Terry Peloton

Tag: coach for your head

  • HOW BIG IS YOUR BUT?

    Screen Shot 2014-08-25 at 2.52.29 PMIs your “but” getting in the way of your ride? You can come up with a million excuses as to why you “shouldn’t” be taking the time to get on your bike for a few miles each day….work and family responsibilities are easy targets. You truly feel them as real things you can’t take time away from. I get it.

     

    Here is the issue for me as your “Derailleur”…having your “buts” get in the way can lead to you saying things like, “But I’ll never become a professional so why try…” or my favorite “But if I can’t ride 25+ miles today, it just isn’t worth it”. Here is where I am pulling you up by your emergency brake and saying “ENOUGH”! YOUR “BUTS” are getting in the way of not only your ride, but your life. And it’s time to give up the ‘but’s’. Seriously.

     

    I was once told that a “but” cancels out everything that precedes it. Hence why I’ve since adopted a “No Buts” policy. I now believe where there’s a will there’s a way. You see, a “but” is essentially an excuse as to why you can’t have something. To live a life of excuses isn’t very empowering. In fact, it’ll stop you from getting the results that you want.

    So why do people fill their sentences, and thus lives, with buts? Because at a deeper level they’ve been programmed to believe that life isn’t a field of strawberries, that some people can’t have what they want, that life has to be difficult. If this is you, stop! Life is exactly as we believe it to be. Our beliefs are what create our reality. Believe in something enough, really truly believe something, and it will happen.

    This week I encourage you to notice every time you say “but”. And then really question whether there is any truth to the but (which generally there won’t be – it’ll just be a figment of your imagination) and start to explore alternatives such as: What if I could do this? What if I gave that a go? Give up your buts and just notice how your life starts to transform into a world of opportunities and happy endings.

    Now get out there and ride…

    Amy Magyar is a Derailleur. She helps her clients across North America change their gears, their pace, and their direction. She is the essential piece of equipment to get you where you need to move forward at a different pace and with a different power. As an industry veteran and a Certified Performance Coach, Amy works with individuals who are athletes, were athletes, or wish to be athletes, on navigating change.

     

  • HOW FAST CAN A BRUISED EGO HEAL?

    Bucked

    I have written recently about the “off season” and how I look forward to moving my body differently during the winter months  – repairing both my body and mind from the grueling pace of training when I am in season. But even a “Derailleur” can learn a thing or two about what does and doesn’t work. And that includes how to repair a “bruised ego”.  Now, you haven’t been reading my blogs thinking I was perfect did you? Of course I am not. I make mistakes all the time. But I make all new ones and never the old ones over and over again. That was until last week. I did make one old mistake that I had made years earlier as a young 20-something eager to prove I could ignore my body’s messages of pain and push through it. Pain is different than discomfort. Remember that for this story.

    I ranted and raved on the benefits of moving your body differently and taking inventory of your mind during the off-season. Walking my talk (or should I say pedaling my pedals?), I have enjoyed the first few months in Vermont of coming off the roads and into warmth of the gym. That was until I was challenged by “Angie”, a CrossFit workout of the day that is what they call a benchmark workout. It is designed to test your fitness level by throwing 100 pull ups, 100 push ups, 100 sit ups, and 100 air squats at you to see how long it would take you. You can do them unbroken meaning you can take breaks in between, but you must do all 100 pull ups before you move on to the push ups, and so on. I walked into my local CrossFit box, saw the workout and said, “no problem, I got this, it won’t be fast and it won’t be pretty, but it will still get done.” And so, the music went on, the clock set and off I went.

    What I realized was that my months of lower body work on the bike was actually a detriment to me when I was 20 push ups in (and after a painful 100 pull ups) and I noticed an odd sensation in my arms. They were painfully tingly. Not just tired, not sore, but painful. And then my arms blew up to twice their size. I looked like Popeye! But not in a good way.  I looked at my CrossFit Coach and asked him what he thought and he said “why not stop now and move onto the sit ups…you are doing great – listen to your body”. But I made a crucial mistake at that very moment. I thought “nah…I am going to do all 100”. And I continued to crank them out. When I got to 80, I couldn’t move my arms any longer. I stood up and walked over to the wall to begin my sit-ups. But I couldn’t cross my arms over my chest…in fact, I couldn’t touch my face with my hands. I felt such pain in my elbows; I couldn’t bend my arms to touch anywhere close to my face.

