Terry VanderWert, Author at Senior Triathletes

Book Review: Triing by Senior Triathlete Doug Morris

Terry VanderWert on September 22, 2024

picture of the book Triing by Doug Morris

Between 1986 and early 2016, Doug Morris did 168 triathlons in the 50 states of the USA and on six continents. Doug’s story, Triing, is full of practical lessons about the sport of triathlon around the world. It also shows how he juggled family life, work, and triathlon training and racing throughout what he termed the “Journey.”

Following are my key takeaways from reading Triing: A Journey of discovery, challenges, and camaraderie while racing in 50 states and the continents beyond.

About the Author

As a boy growing up in rural Indiana, Doug Morris raced imaginary competitors on a mock racecourse filled with obstacles. It was here that he began to hone his self-identified competitive Type A personality. This early interest in racing blossomed into competitive running while studying at Indiana University. Here, Doug specialized in 800 meter racing, including at several national championships. However, that was still just the beginning as he continued racing for the next seven years after graduating.

Then, in 1986, Doug’s girlfriend and now wife of over 35 years, Chris, suggested they do their first triathlon, an Olympic distance race in Chicago, Illinois. A couple of years passed before his next triathlon, after which he completed about one race per year. As the triathlon bug grew within a competitive host, Doug soon set new goals. Among the first was to qualify for and race in the IRONMAN World Championships in Kona, Hawaii.

“A finisher may sport a tattoo, but whether she raced in a full-distance race or any other triathlon, she will forever be a triathlete after the first race.” – Doug Morris in Triing

In the meantime, Doug and Chris married and had two daughters. Both girls were born with an extremely rare neurodevelopmental disorder, alternating hemiplegia of childhood (AHC). Doug’s work provided the family with the opportunity to live in various places in the United States and in Thailand.

Triathlon training and racing continued to be an integral part of Doug’s life. Training was his form of stress relief. And when the stress was gone, he persevered long, difficult, and sometimes dangerous training sessions. Still, through challenges of many kinds, he stayed true to his race day mantra, “I chose to be a competitor instead of a spectator”. The reward was awesome results, including first place overall and age-group finishes in short and long course triathlons.

What I Learned From Reading Doug’s Story

Through Doug’s description of his triathlons, I learned about various places around the United States and in ten countries on six of the seven continents of the world. Some places I had visited before, some even for a triathlon. Still, I appreciated Doug’s perspective on the people he met, food he ate, places he and his family members visited, and their experiences. It was especially interesting to learn about racing in significantly different cultures, especially those of Thailand, Australia, and South Africa.

Triing highlights the special importance of mental toughness for longer triathlons. It was also inspiring to read the demonstrations of camaraderie, especially among “middle to back-of-the-packers”, who shared their resources with each other during races so they could all take home a finisher medal.

Doug also confirmed an observation I made during my triathlon career, that not everyone, especially some bosses, appreciated his love of triathlon.

The Morris family (left to right): Eldest daughter, Hayes; Rita Tweed (Doug’s “adopted mother-in-law” and originator of the idea for *Triing*); youngest daughter, Caroline: Chris; Doug.

What I Especially Enjoyed About Triing by Doug Morris

Throughout this book, I enjoyed seeing how Doug integrated triathlon into both his family life and career. Early on, Doug’s two young daughters joined him on training rides, seated in a trailer towed by his bike. Later, his daughters’ knowledge of triathlon grew as they accompanied him to races.

For many triathlons, one or more family members joined Doug while traveling to a new part of the country or world. While Doug raced, they often volunteered and always encouraged other racers. Through such experiences, Doug watched his daughters mature.

Doug credits Chris for his success. First, she managed the home while he was training and racing. But she also provided much-needed encouragement, notably when he was on the verge of quitting.

After taking a year off from racing following a career-related blow, Chris told Doug, “It’s time to signup and race, or you’ll be a bitter, miserable middle-aged man regretting a missed opportunity.” That was the end of his sabbatical from triathlon, and when he went all-in to complete the Journey.

Triathlon Mimics Life

Doug also documents the connections between triathlon and his career. I enjoyed reading how Doug took lessons from training and racing into the office and his work. Sometimes, he also found lessons from college and work influencing his training.

