A new athlete said to me last week that she does not train in the rain; she only races in it.
And this statement has spun around and around in my pea brain for one whole week! It’s on my brainstorm list for an article I’ve proposed to Active.com. So lucky you, you get to read the raw reactions and thoughts to her statement. Turn on your training brain because training is way more than just the body…
Why do we train in the rain??
1. We train in the rain to grow stronger inside, to become more resilient despite surrounding conditions. Make yourself hard and tough through your suffering and race day will be THAT much easier, right?
2. Safety- if you don’t know how to handle your bike on a wet road, what happens on race day when you ride even faster than usual on a wet road???? Add to that some high spoke tension race wheels, a dose of fear, and down you go, righto?
3. We make training tougher than racing so that racing is easier. Doesn’t it make sense to set the bar so high that when you race, it actually seems easier? What images of grueling training sessions can you conjure up on race day to help you along? I know for sure that Iroman day is easier than some of the workouts. Don’t you?
Next time it rains, get out and play. Hit your chain with some wet lube and show your dirty bike some TLC when you return. Run a hot bubble bath and offer yourself a treat and lots of praise. It IS HORRID to train in the rain, but once you try it you will know for sure what you are made of.
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For the last two years, the majority of my hard track workouts have been done in the rain. Call me lucky, but the clouds always seem to appear when I step on the track. I used to hate it, but now I just accept it and I think it's made me a better runner.
I train in the rain because I live in the Pacific NW and if I didn't train in the rain I'd never train! I love rainy race days...makes it feel like just another training day!
love this post, so true, yet I find myself indoor trainer in the rain, because of this little thing called laziness of not wanting to clean my bike...lol
I saw your headline on blogs I follow and had to click. My last tri was a murky rainy mess! They even cancelled the swim about 20 minutes prior to the start. I don't know how many people I've said this to,(but its been a bunch) but I was actually more fearful of the bike than the water. I don't train in the rain! Well I didn't --but now I'm going to. Your totally right! Next time it rains I'm taking my wheels out for a spin. Thanks for the insight.