    I did a modified sit up with my arms by my side and then easily knocked out 100 air squats (thank you hill workouts this summer). I was done. I looked at the clock and sighed…as I had predicted; I did it, it wasn’t fast and it was far from pretty, but I got it done. Well except for 20 little push-ups I just couldn’t get out. I headed home tired and proud of what I was able to accomplish. And in pain.

    The story of course doesn’t end here because the title of this blog mentions how my ego had gotten damaged. What I should explain was that my arms actually got the worst of the injuries – I wound up micro tearing both of my arms in the bicep and tricep area. I could not touch my face, my head, or bend my arms for days. My arms throbbed painfully leaving me to ask for help washing my hair, brushing my teeth and doing ANYTHING that required me to bend my arms. Yes, I know, that basically means doing anything. When I asked for help from my friends and family, I had to explain what happened and why I was suddenly helpless. With each time the story was told, my ego took a little more of a hit when I realized that I was the only person to blame for this predicament. I could have stopped. I should have stopped. I needed to stop. But my determination to continue left me injured and out of the game for a full week.

    What if I had stopped when my Coach suggested? I would have been able to work out the next day, and the next day, and the next.  Instead my bull-headedness caused me to sit out for a week. So what was the smarter thing to do? Prove to myself I could do it or listen to my body. I have know been reminded AGAIN of that answer.

    My injury has healed, but my ego has one heck of a scar on it of a lesson I will never forget. Push past discomfort…stop at pain. Lesson learned. I am humbled. But smarter.

    Anyone else ready for the “off season” to be over?

     

    Amy Magyar is a Derailleur. She helps her clients across North America change their gears, their pace, and their direction. She is the essential piece of equipment to get you where you need to move forward at a different pace and with a different power. As an industry veteran and a Certified Performance Coach, Amy works with individuals who are athletes, were athletes, or wish to be athletes, on navigating change.

  • ARE YOUR RESOLUTIONS ON CLEARANCE YET?

    TURNING NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS FROM FICTION TO NONFICTION.

    Resolutions Sale

    As I walked into a major book retailer, I was assaulted with reminders that it was the end of December, which means resolution time, and that our new year’s resolutions often “go on sale or clearance”. Books titled Rid Yourself of Doubt, or Should You?”, “Tremble Your Way to Fitness”, or “Reorganizing Your Pockets” serve as great fuel for change and promise solutions to become the person your dog thinks you are. As millions of Americans make decisions to “Change” their behavior through resolutions, it should delight me as a “Derailleur” that so many are willing to face a toleration, a behavior or thought pattern they would like to change. But what dampens my spirits are the unkept resolutions that plague us all. These unfulfilled resolutions then become the fuel for the thoughts like “I can’t do anything right, I’ll never change, etc…” and for me, that is the head-trash-talk that needs to end!

    New Year’s resolutions are often put on “clearance” like a retailer puts products on sale when they have gone past their shelf life or are deemed “unsuccessful”. Personal resolutions get kicked to the curb because they are “too hard”. Fear of failure, fear of the unknown, fear of change, fear of how to get started…these are all reasons resolutions wind up in the trashcan instead of implemented into your life. A resolution involves change and change, although inevitable, fights us every step of the way. So what can make a resolution “stick” instead of becoming something you throw away two weeks? Call in Environmental Design.

    Environmental Design might be one factor in your success or failure in keeping to your resolutions this year. And by Environmental Design, I don’t mean the spatial design show on HGTV or in a gardening article in Better Homes and Gardens. Environmental Design is the process of addressing surrounding environmental parameters when devising plans, programs, policies, buildings, or products…and in this case, even behaviors. Often used in Architecture, Urban Planning, Landscape Design, Interior Design, and in this case, Environmental Design is the skill at addressing surrounding environmental factors when devising a desired behavior change.

