WEBVTT - Exercise vs. rest: how a pro triathlete finds the right balance 

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Healthy Each Thanks for tuning into the daily

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<v Speaker 1>podcasts from Body and Soul. I am Felicity Hally. Do

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<v Speaker 1>you ever get into that mental cycle where you're so

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<v Speaker 1>tired you know you should exercise, but you just can't

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<v Speaker 1>pull yourself out the door. But then you wonder if

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<v Speaker 1>you do exercise, will it reinvigorate you? Or perhaps you're

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<v Speaker 1>so tired you should just do nothing. Oh it's called well,

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<v Speaker 1>I call it the exercise versus rest mental cycle. To

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<v Speaker 1>shed some light on it, I am joined today by

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<v Speaker 1>Ellie Salthouse. She's a professional triathlete and whoop athlete, and

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<v Speaker 1>she shares her mental mantras that the ones that help

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<v Speaker 1>pull her through and also well she gives us the

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<v Speaker 1>download on her rigorous training regime. Make sure you're listening

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<v Speaker 1>to Extra Healthy USh as well where we go and

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<v Speaker 1>be deeper into whether those one percenters, the things like

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<v Speaker 1>ice bars and saunas actually help performance. You can catch

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<v Speaker 1>that one wherever we get your podcasts Elly, thanks for

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<v Speaker 1>joining us on Healthy How are you?

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah? Thanks for having me I'm really well. Thanks.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, I've caught you in between tours. You're in Brisbane,

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<v Speaker 1>you're about to head to New Zealand. Where are you

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<v Speaker 1>up to in the whole racing.

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<v Speaker 3>Yes, I've been back in my hometown of Brisbane for

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<v Speaker 3>about four weeks now and I've just started my World

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<v Speaker 3>Championship training block and I'm actually off to Melbourne tomorrow

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<v Speaker 3>for a race and yeah, then i'll be off to

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<v Speaker 3>New Zealand in three weeks for the World Championships in Taupo.

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<v Speaker 1>Now, what does your training look like in a week?

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<v Speaker 1>I mean, I know will vary whether you're in season

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<v Speaker 1>or out of season and what you're doing, But what's

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<v Speaker 1>a typical training load for you?

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah, it definitely varies depending on what type of block

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<v Speaker 3>I'm in at the moment, but right now, being a

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<v Speaker 3>heavy block leading into the World Championships, I'm probably doing

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<v Speaker 3>between twenty five to thirty hours of training at the moment.

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<v Speaker 3>So that includes about twenty k a week of swimming,

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<v Speaker 3>between three hundred and four hundred and fifty k of

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<v Speaker 3>riding depending on elevation.

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<v Speaker 2>Well, yeah, and.

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<v Speaker 3>Then I'm running somewhere between forty and sixty k a

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<v Speaker 3>week as well, So it really depends whether we're in

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<v Speaker 3>kind of a speed week a base week. It varies,

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<v Speaker 3>but that's probably what I'm doing at the moment, and

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<v Speaker 3>then I have two strength sessions in there as well,

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<v Speaker 3>and then all the recovery on top of that.

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<v Speaker 2>So that's why it's a full time job. People don't

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<v Speaker 2>always understand that it takes a lot of time.

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<v Speaker 1>So you do that training load when you're in season

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<v Speaker 1>and then you race, or do you taper off when

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<v Speaker 1>you come up to a big race like the World Championships.

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah, I only do about seven days of time, so

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<v Speaker 3>my table will typically start exactly a week out from

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<v Speaker 3>a big race, and we have it pretty refined now,

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<v Speaker 3>so my load will basically half by the time I

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<v Speaker 3>reached that race.

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<v Speaker 2>But it's really.

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<v Speaker 3>Fine balance between being too fresh and being not fresh enough.

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<v Speaker 3>So we really refined my taper over the last couple

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<v Speaker 3>of years because I was finding that I was coming

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<v Speaker 3>a little bit too fresh into some races and that

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<v Speaker 3>can make you feel a little bit sluggish on race day.

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<v Speaker 3>So we've added a little extra load to my race week,

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<v Speaker 3>which is now had me coming in not quite as fresh,

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<v Speaker 3>but I am actually feeling better. So yeah, it's a

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<v Speaker 3>very fine balance, and I spent a lot of time

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<v Speaker 3>refining it.

