Following on from our interview with Helen Jenkins, we caught up with Double Commonwealth Champion Jodie Stimpson to find out a bit more about how she trains, what it takes to be champion and her motivation for 2016!–
Having just read your latest blog, we see you’ve enjoyed a good few weeks training in South Africa. Very nice to escape England at this time of year, but we notice some triathletes train year round in the UK and some go to specific camps like the one you’ve been too. What do you like about doing these camps?
Its a very individual thing really. To get the best out of myself i find being on camp with my coach day in day out is what is needed for me to make changes in my training and performance, I find myself in a bubble when I’m on camp with no distractions and just doing things better, training,recovery the whole package.
Do you notice a difference on your times compared to training at “home”?
Since I have been training under Darren Smith and Dsquad I am not really at home a lot which is the toughest thing about being a triathlete for me but when i do get time at home i am usually under orders from coach to enjoy time with the family (my time at home usually falls at the same time as needing some easier training between training blocks or between races) but times usually don’t change if comparing to what I do I camp or at home.
Triathlons (and entrance fees / travel / equipment) can be quite expensive. Is your “job” triathlons? Or do you hold down other work to supplement your travels / competition?
I dont know how age group triathletes train so much sometimes, I worked full time out of high school just knowing that I wanted to be a professional triathlete so I worked full time for a few years and then I took the leap to make triathlon my job in 2009 and that year went from race to race earning just enough to get me to the next race and then at the end of 2012 i was on British Triathlon funding
If you get to focus on triathlons, what does a typical day look like for you?
Every day is very different to be honest and I get asked this question a lot, most days I have 3 training session a day maybe 4 ,most days I will swim around 5k though and then running an cycling can change,sometimes I will double run ,somedays a long bike or a bike with a run of and I try to gym at least 3 times a week.
Your website profile says you started swimming at 4 years old. My dad said I learnt to swim underwater at about the same age so I’m pretty confident in the water, but one of Rachel’s biggest obstacles to overcome is the sea swim. A lot of people say swimming is their biggest fear when it comes to multi sport events. Is there one piece of advice you could give those to boost their confidence?
If you can swim in a swimming pool then don’t be scared about the open water, i do agree swimming is the hardest one out of the 3 to get to grips on but if you swim ok in a swimming pool you will be fine in open give it a go, its that first dip thats the scariest and then once you go over that hurdle you will think what was a scared about !
Since your first triathlon, have you seen the involvement of more women in the sport? What tips would you give to women starting out in the sport of tri?
Its been fantastic to see triathlon grow so much since i have been in the sport and so many more women getting involved as well ,its brill , you have got to just give it a go ,once you have a go you will be addicted its the triathlon way.
2016 looks to be a big year for many triathletes, especially with the Rio Olympics on the horizon! How do you train for not just one but multiple large international events? What keeps you going?
Whats keeps me going is the easy question to answer, its been my dream to race at the olympics since i was little and thats what keeps me going, achieving my dream, training to achieve it doesn’t change, as my coach says there is no magical formula , no magic one training session, just day to day training consistence doing the best job you can everyday.
Thanks Jodie! And best of luck for a busy year ahead!!
To keep track of Jodie’s progress, check out her website and social links below:
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