Gaining a Mental Edge Using Sports Psychology to Improve Your Cycling By John Hughes Paris-Brest-Paris ’79, ’87, ’91, ’95, ’99; Furnace Creek 508 ’89 (Course Record), ’93 (1st); Boston-Montreal-Boston ’92 (Course Record); Reno-Tucson record ’94 (849 miles in 54:17 still standing), Oregon North-South record ’95 (292 miles in 14:23, still standing); Race Across AMerica ’96; Rocky Mountain 1200 ’04 “It came together for me mentally, and once it clicked for me I realized that I really enjoy being on the podium and in the race, not behind the race,” said Tom Danielson. Danielson took third in the Tour of California in May 2011. “From that point on I just really viewed what I was doing from a different perspective, in a different light, and every time I went training I did it with a purpose and a goal I could achieve through hard work. He took 9th in the Tour de Suisse in June, finished in the top 10 in the Tour de France and led Garmin-Cervélo to the team classification win. (VeloNews website, November 18, 2011) For seven-time U.S. national champion and women’s team pursuit world record holder Dotsie Bausch, mental preparation is just as important as physical. “While I train physically almost every single day, I mentally and emotionally train just as hard. You cannot expect your mind to be fit and ready for the intensity of competition if you haven’t trained it to be that way. I use visualization techniques. I use vivid imagery work, incorporating all five senses and lots of positive self-talk.” Bausch’s teammate Jennie Reed suffers from anxiety the day before a race. “I have always struggled with sleeplessness the night before the race as well. I sometimes have thoughts that go through my head like, ‘I just can’t do this’ … When that happens, I immediately turn those thoughts into statements like, ‘this is what I love to do, go after it.’ When I turn those thoughts around, I get excited rather than scared or nervous.” (VeloNews, October 2011, pp. 98- 100) Billy Edwards, who finished the 1200-km (750-mile) Paris Brest Paris in August 2011, is an ex- Marine and pro triathlete. Afterward he said: “I race Ironmans, but this was something else. There was nothing that could have prepared me for this. Physically, I trained hard, my equipment was perfect … but mentally this was the hardest thing I have ever done, and I have been to war.” (VeloNews.com, August 30, 2011) Why are some riders so nervous before and during events that they don't do well, while others are relaxed and have good rides? Why do some riders respond at key moments in rides, while others choke? Why do some riders show up for tough rides, motivated by the challenge, while others stay home? Why do some riders consistently perform better in events than training partners who are physically as fit? Why do some riders accept the pain while others slow down or drop out? Why do some riders train effectively while others waste time and energy? The difference, as the quotes above show, is mental. You can use sports psychology to gain a mental edge. 1 Sports psychology can be another tool in your toolbox to help you improve your cycling, just like effective training, good equipment and healthy nutrition. Learning the techniques of sports psychology is analogous to learning how to ride a bike, a series of skills developed over time: how to balance on the bike, how to shift, how to pedal smoothly, how to ride in traffic, how to ride in a group, how to corner and so on. It took time and practice to become a skilled rider and it takes time and practice to develop your mental skills. However, most cyclists can get greater improvement from investing some time each week in practicing mental skills than they could investing the same amount of time in training! Sports psychology has three fundamental principles: 1. Your mind is like a TV. You control what you watch. If you don’t like the images, like Jennie Reed, you can change the channel (images). 2. You get more of what’s on your mental TV. If you are worried about an upcoming event, you’ll get more worried. If you’re excited, you’ll get more excited. 3. Our thoughts affect our feelings, and our feelings affect our thoughts. Negative thoughts, like “I don’t think I can do this,” lead to negative feelings of fear, anxiety, tension and fatigue. (Miller, 1999) Sports psychology includes both: Objective factors – what we think – above the neck Subjective factors – what we feel – below the neck In this article I describe both the objective factors and skills, and the subjective elements and skills. The article is divided into six practicums, including both objective and subjective skills. Practicum 1 Event Selection and Goal Setting Self-assessment Focus Practicum 2 Objectives for Improvement Motivation Relaxation Calming Imagery Practicum 3 Power Thoughts Power Images Affirmations Practicum 4 Confidence Anxiety 2 Practicum 5 Event Planning Visualization Practicum 6 During the Ride Pain Management Think of these as tools in your mental toolkit. Depending on the situation you may need one or several of your tools. The order in which I present them is also a good order in which to start developing the tools. Just like learning the technical skills of physically riding a bike, learning the mental skills takes practice. Plan on spending two to four weeks on each practicum. Practicum 1: Event selection and Goal Setting, Self-assessment and Focus For Danielson, motivation and effective training came from goal-setting, and goal-setting depended on his race calendar. Let’s start there. Event Selection and Goal Setting What do you want to do next season? Ride with a somewhat faster group on club rides? Commute more days to save money and help the environment? Complete a specific event? Set a personal record? Participate in a tour? Ride a certain number of miles or kilometers for fitness? Some of us are like kids in a candy store and want to do too many events or set too many goals. Exercise some restraint, since success depends on effective training, which is the result of overload and recovery. Experienced athletes are selective. The Grand Tour contenders prioritize their races as building blocks toward the season's main goal. Joe Friel recommends labeling each event in your schedule A, B or C. A event – one of the highlights of the season, an event for which you want to peak so that you can have your best ride. B event – one where you'd like to do well, although you aren't trying for a personal best. C event – one that you're doing for training, with no expectations about results. F event – to Friel's schema I add F events – no, those aren't failures – these are ones you're doing just for fun! A chance to try out a different type of event, or ride in a different area. As you categorize each event remember that the fewer A events you have, the more likely you are to peak for each and have a ride to remember positively. Friel recommends no more than three or four A events. And the more F events, the more smiles on your face. (Friel, 2009) After categorizing your events, put each on your calendar. Self-assessment Success depends on six factors, not just on training. What do you need to do to reach these goals? 1. Planning and goal setting 2. Mental techniques 3. Effective training 3 4. Proper equipment 5. Sound nutrition 6. Cycling skills Think specifically about your strengths and weaknesses in each of the six areas, which will give you a framework for planning your training. This eArticle covers the first two topics. Consider the following: Effective training. How mature are you as an athlete? How much experience do you have and have you ridden enough base miles to accomplish your goals? Do you have good endurance? Do you have the power and speed you need. Are you at the right weight to climb effectively? Proper equipment. Is your bike set up for the kind of riding that you want to do? Or is it set up as an aggressive road-racing machine? Do you have problems with cycling’s pressure points, which are covered in my eArticle Butt, Hands and Feet. Sound nutrition. Do you have a healthy training diet? Swiss nutrition experts have developed an excellent Swiss Food Pyramid for Athletes, which includes information on how to adjust what you eat, depending on your level of activity. I have written an eArticle, Eat and Drink Like the Pros, which also includes recipes for making your own sports nutrition. Cycling skills. Can you handle your bike safely and efficiently? Do you have an economical pedaling style? Are your climbing and descending skills good? Can you ride safely in a group? In traffic? Focus While you are setting your big-picture goals for the season ahead and assessing your strengths and weaknesses, you can also be working below the neck to develop your ability to focus. The simple technique of focusing solely on your breathing, called breath watching, can be learned in just 10 minutes a day and used to focus before a workout and get the most out of it or to relax and focus before an important event. If you suffer a mechanical or physical problem during an event, a minute or two of breath watching will relax you so you can deal effectively with the issue rather than panicking.