Good stuff here Hailey!
“My favourite was one of the first where he invited us to tune in to our self-talk. It was wild because I didn’t realize that a great deal of my inner chatter wasn’t all the positive at times.”
Self talk and being truly mindful of it is a HUGE part of high level athletic performance. And it’s so awesome you’re engaging with that. I just had this conversation (about a completely mundane part of life) about how our internal dialog sets us up for success or failure and we so often don’t even know we are doing it. For me it’s a lifelong journey to be kind internally, and to engage in truthful, positive, self talk.
In my experience of kayal coaching, several of the coaching handbooks spend a lot of time talking about developing good internal dialogue and listening to it and having a lot of years of that experience I find it easier on my bike to do the same.
“When we force ourselves into risky situations to chase flow, are we truly in tune with the ride? Or are we bypassing the joy of gradual progression and genuine connection with the trail?”
It is interesting how some sports really focus on this and some don’t. In kayak surfing (and surfing in general) we talk about that all the time. No one surfs well if they are ‘forcing it’ in too big conditions. Instead the recommendation is to move into a safer place and let the flow come. Unfortunately in MTB we often want to force or prove even to yourselves we can do that one move, clear that jump, whatever. But when you let the flow find you it’s such a better way to ride. Lately I have been spending intentional time riding less demanding tracks just for the easy to find flow feelings. It’s such a better experience than forcing it.
“I can’t say I have fully internalized this but I will report back if I have more insight and will continue to explore some of the questions Ryan poses in his workshop.”
Looking forward to it.
Feb. 7, 2025, 4:35 p.m. - BarryW
Good stuff here Hailey! “My favourite was one of the first where he invited us to tune in to our self-talk. It was wild because I didn’t realize that a great deal of my inner chatter wasn’t all the positive at times.” Self talk and being truly mindful of it is a HUGE part of high level athletic performance. And it’s so awesome you’re engaging with that. I just had this conversation (about a completely mundane part of life) about how our internal dialog sets us up for success or failure and we so often don’t even know we are doing it. For me it’s a lifelong journey to be kind internally, and to engage in truthful, positive, self talk. In my experience of kayal coaching, several of the coaching handbooks spend a lot of time talking about developing good internal dialogue and listening to it and having a lot of years of that experience I find it easier on my bike to do the same. “When we force ourselves into risky situations to chase flow, are we truly in tune with the ride? Or are we bypassing the joy of gradual progression and genuine connection with the trail?” It is interesting how some sports really focus on this and some don’t. In kayak surfing (and surfing in general) we talk about that all the time. No one surfs well if they are ‘forcing it’ in too big conditions. Instead the recommendation is to move into a safer place and let the flow come. Unfortunately in MTB we often want to force or prove even to yourselves we can do that one move, clear that jump, whatever. But when you let the flow find you it’s such a better way to ride. Lately I have been spending intentional time riding less demanding tracks just for the easy to find flow feelings. It’s such a better experience than forcing it. “I can’t say I have fully internalized this but I will report back if I have more insight and will continue to explore some of the questions Ryan poses in his workshop.” Looking forward to it.