Balance and the 80/20 rule

Triathlon is a unique sport which profoundly illustrates the point that doing more does not always lead to better results.  The key is to train smart by investing your time wisely.  Single sport athletes may be able to get away with a lot of volume, but triathlon already starts out with a lot of volume.  One has to train for swimming, cycling, and running as well as the nutrition and mental aspects of the sport.  By comparison, a runner can do up to 100 miles/wk and still be under 12 hours/wk of training.  A bare minimum for a half or full Ironman is 12 hr per week with many doing 15-20 hr/wk.  That doesn't leave a lot of time for physical recovery, mental recovery, family, work, or other obligations.

One thing that I have found helps is being efficient with my efforts.  In life and triathlon, I can't always do everything I want.  It's good because what I want is not always what I need.  Jesse Thomas talked about the 80/20 rule in a recent Inside Triathlon article.  He says that 80% of the things we do can be accomplished in 20% of our time.  We can always do more, but not everything needs to be perfect.  I could spend 20 hours on this blog or spend just 4 hours and accomplish the same result while also having time for my wife, career, and other activities.  By intentionally limiting my time commitments, I have the necessary time for when things do need to be perfect.

Half and full distance Ironman training requires a fair amount of time.  In a recent interview on IMTalk Tyler Butterfield discussed the differences between ITU Olympic distance racing and the Ironman.  One of the reasons he believes more ITU athletes are not successful in the Ironman is a lack of patience.  In ITU, training hard produces great performances.  In the Ironman though, one must be patient, conserve energy, and balance a lot of variables.  Tyler has trained with a lot of great athletes including 3 time IM World Champion Craig Alexander.   One thing that stood out for him was that he never saw Craig overexert himself on a mountain climb during group rides.  Craig would usually finish around 5th, saving his efforts for when they counted.

Volume and intensity require a balancing act. In a recent interview with Bob Kennedy on Competitor radio, Bob said the difference between African runners and American runners was that the Africans knew when to cut a run short or reduce their effort. The body and mind breakdown if we try to do both for too long.  I think about tax season for accountants, they cannot maintain that intensity year round or much more that a few weeks.  In triathlon, the great Simon Lessing tried to maintain his high intensity training when he transferred to Ironman.  He had one good race at Lake Placid then disappeared due to injury.  I believe the same thing happened to Bevan Docherty this past year after setting a course record at IM New Zealand.  The best athletes know how to balance their efforts.

Mirinda Carfrae recently discussed what she had learned since leaving then returning to coach Siri Lindley.  She found that most training programs are roughly the same.  The key is having people you trust to help with the mental aspects of training and racing.  People to prevent you from worrying too much and not balancing your efforts.

Although not always easy, I strive to build my life and training around the core ideas of balance in doing too much vs. not doing enough, being effective with my time and efforts, and surrounding myself with people willing to tell me the brutal truth.  Just because I have the time or money to do something, doesn't necessarily mean it's a good idea.  Everything has a cost.  Some costs are readily apparent, while others reveal themselves over time.  Kia Kaha