When is the best time to start training for… (insert event here)?

A question I get regularly from athletes is ‘how long do you recommend I train for (insert event here)?’
To which I normally reply, how long is a piece of string? In fact, if an athlete comes to us with a short term view of completing a 10-12 week build for a race and that’s it, then we usually err on the side of recommending they come back when they are ready to enter the long term process of it all. 
Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither was the best version of your athletic self. A few weeks or even a few months of consistency is a start, but it’s a far cry from realising your true athletic potential. 
Fortunately for me, I have had, and continue to have, the absolute pleasure of working with a range of individuals who understand the importance of consistency over the long term. If not at first, they soon realise that the real magic happens only when many months are compounded into years. I talk about it often when I write, and my crew would have a few dollars under their belts from hearing me say the following words:
There are no secrets in this sport. The crux of it is having the tenacity, patience, and smarts to stay healthy, train consistently in a sustainable routine, and at the same time celebrate the small wins along the way, during the process. 
For those possessing some form of early onset wisdom and clarity, perhaps a mid-life crisis or a life changing event maybe, then they will understand that it is the process where the real joy and growth happens. Goals are great, but once they’re achieved, then what? We can most definitely revise and reset a goal easy enough, and aim to set the bar higher of course. But if the overarching mindset is one of growth as a complete athlete, then the process, and mastery of the basics (which is what the absolute best in the sport do so well), is where the honey is. 
There I go again, venturing off topic. It’s all related of course, however, back to that original question of how long should I train for a race? Or when’s the best time to start training for said race? Yes...ter...day would be the operative answer there folks. The longer you can consistently stay on course, become a student of growth for the love of the process, and stay healthy in the process, the greater the outcomes. 
I heard or read a really cool idea the other day: if we aim to get 1% better each day for a year, we will improve by 37% (don’t ask how they got that number). But if we decrease by 1% each day for a year, we end up at zero pretty quickly. And whilst we are the calm before the storm in terms of being “T:Zero” (the first transition you go through on your journey), we sure as hell want to see you progressing, so choose a 1% increase, every day, and marry this to a timeline with no end, and see what happens. I dare you!

What are you waiting for? Get out there and start yesterday already!
​Coach Scotty

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