This Holiday, Consider Giving Back Time

For the “normal” person, the holiday season is a time to socialize, catch up with friends and family and get out of routine. Training, sleeping and eating routines can be thrown very much out of whack.

These routines are what rule many triathletes’ lives.

While living a regimented life is often a very good thing when it comes to being a successful athlete, it can often times have a negative impact on those around us.

As a coach, I like to give athletes the week off between Christmas and New Year. I encourage athletes to enjoy their family and friends at this time of year without obsessing about training.

The people that support us often put up with our obsessive and compulsive behaviours throughout the year. This holiday season, think about giving back that one thing that all of our training takes from them throughout the year: time.

By all means, I encourage athletes to stay active over the holidays when the food and drink intake is usually a little higher than normal but there is always that pull to exercise more when given the chance, like when you have time off of work.

Instead, why not take this time during your off season to spend more time with your loved ones. There will be plenty of time for training, and the fancy new gadget under the tree, in the new year.