What if i finish last?

While planning our talk on goal setting i began thinking about this question as its something we get asked fairly often when it comes to Triathlon races and often athletes will set their only goal for a given event is as long as I don't come last. 

We always ask athletes what they would like to achieve when planning to enter a race and more often than not the goal is either just to finish or to not come last.

While its easy to understand why this is a concern for some people the issue with setting this as a goal or even being worried about it is you have no control over it.  Setting goals that you are unable to control is sure fire way to never be satisfied and will usually result in you losing motivation or enjoyment of the sport. 

When first considering to enter a triathlon it's easy to psych yourself out when you envision the Brownlee Brothers and Triathletes being superhuman and looking like racing snakes.  The reality is the majority of triathletes are regular people and many of whom started exactly where you are now, curious to give it a go but worried that you can't do it or that people might laugh at you if you're slower than everyone else.Often the fear of finishing last will cause some athletes not to enter the race as they feel it will be embarrassing and with sports like triathlon you'll hear athletes say "I'll wait until I get a bit fitter before entering a race".   All this usually does is move the start point further away and you'll find another reason not to give it a go.  Learning to step outside your comfort zone and challenge yourself physically and mentally is not only liberating but will give you a greater sense of achievement and you'll wish you started sooner.

So what happens if you come last? Absolutely nothing happens, you get a medal and print out of you time just like everyone else and in reality most people will be too concerned with their own times to worry about where you finished.  As far as sport goes, Triathlon has one of the most welcoming communities and is definitely a sport for all ages and abilities. So regardless if you're not a good swimmer, rubbish cyclist or slow runner you can still complete triathlons.  You just need to convince yourself to take the first step.

If you have any questions about how to get started drop us a comment below or send us a message and we'll be more than happy to give you advice on how you can take steps to improving your fitness.