High and Tri: Balancing High School and Triathlon Training

One of the toughest assignments for all athletes is the balance between sport and study.

Triathletes and athletes generally are by their nature high achievers. They live in a world of time management, goal setting, overcoming adversity, facing personal challenges and self-management.

However, for a short time (between the ages of 16-18), the pressures of being a high achiever present a tough challenge for even for the most committed and well – organised triathlete.

There is no doubt that Year 11 and 12 is a challenging time for all students.

What is happening during Year 11 and 12?

• You are growing and developing physically
• You are thinking about getting a part time job and saving money
• You are thinking about finding a boyfriend or girlfriend
• You would probably like to learn to drive
• You are studying hard for the most important exams of your life

and…

• At the same time you are trying to complete one of the big jumps in your triathlon development: the jump from junior to open level competition.

All this happening at once!

You are basically being asked to mature into adulthood, be a student of excellence and progress your triathlon standards to senior levels within a period of two years.
It is tough! It’s so tough that many teenage triathletes do not successfully achieve their goals in any one area let alone in all of them. Some merely achieve mediocrity.

The frustration usually comes from having to compromise and sacrifice in one area to benefit another. Triathletes often take the option to drop a few training sessions to concentrate on Year 12 studies.

True, this makes more time available for study, but the high achiever also finds it frustrating that whilst grades are improving, they feel slow and sluggish and years of training and preparation seem to be wasted. Unfortunately many triathletes find it just too tough to come back after the decreased training loads and never make it back to pre year 12 performance levels.

Several schools offer the opportunity to spread Year 11 and 12 over three years. This an excellent option for some students as it allows enough time to sustain high levels of academic achievement and maintain training to a reasonable level. The down side is that the extra year of High School means many of your friends graduate and move on while you are still studying. It means making new school friends and adjusting to a new set of circumstances. Also, some triathletes taking the “extra year” option end up doing worse in their academic life as they adopt a more relaxed attitude to study believing there is no urgency.

However, You can do it. You can achieve academic and athletic success. Success is your choiceand as with all things, success comes from being positive, being disciplined and committed to the achievement of goals and remaining focussed and motivated during the tough times.

Many great Australian athletes have completed their education and still excelled in their sport. Australian Marathon great Rob De Castella won several major races whilst completing his study at University.

In swimming, Dual Olympic Gold Medallist David Thiele is a specialist medical practitioner and completed his medical studies whilst training for the 1960 Olympic Games.

Commonwealth Games distance freestyle medallist Tim Ford is a lawyer.

Olympic Gold medallist Michelle Ford has a degree and distance swimmer Chloe Flutter (8:32 800 freestyle)  was awarded a Rhodes scholarship to study at Oxford University in England.

Commonwealth Games 200 freestyle Gold medallist Marty Roberts has a sports science degree and sprinter Chris Fydler has completed not one but two degrees whilst maintaining his status as one of the nation’s top sprinters.

Michael Klim excelled during his final year of high school with outstanding grades and has performed magnificently in major international competitions since.

The good news is that triathletes have a distinct advantage over most of their fellow students. The discipline, personal management, time management and goal-orientated skills developed during triathlon training are the same skills necessary to successfully complete academic studies.

The techniques you use everyday to get the most out of triathlon training are the same skills that will help you achieve the grades you want at school.

It is imperative that any efforts towards excellence in Year 11 and 12 are supported by coach, family and friends. The support of the coach and the understanding of family and friends is a key factor in the success of any plan to do well as a triathlete and as a student in the final years of High School.

Some practical hints:

• You are in control of your study and training program. Regardless of what your school friends say or do, success in the end is your decision. Do the training and study that you need to do to get the results you want. If your friends think studying is not “cool”, get some new friends!

• Talk with your school advisers and ask them for help with designing a study plan. You are a Year 11 and 12 student only once. The teachers and counsellors have been through what you are going through many times and are invaluable in this regard.

• Talk with the teachers and counsellors about your desire and commitment to continue training during Year 11 and 12. They may be prepared to help you achieve your goals and be more flexible with class and study routines to help you.

• What might happen and what could happen is not as important as what is happening right now. Don’t worry about the exams at the end of the year. Focus on doing the little things right, every day, every class, each assignment. (Win The Workout principle in the classroom!!!)
• 90% of stress comes from not doing things when you should have done them. The best time to start a study program is today.
• An extra hour study each day is an extra day study each week- You can control time! It’s never too late to be the person (student or triathlete) you wanted to be.
• Do a course of “How to Study Effectively” or read a book on the same topic. It’s the same principle as getting your swim technique right before starting hard training.
• Try to get out of bed early and study when you are fresh and rested. You can train when you are tired and still get improvements, but studying tired is a recipe for failure.
• Do extra work by yourself or with a group of friends in holidays and on breaks.
• Study in your “spares”
• Take care of the immediate and the ultimate will take care of itself.
• No matter what happens there is another way to look at it. Nothing is as bad as it first seems.
• What if something goes wrong? Have a plan, Have a second plan and have a backup plan to the second plan. Don’t plan to fail by failing to plan.
• Never, ever, give up – there is always a way. Develop an “I can” strategy rather than saying “I can’t”.
• Success is never guaranteed, but you can choose to increase the likelihood of success by adopting a study program and triathlon training schedule that will allow you the best opportunity to succeed.
• The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is the little extra. Try 30 minutes less T.V. per day and do 30 minutes extra on maths equations. Try 30 minutes less video games per day and learn five extra new words to help with reading and comprehension. Those little extras add up to extra-ordinary results.

The smartest people don’t necessarily get the best year 12 grades just as the most talented triathletes don’t always win. It is more likely that the best grades (and gold medals) go to the students (and triathletes) who have prepared the best, who have committed themselves to a daily routine where excellence is the minimum acceptable standard and who manage their time and themselves most effectively.

Do the little extra it takes to succeed and you will have the choice at the end of the day. Take the short cut or rely on luck and your employer, the university admissions officer and your opposition control your choices. Success has little to do with luck. The harder you work, the luckier you will get.

There are a lot of similarities between successfully competing in triathlon and passing Year 12 exams. Preparation is important. Planning is crucial. Confidence is vital. Time management is essential. For all triathletes however, none of these concepts are new. They are things you grow up with: things you utilise every day.

In many ways your triathlon career has prepared you for the opportunity to do well in Year 12. All the attributes you need to be a great student you have already developed as a triathlete. You have a competitive edge. Make the most of it.

Wayne Goldsmith