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"Don't try to change what you are doing. Just notice what you are doing."

-Tim Galway, author of The Inner Game of Tennis, on changing behavior and improving performance.

This notion certainly holds true in cycling, just about any other sport, and in life. We often try way too hard to change the outcome of our efforts by attempting (most often in vain) by trying even harder, rather than by just slowing down, taking a step back and either allowing the outcome to happen of its own accord, or at least taking the time and the patience and actually pay attention to what we're doing and we're doing it.

However, if we are unaware that this is even a problem, then it is unlikely that any technique aimed at fixing it is going to do us any good. Maybe you have been struggling with a particular area of your performance or your life for some time now. Or maybe just reading these words is the first time that you have become open to this possibility. 

Whatever the case may be, once you have realized that there is something to be worked on then progress can be made. However, this is where it gets tricky. This is because the most common approach to a perceived problem is to try even harder. Now, why is this? Is it because of the culture we live in? Is it because of our addition to the scientific method? These questions could go on ad infinitum, but answering them wouldn't solve our dilemma anyways.

Whatever the reason, it is counterintuitive for the vast majority of people who, when faced with a perceived problem, to actually pause, step back, take a deep breath and try a little less. After all, aren't we supposed to know all of the answers and keep working until we find or create one? 

By simply taking pause and assessing our current situation objectively, whether it be finishing a criterium or correcting our golf swing, often times the answer just makes itself known, with little or no effort on our behalf. Is this magic? Not likely, but it sure can feel like it. However, when we are tense, or experiencing any number of negative thoughts or feelings as the result of limiting beliefs about ourselves and our potential or our expectations not being met, our awareness of, and openness to another way is usually completely shut down.

It has been said time and time again that best athletes, musicians, artists and business people operate at their best when they are calm and relaxed. Being in a calm and relaxed state allows you to have the awareness of when to step back and stop pushing so hard. For it is when we stop pushing so hard, that the answers we seek, and the resulting performance that occurs from applying these new found solutions suddenly come to us.

Training the body vs. training the mind
Why is it that so many would rather do an extra 50 miles on their long ride or that extra Vo2 max interval than take 5-10 min a day to address their level of Inner Fitness? Whether it is due to the unsustainable and extremely unhealthy pace of life that many of us lead today, either out of necessity, by choice or by addiction, the end result has been a seeming inability or an outright aversion to sitting still. If I had a nickel for every time I have heard myself or someone else say that they "just don't have the time" to do X, Y or Z, I'd be a very rich man. 

The bottom line is that we have time for whatever we want and/or choose to make time for in our lives. The question that remains is how bad do we actually want it? There are often cases where an individual is temporarily unable to access the fortitude and navigate the path until they gain some level of objectivity from a life event, input from a trusted friend or through an epiphany. However, once the awareness that there might be a better way of accomplishing our goals has been achieved, then we must only become willing to do whatever it takes to get there. With these two basic necessities, anything is possible. Now it is time to start working on developing solutions to include in our success tool kit. 

This is why mindfulness and learning to be in the moment by developing our Inner Fitness through various practices and techniques can be the missing link between success and failure, joy and frustration. By simply becoming aware of the problem and developing the willingness to work on it, we can then become open to experiencing hope and the infinite possibilities that come with that feeling. 

Laying out the tools 
So, what tools can you apply to help you start to hone in on what your performance limiters might be? Given the quotes and the discussion above, it should not come as any big surprise that one of the first tools that you can add to your performance/success tool kit is the simple act of slowing down and paying attention. While this may sound incredibly simple, it is far from easy, or we would all be doing it. 

There are myriad approaches to working on developing a clear, focused and positively referenced mind and a relaxed, healthy body. The techniques listed below are just a drop in the bucket of the tools and techniques that can be used to develop a state of Inner Fitness that can help you identify and overcome your performance limiters, achieve your goals and experience levels of joy success far greater than  anything you might have imagined. Some of these powerful yet simple tools include but are not limited to the following:

    Meditation
    Journaling
    Goal Setting
    Visualization
    Setting Power Intentions
    Stress and relaxation techniques
    Empowering Performance Mantras 
    EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique)

The list goes on and on, but for our purposes, we will keep this discussion to the ones listed above. I will walk through and expand upon each of these from week to week to expose you to a number of different techniques for improving your Inner Fitness. In doing so, the intention is for you to find one or more that you connect with and that work for you and that you will use these to develop a regular Inner Fitness© practice similar to that of your physical training program. It is my hope that in doing so, that your mind and heart will open to the myriad possibilities as you discover your potential, create the performance you desire and live a life beyond your wildest expectations. 

Personal Exploration 
Since we have gone quite deep this week, let's keep it simple by working on a few simple things, ideally each day, but at least a few times over the course of the next week.

1)    Simply catch yourself at any point during the day to consciously pay attention to your surroundings for a few minutes. You can even write down what you notice about what you see, how you feel and if and how things changed as a result of doing so.

2)    If you catch yourself forcing a solution on a problem or otherwise struggling over anything, try taking a few deep breaths and stepping away from whatever you are doing, even if it is for less than a minute (try and take as long as you reasonably can) and see if a solution presents itself or if things work out easier once you've taken time to pause and step away.

3)    Lastly, try simply setting aside 5 min/day, every day if possible and just be. Simply use this time to breathe, relax, meditate if you're able already, or just take in your surroundings. The point is not about doing it perfectly, it's about making the commitment with your self to take the time to do nothing.

Remember, while the goal for your reading these Success Tips might have only been about improving your performance, it should also be fun. The old saying "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy" could not be more true. However, I would add that it can also make you neurotic, self-absorbed and not much fun to be around. So please utilize these Tips in the spirit in which they are given and for the purposes they are intended. These are; to create awareness, provide you with tools to overcome your personal obstacles and achieve your goals, improve your health and well-being, your performance in all of your chosen endeavors, and of course, your life. 

See you next week, when we will begin going through our list of success tools one by one to explain what they are and how to start using them to develop your very own personal Success Tool Kit.

-Namaste