The fact that I’ve not posted in several months gives you some idea of how difficult I have found it to balance life with training for an IronMan. Committing to training alongside long working hours, a long commute, a house in need of complete renovation and all the other things a 30something woman likes to do is no mean feat. Woe is me, blah blah bah. If you’re reading this the chances are you’re trying to cram in all of this yourself (and probably more) or you might be one of the people I’ve pissed off by not being available for drinks, or for not doing my share of the washing up (when is that bloody dishwasher arriving?!), or another evening when I’ve bailed early as I need to get up at an indescent hour for a training session.

If you’re one of the latter, I’m sorry. I have been crap. I will be better, but probably only until I sign up for something else that’s stupid.

If however, you’re in the first camp, and you’re looking for guidance as to how to train around other commitments, well, I’m probably not your gal. I often get it wrong. I miss sessions. I miss out on fun stuff. I feel like I’m often in the wrong place – training when I should be having fun, or having fun when I should be training. That said, overall, I have absolutely LOVED training for an IronMan so far!

Things I found to make it easier:

1. Be organised:  I am not, by nature, particularly organised. I am the woman who attempts to organise her sportswear, gets fed up half way through and chucks it back into the drawer (ok, drawers. I’m an addict. I’m ok with that).  I’ve taught myself to be more organised. I get my kit ready the night before. I programme my turbo session into my Garmin Edge the night before. I do my best to get rid of any faff that I can so that I can simply roll out of bed and get my training done. Which leads me nicely on to:
2. Become a morning person: yeah, me, a morning person now. Who’da thunk it? It certainly wasn’t the case when I first started this blog but practice makes perfect. Sometimes. I’m often awake before my alarm, and when it goes off, out of bed, no faff, train. The smug points won before others are even awake taste even nicer.
3. Work your training around your life: ok, so having a coach who can tweak my sessions is a God send, I’ll give you that. That said, I try to get in my sessions early so that I can be on my normal train so that I’m fair to my colleagues. Some days I might chuck in a run commute to get the miles in, or just to give myself the opportunity to run another route. Sometimes I swim in the outdoor pool near work to break up the monotony of the rather grubby pool I have to use in Haslemere.
4. Eat well: be prepared, have a willing partner/child/chef or a decent microwave, just make sure you always have a supply of tasty grub to keep you going in those hangry moments. I have snacks in all of my bags. In my car. Often in my coat pockets. I have never known hunger like it!
5. Sleep well: it’s one of the easiest things to forget but rest is so important when training. I try, whenever I can, to be tucked up in bed by 10pm, ideally to be asleep by 10.30pm. It means my 5am alarm call is slightly less painful. Sure, it doesn’t always happen but I’m happier, stronger, and waaaay more jolly when I get a decent amount of sleep.
6. Listen to your body: it’s taken me a while but I think I’ve got a handle on the times when I really shouldn’t train. Previously I’d have tried to ignore a stinking cold and train through but there’s just no point. Allowing your body to get well is important. Perhaps it’s different if your IronMan result pays your mortgage or keeps your family fed, but for me it’s an experience, one I want to enjoy, and getting to that start line, fit, happy and not overtrained, is what I want to achieve.

I’m probably missing some obvious ones, but these are the things that help me the most. When it’s tough, I remind myself that I’ve paid for this, and I’m lucky to be able to even attempt it. If that’s not enough to give me a kick up the backside, I picture that final ‘run’ down the red carpet, my arms raised, as they say:

Sarah, you are an IronMan…

I’d love to hear of any other tips you might have!

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