Fools
Goals written
by Reed Nelson, January 2017
We are told to do it all the time.
Be goal oriented.
Be goal directed.
Set goals.
Blah blah blah.
And we do what we are told. Some of us with obsession.
But what about HOW you achieve goals. By mowing others down? Crushing your naysayers? Screwing over colleagues?
And, my focus here, what about the process? Today. Here. Right. NOW!
I know a lot of people. Goal oriented. Driven. And many successful. I also know that many of them are not happy. Or not as happy as they could be. Why? They are lost in the achievement.
What does that mean? Well, I will use bicycling because I literally know several hundred cyclists. Many set goals. Mileage. Races. Placements. Calories. Feet climbed. FTP. The data available to cyclists is astounding. Its use is certainly able to drive performance at all levels of cycling. A goals must be measurable, so data is essential. But to what end? (The only exception I will give is if you are racing to compete) And, my point here, what daily influence do all of these goals and data have?
I am extreme in the absence of data. I use speed and sometimes HR. on my GPS devices. No power. No cadence. The reason is, I do not want my goals or data to control my rides. I want my rides to naturally help progress toward my goals. Read that last statement over and over again.
It's a little complicated for those who are data obsessed to realize. But imagine if every ride was a fun ride. No watts AVR. No interval sequencing. No HR zone following. No HR AVR. No speed AVR. No fucking aroudn with Strava KOMs. Just ride, baby. With mindfulness. With presence. With gratitude. With focus. On what you obviously enjoy. BICYCLING!
I truly think many people have come to enjoy the data and analysis more than the sport in many sports these days. How about trying something different on a regular basis? Say once a week? That could be a (gasp) goal!
If you ride 6 days a week and race (and you probably shouldn't, because you need cross training) you can certainly give up one ride to some of my suggestions below. If you ride 4-5 days a week and race, you can certainly do one of my first two suggestions. And if you don't race or are riding 3 times a week or less you should be doing whatever you damn well please on bicycles and having fun. If you are data/goal oriented and not racing, or only riding three times a week? As they say in Kentucky… bless your heart! (That means you're probably a little silly to be so data-crazy)
Some of Reed's tips for enjoying the ride:
We are told to do it all the time.
Be goal oriented.
Be goal directed.
Set goals.
Blah blah blah.
And we do what we are told. Some of us with obsession.
But what about HOW you achieve goals. By mowing others down? Crushing your naysayers? Screwing over colleagues?
And, my focus here, what about the process? Today. Here. Right. NOW!
I know a lot of people. Goal oriented. Driven. And many successful. I also know that many of them are not happy. Or not as happy as they could be. Why? They are lost in the achievement.
What does that mean? Well, I will use bicycling because I literally know several hundred cyclists. Many set goals. Mileage. Races. Placements. Calories. Feet climbed. FTP. The data available to cyclists is astounding. Its use is certainly able to drive performance at all levels of cycling. A goals must be measurable, so data is essential. But to what end? (The only exception I will give is if you are racing to compete) And, my point here, what daily influence do all of these goals and data have?
I am extreme in the absence of data. I use speed and sometimes HR. on my GPS devices. No power. No cadence. The reason is, I do not want my goals or data to control my rides. I want my rides to naturally help progress toward my goals. Read that last statement over and over again.
It's a little complicated for those who are data obsessed to realize. But imagine if every ride was a fun ride. No watts AVR. No interval sequencing. No HR zone following. No HR AVR. No speed AVR. No fucking aroudn with Strava KOMs. Just ride, baby. With mindfulness. With presence. With gratitude. With focus. On what you obviously enjoy. BICYCLING!
I truly think many people have come to enjoy the data and analysis more than the sport in many sports these days. How about trying something different on a regular basis? Say once a week? That could be a (gasp) goal!
If you ride 6 days a week and race (and you probably shouldn't, because you need cross training) you can certainly give up one ride to some of my suggestions below. If you ride 4-5 days a week and race, you can certainly do one of my first two suggestions. And if you don't race or are riding 3 times a week or less you should be doing whatever you damn well please on bicycles and having fun. If you are data/goal oriented and not racing, or only riding three times a week? As they say in Kentucky… bless your heart! (That means you're probably a little silly to be so data-crazy)
Some of Reed's tips for enjoying the ride:
- Go on a single speed (in group rides) or a fixie (solo)
- Make your GPS data unreadable during the ride (put it in your jersey pocket or something)
- Go out riding without a route plan and explore
- Ride to run some errands (post office, groceries, hardware)
- Ride with a newbie rider
- Smile while you ride (you'll have to slow down a little to do this)
- Stop your ride at a lemonade stand and have a drink
- Take light pack and ride to do yoga, then ride the long way home
- Ride to happy hour, and ride home without getting a DUI
- Cross train (sometimes more riding is less enjoyable, do something else)
- Put something whimsical on your bike to remind you to enjoy the ride (a sticker, bell, squeaky toy)