Since the story begins with Doug’s first triathlon through completing the 50-state and six continent Journey, you will also see how he changed physically, mentally, and emotionally. I appreciated the many people along this path who influenced, pushed, and even inspired him.

Here is one example. In what appeared to be his most difficult triathlon, when he was barely able to keep going, a woman ran by him and said, “You did not come all this way here to walk.” He agreed and finished the last 10 km of the race.

I also appreciated that he stayed true to following the rules, even when competitors did not. This was especially evident is his description of some non-draft legal triathlons in which many of his competitors ignored the no drafting rule. Doug was both competitive and, in most races, a contender for a spot on the podium. Following the rules when others weren’t could cost him. Still, he followed them.

For Whom Is This a Must-Read

Given the number of triathlons documented, anyone interested in an in-depth view of triathlon, the triathlete’s mind, and the challenges and rewards of the sport will find Doug’s story interesting and inspiring. However, in particular, anyone with aspirations for long course (70.3 or 140.6) triathlon ought to read Triing. You will learn of issues that seldom or never come into play for shorter races. You will also see how his training schedule adjusted based on the upcoming schedule of races and their distances.

For a sport in which there are an inordinately high number of ways to spend a lot of money, Doug’s insights are also worth considering.

What I Would Have Liked to Learn More About

In a few locations, Doug mentions triathlon coaches. Some provide value commensurate with their cost. Still, others are not as good. As a triathlete who has never hired a coach, I would have liked to read what he learned about how to spot a good coach and know when to make a change.

Want to Buy Triing?

If you want to purchase a copy of the book, please consider using my Amazon affiliate link. With this purchase, I earn a small commission that helps cover the costs of maintaining and growing SeniorTriathletes.com.

Doug Morris also recently released an audiobook version which can be purchased at Triing: A Journey of discovery, challenges, and camaraderie while racing in 50 states and the continents beyond by Doug Morris – Audiobooks on Google Play.

Share Your Questions and Comments With Doug Morris

Do you have questions or comments for Doug? Please leave them below and I will make sure he gets them.

Comments: Please note that I review all comments before they are posted. You will be notified by email when your comment is approved. Even if you do not submit a comment, you may subscribe to be notified when a comment is published.

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How Important Is Mental Toughness For Triathlon?

Terry VanderWert on August 28, 2024

brain pictured inside human head to illustrate the mental part of triathlon

I chuckle each time I hear the wisdom attributed to baseball’s Yogi Berra: “Baseball is 90 per cent mental. The other half is physical.” As a former baseball player, I can attest to the importance of a strong mental component to the game. I just don’t get his math.

Since taking up golf about three years ago, I have also learned of the mental component to the game. I like what golfer Bobby Jones said: “In golf, the most important distance is the five inches between the ears.” A similar quote of Jones is, “The object of golf is to beat someone. Make sure that someone is not yourself.” Both speak clearly of a mental component to the game.

Is there a mental component to endurance sports like triathlon, duathlon, and aquabike?

That’s the question I explore in this post.

Our Mind Contributes to Physical Endurance

Dr, Samuele Marcora appears to be the foremost expert on the relationship between the mind and endurance sports performance. He is widely cited in articles and posts on mental toughness in endurance sports.

In Mental fatigue impairs physical performance in humans, Dr. Marcora and his colleagues documented the effect of mental fatigue on physical performance. They claimed that their research provided “experimental evidence that mental fatigue limits exercise tolerance in humans.” They also concluded that these limits came through a higher perceived difficulty, rather than physical effects related to the cardiovascular, respiratory and muscular functions.

In his article titled “Quitter”, Matt Fitzgerald, author of RUN: The Mind-Body Method of Running by Feel, writes of another of Marcora’s tests, this involving ten members of a university rugby team. Team members were told to ride at 90 percent of their personal VO2 max power until exhaustion. On average, they rode about 12 minutes at 242 watts. Then, after supposedly being exhausted, they were immediately told to ride as fast as possible for five seconds. Their average power was now 731 watts.

The researchers’ conclusion was that the mind in addition to the body dictates an athlete’s performance.

Mental Toughness Can Be Trained For Triathlon

The good news is that we can increase the mental component of endurance sports through our training. Following are two approaches I found while preparing this post.

