Posted By Daisy on October 20, 2010

1.  You’ve gotta commit. A serious goal like a triathlon can’t be approached in a half-assed way, and you can’t switch gears or give up midstream.   If you have a baby, you’ve committed, whether you like it or not.

2. You’re in it for the long haul. It’s going to take time.  For the triathlete, this means months and maybe years of training.  For you, the parent, you are looking at a minimum 18 years in training.

3.  You need a good coach. A coach keeps an athlete focused, provides encouragement, and can help you “screen out” the noise of bad advice from amateurs.  If you have picked a well-credentialed pediatrician that fits your temperament, you already have an excellent coach.  USE him or her.

4.  You need a buddy. Your coach is not your buddy.  People who are working on exercise goals know that it’s important to have someone at or near your own level, to commiserate with you, to push you and to keep you honest.   Same goes for parenting.  I promise you that someone in your circle of friends, family and colleagues can fit that bill.

5.  You must start small. The new triathlete-in-training doesn’t run 10 miles right out of the gate.  He or she needs to begin with a focused and manageable goal to get that first taste of success that’s needed if he or she is going to keep going.   Lucky for you the parent, you have exactly one manageable goal to focus on during the first three (make it six) months of your training — keep the little creature alive.   Tune everything else out, and do that one thing.  Then your real training can begin.

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