10 Tips to maximise the 80 days till Ironman

80 Days to Ironman = It’s closer than you think!

When setting Sporting Goals for an event seemingly a long way away, there are certain things we can do to increase our chances of a successful outcome.

With Ironman a little under 3 months away, here are a few ideas that I will be implementing to try and ensure I remain focussed and motivated, you may want to consider incorporating a few of them too.

1. 80 Days! For me that brings a little more urgency (than 3 months) and encourages me not to waste training days, or windows of opportunity.

2. Burn the Boats! If the Boats are torched there is no turning back, no surrendering. So share your goals and commit them to stone.

3. If you, like me, need to streamline your body then stick a photo of your current self on the fridge door and the bathroom mirror. Mentally start contrasting that with where you need to be and start seeing yourself as you can become and not as you are.

4. Make sure you have a Training Plan (Road Map). Planned sessions (especially with training partners) get done, unplanned ones don’t!

5. Seek professional help ( why try reinvent the wheel and make unnecessary mistakes?) and who better to get guidance from than Raynard Tissink. I think they have an Ironman special on currently, go to www.raynardtissink.com

6. Carry little cue cards and just before you succumb to buying that chocolate, read it. Eg. ” Will this take me closer to, or further away from my Goal?” – easy to pass it up now.

7. Treat every Goal you set, as a Promise you have made to yourself (or your loved ones), it’s harder to break promises than skip sessions.

8. Focus on one day at a time! Just as in a race, it is important to stay in the Present, otherwise it becomes too daunting.

9. Progress fuels motivation, so set achievable short term Goals, as these help you to achieve the bigger, audacious Goals.

10. Sometimes we are very close to achieving our Goals, but we don’t Persevere and we quit and this becomes a habit, it becomes part of our make-up. So if you do decide to chase a Dream, a Vision, a Goal it’s important to understand that it can take 14-21 days to break the shackles of bad habits, which in a short space of time can become good habits and enjoyable ones too. The key is being bold enough to take that first step.

For those wanting a little more reading here are two links to (A) How to achieve your Dreams and (B) Scott Rigsby’s 5 key steps to achieving the Impossible. All the best!!

http://ironmansa.com/2012/05/01/how-to-achieve-your-dreams/

http://ironmansa.com/2012/10/11/scott-rigsbys-5-key-steps-to-achieving-the-unthinkable/

An Ironman Finish Line = An unbelieavable feeling!