Offered the opportunity to sit quietly for a quarter of an hour, would you welcome it, take a deep breath and gladly settle down? Or would you quiver in fear at the idea of being alone with your thoughts? A group of participants in a study at Harvard University were given two options: for 15 minutes, they could either sit without distraction or self-administer painful electric shocks. Incredibly, 67% of men and 25% of women chose to electrocute themselves. Pain was preferable to sitting quietly with their own thoughts. Are we making a similarly perverse choice when, despite having no specific efforts on the schedule, we inflict pain on ourselves in training?
The prospect of quiet time alone may provoke the worry that the mind will wander to places we don’t want it to go – towards thoughts that don’t feel safe. Some people would rather actively hurt themselves than take that psychological risk. Another US study found that only 17% of people actively engage in relaxing or deliberate thinking; the rest prefer to distract themselves – all the time. A few use cycling as a relaxant; a way to recover from day to day stresses and allow the mind to wander freely. Most, however, especially those racing and focusing on high performance, find cycling hard a great opportunity to distract from the difficulties in life, and as a result, hammer themselves into the ground. How do we overcome the fear of our own thoughts and learn to savour our cycling?
Release the pressure
Bu hikaye CYCLING WEEKLY dergisinin January 13, 2022 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye CYCLING WEEKLY dergisinin January 13, 2022 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
Is pro racing getting more dangerous?
There are many factors that contribute to the perceived greater risks. One that does not get any attention is the greater importance of UCI points and the need to constantly collect them to avoid relegation.
A Saturday in Hell
It's the most brutal race of the year - 29.2km of the worst cobbles northern France has to offer, over 17 agonising sectors, starting in Denain and finishing in the iconic Roubaix velodrome. For the men, it's referred to as a Sunday in Hell, but for us, hell comes a day early.
Gitane - Tour de l'Avenir
Classic French brand's homage to a revered amateur race
6 WAYS TO THINK YOURSELF FASTER
However flawless your physical preparation, the mind has a tendency to throw a spanner in the works come the big day. James Witts offers six ways to keep the brain onside with the body
MAURICE BURTON'S - SCHOOL OF HARD KNOCKS
9 life lessons from Britain's first Black cycling champion
PEAKS PRACTICE
The Peak District is home turf for Manchester-based British pro riders and has been the formative terrain of top domestic riders for decades. Adam Becket finds out why it's so effective
Zeb Kyffin: stepping out of the fish bowl
TDT-Unibet's British rider tasted the team's first World-Tour event at the Amstel Gold Race. Adam Becket finds out how the day went
Thomas to go for 'very top step' at Giro
Welshman and Ineos ready for duel with Tadej Pogačar, reports Adam Becket
Brown and Niewiadoma beat Vollering
SD Worx-Protime are far from unbeatable in 2024, as team misses out in Ardennes Classics
Pogačar lays down marker for Giro d'Italia
Liège win signals Slovenian's readiness for clash with Geraint Thomas, reports Adam Becket