Training With An Attitude

TriDot Head of Coach Development and senior triathlete, Kurt Madden told me, “I find it really intriguing that we spend so much time on the physical aspect of training. But the mind can work with you or against you.”

In an effort to incorporate the mental component in triathlon training, Kurt has identifed four factors he uses to help triathletes achieve amazing results, no matter their age or gender. These factors come from a combination of Kurt’s experience as a 45+ year ultra distance endurance athlete and his study of sports psychology.

• The “grit” factor

In Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance, Angela Duckworth develops the “hypothesis that what really drives success is not ‘genius’ but a unique combination of passion and long-term perseverance.” Some people can look at any challenge, embrace it, and push through related pain. This “grit” can come from early life experiences, such as a difficult family situation, or from a “learn it as you go” approach.

• Intention to be successful

Kurt has observed that “those people that do better mentally in longer events have the intention to be successful.” Those with this attitude not only believe they will be successful, but take action to ensure that they succeed.

“Intention” builds on enthusiasm, or positive attitudes, and on grit. Kurt encourages athletes with an intention to be successful to spot their “short term wins”. These wins confirm the success of their actions, producing the biochemical (hormonal) changes in our bodies that almost guarantee success.

• Willingness to be uncomfortable

While speaking with me for the post titled How To Slow Age-Related Drop in Running Performance, Kurt cited the tendency for older athletes to avoid being uncomfortable. However, to increase mental toughness, it is necessary to embrace some discomfort.

“When we are uncomfortable, there is a good thing that happens: we grow.”

Kurt has learned that one way to train our mind to embrace discomfort is to force ourself to go a little beyond where we think we need to stop. Relax, embrace the current discomfort, and go a little further.

• Staying “in the moment”

In introducing this factor, Kurt referred to The Mindful Athlete: Secrets to Pure Performance, a book written by George Mumford whom Michael Jordan credits “with transforming his on-court leadership of the [Chicago] Bulls.”

“Staying in the moment” avoids fretting about what has happened and forecasting too far ahead as to what could happen. Winning athletes include in their arsenal an ability to brush off mistakes or other failures and focus on doing what they know they are capable of.

Training While Mentally Fatigued

In “Brain Endurance Training Improves Dynamic Calisthenic Exercise and Benefits Novel Exercise”, published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, researchers Neil Dalloway et al, provide background on Brain Endurance Training (BET), at least partly based on Dr. Marcora’s research. The authors begin with the fundamental assumption that “perceived exertion is a limiting factor in endurance exercise.” By creating mental fatigue on top of the fatigue from physical training, the athlete adapts to performing under a higher level of fatigue and therefore a higher level of perceived exertion.

This allows the athlete to perform under stress, that is, conditions of mental fatigue. However, the real goal is for their endurance performance to be increased when the mental fatigue component is no longer present, such as on race day. According to the article’s authors, BET has been demonstrated to improve performance in cycling, running, and other activities requiring muscular endurance.

Cognitive Training Tools

Soma Technologies is a company which provides products following this approach. The company’s website says, “We Monitor Cognition, We Analyse Fatigue, We Optimize Performance.” The company also claims, “Soma has been proven to create psycho-physiological changes in the brain, enabling athletes to perform at higher levels with less perceived effort and make better decisions under fatigue.”

As I was preparing this post, I received an email from Soma, introducing their guide, “How to Design A Cognitive Training Plan.” This document is for coaches who want to incorporate mental toughness training into their athletes’ plan.

When reading through the guide, it surprised me to see the melding of mental (cognitive) and physical loading. For example, you may be aware of words such as periodization and progressive overload from triathlon training manuals. But did you know that there is a mental toughness equivalent to these? And, just as there are different components to comprehensive swim, bike, or run training programs, there are different components to cognitive endurance training.

What I Have Learned About Increasing Mental Toughness for Triathlon

It’s clear that there is a mental component to endurance sports, like triathlon, duathlon, and aquabike.

Those of you who know me, also know that I am an average triathlete having focused on sprint triathlons. I have not engaged specifically in mental endurance training because I have only recently learned about it. However, I relate to what I have heard and read about mental fatigue and mental toughness.

Over the years of triathlon training and racing, I believe I have sometimes struggled with the effects of mental fatigue, but also developed greater mental toughness.

