The 4 Secrets of Summer Training

School is over, seniors have graduated, and West Lafayette has quieted down. It almost feels like the campus has transformed into some kind of desert. The air is hot and dry and the streets are mostly barren except for an occasional sighting of a student lurking among the campus buildings. Are there any Purdue triathletes hiding in this ghost town? Surprisingly, yes.

I surveyed some of our athletes and nearly 60% of them said they would be on campus for at least part of the summer. And just because campus has died down doesn't mean our training has taken a backseat either. Even though the club doesn't host scheduled practices in summer, almost all of us plan to "maintain" fitness, and over half of us said we were actively training. I asked our triathletes how they effectively train during summer break, and these are their secrets they shared.

1. "Run",

says Maria Welch. Many of us take time off for travel in the summer. You may not have a membership to the local pool, or a bike box for flying, but you can almost always find room in your suitcase for a pair of tennies and some sport shorts. If this describes you, skip the commitment of swimming and biking and just go for a run.

2. Commute to work.

Maybe you're more like Sean Hollen and you want to ride more and run less "'cause running sucks". Perhaps you just don't have the time for workouts because you have a job or internship. Kevin Schrock says, "I try to bike to work now and again, and if I'm motivated, I do something over the weekend". Even if you are busy with work, you can still rack up miles by commuting.

3. Open water swim.

It's a different beast than pool swimming and devoting some time to reclaiming confidence in the water is key for summer racing. Club member Kara Nelligan knows this, and she "[tries] to swim in the lake most weekends to get open water practice". Overcoming anxiety, sighting, and continuously swimming without rest are all skills we need for races. Living in Indiana forces us to hone them in one short season, so be sure to take advantage of it.

Me, practicing open water skills in Lake Monroe.

4. Sign up for a race.

Summer is the season of triathlon and there are opportunities to race as often as you like. Racing may be the strongest motivational force for training, and our triathletes use it to their advantage. Club president, Caitlin Nelligan, is "racing a few races [she] does most summers" and she's working diligently because she is trying to qualify for Boston Marathon this year. Patrick Martin has been "hardcore training" for the 70.3 distance and he's hired a coach to help him get the job done. Vice president, Edwin Jacobson, has been traveling for his internship which has kept him from training on weekends, but since he is signed up for Chicago Marathon, he says he'll soon be ready to "build endurance back up". Signing up for a race could be the push you need to stop putting off your training.

There you have it. Swim, bike, or run by whatever means availible to you, and register for a race to kickstart and maintain motivation for throughout the summer.

If you're looking to sign up for a temperate race at the end of the outdoor season, look no farther than Boilerman. We'll be hosting our annual olympic distance triathlon on September 24, 2017. See you there!