{"id":8649,"date":"2018-03-09T21:11:57","date_gmt":"2018-03-09T21:11:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/?p=8649"},"modified":"2025-06-09T06:32:30","modified_gmt":"2025-06-09T10:32:30","slug":"do-you-set-yourself-up-to-fail-in-triathlons","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/do-you-set-yourself-up-to-fail-in-triathlons\/","title":{"rendered":"Do You Set Yourself Up to Fail in Triathlons?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-8658 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Creating-Goals-to-Stay-Focused.jpg\" alt=\"Creating Goals to Stay Focused\" width=\"600\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Creating-Goals-to-Stay-Focused.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Creating-Goals-to-Stay-Focused-300x150.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Creating_Goals_to_Stay_Focused\"><\/span>Creating Goals to Stay Focused<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2><div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_82_2 ez-toc-wrap-center counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-transparent ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Article Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #0769bf;color:#0769bf\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #0769bf;color:#0769bf\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/do-you-set-yourself-up-to-fail-in-triathlons\/#Creating_Goals_to_Stay_Focused\" >Creating Goals to Stay Focused<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-4' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-4'><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-4' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-4'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/do-you-set-yourself-up-to-fail-in-triathlons\/#Are_you_on_the_right_path_to_achieve_your_goal_Do_you_need_to_improve_a_certain_aspect_of_your_training_or_racing\" >Are you on the right path to achieve your goal? Do you need to improve a certain aspect of your training or racing?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-4'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/do-you-set-yourself-up-to-fail-in-triathlons\/#Goals_provide_direction_and_motivation\" >Goals provide direction and motivation.<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-4'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/do-you-set-yourself-up-to-fail-in-triathlons\/#How_to_Focus_on_the_Process_During_Races\" >How to Focus on the Process During Races:<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/do-you-set-yourself-up-to-fail-in-triathlons\/#Triathlete_Confidence_Workbook_Program\" >Triathlete Confidence Workbook Program!<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p><strong>High expectations<\/strong> rarely result in top results&#8211;they actually lead to less <strong>confidence.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Of course you want to get better and that means faster times or better finishes. After all, you are training an enormous amount of hours and making tremendous sacrifices. You don\u2019t want your efforts to go for naught.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It is absolutely okay to be ambitions, but <strong>high expectations<\/strong> are the downfall for many triathletes. This may sound counter-intuitive but you can improve <strong>confidence<\/strong> by having no expectations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>High expectations<\/strong> put the <strong>focus<\/strong> on the results of a race and how well you should perform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When you are <strong>focused<\/strong> on the destination, you pull your attention away from the process you need to follow to get to that destination.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For example, you set a goal to shave five minutes off your personal best&#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In order to achieve that goal, you have to identify a few things you need to do to accomplish that goal; such as stay relaxed on the swim and fast efficient transitions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When you <strong>focus<\/strong> on the end time, you&#8217;re not <strong>focusing<\/strong> on your game plan in the swim and in transitions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Triathletes set themselves up to fail with high expectations. You <strong>focus<\/strong> on the need to meet an expectation rather than on the process needed to race their fastest race.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When the expectation is not met, you will feel like you failed and all your efforts are a waste of time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Goals are good to have as these are milestones to shoot for, not dire needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When you <strong>focus<\/strong> on the process, the race itself becomes feedback:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Are_you_on_the_right_path_to_achieve_your_goal_Do_you_need_to_improve_a_certain_aspect_of_your_training_or_racing\"><\/span>Are you on the right path to achieve your goal? Do you need to improve a certain aspect of your training or racing?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Mario Mola, World No. 1 triathlete, won four of the nine ITU World Triathlon Series races in 2017 and was crowned world champion. Mola has a mindset that has enabled him to reach the pinnacle of the sport.