If you’re reading this I have good news for you. Probably not.
In cycling, when someone refers to their head falling off, they’re usually talking about a temporary or complete lack of motivation to ride. It’s very common for cyclists to lose motivation for various reasons.
- Over training
- Poor diet
- Lack of sleep
- Dehydration
I’ve also written about this before – When training becomes a chore.
You may think these above mentioned are all isolated to physical repercussions but that’s not the case. They all have profound psychological effects on your motivation to train.
Recovery is more important than the training itself
For years I’d arrive home after a quality training session and think all my work was done. In a lot of ways I was wrong. My training was only just starting. Food, water, rest – all so very important. Setting yourself up for a good day tomorrow is crucial for the competitive cyclist.
If you wake up tired and dehydrated – the chances of you not rolling out of bed are a lot higher.
Training today is one thing but have you put any thought into tomorrow. You’ve just stomped out 150km on the bike but what are you going to do now? Do you skimp on the recovery drink and head down the pub with the lads?
It’s what you do right now – post ride that will determine how you go tomorrow.
There’s no point training well today, If you’ve totally ruined yourself for tomorrow – and so on. Improving performance as a cyclist is all about consistency over longer periods of time.
I would also add two massive factors to heads falling off:-
- Lack of preparation
- Lack of goals
Goal setting is so important. You need to pick a race, an event, whatever – something you can set your sites on in the future. That will go a long way to keeping you motivated.
By preparation I mean knowing what you’re going to eat for dinner, afternoon snacks, making time to clean your bike and making sure all your clothing is washed. If not taken care of, these are all factors that’ll contribute to you just taking a day off the bike. We all know that leads to two days, then three and so on.
This post is designed to remind you there are a lot of mental factors in play here. Be mindful of that – it’s not just all about the hill repeats and sprint efforts.
I’ll leave you with some pictures and a cool race report from the Marysville Ride in Victoria on the weekend. Who would have thought Jarrod was such a good writer.
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