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<v Speaker 1>What when you I mean, it's a heavy training load

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<v Speaker 1>in a week, and how do you kind of well

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<v Speaker 1>find the balance between when to kind of load up

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<v Speaker 1>and when to knock it back a bit and when

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<v Speaker 1>you around how your body and not just your body,

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<v Speaker 1>but your mind is feeling.

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah, I mean, sometimes the mind and the body aren't

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<v Speaker 3>always on the same page. And that's where I actually

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<v Speaker 3>utilize the Whoop device a lot, which is allowed me

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<v Speaker 3>to wake up and obviously see my recovery score every morning,

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<v Speaker 3>and so sometimes you know, I wake up feeling not

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<v Speaker 3>so great and then look at the recovery score and

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<v Speaker 3>it probably reflects that, in which case there's probably a

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<v Speaker 3>need for me to reduce my training that day, maybe

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<v Speaker 3>take a little extra time to rest or even back

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<v Speaker 3>off some of my intervals and just give myself the

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<v Speaker 3>time I need and my body the time it needs

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<v Speaker 3>to recover. But sometimes it works the other way. You

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<v Speaker 3>wake up and you're like, oh, I'm not feeling it today,

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<v Speaker 3>and you look at your recovery score and you're actually

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<v Speaker 3>in the green, and so you know, there's sometimes this

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<v Speaker 3>imbalance between the body and mind. But having that objective

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<v Speaker 3>data allows you to really be able to see what

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<v Speaker 3>your body is actually feeling on the inside and whether

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<v Speaker 3>you need to push today or recover it. Recover today.

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<v Speaker 3>But then on the other hand, there are days that

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<v Speaker 3>I need to push when I'm not feeling great because

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<v Speaker 3>I guess sometimes I wake up on race day having

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<v Speaker 3>only maybe two or four hours sleep.

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<v Speaker 2>And I need to push.

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<v Speaker 3>I can't, I can't move race. So sometimes there is

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<v Speaker 3>value in doing that as well. But every single day

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<v Speaker 3>you definitely cannot do that, otherwise you'll end up in

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<v Speaker 3>a hole. So you definitely need to listen to your body.

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<v Speaker 3>And I've I've found for me having the objective data

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<v Speaker 3>allows me to listen to it more than how my

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<v Speaker 3>body is actually feeling.

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<v Speaker 1>I mean, listen to your body. It's so true. It's

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<v Speaker 1>such a cliche. How do you actually listen to your body?

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<v Speaker 1>What do you what happened?

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<v Speaker 2>Like?

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<v Speaker 1>What do you tune into?

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah, I guess I'm pretty in tune with my body

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<v Speaker 3>after having having done this for so long. But I

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<v Speaker 3>think your body gives you sign and you really need

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<v Speaker 3>to listen to them. I mean, for me, when I'm

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<v Speaker 3>in a big, big training block and I'm not feeling

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<v Speaker 3>so great, first sign will probably be a sore.

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<v Speaker 2>Throat or just really really tired. When you wake up,

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<v Speaker 2>the motivation starts to really falter. And I think those

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<v Speaker 2>things for me are all abnormal, and those things are

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<v Speaker 2>things that I know when I need to back off

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<v Speaker 2>a bit to prevent myself from really getting into a hole.

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<v Speaker 2>I think I love training, and when I wake up

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<v Speaker 2>and I just don't want to get out the door,

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<v Speaker 2>that's when I know for me that that's a sign

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<v Speaker 2>that I need to be careful.

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<v Speaker 3>I'm usually right on the edge when that happens. So yeah,

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<v Speaker 3>I think just really listening to the small signs. Your

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<v Speaker 3>body is pretty intelligent and it will start giving you signs,

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<v Speaker 3>so you just allow yourself to listen to them. And

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<v Speaker 3>I think that's the most important thing.

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<v Speaker 1>How do you talk yourself through a training session when

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<v Speaker 1>your body saying yes, but your mind saying hell no.

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah. I mean this happens a lot because when you

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<v Speaker 3>are in pain, for instance, or in a position that

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<v Speaker 3>you want to get out of, your body will also

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<v Speaker 3>put in little blocks, mental blocks to tell you to

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<v Speaker 3>run away from whatever obstacle you might be facing.

