Getting tired of triathlon...

That's kind of how I've been training this whole summer.  I've been doing so many other things that my time has been really limited.  I haven't been in the pool since April.  I've only done some OWS here and there (and at my races, of course).  I'm a lousy swimmer, so swimming 3-4 times a week didn't really help much.  I can swim 2:00/100m without constant trips to the pool.

And I've barely biked this summer either - at least not lately.  Too much travel and again, too many other things to do.  It's pathetic really, but whatever.  I've got one more race this year and then I'll be focusing on the run, fat loss and weight training for the winter.  I'll ride occasionally with friends and probably swim occasionally as run recovery, but that's about it.  I do have a number of run races planned though and I'm excited about them, so that's my M.O. for now.  

I know that I'll be right back into tri on Dec 1st when registration opens for my first race of next year (in early May). Until then, I'm doing what fits my schedule and not sweating it.  This is supposed to be FUN, right?

I don't have any tri specific help....but one of my hobbies is bowhunting.  So I spend a ton of time shooting, gearing up, preparing and then spending 10 days in the Black Hills with my dad and a cousin.  By the time I'm done, I don't want to look at my bow but sure enough, every spring, I get the itch again....

Cyclocross season will be soon here..try that?

After your last race, do what you feel like and let your body and head figure it out.  Make a list of cool type things you have thought about doing....races, events, experiences and see what draws you. Nothing says you have stay being a triathlete or you can try other things and come back.

For me losing the ability to run has made me struggle with the loss of being a triathlete. I can participate but not in the same way...relays, aquabikes, or walk the run.

I have found there is a time of the year I just want a break and in the midst of the break the desire to train, have structured training and some goal races comes back.

Time away will give you a new perspective.

Amen to this statement. I had a hard time figuring out what my problem was this year after my first race trying to find the motivation to get my workouts done. I finally took a step back right before my second half ironman and decided to take a couple week break. I realized that even though I used working out as a stress relief I had been through hell the last year. My dog was hit in the boulevard while we were running in October and then I watched my grandpa slowly die from MERSA from December until March. I never realized how much of a toll all this had taken on me. On top of the fact that I was working 60 - 70 hours and week and newly engaged starting to plan my wedding. I only raced one race this year so far and though I feel rather guilty for my tri bike which is sitting in my basement untouched since my race in June I'm starting to feel a slight pull to want to race again. Although its to bad that it is near the end of the season. I hate to be judged when I say I'm just too tired to workout today and it seems like a lot of people think you should just push through it but what ends up happening is that if you don't take a break from pushing yourself you'll end up hating your workouts. I have a feeling though that with time you will want to do triathlons again. Because the great thing about them is you can do them at any age. So thats what I tell myself. Its not the end of the world if I don't compete this year because there is always next year or the year after that. Your not the only one thats burnt out. 

PS... All the people that were doing triathlons like crazy in my part of town have taken the entire year off from doing them. So your not alone out there. 

Triathlon is a high burn-out sport.  I started w/my first in 1998 and none of those peeps I started with who I knew personally still do it.  A quick glance at local race results shows only a few names that were around back then.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with taking time off.  It's okay to swim, bike and run at your leisure with no "plan" for the workout.  And do other things - yoga, pilates, mountain bike, boot camp, whatever seems interesting.  The minute it's a job and not fun, it's time to take a break.  There's no need to worry about planning for next year yet.

I've personally taken whole seasons off including 3 years in a row for grad school.  I still biked and ran but didn't swim.  I believe it's these breaks that are why I'm still doing it to this day and all the others just disappeared from the sport.  They tended to be "all or nothing" with triathlon because they were all extremely competitive in their respective age groups (I was/am too when I want to be, but competitive conditioning is no longer necessary for me to show up at a race).

So, enjoy your break, and you'll be surprised at how excited you may get about triathlon again.

Andi

X2....I as well had been out of competative racing and training for most of the past four yrs. I did next to nothing, the only thing that really got some time was the couch and my family.

When I did ride my bike, it was unplugged, meaning no HR monitor or GPS unit...just riding for the joy of riding. That in its self makes a huge difference....to ride without a purpose in the past was pointless...now it makes all the difference in the world...even thru my training plan this yr for my HIM in Sept...when things were getting heavy, I would go unplugged and things would come around.

