Wherever you may be in your athlete journey, find time to rally and collaborate with your community. We all have challenges to face and obstacles to overcome. Groups and collaborations can make these things easier!

Getting out into your athlete community can be a BIG boost for your motivation and resolve along your journey. Training and racing can be lonely – we get it as we’ve been there. Long hours, lots of eating and sometimes routes and training that doesn’t coincide with the “norm” of what others in your life may be doing. Remember, that’s okay! It’s YOUR journey – not theirs!

Here are THREE tips we’ve seen along the way that make rallying with your ‘peeps’ easier and more effective.

FOCUS THE GOAL – What’s your goal as an athlete? Does it align with someone else’s goal? Does it align with three other athlete’s goals? What about ten others? Gravitate towards people with similar OR the same goals and pool your efforts together for training, racing and lifestyle balance. Staying motivated when others can help keep you accountable is a proven strategy.

BE A GO-GETTER – Dive in socially and challenge yourself to talk with someone new. Talk with someone that was faster than you and that perhaps had a race time you aspire to achieve. Volunteer on a race day and chat up others that are there with you. What are they training for? What are they racing for? Go get connected and build your community!

CREATE COLLABORATION – Create a new weekly run group. Start a Saturday swimmers club. Mix up Mondays with a lunch “breakout” yoga class. Think outside the box on this one and work on creating something others may find useful AND that they can stay motivated to help be a part of.

What are your go to community builders? How are you networking to be a stronger athlete?