Michelle sent us this write up of her experience of how she came to join us on our training camp in Lanzarote at the world famous La Santa resort. And enjoyed it!
We love getting feedback like this about our club and training camps, both of which are only going to get better with dedicated members like Michelle.
Nearly two years ago I became a member of Total Transition Triathlon Club and if I’m honest I was bit half hearted about it. I wanted to support Chris, Jon and Tim in their new venture but didn’t really think I’d be much of a contributing member. They organised a training camp at Club La Santa in 2018 and there was no question about who was going on that – my husband, not me – why would I want to do that? As I stood in the arrivals hall waiting for him on his return and I saw the rest of the team coming back smiling and saying how fab it had been I knew I wanted to be part of that in 2019.
As the start of 2019 arrived with only 12 weeks to go I decided it was time to up my game if I wanted to get the most out of the training camp. I started attending Jon’s run group every week, turbo sessions every week and more importantly getting out on the road on my bike. I attended all the swimming sessions that I could although this was my only confident area. I worked hard on my nutrition too. I can’t tell you how nervous I was about going on this trip – completely out of my comfort zone. From the moment I arrived at La Santa all my nerves and worries disappeared. What an amazing facility. I fell in love with the swimming pool and the lagoon straight away never having swum in a 50mtr pool before. The bikes were great and even the running track looked appealing. With each day my confidence grew thanks to the support of the people around me, not only the coaches but my team mates who ranged from newbies like me to GB age groupers. I never felt like I couldn’t achieve anything. The support spurred me on every day and earned me Queen of the Mountain on the day of the long bike ride. I didn’t want to give up. I wanted to give it my best, I wanted to please the coaches. I’ve never done so much exercise in my life, I’ve never eaten so much in a week, I’ve never sweated so much and I’ve never worked so hard but I was on a high every time I got to the end of everything that was asked of me. I smiled and laughed my way through the tough bits because there was always someone to encourage me and spur me on. My reward for all of this is that the coaches chose ME as their “athlete of the week”. All the hard work had been worth it. I’ve never won anything in my life and to be rewarded for something athletic was truly amazing.
I loved my week at La Santa and can’t wait to get back there next year. It’s given me confidence in myself and I’ve made some great friends along the way. If you put the work in you will reap the rewards. Since I have returned I have smashed my front crawl 400mtrs time, who knows what else is round the corner?
Michelle
Thanks Michelle, we love how you’ve embraced the training and how far you’ve come. Keep at it, you’re doing brilliantly.