For me, the quickest way to increase mental toughness has been being consistent in my training. Consistency builds confidence. When writing this, I was thinking of the triathlon swim.

I recall several races in which I became light-headed early in the swim, either through altitude or poor pacing. However, through plenty of pool and open water swims in different conditions, I had become confident in my ability to maintain calm and respond to the current situation without panicking. That’s a small example of mental toughness.

What Works For You?

This has been a high level introduction to the subject. Is there a part of this you wish to learn more about? Please share your questions or requests below and I will work to get answers.

Please also share what you have learned about increasing mental toughness. What advice do you have for those new to triathlon training?

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What’s Next For You in Multisport Racing?

Terry VanderWert on August 23, 2024

What’s next for you in triathlon or other multisport racing? With registration for next year’s triathlons beginning to open, this question may be one you are asking yourself.

It has been a little over one year since I achieved my goal of doing a triathlon in all 50 states of America. So, the “what’s next” question is one I have been asking myself a lot. It’s also a question others who know of my recently completed triathlon goal have been asking me.

In this post, I share my thoughts hoping to learn more about your plans and goals.

Longer Distance Triathlon

I am sure that most people who have completed more than one or two triathlons think about doing longer distance races. For me, this started about mid-way through my 50 state triathlon journey. Since I viewed the marathon as my greatest challenge for completing an Ironman triathlon, I started by training for and completing a half-marathon. In my plan, the half marathon was a stepping stone to a full marathon.

An injury and challenges at work at the beginning of the next year sidelined my plan to run a full marathon during the year. I never resumed training for the iron distance.

Still, I have always wondered if I can do what so many of you in our community have done. It seems natural to wonder if we can go further.

There is also value in inspiring those who come after us, such as children and grandchildren. By taking on tough challenges, we can be part of the movement to change people’s perspective on age. Triathlon has certainly done that for me.

However, I no longer see this as a priority. Investing 12 to 14 hours per week training for an iron distance triathlon is not a commitment I am ready to make. While I still train for sprint distances, my days include many other activities around the house and with my wife, other friends, and family.

Maybe I should set my sights on an intermediate distance triathlon, such as the international distance. Along with this, I might aim to compete at the National Senior Games, Pan-American Masters Games, or World Masters Games.

Aquabike Racing

I credit senior triathlete Nikki Austin for getting me to consider this option. In preparing Racing For Fun – Nikki Austin’s Story, I learned about the aquabike multisport event.

Running has always been my most difficult leg. While I have trained in running the most of the three legs, following the “train your weakness” philosophy, I am still slow.

On the other hand, the guy who performed my bike fittings tells me that my body is made for cycling. And, biking has been my strongest leg.

For this reason, the aquabike multisport event appeals to me. I have swam and ridden the distances of a half iron triathlon many times. I just need to get an updated fitting and/or different bike seat to be comfortable over the distance.

New Venues for Sprint Triathlons

Even after considering alternatives to the sprint distance, I still come back to my first triathlon love, sprint. This morning, I read a comment on SeniorTriathletes.com from a reader about the most beautiful venue for a triathlon. Her’s was June Lake, California.

That caused me to think about other places across the USA, some in which I had once considered doing a triathlon. What if we went back to these? Certainly, there are plenty of new places to explore, new experiences waiting to be enjoyed, and new people to meet.

What’s Next for You?

Clearly, I have not made up my mind on what’s next for multisport training and racing. The only thing I am certain of is that I need to stay physically and socially active for healthy aging.

Are there other multisport race-related goals you are considering? Please share your plans and the motivation behind these.

How To Slow Age-Related Drop in Running Performance

Terry VanderWert on June 20, 2024

We often expect some drop in running speed as we age. Still, how can we minimize it? This post is based on TriDot coach Kurt Madden’s response to a request from a senior triathlete in his late 60s who hopes to reverse a dramatic drop in his running performance.

How Can I Reverse a Drop in Running Performance?

David, one of our community of senior triathletes, sent me the following request.

“I’m looking for some articles and guidance on nutrition for senior triathletes. I’m going to be 69 in July and my endurance has dropped dramatically in the past 4 years. The run has been the most affected. I expect age related drops but have gone from an 8:45 [minute per mile] pace to an 11:45 [minute per mile] pace on the run after bike.”

