YEAR #29 IN THE BOOKS!!
By: Kathy P. Alfino
Level 1 USAT Coach
Kathy@milehighmultisport.com
www.MileHIGHMultisport.com
HOW YOU TRAIN MAKES THE DIFFERENCE!!

I just completed my 29th straight year of racing triathlons and although I’m not big into writing these reports, I thought I would share a few thoughts so others may benefit from my experiences. I only raced three times this year and with my season lasting until the first week of November it seemed like a long year.
Why only three times? Because that is what we (My coach/husband) and I decided would be best. Lesson #1: Choose your schedule wisely and commit to the schedule you have chosen. Don’t deviate or add things mid season in an attempt to satisfy some itch you may have. When your mind is clear, pick your schedule and stick to it.
Having raced Kona in 2010 and with key races in September and November in 2011, we wanted to be prepared for a long season. The threat of late season burn out loomed if we started the difficult training too early. This meant starting out a little slower than we normally do and then increasing duration and intensity when others were ending their season.

Kansas 70.3
I raced Kansas 70.3 in June with a goal of qualifying for the 70.3 World Championships. There was only one slot in my age group so I knew I needed to win in order to qualify. I ended up winning my age group by 26 minutes. Lesson #2: Don’t be afraid to shoot for the top and let it all go on race day. If you fail, at least you know you gave it everything you had on race day. The time to give everything you have is during the race. All the talking pre and post race never made anyone any faster.

70.3 World Championships

My next race wasn’t until 11 weeks later in Vegas at the 70.3 World Championships. I ended up 4th and on the podium but was slightly disappointed with the outcome as I was in 2nd going into the last lap. Given the prep time I had for this race I was a little disappointed that I lost muscular endurance at the end of the run. Lesson #3: Some times, outcomes don’t happen as planned. Don’t dwell on the poor performances but put a plan in place to make sure it doesn’t happen again.

ITU Long Course World Championships

I ended my season with the ITU Long Course World Championships on the same course in Vegas. This is an odd distance race with a 2.5 mile swim, a very hilly 75 mile bike and an 18.6 mile run. To prepare for the bike, I spent my long rides trying to hang on to the wheel of America’s only Olympic Triathlon medalist Susan Williams. To put it short and sweet she kicked my ass. In fact on one ride I had to get off my bike and walk up a climb which I have never done before. Lesson #4: Don’t be afraid to ride with people who are better than you and get your butt handed to you. It will make you stronger in the end. Too many triathletes operate in their comfort zone.

The swim portion of the race was cancelled on race morning. This through me for a big loop as one of my strategies was to take the swim out strong to gain a lead on my number one rival Ellen Hart. Ellen is a superior runner than most triathletes, regardless of age or gender (3:24 marathon in Kona at age 52!!) and has become a very strong cyclist. I figured if I could put time on her in the water then perhaps she would have to chase me down on the run. Regardless, the swim was cancelled. My initial thought was to not do the race. Pete had me sit in the lobby of the hotel while he went to the race site and figured out the logistics of the day. He came back to the hotel about 20 minutes later, pulled me aside and reminded me that I had never had a race cancelled or altered in my 29 years of racing. “Wrap your head around this and start thinking of your new race strategy”. Lesson #5: Things don’t always go as planned. Don’t be an emotional athlete. Learn to roll with the flow and alter race strategies. Everyone has to deal with the same conditions and circumstances. So many athletes wasted mental energy complaining about the lack of the swim when they should have focused on what lies in front of them.

I had a very strong bike and was thankful to have chased Susan around for a month on the bike. Ellen and I pulled into transition together and I knew I was racing for second unless she had a monumental failure on the run. Lesson#6: Always race like you are going for the win in a situation like this. You want to be ready to move into the lead should something falter in front of you.

I knew I had an 11 minute lead on third place but continued to race strong. My longest run had been 16 miles. I did no brick workouts this year other than my two races. The run course was hilly, I didn’t feel strong on the run on the same course 2 months earlier so the only question which remained was could I hold onto second place. Ellen was not faltering and was pulling away from me with each lap. I held strong for all four laps and gained my third World Championship Podium finish in 13 months.

Thank You

Obviously I didn’t get here by myself so some thanks are in order.

Thank you to my sponsors, Runners Roost of Lone Tree for the Newtons. Whole Health Center of Highlands Ranch. I think the entire staff worked on me throughout the year but special thanks to Stephanie Shober, Acupuncturist, Mary Contraes, Massage Therapist and Kayla Bennett, ART Dr. Also to Keegan Bowers from Integrative Health for frequent massages and insisting I try barefoot massage! Thank you Pete for pointing out Kegan had his hands on me more than he did this summer!! A big thanks to Todd Carver from Retul who set me up perfect on my bike. Thank you, Michel Herskovitz from Performance Acupuncture and Lifestyle Medicine for improving my nutrition. In February of this year Michel changed my diet to a Natural Hygiene/Plant Based Diet plan. The result was a loss of 15 lbs while increasing my energy and power. Lesson #7: Don’t be afraid to continue to look for areas which you can make gains. After taking 3rd in Kona in 2010 I knew there were areas in my nutrition I could tweak but I was afraid of losing power. After having my second fastest half ironman race in Kansas I put all worries to bed.

To my family, friends and the Triathlon Community, thank you for your continued support. I’m always overwhelmed and humbled by the support I receive. I actually had someone call me a legend this year and a Japanese athlete approach me at an awards ceremony and told me she was impressed with my bike and run. My family won’t stop reminding me of the legend comment.

Special thanks to my husband and coach Pete. Sometimes I think that people believe he says he coaches me but that I self coach. He does write my plan and we discuss what is best for me given my race schedule. However, it is the little things he recognizes and fixes, like getting my head wrapped around this race or I may not have raced this past weekend. His insight and direction are a key part of my success. Although I felt I wasn’t adequately prepared for the run, he kept telling me I would be fine and he was correct. I ran my fastest splits at a long distance event ever. Thank you for your support and believing in me, I couldn’t do it without you.

In conclusion, it was another great year. Three podium finishes with two at World Championship events was a dream come true. I have no idea what next year holds. I haven’t signed up for anything. I look forward to working with my triathlon clients to help them achieve their multisport dreams as well as building the women’s triathlon group we are starting with TriBella Multisport in January of 2012.

I do know that my body needs a rest and I look forward to catching up on some tasks that were put aside. Lesson #8: When your season is over, rest and rejuvenate your batteries. I see so many people blow in and out of this sport because they don’t shut things down at the end of the year. If you rest properly, your body will be ready to make physiological gains when you start up again.

Sincerely,

Kathy