Mate I had a look at your Strava, all your runs are sub 4.30km/min, no wonder you're burning out and losing motivation! Read up about 80/20 running, you should be doing a lot more easy running.

Is this the 'whine like a little bi-otch" thread?

Just do sprints. Sounds like at your fitness level, wouldn't really need to train for them.

This.

I've been doing triathlons for almost 5 years now. A bunch of sprints and olympics to start. Then a few HIMs. And first IM this year. After that I'll take a breather. I'll problem do some sprints next year. But my training will be far less structured. Triathlons are fun and I want to keep them that way.

Definitely this bit.

Do/did you have a goal (event, time, qualification)? Or is/was it just triathloning? I struggle to exercise just for the sake of it. For me it's a goal. Every time.

But as I've effectively been injured for nearly 18 months, the current goal is easy, I just want to bike and run pain-free!

Definitely look at your lifestyle though. Commuting sucks in so many ways; time, energy and motivation. It's dead time (and one of the myriad of reasons I moved to NZ) (but not Auckland).

And also, what he said. Again. And don't be too hard on yourself either...

This happened to me too. Thankfully I had a good amount of vacation time and just took a few weeks off without much of a plan. The first week I was still exhausted and didn't want to train. Then, like magic, everything was back to normal and I fell in love with training from week 2+. Now I'm back to work and still enjoying training and looking forward to the next race!

You might not be able to take a few weeks off, but consider trying to take more than a few days straight without any plan. For me, the commute was adding so much stress that it was just too much on my body and I wasn't recoverying and going further away from recovering. I assume a 2hour commute is doing the same for you (mine is 2-3hours total most days).

I think OP has lost interest and the motivation to post in this thread...

My vote would be try a different sport. Which might just be a variation on SBR - e.g. going MTBing, or focusing on a single sport if there's one of the 3 that you enjoy more than others. Or doing some small, local events instead of big ones. Or could be more drastic - go lift some weights, or get in a rowing boat/kayak, or play some team sports. There are plenty of ways to be fit and healthy without doing tri.

Unless you're a paid, professional triathlete, you're doing it for the love of the sport, and you're doing it for yourself and not anybody else. If you're not enjoying it, and that's been the case for a while, then don't be afraid to change things. You might find that after a couple of months of doing something else that your appetite for triathlon training comes back. Or it might take a couple of years. Or it might never come back. As long as you're staying active and doing something you enjoy then it really doesn't matter!

(for N=1, sport and training has been a constant in my life since I was a kid - I'm now 42 - and other than when injured or in the immediate aftermath of a big race, I've done some manner of training pretty much every day for 30 years or so. At various times I'd have described myself as a rower, a triathlete, a cyclist, a rugby player, a general fitness enthusiast, occasionally a runner, a skier, and various combinations of the above including duathlon, offroad tris, etc. I haven't actually done a tri in 9 years as haven't found time to train properly for all 3 sports since the kids came along, though I've done a fair bit of cycling and running in that time. Have some life changes coming shortly which should revitalise my appetite for swimming, so am planning on doing another tri before it becomes 10 years!)

 
A new bike got me off the bench and back into it.

This

I only do sprint and Olympic and I'm not really interested in doing any longer distences, I agree though, I need to mix in some longer runs



just can't be arsed :p

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http://www.thetrinerd.com

For me, there are typically 3-4 reasons why my desire to train decreases:
1)routine - I'm pounding out the same workouts or racing the same distances and it almost feels "Ho-Hum" even during the race
2)end of a big training block - the workouts have pulled me away from the family more than I like and they have felt obligatory in order to lay the fitness/mileage foundation I want/need for my goal/race. I feel more fried mentally than physically.
3)low on sleep/not sleeping well.
4)no goal or objective in the near term (over the next 1-3 months)

Things that have helped me get the fire back (and it has always come back)
1)trust my training enough to be comfortable in taking time off. The last 5 years I have completely shut down riding by the end of October. I am mentally ready to stop. I will pick it up again in early/mid December and am chomping at the bit to start knocking out workouts on the trainer. The unexpected bonus is that I find I have better form come March because of the time off.
2)doing different activities or events (as others have said).
3)scheduling and doing an epic workout or training camp with a friend or group of friends. This is typically a workout or group of workouts where there is a question mark as to whether or not I'm going to be able to complete it (an especially long swim, a long ride or tons of climbing, an epic hike up a mountain, etc.) This takes me out of "the known" and puts me in unchartered territory. I'm both excited and nervous. Both of these are excellent motivators for me.

