I suppose when you start posting something like this in Slowtwich
I’ve been going hard at racing marathons since 2011 and then Ironman/half Ironmans since 2014. I retired from the full IM in 2023 after doing 6 of them. 4 very good performances. 2 in 2023 were rough (including Kona) due to menopause and a couple major injuries. I thankfully had a decent 2024 season doing 3x70.3s. But this year I canceled my 2 x 70.3s. I’m just burnt out and believe I’m ready for a new chapter. I live in an off-grid paradise and really don’t want to have a heavy training plan all the time but still want to open water swim, ride my gravel bike and run at my own leisure.
I qualified for Marbella Worlds 70.3 last July 2024 (was 4th in my AG and there were 4 slots). And I figured it would be my last big race. A fun destination. But that was a year ago!
I am trying to book tickets and realize I now can’t book a direct flight to Malaga anywhere from the Northeast including Montreal. Flights are now grossly expensive but I’m more concerned that the driving to airports and long flights with my bike will be murder on me. (and my husband who has to put up with me flying lol)
What if I just cancel it all meaning the whole Marbella trip? Would be a huge relief. But part of me would feel like I’m missing out.
Anyone else ever been in a similar predicament?
I’ve already been to Kona and been to Nice Worlds 70.3 in 2019 and Chatt Worlds 70.3 in 2017. I’ve done a lot of racing and been on the podium many times. But now I just want to enjoy my off-grid paradise in the middle of the woods in Vermont. I’m 55 so I’m not young but not terribly old either.
Just do what you feel like doing. We’re amateurs. I wouldn’t even term this retirement. You would simply continue to enjoy your hobby after adjusting your goals.
Also, no reason why you can’t come back to racing when you feel like it. You can even try to ask IM to defer your slot, just in case the comeback was quick. No shame in trying.
I don’t have much insight or helpful advice, but I can emphasize with the burnt out feeling. I qualified for Kona and Marbella and the thought of Marbella just seems exhausting right now. I’ll likely pull through as I’ve never experienced a 70.3 worlds, but I agree with the sentiment that at a certain point traveling with the bikes and the time commitment can loose its luster, particularly if there are reasons one would rather not leave home. All in all, if it means something to you to go, and if it would be an enjoyable trip for those going with you, make the trek and have a ball. Part of the reason I’m less than enthused about Marbella is due to making the trip alone which takes out a good chunk of the fun.
Congratulations on qualifying for both world champs! But I understand how both back to back with only a few weeks could seem daunting between the traveling.
And it’s definitely harder to travel alone to a big race.
Appreciate your post. My husband is actually still looking at airline tickets now through our Capital One account to use a lot of miles we have, but I am not ready for him to pull the trigger
My husband keeps telling me I was the happiest in 2020 when races were canceled. I was just swim/bike/running when I felt like it and did remain in decent shape. I did a lot of trail/mtn running and gravel bike riding (hardly touched my tri bike). I also swam in the open water a lot with a nice group of people who would bring cake and goodies for after a swim.
Pep talks are good. You post a lot with well-thought-out comments, and you race at an age-group elite level. So basically, you’re working as an unpaid professional athlete AND thinking/asking about retirement. You’re probably frustrated, too, by the travel hassle and cost factors. And you might be experiencing some FOMO.
You’re not alone:
A 2019 study found that about 35% of elite athletes have mental health concerns. The top issues reported by athletes included feelings of burnout, depression, and anxiety.
According to a survey by CNBC “Just 11% of would-be retirees surveyed … say they don’t plan to work in any capacity after they retire. More than a third of respondents — 36% — say they’re not sure, while the majority, 53%, anticipate working…”
If triathloning is like work to you, then replace work-related words above with your sport-related words.
Below, maybe replace professional/athletes with serious age-grouper if you want.
In other studies responses revealed that a significant number of “professional athletes feel ‘lost,’" and “experience a difficult and distressing transition. Research shows that (between 20% and 45%) struggle with a loss of identity, purpose, and social support after their career ends, often leading to mental health issues like anxiety and depression.” Furthermore, “60% of athletes report it takes six months or longer to feel in control of their lives after retirement.”
