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First HIM jitters?

FrattoFratto
in General Training Discussions

As I finish week 16 I am getting nervous! i feel like i cant hold watts like I could before or paces like I could before. But atleast I can swim  faster!  I am sure i am just getting buily up fatigue in my legs due to all this training which is still 110% new to me in my first season doing triathlons. the recent heat has been brutal in the mid 90s but i imagine my race in lubbock will be hot too. So I hope I get some pep back in my legs as the plan starts to taper and I execute raceday well!  Like the title says I have some within a month of my race jitters. any helpful stories?

Comments

  • tuckermtuckerm

    Philip,

    You will be fine.  You have done your training and will be more than ready for raceday.  A few weeks ago I completed my first HIM with just the 20 week OS plus 8 weeks of a HIM plan.  I got it done, not as quick as wanted but that wasn't training related, and I am sure you will get it done too.  Remember it is your first HIM and trust the plan and execute on raceday.  After it is over you will realize your fears were overexaggerated.  

    And hey, if it were so bad would I be my second ever in 2 weeks?

    Tucker

  • Al TruscottAl Truscott

    Anticipatory anxiety is good - keeps you focused on the work ahead. Just don't let it trick you into doing more out of fear of losing fitness. The hardest part comes in the last two weeks when you start doing less and having nothing tangible to lay that anxiety on. Make plans now for filling the extra time and mental space - books you meant to read, DVD to watch, friends to see, anything to keep you from excess worry over the race. I'm sure the Coaches have put a podcast into the last two weeks of the plan about just this issue. If you haven't read it yet, look at this in the wiki.

  • Nemo BrauchNemo Brauch
    BREATH!!!! You are going to be fine! Al's spot on- don't let your anxiety trick you into trying to "make up" for what you perceive is lost time. It will all come together on race day when you are sharpened and ready to roll. Use the nervous energy to finalize your race day plans, listen to the HIM Podcast over and over again, watch the 4-Keys DVD, and make your checklists. Just jot everything down, and once it's down on paper let it go.
  • Mike HedmanMike Hedman
    Phillip,
    You are experiencing something VERY common here in EN - the coaches have pushed you right to the limit and it feels new and scary. DO NOT WORRY. Don't worry about the residual fatigue, the plan will taper off and all that good work will soak right in. Don't worry about the race, you will be ready. It's good you are thinking about the heat, but again, don't worry about it. You can't perform as well in 90 temps as you did at 60...but it will be the same temp for everybody once the gun goes off. Make sure a chunk of your training is in the heat, get used to it, how much fluid you need (a LOT), and maybe re-set your speed expectations a bit. Bad idea to have been spinning along on cool spring mornings at 20mph and to expect that magically you'll be able to do the same in 85 degrees...with a half mary following right after.

    Read the taper wiki that Al suggested. Read other race reports. Trust your training.

    Oh, but there is ONE thing you should be worried about...getting a killer finish line photoimage. So here are the real tips you need to know. Take off your sunglasses with 1/2 mile to go, don't be futzing with your watch as you cross the line (a big part of your race fee goes to paying OTHER people to time you!), look up and smile.

    You will do great.
    Mike
  • Al TruscottAl Truscott
    Posted By Mike Hedman on 31 May 2010 10:08 AM


    about...getting a killer finish line photo
    ZIP UP YOUR JERSEY!
  • mattsullmattsull

    My mantra for myself in times like this is "Trust in your training." You're going to do great!

  • FrattoFratto
    Thanks guys!
    1) relax dont cram more training in and blow it all!
    2) READ and REREAD and REREAD all the EN wiki and info
    3) Get ready for a killer finish line photo!
    4) Have fun!

    Ok got it!
  • Coach PatrickCoach Patrick
    And don't be afraid to rest more. Take a day off or cut a ride/run short if you are beat. Training plans are meant to be modified by you; not to be followed into a brick wall. I'd rather have you complete 90% of the plan but feel 100% ready to race (the entire goal of our training) than have you complete 100% of our plan and feel anything less than ready. You have done good work and you will be ready on race day....be patient, fuel well, pace smart and go fast! image

    P
  • Nemo BrauchNemo Brauch
    Posted By Mike Hedman on 31 May 2010 10:08 AM



    Oh, but there is ONE thing you should be worried about...getting a killer finish line photo. So here are the real tips you need to know. Take off your sunglasses with 1/2 mile to go, don't be futzing with your watch as you cross the line (a big part of your race fee goes to paying OTHER people to time you!), look up and smile.

    And practice your EN Gang Sign for the finish line photo too! 



     

  • Scott AlexanderScott Alexander
    Posted By Mike Hedman on 31 May 2010 10:08 AM

    Oh, but there is ONE thing you should be worried about...getting a killer finish line photo.



    What I learned from IM is to time your finish line 'kick' well, so you don't mess up your own picture by having someone else in it; or time it so you don't mess theirs up.

  • Beth_SBeth_S

    Remember, patience and more patience until mile 10 of the run, when this whole experience gets to turn into the party of your training and you get to take off and pass lots of other people!

  • Mike HedmanMike Hedman

    This thread had enough good finish line rules that I moved them to the Wiki for posterity:

    endurancenation.us.dnnmax.com/Resou...fault.aspx 

    Mike

  • Nemo BrauchNemo Brauch
    Nice! Thanks Mike!
  • Al TruscottAl Truscott

     This is so great; and all along, I thought I was the only one obsessed with finish line protocol and etiquette.

  • John StarkJohn Stark

    What CoachP said.  Extra rest if needed.  You have done the WORK.  All you can do now is mess it all up by overdoing it.  Best to underdo.  Do the race rehearsals, post the results here, get things dialed in and be ready to rock.

    Now is also the time to visualize the finish line.  When you are out training think about crossing the finish line.  It will make you smile.   You are so close you can taste it.  Guaranteed.    I love it!

    Smile for ALL the photo ops.  Thank the volunteers.  And flash the EN Gangsta sign.

    Have a GREAT day! 

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