The Intangibles of Triathlon Training

CONFIDENT STROKES

My third open water swimming session with coach Morgan Filler took place off China Beach on the Northwestern tip of San Francisco. It was another foggy morning, but a quiet fog with reasonably calm surf.

Morgan said it was a good sign to see the ocean teaming with dolphins and seals. I would love to be that elegant in the water, the way they just glide along. Morgan plotted our course before Bert and I went in the water, and she kept a sharp eye on us as we swam from China Beach toward Baker Beach and back.

I felt so comfortable in the water and juxtaposed this experience with the first time I swam with Morgan. It’s pretty amazing that just a few swim sessions with her had so completely transformed my confidence in the open water. I was definitely ready to tackle my first triathlon.

BREATHE. STROKE. BREATHE. BIKE. BREATHE. RUN.

Fast forward to the Santa Barbara Triathlon long course race I’d signed up to do with my friend Allison Haynes. I had no butterflies. This is probably the strangest part of the event for me. I’m notorious for getting nervous and experiencing an upset stomach. But for this event I was rock solid and I think the difference is I’ve spent the last 9 months taking control of myself, my body and my mind. And it all came together at the start of this race.

While waiting on the beach for our wave of competitors to be launched into the water I closely watched the groups that went before us. As the bullhorn sounded they’d take off running down the slope of beach and go blasting into the water. Not my style. I clearly remembered Morgan’s advice to stay to the back and to the outside, so we moved back as we neared the start.

Then the bullhorn sounded for us, and we were off! I walked down the beach and waited for the masses to plunge in ahead of me and then I dove into the first wave and started pulling.

Suddenly serious doubts crashed in on me. “You can’t do this, it’s too far, the water is too big, the bike ride is too long, the run impossible, why am I doing this?”

Well, it turns out that even experienced athletes experience moments like this. Thank goodness in the deep corners of my mind Morgan was there telling me to find my rhythm. Ignore everything around me and swim. Breathe. Stroke. Breathe.

I rounded the first buoy in a better mindset only to be slapped by not one, not two, but an unstoppable series of waves crashing sideways into my face as I tried to breathe. This wasn’t like any of my training swims. This was one seriously choppy sea.

Allison and I stayed together which helped us both feel less like tiny pebbles being ruthlessly tossed about in the water. We did a bit of backstroke to catch a break from being pushed around. People passed us constantly but my focus was on going forward.

When we turned towards shore it was like someone turned off the relentless wave machine. Suddenly I could really swim! Allison and I cheered a bit and congratulated ourselves on making it half way. The rest of the swim was downright easy by comparison.

Allison and I did finish our first triathlon. It took us 5 hours and 52 minutes to swim a mile, bike 34 miles and run 10 miles. Our transition times were glacial but we had decided in advance it was more important to have dry socks than be fast. Priorities.

I was amazed, thrilled and over the moon that I completed the race. Thank you Morgan for teaching this 43 year-old to brave new experiences and giving me the tools to weather moments of doubts in the middle of an ocean swim. Those are some mighty handy skills you passed along!

About the Coach: Morgan Filler is a world class marathon swimmer who spent four years on the international pro circuit swimming in oceans, lakes and rivers for up to 11 hours at a time, pushing her body to endure extreme temperatures, polluted water, and numerous challenges from Mother Nature (not to mention the other competitors)… {more}

About the Author: Kathleen Burke Jensen loves to write, ride her beautiful horse, and train for her first triathlon with her husband. She’s constantly looking for ways to do all three things; if not simultaneously, then at least back to back throughout the day. For more on her adventures, visit her blog Forging Ahead.