When the going gets tough

When the going gets tough...what happens next?? Do you just pull out another tired and worn cliché from you bag in the hope it will inspire you onwards? What if that doesn't work, and why is that some people never seem to hit rough patches? I wondered about these things for a long time, not to mention with the often quoted theory that sport is 90% mental and 10% physical...I mean, is it a load of crap or what?

But then...and this might sound corny...in one race I realised that your body really does follows where you mind leads it, and your mental resolve is the best indicator of how closely you'll perform to your potential. So indulge me for a moment to recount this race and what I learned from it.

It was back in Nov 2002 at the Triathlon World Champs in Cancun, Mexico, a place so hot and humid it made Kona feel like a cool change. Suffice to say, this was big goal race but early in the run leg I was further back and feeling far worse than I wanted to. We were racing in the midday heat and I was cooking...and way behind my expectations. The going was tough, you know, when it feels like you can't feel any worse.

Then just before 5km I heard a voice in my mind say "Try going faster...you've already said you can't feel any worse.". What the?? It was like a kick in ar*e and was exactly what I needed. Of course, the voice was right...I could lift my form a little, and could run faster...and I did. All of a sudden I was passing people and moving through the field...still feeling awful, but I was running with positive - rather than negative - psychological momentum.

Lesson number one was that even when things seem like they can't get any worse, you still have the ability to believe that you're still capable of - and perform - unexpected things, regardless of the circumstances.

Back to the race since there was another lesson coming up. It was getting late in the run leg and I was on my last legs, with tunnel vision and singular focus on running all the way to the finish. I don't recall much of it except that there was no option other than the finish line...every metre of that run leg counted. When I reached the line, as a friend put it, I collapsed "...like a bag of potatoes", unconscious for the minutes it took to be dragged to the medical tent and an IV drip to be plugged in. I felt like death warmed up but elated at the performance boundaries I crossed that afternoon.

Lesson number two was that as long as your mind is committed to the reaching the goal - the finish line - then your body will (usually) find a way. Just don't let any thoughts of compromise options enter your mind.

The hardest part is that lessons don’t come easily, and it’s only by experiencing them yourself that you realise a little more about how your mind actually works. You need to put yourself in situations in training and racing where you learn not only what you body is capable, but also what your mind can lead you to achieve. For many people the weak link in their performance may be their mind…once you can harness it your horizons open to what it possible, and not about the limiting constraints. Think big and bold, and follow through.