The Howling: Bring Your Everyday Beast Training Weekly Update (Week of Mon, Dec 12 to Sun, Dec 18)

HOWLS

Howls out to the participants in last Saturday's Zwift race.

Warhorse finished just off the podium in 5th and Beanstalk and She-Ra were not far behind, tied for 8th and 9th. What was most pleasing though was that we had members of the Wolfpack from both the Rocky Mountains (i.e., Warrior Princess, Beanstalk, Lethal Weapon, Conner, and Dan) and the East Coast (i.e., Warhorse, She-Wolf, and Jiffy) participating and working together throughout the race. Triathlon is an individual sport, but when supported with a strong community, which we have, provides that additional inspiration to train and show-up on race day.

WEEKLY VOLUME PODIUM Weekly Volume Podium was a close one this week... :) 1) Conner Franke -- 9:05 2) Jack Colton (Beanstalk) -- 9:04 3) Lisa Rosynsky (She-Wolf) -- 8:38 4) Taylor Vernath (Warrior Princess) -- 8:37 5) Eli Madden (Lethal Weapon) -- 8:30 NEW WOLFPACK MEMBER Happy to announce that we will another Pack member joining us in mid-January! Eric Charlebois, who lives in Maryland, will be joining the Timberwolf Pack. Excited to have you Eric, and team, please drop a welcome note when you can.

COMMENTARY As I have been seeing everyone's progress since Thanksgiving as we started to ramp things up, I was thinking about the adage -- "You do things you like to do or and things you are accountable for". When looking at the results of the Zwift race it made me think of the magical phrase -- "I'm In!" In 2010, at the local gym, I met a guy who I noticed was at a few local races I did (Michael Fagin who, later co-founded MAPSO with). I asked him about local rides and he referred me to a bike group where someone rode every day. I was on their listserv for about 2 months before I got the nerve to show up for a ride. I noticed that when everyone would post, people would reply -- "I'm in". I then noticed that, at the ride, anyone who "commmitted" to the ride attended and I realized that the "I'm In" reply was more than a "maybe I'll show-up" but a "commitment to showing up". After riding regularly for a couple of weeks, I found that the accountability requirement I needed to say "I'm In" wasn't needed anymore as I would just show up as I enjoyed it. The folks in the Wolfpack are a mix of people. One group is looking for accountability. That is, "Help me get back after it"; therefore, my effort is around creating a training schedule that is doable for them and to avoid the dreaded "Red Missed Workout". I know folks hate to miss workouts, but know that when I see the "Red", I feel as responsible for potentially creating a workout that is "too much" as the individual that misses it feels "bad" for missing it. For the other group, I no longer look at my role as an accountability as they are in the "Like to Do" category and are trying to hit personal goals or podiums and rely on me to provide them the guidance and direction to get there. I no longer worry about whether they'll do the workout but personally am concerned that the workout is right for them based upon where there deficits are and where there energy level is at. That is, ensuring the workouts are "doable"/ My point is for you to know that it takes a very short period of time (i.e., a couple of consistent training weeks) to move from "Training Accountability to Training Likeability", so as we step over that New Year threshold, work closely with me to ensure what I have for you works within your schedule and let's go after 2023 HARD! :)

Relentless Forward Motion