My quick story is somewhat similar. Motivation for future races seemed diminished right after Kona. Although motivation resurfaced from an unexpected source —a business school professor — Simplified, his lesson was that you cannot get lost if you do not know where you are going, but if you don’t know where you want to go, you may never get there. With no race plans for the future, no direction, no journey, I could not get lost; the professor helped me realize that I was in that place of not knowing where to go. And I decided I wanted to know.
You might want to consider choosing a journey that interests you. I did, and I wrote about it in Triing. I stepped away from a lot of the championship stuff and went to places where I wanted to learn more about. It’s a good read. You could gain some valuable insights to help shape your future path. You’ll definitely enjoy a few laughs and relate to much of the content.
Appreciate your post! I’ll check out your book too! I’m always looking for new books to read.
Training for 70.3s and fulls is quite a lot if you want to do well. I did used to love all that long hard training. But this was when I was in my 40s! I’m at the point where I don’t have that drive to push myself so hard anymore mostly on the tri-bike where most of the training is done on zwift as the paved roads are now so dangerous. I’d rather go ride my gravel bike for 3 hours on a Saturday on quiet dirt roads. During the training “grind” I never had time to go xc skiing or long hikes or just exploring trails not far from my house or town.
Is that nice group with the cake and goodies still going? Sounds great.
A 3 hour gravel ride, trail hikes and runs, xc skiing. You will be fitter than all but the tiniest % of mid late 50s women. Off that fun stuff you will still be very competitive if you choose to race.
It sounds like at the moment you feel obligated to train and race at a high level. Maybe you feel that is what identifies you. Does it really though?
Sounds like you’ve already answered your own question. You said you just want to enjoy your life in the woods, so do that. Train to stay healthy and fit and if you get the urge to race again go for it. If you’re dreading the travel to Marbella, don’t force it. You’ve been to championships before so probably won’t regret it later.
It sounds like the only way you find you that you get better or what you do is volume. which is not true, especially the older you get. You sound like you might be swimming up stream rather then trusting to go with your body and minds flow and trust quality.
e.g. two quality runs workout of 40 - 60 min during the week and then go do long hike or xc ski in the winter would probably make you faster and more fit overall come spring then what you must be doing in the winter and you would enjoy it more too it sounds???
If it makes you feel any better I have not qualified for Marbella but even though I live right in the heart of civilization in Ca, the thought of flying there with a bike and racing seems like a serious grind in itself! Air travel suck hard nowadays!
I think the training for 70.3 is vastly more flexible. Of course I want to train a certain way to be the best I can. But the difference is, if I allow life to get in the way and I miss some workouts- for 70.3 I might race slower but I’ll still have fun.
For IM, if I don’t commit to the training plan, the race can quickly become miserable.
Look at it another way, you’ve done the championships already. Now you can cherry pick races in venues you want, when you feel like it. And if you need a break that’s ok too.
considered doing any of the single sport events? there would be some cool mountain bike and gravel stuff around vermont? if you can switch in your head to just doing events for fun, rather than trying to hammer it and get the top effort out of yourself on that day, that may make it more fun.
Maybe as a suggestion, have you looked at XTRI events? Especially as you mention that you love your outdoor experiences? Of course those are hard races, even the SP5 ones (middle distance). But there is a completely different spirit. Not so performance-driven like Ironman-racing, but more like an adventure-spirit. Finish times and rankings are mostly irrelevant. Being out on the course and race in beautiful nature is at its core.
Maybe that could be a good “retirement” solution for you.
…if your motivator is placing in races, then there is no way around structured and likely hard training and if you don’t want that anymore then you probably should “retire”. If on the other hand you enjoy racing and participating in nice Tri-Events you could just retire from structured training…I have never qualified for Kona, or 70.3 worlds but I have abandoned structured training in 2020…ever since I have continued to race a 70.3 here and there but also Marathons, Gran Fondos, and trail runs. Interestingly, my 70.3 finishing times have not dropped much even though I hardly ever swim and almost never ride my tt bike (like 4 times in 2 years, including 2 races)…
Anyway, good luck with whatever you decide. No need to get stressed about a hobby.
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Just a question… what is the difference between ‘retiring’ and just not doing any more triathlons or long distance triathlons or middle distance triathlons whilst you don’t feel like it at this point in your life?
I would just do whatever you want to do and not put any labels on it. Your identity doesn’t have to be ‘triathlete’, you’re just someone (like the rest of us) who happens to have spent the last few years doing triathlons (and doing them super well from the sound of things)…
