Writing new, extensive training plans that we vow to stick to… until the first icy morning when we opt to hit snooze and drift back to dreams of cycling the Tramuntana mountains in just a jersey.
Falling at the first hurdle can be more detrimental than not writing a plan to begin with. Make sure your expectations are achievable and design your plan to ease you back in to your training schedule. Taking a month or so to rebuild your routine and get yourself into a rhythm will be a worthy investment in the long run.
Be kind to yourself
No one is perfect. It is highly unlikely that you will tick off every session on your calendar. It may be due to weather conditions, work or family commitments, or you might want to hit the snooze button one day. Whatever it is, don’t beat yourself up about it. Instead, shift your perspective to see the positives of taking a session off — feeling more rested, enjoying the alternate activity or the extra energy you’ve gained to focus on your next session.
Listen to your body
This is something we have heard many professional athletes say. And it is a balance. You want to listen to your body to avoid training under fatigue, with limited nutrition or while carrying the beginnings of an injury. But at the same time, we can’t listen to everything and sometimes, pushing yourself through a mental barrier is needed.
There is no blueprint for this and everyone is different. Each person’s experience is unique and that is why it is vital that you understand your own body. Coaches and training partners can be great motivators and are packed with personal experience but listening to your body and interpreting the signals is up to you and takes practice.
Safety first
Be seen, be safe — a mantra that we live by at Got To Tri. We could use this section to direct you to deals on lights or high-vis running vests (and we do advise you having them!) but actually when it’s dark and cold outside, the question is, is the risk of pounding the pavement or cycling in the darkness worth it? Or should we refocus these darker months for the gym and pool, not only to build strength and endurance but to avoid the icy pavements and potential dangers.
Overall, the perfection is always in the planning, and there is evidence to support the fact that good goal setting directly affects performance so it is well worth spending time on.
Start by reviewing the goals you set yourself last year — and asking yourself; what went well, what did you learn and what would you do differently?
Goal setting is something that can be done when it is cold, dark and wet, and it will definitely help you perform as a triathlete. Our advice is to be as specific as you can with your goals; setting short, medium and long term ones — and always reminding yourself why you want to do this training in the first place.
So set your goals and hold yourself to them but do not underestimate the importance of your mental wellbeing and the effects a “sub-optimal” session could have on your self-esteem. If you understand the parameters of the task, and are aware (and ok with the fact) that you may not execute your plan perfectly, we believe you will find far more enjoyment in the journey.
So buckle up for the rest of January and February, and then it will get better. And if you tackle these months wisely, you will have an awesome season.
