March 2005 and I was over Hong Kong in a big way, I hated my job and was ready to go back to Australia. I had my resignation letter ready and bags packed, when Claire (Murray) convinced me to stay and work with her on the CLSA triathlon project and go to Boulder for the summer and train under her coach Siri Lindley, then decide what to do…

Boulder was an awesome experience and changed me from someone who worked out to someone who trained. By October of that year I had traveled to the World Champs in Honolulu collecting two 2nd places, one in the 25-29 triathlon and one in the Aquathon open championships, this was the beginning of a 6month high where the training was great and I was improving greatly ( the highest of the high!). I was very lucky to then travel and watch the Hawaii Ironman which was one of the most inspirational, beautiful places and races in the world, not too mention a load of fun! So I returned to HK in October, feeling great and ready to take on what would be my first race as a professional in Phuket December 2005. I was incredibly nervous but happy to have the opportunity to race against some of the worlds’ best. It is such a beautiful place and be able to support and help all the superstars, who came out to race from the training group was amazing. I placed 5th and ran well, which I had always felt was my Achilles heal. It was another big improvement for me and things were going well.

I returned to Australia for the months of December and January, where I again trained with Siri, feeling fantastic and improving, however work commitments were calling and I returned to HK in February. It was about then that things began to slowly go downhill. I was struggling financially and racking up a huge credit card bill, living out of my car and staying where I could, 6 weeks here and 6 weeks there. I picked up Guardia (which took ages to detect) and was unable to finish a run session for the month of March, I started a new job with PURE Fitness and started to get tired!!

In April I traveled to Geelong Australia to race my first ITU Australian champs’ race with the big guns. I was feeling tired and nervous. Race day was bitterly cold and windy, water temp 14degrees. I had a new wetsuit – thanks to Orca but had never raced in the suit. Lesson 1: practice getting your suit off before the race. I had a great swim and came out in the lead pack of 6 girls, I then proceeded to take an eternity to get my suit off and I lost the pack. I rode alone for 10km until the 2nd pack of girls caught me and we worked together till the end of the bike, by now 2:30 down. I started the run feeling great for the first lap of 2.5km, however my run shoes were really bugging me. Lesson 2: Don’t race in new race flats with Orthotics – when never worn before! Ok so by about 5k I was in pain with a huge blister and a sore ankle – and finished 12th, not bad but a real eye opener to see how fast the front pack were moving. I then spent a week in and out of the physio trying to fix a bad ankle from a poor footwear choice!

I returned to HK a little disappointed and very humbled. I never really recovered the motivation after this race and plodded through sessions for the rest of April and into May so that I could finish Bintan. I raced the HK sprint race and was still ok but had lost that zing! Then in Bintan…I raced but throughout the whole course I felt tired and wanted to stop. The only thing keeping me going was knowing the superstars that with there with full time jobs and families, had come all the way to Bintan to race and finish, I could not call myself a coach and professional athlete if I just pulled out because I didn’t feel like it!
After the race I felt tired and still melancholy. I had lost the motivation to do the swim sets I did easily 2months earlier. I could barely get out of bed and all I wanted to do was sleep and eat.

I was lucky enough to travel to Nice to watch Claire and some of the training group do Ironman France. I was excited about being able to get some good training in before what was supposed to be my 2nd ITU race in Singapore on the 1st of July. So I took my bike and was able to do some great long easy riding in Nice. However the swim was still off and by the last day I was not able to run with incredibly painful shins. On returning to HK I found out that I had shin splints and so had to pull out of the Singapore race. I felt like I didn’t care anyway, as I was still tired and feeling slow. Lesson 3: This is called overtraining syndrome, when properly diagnosed best treatment is rest! However I kept pushing through, as I knew that I was traveling to Aspen to work, train and race for the summer and I wanted to be fit and ready for the training and racing.

Ok, so the summer didn’t pan out quiet that way I or anyone else had expected. The night I arrived in Aspen was cold and raining, I had come completely un-prepared for a mountain summer and had to get warm clothes sent. That night I began to feel sick and spent the next 10 days in bed apart from 2hrs a day where I worked taking training sessions. I was alone, sick, not able to train and beginning to feel depressed. By this time it had been 4 weeks with no running. I then tried to start running but found the altitude and whatever virus I had picked up really were not budging. I had already entered the Boulder peak triathlon as a pro, so despite the 2 weeks in bed I decided I needed to see some familiar faces and went to Boulder to race. I had an absolutely shocking race, maybe my worst to date. I was barely able to run and finished last, 15minutes behind a girl that I had beaten by 5min less than 8mths prior. I laughed it off and just thought it was the altitude and lack of running. I then went to California and raced the Vineman ½ IM, again I struggled through the run and felt disappointed and apathetic.

I felt terrible for my training partner in Aspen, the whole 2mths I was there I had no motivation and every session was a struggle. I had lost my mojo and just couldn’t get my body to do what I wanted it too. We did a fun race towards the end of August which I had glimpses of a good race but my running was still not right.
I returned to HK in September a couple of kilos heavier and still not able to hold the times I had previously. The shins splints were gone due to some new Orthotics and chiropractic care in Aspen but there was something not right with my right hip and gluteal when I ran, but I kept running! Lesson 4: Don’t ignore any persistent niggles, they don’t just go away, no matter how much you wish them away.

So back in HK I was to begin racing for Hong Kong at the Macau ITU race. I was in no shape mentally or physically, so I pulled the pin. My swim times were still 10sec per 100m off and my run about 15sec/ 400m off. So off I went to a multitude of Doctors, who have all been wonderful and I began treatment for depression. This is something that I have struggled with in the past, so it was not new territory. It was refreshing to know that many sports people actually suffer from depression and things like performance anxiety even in Hong Kong. I managed to get myself somewhat out of my rutt and started to feel a little stronger by the Hong Kong race on the 14th of October. However my glutes and back had been getting progressively worse and I was taking anti inflammatory drugs to cope with the pain. By the morning of the race I was in loads of pain and took 3 Nurofen and an anti inflammatory for good measure: Lesson 5: Do not take pain killers before a race, you will pay for it. I got through the race, running badly but finishing. I then was drug tested and was in a total panic as I had never read the anti – doping restrictions and had taken quiet the cocktail that morning. The next day I was a double hit, I could barely walk and the newspaper had some delightful way of delivering the results……do they realize this really doesn’t help athletes?!?!?

So this has ended my first year as a pro. The highest high, a couple of loop the loops and I have ended on a low, low on my back – literally! This year has not been what I planned or envisaged but at least I have learnt some important lessons that I can avoid next year. It is also interesting talking to other first year pro’s and many suffer with some of the same issues I have and yet so many people think it’s so simply. Surely, you just stop working, train hard, get your license and go faster, right? It can be really tough making the transition, mentally more than physically as so many things change and you tend to put so much pressure on yourself.

So what next….? I am finally making some headway with my injury and fingers crossed should be able to start some light running this week with my new friend, the gurdle guaranteed to make you look really attractive!! I am still hoping to be able to do Phuket although I won’t be race fit but it would be nice to get out there and more importantly watch all the clients we have been helping get that finishers T-shirt. I plan to end the season with a bang at the post race party then Claire, (who has agreed to help me with my training for next year) and I have some serious planning to make sure Season # 2 has some happier stories and I come back with an even bigger bang than my party hangover!!

Joss Pollock