Upcoming Blog Series by Coach Sara

In the course of my triathlon career I have done bits and pieces of mental training. Starting with the work i did with Russell Martindale, a graduate student who was working on his PhD in Sports Psychology while i was pursuing my own PhD at the University of Edinburgh. This was followed by a bunch of book-reading and note-taking over the course of the next couple years. In 2006-07, i would plan specific visualization sessions into my schedule. Now, as i begin my post-baby comeback to triathlon, I am pleased to say that i will be working with a new mentor on the mental side of things, Bob Palmer from Barrie, Ontario.

Bob was a teacher and martial artist who stumbled upon a technique for optimizing performance in his own athletic career and life and is very keen to share than technique with other athletes and coaches. Bob is not a trained sports psychologist, just a guy with an idea that he feels passionately about and wants to share with as many people as possible. In my experience, people with great ideas and the drive to make change are often the best people to have in your corner.

Bob and I will be doing a 6-week program together called The Ignition Series. Each week I will be blogging about my experiences with Bob, what am i learning and how it is changing my perceptions and my performances. I feel that my first meeting with Bob is what helped me stay so calm when i punctured in St. Croix 70.3 and I look forward to seeing what we can accomplish together over the 6 weeks.

To learn more about Bob, check out his website here: www.sportexcel.ca

Watch this space for the six-part series "Adventures with Bob"

Sara