    Ok, so what does this have to do with a new year’s resolution? Often, when we have decided to make a behavior or thought pattern change, we forget to scan our environment to see if it is designed to support us or derail us. And Environmental Design is the choice to have your environment support you and removing obstacles or draining factors that ensure failure. In fact, by creating a supportive environment, your environment does most of the heavy “lifting” allowing you to reduce your energy output and save it for celebrating your success.

    Environmental Design is made up of 9 surrounding environments including your relationship, network, financial, memetic, self, spiritual, nature, body, and of course, your physical environment. If one of these environments challenges one of the others, disharmony is created and thus an obstacle is created and basically dead in the water. Why? One of the theories of Environmental Design is based on “your environment always wins”. Sheer will, determination and stubbornness have a finite tank. Eventually, you will run out of will-power fuel. If your environment does not support you or creates obstacles, your determination and will power are spent fighting the challenges and you lose energy…fast. If however, the environment is designed to support you, you have to use much less willpower fuel (if any) and you flow through the change feeling supported and successful. With designed environments, will power and commitment become optional.

    So, back to taking your resolutions “off sale” and designing an environment to keep them this year.Consider perhaps taking the following steps:

    1.  Awareness is the first key. How does one know if their environment is supporting or impairing them? First, look around you and ask yourself, “What excuse have I made around my resolution?” From behind the excuse hides an environmental design flaw. Scan your 9 environments for obstacles that are getting in your way of succeeding. For example, if your resolution is to start eating a clean diet, are you surrounding yourself with processed, gluten filled food? Look in your car for chip remnants, smells, etc. that remind you of life before eating Paleo. Scanning your environment for factors that slow you down or even stop you from your efforts.

    2.  Design your 9 environments to support you. For example, share with your network or relationship environment (often called your “peeps” or your “inner circle” depending on your age) for support in your quest to kick the sugar habit. Make them aware of your resolution and request their support in achieving your goals. That might mean not inhaling a candy bar in front of you or perhaps congratulating you when you hit a milestone in your resolution.

    3.  Deliberately practice your new behavior pattern. And by practice, I mean give it mindful, aware-based effort. This is one step we often forget. How does a bad habit occur? We do something over and over again and it sticks. So how do you create a good habit? Do something different over and over again until it sticks….and ultimately overshadows the bad habit. And by deliberate, I mean practice as if it was “game day” not just a scrimmage. We so often sleep through our actions – allowing our bodies to go on auto pilot, but with any behavior change, deliberate, mindful actions create a deeper of performance than if you just “went through the motions”.

    4.  Continuously scan your environments for roadblocks or tolerations that keep you from succeeding. Deliberate practice also requires feedback and self-observation and reflection. Great time to bring your relationship and network environment back into the picture – if you are doing something over and over again and you aren’t seeing change…ask for feedback. Am I doing this right?What are you seeing? Be prepared to look for and accept feedback.If you don’t know where you are, how can you know how far you have to go?

    5.  Finally, celebrate your successes! This one is hard for many of us as we forget to do the “victory lap” when we have success.Instead of saying, “Wow, that took a lot of support, effort and deliberate practice to take that baby step, I should be very proud of myself” we say, “I can see some movement, but I must try harder.” So right at the moment when we should celebrate how far we come, we sabotage ourselves not being able to see what it took to get us there. Becoming aware of what got us there, keeps us from forgetting what it took if we get derailed. So do a victory lap – call a friend to celebrate, take time for yourself, eat something nourishing – whatever it is that makes you feel good. And while you are celebrating, remember what you are celebrating….your efforts, your environmental design and your deliberate practice.

    So this year, before you put your resolutions “on sale”, try something new – design your environment to support your resolution and with deliberate practice watch your resolutions become exactly what they are suppose to be, a resolution to an issue you have faced but face no more! Happy New Year!

     

    Amy Magyar is a Derailleur.  She helps her clients across North America change their gears, their pace, and their direction.  She is the essential piece of equipment to get you where you need to move forward at a different pace and with a different power.  As an industry veteran and a Certified Performance Coach, Amy works with individuals who are athletes, were athletes, or wish to be athletes, on navigating change.