I am fortunate to be working with three outstanding professional triathletes who are also exceptional human beings (they have all agreed to allow me to introduce them to you): 1) Ruth Astle, from the UK, is a 3x Ironman winner; Lisa Tertsch, from Germany, is ranked 5th in the world by World Triathlon and is preparing to compete at the 2024 Paris Olympics; Miguel Mattox, for the US, is a 2nd year pro who was 3rd at 2023 Escape from Alcatraz and 7th at 2023 Ironman Gulf Coast. Though each is different in their own ways, they all possess many of the same qualities that make them successful (and fun to work with): highly intelligent, passionate, motivated to grow as athletes and as people, curious, open.
Working with pros is always a wonderful challenge for several reasons. First, they wouldn’t be at such a high level unless they weren’t already pretty darned good mentally. Second, I can do almost anything with a lower-level triathlete, and they will get better because there is so much room for improvement. But professionals are already in the 98% of triathletes in the world, so my challenge is how to help them find those “mental marginal gains” that can take them to the very top.
My work with these three pros (and the other pros and Olympians I work with in other sports) is a true collaboration; I certainly hope they learn from me, but I also definitely learn from them. Just like them, I grow as a professional in my field, a triathlete, and a person,
I also want to share how working with these three amazing triathletes impacts me as an age-group triathlete. First, their dedication and commitment to being the best triathletes (and people) they can be inspires me to do the same. As I begin my workouts, I think about how hard they will work and I try to live up to their standards. Second, because I am constantly talking to them about ways to improve their training quality and race performances, I am even more determined and focused to “practice what I preach” and apply the mental-performance information and tools that I share with them to my own training and race efforts.
From our work, we have identified a number of issues and strategies that we all agree would help age-group triathletes who may not be gunning for the top of the world, but who are equally passionate and committed to our sport. This new blog series, “Lessons from Pro Triathletes,” will highlight these topics, offering you the same valuable insights and practical tools that they use to be their best, so you can be your best as triathletes and as people.
Be on the lookout for my first article in my “Lessons from Pro Triathletes” series later this week.
3x Ironman winner; Lisa Tertsch, from Germany, is ranked 5th in the world by World Triathlon and is preparing to compete at the 2024 Paris Olympics; Miguel Mattox, for the US, is a 2nd year pro who was 3rd at 2023 Escape from Alcatraz and 7th at 2023 Ironman Gulf
Coast. Though each is different in their own ways, they all possess many of the same qualities that make them successful (and fun to work with): highly intelligent, passionate, motivated to grow as athletes and as people, curious, open.
high level unless they weren’t already pretty darned good mentally. Second, I can do almost anything with a lower-level triathlete, and they will get better because there is so much room for improvement. But professionals are already in the 98% of triathletes in the world, so my challenge is how to help them find those “mental marginal
gains” that can take them to the very top.
triathlete. First, their dedication and commitment to being the best triathletes (and people) they can be inspires me to do the same. As I begin my workouts, I think about how hard they will work and I try to live up to their standards. Second, because I am constantly talking to
them about ways to improve their training quality and race performances, I am even more determined and focused to “practice what I preach” and apply the mental-performance information and tools that I share with them to my own training and race efforts.
group triathletes who may not be gunning for the top of the world, but who are equally passionate and committed to our sport. This new blog series, “Lessons from Pro Triathletes,” will highlight these topics, offering you the same valuable insights and practical tools that they use to be their best, so you can be your best as
triathletes and as people.
