We all have a point where we doubt if it is worth going further. Heavy fatigue, hectic life, and family all take their toll, without asking. “It is just this one time” starts as an excuse that soon imperceptibly turns into a bad habit that is hard to shake off. Bad habits do not thrive in a good environment. The famous rowing coach Mike Spracklen offers his timeless advice on “retarding the point that stops us” as part of his successful coaching philosophy.
An environment is created where we have a goal and we go for that goal. We all have a point at which we stop, we give up. We all have a point where we back off. Doesn’t matter how determined, what ambitions we have, how much we want to get there, there are times when we will back away from it…So we create an environment where the goal we retard that point, push it further down the line until it becomes that last stroke of the race…If we miss the session it is not going to break the bank, it’s not going to make a difference between winning a world championship and losing a world championship but it does change the psychology. This is something that stops us…Whatever the situation we will press-on.
-Mike Spracklen
Limitations in Our Minds
More often than not, the things that stop us are barriers that we have set for ourselves without any objective reasons. Belief is the strongest motivator – the best advice from a successful bike racer.
Limitations live only in our minds. But if we use our imaginations, our possibilities are limitless.
-Jamie Paolinetti
Mike Spracklen is an internationally recognized rowing coach with multiple world championships and Olympic medals.
Jamie Paolinetti is a former PRO cyclist, and a two time podium finisher during the US PRO Cycling Championships and the creator behind one of the most rivetting cycling movies – The Hard Road.
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