• Finding it tough…

    Matthew Month 5Matthew Gwenter – #thetrilifereporter – Month 6

    Despite it being the height of race season and the middle of Summer the last few weeks have been tough going for me on the triathlon front!  Primarily due to moving house and starting a new job and sorting out everything that goes with it! It’s fair to say I’ve lost a good bit of routine I’d managed to get into my training and have just been fitting things in as and when I can.

    I’ve only had one race since my last write up and that was the Gower Sprint Triathlon. This is possibly one of the best settings I’ve raced in, however the first hill out of T1 certainly raises the heart rate. I’d certainly recommend this race to anyone who ventures to South Wales just for the scenery alone and the good news is you come back down that horribly hill into T2 with cheering crowds waiting for you in the amphi-theatre type setting of transition. Anyway aside from raving about elements of the race I’d spent the previous 48 hours moving house and as such had been up and down the M5 (very slowly due to holiday traffic!) a few times so was pretty shattered getting to the start line. My finishing position wasn’t where I’d expect it to be, nor did I feel particularly great during the race, but I used it as a hard training session and it certainly helped refocus the mind.

    Matthew Month 5 2Fast forward a couple of weeks and I’ve settled into more of a routine now and have got back into following thetrilife training program more rigorously over the last 10 days.. Unfortunately, as I write this, it’s only 5 days to an A race (Worthing Triathlon!). I don’t feel preparation has been brilliant nor am I in tip top shape for it but just plan on giving it a shot and enjoying as much as possible. Sometimes you can surprise yourself hey?! I feel like I’ve made some steady improvements this season but haven’t progressed quite as far as I’d like to and still perceive myself to be a little way off an age grouper slot. It’s amazing how fast the season has disappeared and I can’t believe “Summer” is pretty much over in the next few weeks.. Just 2 more races to go after the weekend and that’ll mean race kit packed away for a while!