Switch it up before you Give it up

So I posted whats in the title on a twitter last week and I'll explain it here. After SOMA I was pretty down to be quite frank (if you couldn't tell from my race report). These past two weeks I've had a lot of time to think about triathlon, do some very light unstructured training and just live normal for awhile. It was great eating, drinking whatever I wanted, staying up late and having fun, but I pretty much got sick of that lifestyle by the end of the second week. I was ready to get back to training. Only this time I'm going into the off season and doing things differently.

The biggest "switch" is that I'm going to be coaching myself indefinitely. I've worked with James and Champion Factory Coaching for over a year now and if you've been following this blog during this time, there's not a doubt you know how I feel about him as a coach. Nothing but high praise and I highly recommend him to any triathlete at any level. Why the switch up?

1. Now that I'm working out of the house I have some time to put thought into my training program. I love being totally involved with the process but in the past I just never had time for it, now I do.

2. This will allow me to save some money and get into races next year and chase that qualifying spot. Last year I only gave myself one shot to do it and it was early in the season. I couldn't afford to travel and race for another shot. Next year I have big plans...

3. I think it's healthy to switch up your training program. Those that knew me back in college, I transferred 3 times - and the biggest influence in all of that was coaching. I wanted to keep things fresh, new, and shock the body into different training environments. It worked, I progressed and PR'd every single year and learned a TON from those coaches because of it. Being coached by James was no different and I'm grateful for the time we had.

That's not the only switch up - other plans I have in the mix:

1. Strength training. I'm a weak/fragile athlete..ha. I lack a lot of strength and haven't done a single push up or sit up in a looong time. Biggest influence of that was time. Well I don't commute 2.5 hours a day anymore, so it's going to become a huge focus in my training.

2. Yoga. I'm a big believer in the mental game and also a big believer in stretching. Yoga is going to help with both of these.

3. Base building. For the past 2 years I've been hammering at the track every Tuesday night and doing high intensity intervals on the bike year round. This year I'm going build that aerobic engine before I touch any anaerobic.

4. My running secrets. Ha. I'm going to be incorporating the same running structure/workouts that I did as an elite runner from base period - to build - to peak. Every runner is different, but I know EXACTLY what makes me a fast runner. Expect to see huge gains on my run next year.

5. Bike Fitting. I'm going to drop the $300 bucks and get a professional bike fit on my Slice. This may have something to do with my cramping....we'll see.

6. Speaking of cramps. I'm going to be aggressively seeking the answer to these this off season. I'm going to experiment with different supplements, see some specialists and really nail down the root of the problem.

7. Massage. I'll be seeing Dr. Brett twice a month. I see huge benefits in recovery when I get adjusted and deep tissue with him.

8. Swimming. I do have a swimming coach, Coach Carol (she rocks). I'll be swimming with her and her Masters run workouts 3x a week and getting in 2 more swims on my own which will include some longer continuous sets - working on pacing (a relevant problem for me in 2012).

So that's what I'm switching up going into the off season. It has left with with a deep down desire to train and race which tells me I have made the right decision.