Its important to step back, mix things up and more importantly, at the end of the season...take some down time ..a month off the tri sports wont harm you...do something other than sbr....and you will come back fresh and stoked to gear up for another yr.

I agree with Andi, its a burnout sport.

I haven't been on this forum very long, but I can tell you every year we lose about 50% of the regulars.  Alot of people get into the sport, do it for a season, and are gone.  Especially after an IM.  I hate to use the word 'bucket list' because many of them just get fried putting in so much training that finishing the race isn't what gets them out of the sport, but finishing the hours on hours of training.   I admire the guys / gals that do this year in and out, because it is a ton of dedication and perserverance.  Training in Run, Bike, and Swim is a lot of work, even on a maintenance or sprint plan.  Its just real hard to keep it up year after year. 

I myself have teetered about what to do next year; not necessarily because of burnout but I just can't put in big hours and shirk my other responsibilities.  I've looked at a maintenance plan after IMAZ and to be honest, I really don't want to put in massive hours, and I really don't want to train to just hold what little I have.  That is the catch 22.

The best advice is to go to a single sport next year.  Whichever one you enjoy the most and focus on that.  It seems that you really need those to be dominant at one sport and many of use don't improve much when training in all 3 at the same time.

Take a break from racing or goal-driven training. Sounds like you're ready for a break.

You can still use your fitness to do fun events, like adventure-type racing, weekend bike tours with groups, and trail runs for fun. 

The itch to race a triathlon will come back after getting away from it for awhile then revisiting it. I agree though, that training for tris can be a serious drag - the logistics of S/B/R training can get maddening if you have a busy job and/or kids.

i burned out, after a 4 yrs in the sport and last 1 yr of non stop training/coach, i mean hard training no off-season and race back to back to back.

finally although this sucked, my TT bike broke during a crash, bought a roadie and didn't look back since.

The world is filled with fun and interesting things to do, and life is short. If something isn't fun, why do it? Take a break from tri's (whether that means not training for the winter or skipping a season), and take off the pressure.

I started racing in the early 90's. After about 5 years, I took a break that ended up being nearly 10 years (initially because there was no pool convenient for training after we moved, then because I was working such long hours that I had little daylight for running or riding). I did some adventure races, got SCUBA certified, started backpacking, climbing, kayaking and mountain biking. I skied until I tore my ACL, then started snowshoeing in the winters. Then I got back into tri's for the last 3-4 years, but mostly sprints instead of olys..

If you can figure out what is burning you out, maybe you can deal with that part of the problem (long goal oriented training as opposed to riding for fun? constant competitive pressures?) while you look for other fun stuff.

I feel exactly the same way right now.  I felt like I was done a few weeks ago and sick of training (especially swimming) before my last race and strongly considered not racing next year.  I sucked it up and kept up the training and had a decent Olympic race this past weekend and had a blast at the race.  I am happy to be done racing for the year though and will bypass a race in September because family life will start to get crazy (kids, 3 of them, all starting back up with school, all in cub scouts, 2 playing soccer).  I too plan to focus more on running for the time being.  It's been my strength in tri's and building up a tad more to do a HM in two months seems doable.

As for next year.  I don't know yet.  The lure of racing and the rush it provides is still there, but I think the time that training consumes is probably too much of a strain on my family life.  Probably a better way to go, perhaps for a year or two, would be to focus on running (and weight training), ride my bike for enjoyment and swim if....I get really bored, then revisit tri's again when my kids are a tad older.  Or perhaps just do a sprint or two.  We'll see.

Our stories are similar in that we pursued other activities.  I got burned out from tri's, after Ironman and coaching burnout, and decided to go for my black belt in Tae Kwon Do for a few seasons (always on my "list").  Ruptured my ACL too!  In reconstruction rehab I met a lot of injured skiiers. To this day I don't know if I love triathlon racing or competing in Tae Kwon Do tournaments (and sparing) more.  I do know I can't do both.   I did make it to the top in my state for my AG (champion) before the injury and subsequent reconstruction.   I do love competition, no matter what I'm doing.

Andi

Until you saw that P4 frame on Nytro....