I sent David’s request to Our Coaches, and asked them to share the most common causes for drops in performance they see among older athletes. Kurt Madden, a TriDot Certified Coach and Head of Coach Development for TriDot, offered to speak with me about what he sees. Kurt’s comments are the basis for the rest of this post.

Protein-Based Diet

According to Coach Madden, David is correct in asking about nutrition when wanting to recover his earlier running performance.

To begin with, any person in training should be “building their nutritional regimen around protein”. This can include lean protein and any combination of protein-containing foods that provide all essential amino acids. Such a diet can slow aging somewhat. How?

Kurt said, “Fifty percent of the cellular membrane is protein. Generally speaking, for males and for females, as we look at current data, any person who is active, including seniors, should strive for close to one gram of protein per pound of body weight.” This is equivalent to 2.2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight, higher than general recommendations for older active adults.

A common mistake of athletes in training is, according to Kurt, “protein fasting”. Protein fasting occurs when the athlete does not consume the recommended amount of protein. It also occurs when protein is not consumed throughout the day. We can’t starve ourselves of protein for sixteen hours, then cram it in at the end of the day. This is because it takes time for our bodies to absorb the protein we consume.

According to an article titled The Science Behind Intermittent Fasting For Athletes, “Your protein absorption rate may be as low as 8-10 grams per hour. Intermittent fasting limits one’s ability to spread protein intake throughout the day. This may not be a problem if your protein needs fit effectively within an 8-hour eating window. But if you have extremely high protein needs (say, you’re training for a triathlon and spend 3+ hours/day training) you may need to supplement with protein even during a fasting period.”

What About Intermittent Fasting?

I asked Kurt about intermittent fasting, considering this advice. From his response, I learned that while intermittent fasting may help with weight loss, the athlete in training who employs this approach may give up the quality of cellular development and quality of their metabolism. “If we can build in protein throughout the day, our waking hours, we are going to help build the cell membranes and help with recovery. To me, that is a huge win right there.”

Not absorbing enough protein while in training is, according to Coach Madden, “like a battery pack on a flashlight. You’ve got four batteries in there, but only two are working.”

Kurt continued, “The power house of the cell, that is the mitochondria. When everything within the cell is fed, it is going to produce at a much higher level. They can get larger, they can increase in size and number at any age. That’s the importance when you look at protein.”

Athletes who do not absorb enough protein will “struggle with recovery and doing powerful things, like trying to maintain your running speed at any age, versus people that are not [protein fasting] who recover quicker, generally speaking, and not going to see that rapid decline [in running speed]. So, just that tweak there is going to be incredible.”

Twenty Different Vegetables and Fruits Each Week

In addition, Kurt said, “It’s really important to try to get twenty different fruits and vegetables every single week with a shift toward more vegetables than fruits.” While fruits provide antioxidants, they also contain more sugar than vegetables.

Kurt emphasizes the need to “be strategic in your carbohydrate intake. Ideally you are getting complex carbohydrates versus simple sugars. And you are doing it strategically so every day in your training you know that if you are training less than an hour, you don’t need a surplus of carbohydrates. Conversely, if you are in a longer session any day of the week, if it’s a two hour bike ride and a thirty-minute run, you definitely need to shift those carbohydrates over.”

How Clean Are You Eating?

“And then the thing that I find with people who struggle a little with their weight, when I see a ratio of protein to carbohydrates, it’s not one to one or it’s not one to two. It’s like one for protein and four for carbohydrates. And many times what goes into that mix, when you really peel the onion back, is that their percentage of processed foods is much larger. Processed food will slow down your recovery.”

Following these guidelines will slow age-related performance decline for everyone, including seniors.

Building Strength and Endurance Reverses a Drop in Running Performance

Another area in which we can affect age-related performance is training. Kurt began this part of our discussion by referring to a May 14, 2024 article in Triathlete magazine titled How Much Slower Will You Get As You “Age Up” in Triathlon?. This article documents slower Ironman 70.3 run times that begin in our late 20s or early 30s and progress with age.

While the article mentions five main reasons for age-related performance declines, Kurt identified two of these for seniors to target in their training: (1) strength and (2) oxygen uptake.

