How to bounce back

"Inside of a ring or out, ain't nothing wrong with going down. It's staying down that's wrong."
Muhammad Ali

We all have setbacks. You know, when things don’t go right, you stuff up, have bad day, sh*t happens and more things like that. Heck, life would be boring if everything worked out perfectly all the time. If it weren’t for the obstacles we encounter day-to-day we would never be challenged to solve problems and grow as people…which is easy to say, but when you’re at the bottom of a hole it can all look too hard.

How you deal with adversity, and how you rebound from a setback speaks volumes about who you are. Call it character building or whatever, but a champion is the guy who gets up when others say he can’t. Some might roll over and let a set-back knock them out, yet some see it as a great challenge to learn from adversity, plan their return and quietly work their way back – the personal satisfaction in doing so is immense, because only you know the pain and effort involved.

How you bounce back depends on how and why you’re in the situation you are. For the sake of this article I’ll separate them into injury rebound, slump rebound and race rebound, each of which are quite different.

Injury Rebound
Rebounding from injury is typically a critical balancing act between the enthusiasm and excitement of getting back into the swing of sports, and the necessary moderation required so you don’t overdo it while your body re-adapts to the rigors of training and competition. Remember that the greatest predictor for a future injury is a prior injury.

However before getting to that stage it is quite likely you’ve gone through all the emotional phases of being injured which will have surely tested your resolve for driving forwards in your sport. In most cases injuries do recover, and you will get back into game, but at times it’s easy to only see darkness in the tunnel long before there’s any light shining in.

Being injured is a great reality check on the balance you have in life – the more balance, and the more interests you have in addition to your sport, the better you can deal with the reality of your situation. It’s all about perspective and seeing the bigger picture of life and context of where sport fits in. However the greater devotion you have to sport the harder it is being injured, and subsequently the harder it is to maintain a balance when returning to sport.

Rebounding from injury can be both exciting and frustrating. There’s nothing like the freedom of being about to swim / ride / run without the nagging constraint of injury, and you feel the life – and strength – returning to your body. But the frustration of always comparing yourself to your former glory, and how far you slipped can eat away at your confidence, and enjoyment. In these cases you’re best to re-visit your true motivation for sport, and why you do what you do. Hopefully the answer will because of the pure enjoyment, which will underpin your patience in returning from injury.

The motto for rebounding from injury is “hasten slowly”.

Slump Rebound
Rebounding from a slump is a far more complicated matter since there can be myriad of reasons for the slump. While the symptoms of a slump will likely be similar - characterised by poor performance and waning motivation - the reasons for a slump vary enormously. Dealing with the cause is far more effective than treating the symptoms.

Resolving the cause of a slump involves a good deal of honest appraisal because it may not be as "simple" as being only a physical performance issue. Often there is a psychological root cause that needs to be addressed...which I'll leave to qualified folks to talk about.

Whatever is behind a slump, it will usually manifest as a physical issue...although often combined with lagging motivation. These things are closely related. If your motivation is coming from the "wrong" source then perhaps you need to step back and take an objective view of the reasons why you're doing what you're doing.

Dealing with a physical slump is usually a matter of first getting back to an even footing, that is, recovering from any fatigue or similar issues that may be part of the slump. This may take a while...certainly, triathletes can become very over trained which takes extended periods to recover from. At the same time you need to change something or else the same thing will happen again. That is, you need to change the balance between your training, recovery, nutrition, family, work, etc, so that it is sustainable over the long term.

I'd suggest that often the most valuable thing to change / update is your perspective.

So in summary, a slump rebound is usually more involved than simply having some rest. Look at the big picture.

Race Rebound
Rebounding from a race is far more straight forward, although in there can also be complex factors behind why you might have had a bad race. But in considering only the race performance itself, a race review - somewhat of a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) analysis - will uncover some great learning points that will help to focus on improving, which might range from aspects of your fitness to technical issues, tactics and more. So your feedback can inform a whole host of actions for different areas of your preparation and racing.

A race review does not need to be overdone as often you'll be aware of why a race didn't go to plan, however thinking methodically through the lead up race day helps to organise your thoughts.

The important part is to be objective in your review, with a healthy dose of reality and humility (often best served up by an observer!!) since some of the things you realise may have a somewhat bitter taste. Nonetheless, if you're keen on learning and progressing then you need to face the hard reality.

Regardless of any negative points from your race, there are always positive things to learn and take away from a race. Races are unique in that they are the ultimate test of your performance, and are also the ultimate feedback mechanism. A poor race just provides more feedback items than a good race, and what you learn can help your future races.

Describing a race rebound isn't really consistent with an injury or slump rebound because it's really just an accurate view of your current performance level, and getting over a poor race is about striving for a better race.

So whatever you're rebounding from, there will always be significant parts that are mental and physical. But since the body follows where the mind leads it's often the mental side of things where you need to look first when bouncing back. And remember, being on a low is not fatal...it just means there's more things that can get better.

"I've missed over 9,000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. 26 times I've been trusted to take the game-winning shot...and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed."
Michael Jordan, Professional Basketball Player

Doing what's best

"...the struggle is sometimes hard to see because it is not a struggle between good and evil as much as it is a struggle between the good and the best."