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As Mola prepares for the start of the season at the ITU World Triathlon Abu Dhabi, Mola is using the race to gauge where he is in his training.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Mola is going into the race with no expectations of achieving a certain result&#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Instead, Mola is approaching the race with the <strong>mindset<\/strong> that this is just one race of many in the season, a strategy that lessens competitive pressure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>MOLA:<\/strong> <em>&#8220;This is the first race after eight months of competitions last year. For me, if the race goes well then it&#8217;s good. Otherwise you just keep working through the year because this is a world series. If you can\u2019t win here, there is always another.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It is important to have <strong>goals.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Goals_provide_direction_and_motivation\"><\/span>Goals provide direction and motivation.<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>You <strong>DON&#8217;T HAVE TO<\/strong> reach your goals&#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When it comes to racing, leave those <strong>expectations<\/strong> at home and <strong>focus<\/strong> on the process of performing your best.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_to_Focus_on_the_Process_During_Races\"><\/span>How to Focus on the Process During Races:<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Before you even leave your house for the triathlon, ask yourself, <em>&#8220;What do I need to focus on that will help me stay in the moment and what strategies do I need to apply to achieve this task?&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Remind yourself of the process during your <strong>pre-competition routine<\/strong> to reaffirm what you would like to <strong>focus<\/strong> on during the race.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Leave your expectations behind. Don\u2019t get ahead of yourself. <strong>Focus on the process<\/strong>, one section of the course at a time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Triathlete_Confidence_Workbook_Program\"><\/span>Triathlete Confidence Workbook Program!<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"210\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Tri-Cover-Crop-Trans-210x300.png\" alt=\"Triathlete Confidence\" class=\"wp-image-8682\" style=\"width:172px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Tri-Cover-Crop-Trans-210x300.png 210w, https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Tri-Cover-Crop-Trans.png 517w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 210px) 100vw, 210px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>If you are read to improve your <strong>mental toughness<\/strong> and perform with ultimate <strong>self-confidence<\/strong> in races, &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/triathlete-mental-toughness\/\">Triathlete Confidence<\/a>&#8221; will do just that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dr. Patrick Cohn and Andre Bekker (formerly ranked #1 in age category 50+ for 70.3 distance) share powerful metnal strategies to elp you perfrom your best in races.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/triathlete-mental-toughness\/\"><strong>Triathlete Confidence: Mental Toughness Training For Peak Performance in Racing<\/strong><\/a>\u201d is a complete workbook program of the TOP eight mental training sessions we teach our triathletes to help them boost racers\u2019 mental game and improve consistency \u2013 from how to mentally prepare for races to performing under pressure with <strong>mental toughness<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"gb-container gb-container-f226694a\">\n\n<a class=\"gb-button gb-button-0c5a8a59 gb-button-text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/triathlete-mental-toughness\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">GET DETAILS<\/a>\n\n\n\n<a class=\"gb-button gb-button-c958e0a5 gb-button-text\" href=\"https:\/\/shop.peaksports.com\/collections\/for-specific-sports\/products\/triathlete-confidence-digital\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">BUY NOW<\/a>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Creating Goals to Stay Focused High expectations rarely result in top results&#8211;they actually lead to less confidence. Of course you want to get better and that means faster times or better finishes. After all, you are training an enormous amount of hours and making tremendous sacrifices. You don\u2019t want your efforts to go for naught. It is absolutely &#8230; <a title=\"Do You Set Yourself Up to Fail in Triathlons?\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/do-you-set-yourself-up-to-fail-in-triathlons\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about Do You Set Yourself Up to Fail in Triathlons?\">Sport Psychology Article&#8230;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8657,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[142],"tags":[712,1101],"class_list":["post-8649","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports-psychology-tips","tag-high-expectations-in-sports","tag-setting-goals-in-sports"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t<!-- All in One SEO Pro 4.9.5.2 - aioseo.com -->\n\t<meta name=\"description\" content=\"High expectations rarely result in top results--they actually lead to less confidence. 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