Sports psychology question...

[smithcyn42]

I know what you mean. When I start feeling competitive, it always ends up making me feel discouraged. I started endurance sports as a very slow marathon runner, and I have found the running community to be very welcoming to the athlete who wants to enjoy the PROCESS of the sport, not just the outcome. However, the sport of triathlon does not seem as welcoming to me. There is such a high emphasis on being the fastest that it feels exclusionary to the average, non-physically gifted person who just loves the sport. I know that I was very happy to see your post because it let me know that I wasn't alone in feeling like the sport of triahtlon is too competitive.

My best advice to you is to try to enjoy the process, and when you start feeling competitive in a way that will make you unhappy, remember that by participating in the sport, you are like a magical being to the general population!

[LBTC]

First, let me say that *anyone* who completes a triathlon, ever, has tons of respect from me! I can only imagine the bike, and can't imagine myself ever being in a competitive swim or run!! And to do them all on the same day - you are amazing!!

That said, I also have a similar worry about training in the coming bike season. With this new health condition, I don't know yet what my exertion tolerance will be this mountain biking season. I'll be returning to a race that I won the last time I raced it, and I know that I have little chance of winning it this year - partly because the race has grown and will have many more competitors, and because I really don't know how hard I can train, or how hard I can ride this year.

This is tough. It wasn't until I got pretty decent and fairly fast (keeping up with the fast guys on the friendly weekly ride, beating the medium fast guys on a regular basis and in some races), that I realized that I really am competitive. Knowing that this is going to be a tough adjustment this year, I've been trying to change my mindset already.

I do gentle yoga every morning - the kind where I listen to my body, not the kind where I push myself to do arm balances, etc, like I used to. I try to imagine enjoying the race, not so much racing it. I don't know if this will help or not, but I sure hope it does. Having the race to train for will help keep me working pretty hard at exercise, so I don't want to drop the racing.

Tell me how it goes for you, and what works for you. We're still at least a month or more away from any mountain bike rides, and I won't really know how my competitiveness is feeling until I get on the trail with some other riders.

Good luck and remember that you are in it for the fun!

Hugs and happy butterflies,
~T~