"...the good is always an enemy of the best because the good is so good; it has the feel of good, but ultimately it is less useful because it is not the best."

What's good? What's best? Which do you prefer?

As we train we hope - and expect - that we're going to improve. That we're getting better, so that compared to when we started we're actually becoming pretty good relative to our start point...whether in a race or just in training. Good feels damn good. And that alone is fantastic feedback, and motivation to keep on training.

But how good is good? Is your good, good enough? What comes after good?

There's a million clichés about going beyond your limits to another level...across that invisible line we think is there...that we believe is going to take a huge effort to leap across. Is this what you understand because you see it in films...read it in books...or because that's just what you think? And is the grass really greener once you do lift to a new level?

How about if moving up a new level was simply a matter of doing what's best for you, rather than what's good for you? Would you be prepared to take the step to doing what's best for you, to strive to fulfil your absolute ability, and take comfort that you gave it everything you could?

But each action has a consequence - each person has a different threshold - and doing what's best for you involves sacrifices. But take comfort, also, that this is not an all-or-nothing approach...there's degrees you can take this to, and each person has their own constraints on what they can feasibly do.

"The cowards never started and the weak died along the way. That just leaves us."

So what's involved? It's simply a change in attitude in everything you do that contributes to your ultimate performance...doing what's best for you within your range of control. It's as simple as that. Set your sights high and raise your aim to do what you need to in order to reach that level.

Think of all the things - physical, mental, equipment, nutrition, etc - that make up a performance, from planning to execution, and consider what aspects of that are just good...and what aspects of that could be best for you. Each 1% adds up to a huge gain. And that satisfaction and feedback will be priceless.

"Everything you want is just outside your comfort zone.”

Motivation and Expectations

What motivates you about your sport? What are your expectations from it? These are two pretty big questions at the heart of participation at any level, and their answers give an insight into the true psyche of anyone who has kitted up for a session, competition or other sports activity.

A sports psychologist may give a long and detailed explanation of motivation, but I'm a simple guy which is where this article is aimed. So here's my look more at motivation and expectation.

There's a million books about getting motivated, being motivated and staying motivated, not to mention an industry of motivational speakers, videos, songs, etc. I'm guessing the common theme they have is that motivation comes from within and any amount of gee-up energy and material will only have a temporary effect. Fair enough and quite correct from where I see it.

However I consider motivation in a way that it's linked to expectations...which I'll get to shortly. I think there are two types of motivation - for the love of it, or as a means to an end. Put another way, are you in it for the art or business? Let me explain.

I love being involved in sports, especially running. The beauty and simplicity is the appeal, and feeling of movement and freedom when I'm out running. For other people they love the speed and excitement of cycling, the skill and athleticism of tennis, or perhaps the precision and concentration of golf. Each sport has it's own challenges which appeals to millions of people around the world. They are motivated by the love of their sport...purists at heart, and is key to life-long involvement and enjoyment from sports.

Many other people are motivated to participate in a sports activity as a means to an end. For some people this means personal trainer classes, spin classes, gym, etc, to get fit, lose weight, look good, meet people...although some purists may debate about whether they're actually "participating" in sports, or just exercising. Either way, they're motivation is as means to an end.

A variation to this is people who, for example, swim because it is one part of a triathlon - they might love triathlon as sport, but hate swimming, and if triathlon were changed to being lawn bowls, bike riding and running they'd take up lawn bowls...especially if their was a lure like qualifying for Kona. Their motivation to swim is as a means to an end.

Sometimes there is overlap, or where one motivation leads to another. For example, someone may start a sport for a love of it, find they're good and go on to being a professional...in which case it becomes a means to an end. Alternatively, someone may start as a means to lose weight and find they enjoy the sport and evolve to love it, which is a fantastic outcome.

A big trap in sports is when people forget what their motivation is, and keep on with sports because they don't know any difference and are trapped in a cycle. It all becomes a bit aimless...I'm sure we've seen people like this, and is where motivation is linked to expectations.

Expectations are what you hope to get out of something, as some form of 'reward'...although it can be in a multitude of forms. For people who love their sport the reward is simply the joy of doing what they enjoy - like the "runner's high" - before, during and after. For each person it will be different, and just reinforces why they do what they do...which includes the excitement and challenge of competition. For people motivated as a means to an end, the expectations are often around health, as tortuous as the process might be!!

The important thing about expectations is that you must be the one who owns them. If you get to the point of being motivated by the expectations of others then it is the start of a downward spiral where motivation - and the reasons for participating in sports - begins to wear you out and wear you down. Responding to the expectations of other people is a negative motivation.

In practical terms this can be something like going to training because you think others expect you to, and similarly with races...and these are surely not good ways to go on participating. While it's great to feel a responsibility to others, if it's not a team sport where others are depending on you, then perhaps it is time to question and re-visit your true motivation.

Motivation is what energises our life, but just as motivation comes from within, so should your expectations. Aim for your own standards - your own expectations - and you'll always be master of your own destiny.