“When you look at your oxygen uptake, the amount of oxygen that you can deliver to the working muscles . . . you are going to see that decline [with age]. That’s unavoidable because you are losing your strength.”

For this reason, seniors must include strength training, being careful to avoid injury. “Accept that by doing strength training, you are putting some stress on your ligaments, your tendons, your long bones, your connective tissue.” Still, he reminds seniors to remember that they are no longer in your 20s. Start slow.

Getting Uncomfortable to Get Faster

Still, beyond reduced strength, another cause for reduced oxygen uptake is our approach to training. “Typically, what we see, when you look at research, is that when people get older, they are more comfortable staying in a Zone 2, aerobic type training program. They are exercising. Hallelujah. I think that is beyond awesome. However, most people who are seniors, they are not willing to get uncomfortable. They are not doing the high intensity training.”

“It’s kind of like investing. How can I get bigger gains in my investments, and still be ethical and honest? Zone 2 is like investing in bonds. You’re not going to lose a thing. That’s awesome. If you want to be a little more ambitious, you’ve got to raise that bar again and, as we say, get into anerobic or you get things at your anerobic threshold. That is a true separation. And we see that.

“I can look at article after article about people in their sixties and seventies. It’s scary. People are running under three hour marathons. I was looking at results just last weekend for an Ironman 70.3 over on the east coast. A person that did a 70.3, they did a 1.2 mile swim, they did a 56 mile bike ride, and they ran a half marathon. They ran eight minute miles at age 65 to 69.

Add Some Good Stress

“I have to believe it could be two things. Number one, genetically, they are just flat out superior. But, secondly, I have to believe that person is doing some high intensity training because you have to stimulate your cardiovascular system. You have to put a little bit of stress on it and know you also need to back off.

“And that’s the beauty of TriDot. I work with 80 year olds, 70 year olds, 60 year olds, 50 year olds. I’m 68. I know later today, I have a session on a bike for an hour and I have got to get twenty-one minutes at Zone 4. And I know that I am going to get bigger gains or be able to maintain my oxygen uptake when I do that.

“Same thing on the run and the swim. But when we go to David’s question about the run, that’s very typical. We ask, well why does that happen? Well, I think to be very candid, running is the most stressful of all three disciplines. Because, you’ve got gravity. You’ve got force. You’ve got this person pounding on their ligaments, tendons, musculature, and connective tissue. And we see most injuries happening through running. And many times, it’s the volume of running, it’s overuse of running.

Balancing and Optimizing Stress

“And, again, when you see that decline, mostly speaking, I have to look at this person’s training program. They need to run at Zone 4 and Zone 3, not excessively, but have something that is optimizing them. Why? Because again, your body is going to get used to performing at that level. That prevents the decline they are going to see.

Kurt continued, “In swimming . . as long as your range of motion is good, you have the buoyancy factor. On the bike, you’re not pounding. If you’re disciplined, have good strength, good balance, mental toughness, you can hang on.”

“I just know, I did a max VO2 on the bike two weeks ago. It was close to what I did thirty years ago.”

Rest & Recovery For Better Running Performance

“Every person is a little different in the rest and recovery they need.

“Many times when we see [an athlete’s] performance declining, we get right to sleep factor. Shut things off so they are no longer getting blue light coming off screens fifteen hours a day. They shut things off and get the quality of sleep and recovery.”

Running Performance: A Three-Legged Stool

Just as a three-legged stool or tripod is the most stable platform, so is a training approach that considers the three principal contributors to running performance. Whether training for running or the triathlon run, a comprehensive plan will address these three legs:

Nutrition
Training
Rest

Of the three sports of triathlon, running is the one most sensitive to proper balance of these.

Need Your Own Plan?

Do you want a review of your current training plan or a plan tailored to you? Contact Kurt or one of Our Coaches.

Other Contributions By Coach Madden

Since our affiliation with TriDot began nearly a year and a half ago, Kurt Madden has helped on several Senior Triathletes posts. He is the exclusive contributor to these two:

Leveraging TriDot to Optimize Your Training at Any Age

How To Make Triathlon Training Senior-Specific

Kurt has also regularly responded to questions raised by readers in the Ask Our Coaches series.