The Goal Looks Good

It’s raining, it’s cold, or even snowing but in only a matter of months you want to ride around Taupo, or around the Coromandel in a personal best time.

Sometimes I think event organisers are just cruel having events at the end of winter! And that is the dilemma that many of us face at this time of year. It’s wet, cold and miserable and we often miss a training session or two each week because of the weather. But the problem comes when we miss sessions, we won’t improve as much and we won’t achieve our goal. This is why it is important to choose a goal then assess the path to get there. Is it possible? How can I make the path to get there achievable, and enjoyable? The training may be achievable to tick off your personal best, but do you find training in the wet and cold enjoyable, or what can you do to get around that?

‘What we attend to becomes our reality, and what we don't attend to fades out of our reality.’ - William James

All the small bits add up in achieving our goals, and one day missed is one step away from our goal. So with this in mind here are a few ways we can make the path more enjoyable in this tough time of year.

1. Buy a windtrainer and do indoor training, or go to windtraining classes that add a fun social element.

2. Set realistic goals, based on your time available to train, and most importantly your conviction to train. Don’t set yourself up for failure by setting a goal that depends on you training in the rain, if you refuse to.

3. Consistently do quality training, and get someone to help you ensure every minute you ride is benefiting you.

4. Have training buddies. It is always easier to get out of bed when you know someone else is waiting for you.

5. Problems only arise when our view of a situation is not in line with the reality of the situation. You don’t want to train in the dark, but this is the only time you have available, and you want to achieve your best time at K2. That is a problem! Be real about every situation, and you won’t have any problems.

6. Remember that the path to a goal is often hard. Accepting the difficulties helps you overcome the bumps in the road, or the multiple weeks of rain in a row.

7. Purchase good quality winter cycling gear. Training in rough conditions can be made much more pleasant with good equipment, and there is a massive choice in this department now so you can even train in the sleet and hail and be toasty!

8. Change your perception of the wild unwelcoming weather. With conviction and determination to get out there you will then be able to make a sustained and consistent effort in training week to week and your goal won’t be compromised. You may encounter this tough weather on the day, and if you have ridden in it many times, it will not put you off achieving your goal.

9. Learn from every decision you make about training, be it riding in the snow with not enough clothing, or riding in the rain and it not been that bad at all. Each day has its lessons to make the next much easier.

By using the above we can tick off every day of our training, and remember every time you get wet, and your competition stays in bed you are one step closer to your goal. And remind yourself each day, if you want the goal, then you have chosen the path to get there. Now get out there!