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<v Speaker 2>So I think having some mantras.

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<v Speaker 3>Or having some little things that you can say to

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<v Speaker 3>yourself to get yourself out of a little rut. So

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<v Speaker 3>for me, for instance, when I'm training and racing, I

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<v Speaker 3>have three little things that I say to myself that

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<v Speaker 3>I work harder than everybody, I'm the best here and

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<v Speaker 3>no one can beat me. And those three things I

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<v Speaker 3>just have on repeat in my mind. And not only

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<v Speaker 3>are they very positive things that give me a little

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<v Speaker 3>boost in morale, but they also allow me to get

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<v Speaker 3>rid of any negative thoughts and just solely focus on

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<v Speaker 3>those things. I think the more energy and focus you

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<v Speaker 3>give to a negative thought or an unhelpful thought, the

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<v Speaker 3>more it snowballs into something bigger.

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<v Speaker 2>So if you can redirect.

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<v Speaker 3>Your focus onto something that's going to be helpful, not

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<v Speaker 3>only will you forget the unhelpful thought, but then the

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<v Speaker 3>positive thoughts start to snowball as well, so it works

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<v Speaker 3>both ways. So yeah, I think that's really important to

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<v Speaker 3>have things either written down or that you can easily

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<v Speaker 3>remember to grab onto really quickly when something negative or

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<v Speaker 3>unhelpful starts to come in.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, such little things, but they can be so powerful.

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<v Speaker 1>What talk to us about a race that you're most

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<v Speaker 1>proud of, perhaps even one that you did kind of well,

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<v Speaker 1>you came off for our sleep, or you struggled to

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<v Speaker 1>get through, or some a race that you powered through

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<v Speaker 1>and that you proudly got to the end.

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<v Speaker 3>Well, I think this year I've had one of those

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<v Speaker 3>races that I'm super proud of because the Pro Series

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<v Speaker 3>race is a new series for us, and they're kind

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<v Speaker 3>of higher level races than what we're used to doing.

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<v Speaker 2>And I had one.

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<v Speaker 3>Of those in Colorado this year in June, and I

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<v Speaker 3>got off the bike not feeling great, right, So I

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<v Speaker 3>had had not a great swim, not a great ride,

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<v Speaker 3>and I came off the bike eight nine minutes down

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<v Speaker 3>from the leader sitting in second, and nine minutes over

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<v Speaker 3>a half marathon at our level is a very big gap.

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<v Speaker 3>So I was very proud of the way that I

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<v Speaker 3>was able to mentally hold together and overcome the fact

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<v Speaker 3>that I wasn't feeling that great physically, and I managed

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<v Speaker 3>to run down the nine minute gap and close down

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<v Speaker 3>thank you, Yeah, closed down the gap with one kilometer

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<v Speaker 3>to go. So I think that's probably something I'm really

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<v Speaker 3>proud of because more than something I physically overcame, it

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<v Speaker 3>was more a mental thing, and I think that's often harder,

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<v Speaker 3>especially at this level. So I think that's a race

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<v Speaker 3>I'm really proud of. It's not always the fact that

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<v Speaker 3>I won, but it's something that you know, I've worked

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<v Speaker 3>really hard on the last couple of years and when

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<v Speaker 3>I can push through something like that, that's what makes

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<v Speaker 3>me really proud.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, that's impressive, Well well done and all the best

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<v Speaker 1>when well in Melbourne and New Zealand.

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<v Speaker 2>Thank you.

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<v Speaker 1>Always impressive professional athletes. Those trifle honors. How good are

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<v Speaker 1>those little mantras? She hasn't adopt a few of those.

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<v Speaker 1>Actually I did run with a mantra when I did

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<v Speaker 1>the half marathon. I am strong, I can do this

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<v Speaker 1>and my go tos anyway, what are yours? You can

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<v Speaker 1>tell us? You can DM me across social media at

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<v Speaker 1>Felicity Halle and also if you have any ideas for

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<v Speaker 1>upcoming episodes around fitness let me know anything else head

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<v Speaker 1>to Body and soul dot com. Do do you for us?

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<v Speaker 1>And socials grob Our print edition which is out in

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<v Speaker 1>your local Sunday paper and until tomorrow, Stay healthy