Pushing to protect, getting ready, fads and responding

sent by Nick Grantham |16th November 2021

"Push to protect"

Unknown

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Sometimes when I get back from a run or long ride, my Garmin will tell me to have 36 hours off from training...36 bloody hours after a 5km run! More often than not, I ignore my watch, listen to my body and crack on! I'm not suggesting I'm 'Johny Concrete' and some sort of machine, just that my watch will inform me but ultimately I'll make the decision and more often than not the decision is to keep on training. Sports teams and their support staff are obsessed with recovery, and sometimes it feels that this obsession comes at the expense of performance improvement. We all need to recognise that adopting a chronic training strategy is often protective. Overtraining is rarely the problem. Undercooking the athlete and constantly taking breaks from training because the numbers are running a little high may actually prevent the gains we need.

Source: Unknown


"Before everything else, getting ready is the secret to success."

Henry Ford

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You can tell when the keynote speaker knocked up their presentation the night before. You can spot a mile away the training session that's written on the back of a beer mat. You can spot the athlete returning from off-season who's had a very good summer and will struggle during the first week of pre-season. What they all have in common is a lack of preparation. They all fail to put the time in to get ready. Preparation is the key that unlocks the door to success. Unfortunately, no one ever just rocks up and nails it.

Source: Henry Ford


"...a fad is just a branch on cool's trunk, cool stands the test of time. because cool never tries. cool just is."

Matthew McConaughey

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I've never considered myself to be cool, but if my interpretation of Matthew McConaughey's insight is correct, then I am! Whilst many coaches get sidetracked by the latest fad (branch), I tend to hold firm and work from first principles (trunk). I know they work because science and experience have shown me they work. Occasionally I'll keep one eye on the latest fad, and if elements fit in with my underpinning principles, I'll add it to the mix. However, most of the time, I just stay cool!

Source: Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey


"Respond, don't react."

Bill Beswick

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I only worked with Bill for a short period, but he offered many pearls of wisdom during that time. This is a great one to remember. The difference is subtle but essential. When we react, it tends to be emotional, and our reaction could lead to a positive or negative outcome. We just don't know which. When we respond, we use our emotional intelligence to figure out what we want to achieve due to the interaction. Next time something happens, take time (pause) to understand (perceive) what has just happened before taking an appropriate course of action (proceed).

Source: Bill Beswick


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