#1 above, taking the time off, by far has been the most effective for helping get the fire back.

If you want to rediscover the interest and motivation...you will!! Good luck! Enjoy the journey!!

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Tad

It took awhile, but I finally discovered that its not the destination that's important, but rather the journey.

Hahaha, I look forward to seeing elivs at the GNR because it's going home, I miss the North East

I did go back bouldering recently, which was fun, but that's just a once a week thing

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http://www.thetrinerd.com

Totally been through it, I think we all have. I'm in my 9th year of doing Triathlons. This year, I think I would have totally burnt out but luckily I discovered group riding, which is totally fun, new and different for me, and a running club that meets on Sunday mornings. These two things have brought a social aspect that was totally missing. In a group scenario, it's enjoyable helping motivate and advise slower athletes and you'll get motivated and inspired by faster athletes. I know clubs and groups are not always an option for everyone, but working out alone all the time definitely can pull you down emotionally.

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"The first virtue in a soldier is endurance of fatigue; courage is only the second virtue."
- Napoleon Bonaparte

Don't sweat it! Just do whatever puts a smile on your face.

I finished my A-race last month after a solid 9 months of training. For me, this summer now is just about doing sport for fun. Hilly muddy trail running in the rainy season, silly one-mile Strava challenges that I would normally ignore, a 40 mile run for my 40th this month... Basically whatever I feel like doing on any given day, including sitting on the sofa if that's where my mood is! The motivation always comes back for me.

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http://www.howesgreg.com

I was in the same place several years ago. I quit triathlon completely and started doing only trail (and road) running and ows races. In the summer I focus on swimming (but still run some) and fall/winter I focus on running (but still swim some). What I've rediscovered is that jacked feeling I used to get after a triathlon. Part of what I like is not having to lug around all that gear. To me there's nothing better than being in the middle of a forest on a single track or in the middle of a lake at 6:30 in the morning.

A lot of triathletes go through what you're experiencing. It's natural. I would say it is the minority of people who adopt triathlon as a long term lifestyle.

Try something else, or a single sport focus. Go to the gym. Join an organized sports team.

I stopped racing 3 years ago after I had similar feelings. I still love to run, stayed in masters swimming, and occasionally go for the coffee run bike ride. I'm not in peak form, but still in great shape. I just joined a running group for the camaraderie. I may race at the end of it, I may not. Before I started in triathlon, I was a rower and had similar feelings at the end of that stint of my life.

Being an athlete is a life long commitment to yourself, not just to one (or three) sports. It is ok to move on from triathlon.

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Long Chile was a silly place.

That's why I am here at ST. I did well as a competitive bodybuilder and powerlifter with years of dedicated sports specific training. I enjoyed that training, but once I made the step to retire from competition I was able to do two things. One, I changed my strength training to more of what I enjoy and reduce the rigors of heavy weight on my structure and yet I still have decent strength for my age. Two, I got to start doing endurance training which for me was taboo for many years other than doing cardio to make my weight class and lean up.

So I get to do a form of strength training that I enjoy and I get to sit on a tri bike for long course cycling and yet not stress about being competitive or that my watts/kg are not that great. My fitness and strength are fairly good for most guys of my age. Well at least I am fairly happy about it and love training daily and twice a day for most days.

I think I've realised this weekend that I'm just down in general
I realised when catching up with someone that I haven't seen in years, I realised that in that time I have done nothing with my life.
Wife is miserable, she's struggling with her business and we can never seem to get a kid past 12 weeks. My work is not stressful but I think I'm making it harder for myself by getting annoyed by everyone and everything.

Fuck it, I need to sort my head out, then I think I'll be better able to support the wife as she sorts her head out

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http://www.thetrinerd.com

Unless you're killing infants

Losing babies in first trimester will fuck with your head

That would / will impact everything for both of you

Tri is an after thought

If i have misunderstood the last post ignore and carry on