So you want to turn pro?

So, You want to turn pro, Let's just take a pause on that for a second....

This is a conversation I just had with a young athlete.
Take it for what it is, but I'm sharing it because I think more riders who want to go pro, need to hear the real side of things.

Being a Pro athlete can have a ton of perks: gear, travel, rubbing elbows and competing against your idols, and much more.

But I believe that too many coaches romanticize the realities too much, and that can lead to burnout and frustration, thus robbing promising athletes of making it.

This is "Real talk", and is my take on what it takes to REALLY turn pro, and make it to that level- and stay there long enough to make a career and living out of it. Of course it takes good fortune and having a skill set in your sport/position that is desired by teams at that level, but I firmly believe that if you put your mind to it, and reverse-engineer your goal, you CAN achieve it.

Take it or leave it, it's simply where I'm at in my coaching career and experiences at this point in time.

Would love to hear your thoughts and experiences!
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Athlete:   If I had a chance at pro level it's coming up fast. I'm almost 17

Me:  Why are you looking at the pro levels? what cat are you currently racing?

Athlete:  4

Me:  ok, so hear me out.

I'm going to be tough for a second. BUT one that is on your side, and just want you to see the big picture. cool?

Athlete:   Go for it. Heard it all before. Your probably just gonna tell me that I can't do it, but if that's what your gonna say I don't even wanna hear it.

Me:  nope. forget that

Athlete:  OK...

Me:  I'm going to tell you how it is, and how it could be

Athlete: Thumbs Up Sign

Me: You're not going to go pro this year, and probably not next year.

Athlete:  Oh I know that

Me:   If you want to have a shot at going pro in the US, you have to attend a Talent ID camp

Athlete:   Ok

Me:  You CAN turn pro. X rider I coached did it as a Domestic Pro- and he started when I started coaching him at age 19. I know 5 euro pro's here right now

Athlete:  When I say pro I mean euro pro

Me: and if you want to make it to that level, you HAVE to LOVE LOVE LOVE riding because when you turn euro pro, shit is hard you get 3-4 kits a YEAR, and not half the support you think you should. You do your own repairs with what you have available to you, which may be nothing.

Athlete:  ?

Me:  you sleep in crappy motels that are loud, with too small beds, and sometime really dirty sheets. you race every week, and barely get a rest

Athlete:   I don't wanna hear of what it's like, I wanna hear what I gotta do to get there

Me:  the guys who make it to the middle and top levels are not only guys who LOVE the bike, and all the crap that goes with it just makes it all the more romantic

you have to LOVE riding your bike

and understand how to work hard

and that the tough days will be many

and the great days will have to learn how to relish and savor them, because they won't come that often, or if they do, they won't come when you want them to

You want to turn pro?

here are the keys to success:

1. Love your freaking bike. Eat, sleep. breath, crap everything bike related, but also have another hobby that you can enjoy

2. Train hard. Recover hard.

No good comes from burying yourself day after day. you need to learn how to ride hard when you need to ride hard, and how to ride smart, easy, and fast, when you need to recover

3. ride with people better than you, who have already done it.

X is a domestic Pro, and X was a Euro Pro, these guys are great starts

Ride with guys who will support you on your dream, and won't fill you with hot air, and bullshit

you want people who will keep your feet on the ground when you need to hear you did something stupid, or can learn from.

but they yell at you and reprimand you because they care about you, and want to see you succeed. not because they are jealous that you're chasing the dream, and getting somewhere

4. take those who always have only positive things to say to you, with caution. Many an aspiring professional has lost their opportunity because they surround themselves with people who tell them how awesome they are, but when someone comes and tells them how it really is, they ignore them, or get pissed and reject them

5. Learn how to properly care for your body, and get really in tune with it.

Yoga, meditation, strength training, whatever it is that does it for you. learn what your body is telling you, and how to understand what it needs

6. Learn to love the focus and misery of hard efforts on the bike

7. After learning your body, understand how far you can push it, but never push it too far. 

Limits are made to be pushed, but not always broken. There is a time and a place for that

8. learn how to recover.

Feet up, eating healthy food, drinking fluids, and sleeping enough.

9. Cycling is a team sport.

Learn how to work for others, and how to have others work for you

10. Be a hard, tough, gritty competitor, but ALWAYS showcase sportsmanship.

It's a lost art, being a sportsman. Everyone wants to be right, or bitch someone out because they didn't like how they ran things or did things.

Sportsmen understand that sometimes things don't go your way, but there is a time, a place, and a proper way, to deal with these things properly

Honestly, I believe 100% that you can do it.

It won't be easy

Athlete: But?

ME: and it will take a lot of hard work, communication, team work, and making sure to have fun, but IT IS POSSIBLE.

Athlete:  Can you take me there?

Me: Shoot as high as you can, for even if you miss, you'll land among the stars.

before we jump in- WHY do you want it?

your WHY needs to be big and strong

If your WHY is strong enough, the HOW will emerge

Athlete:  Because it's the only thing I can think of, and the only thing I can see me doing later on in life.

Me:  WHY

Athlete:  Why? Because I love it

Its just what I do

Its what I was put on this earth to do.

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This kid's going to go far. How far? We'll find out...

The rest of the conversation was incredibly important as well:

-I told him about learning other skills outside of cycling, and having a trade or career to move to other than cycling once his career is done.

-We talked about making money work for YOU, not the other way around.

-And lastly, I told him about how old style paper books and learning how to properly read them, can allow him to be on the fast track of becoming a top professional in a field other than being a pro athlete, when that time of his life has come.

Train smarter, not harder my friends, and enjoy the crazy ride that is cycling!

1 SIMPLE thing that EVERY cyclist could do to help make themselves very FAST!

As I continue to coach sports, year after year the realization that it is the small and simplest of things that make the biggest differences to boost performance becomes clearer and clearer.

Seriously simple things.

While growing in the realm of Strength & Conditioning coaching, it's been returning to the simple movements that athletes often neglect (because they "don't like that exercise" or "What's the point of that small exercise, when I can move big weight?"), that makes the biggest difference in their ability to either tolerate training, or increase their capabilities.

When it comes to cycling, it's the simple things that no one ever seems to talk about, or teach.

The simplest (and Free) tools, are oft neglected, leaving you to put out way more energy than required
Think about how much EASIER group rides were after you learned how to properly pace line! (unlike this photo)

We all like to think that getting the most cutting edge wheels, or newest, stiffest bike will help us be faster and more efficient.... when really the thing that can make the biggest difference, is as simple as how we pedal the bike.

Yes. It really is that simple.

The next time you are out riding with a pro (or look at their power files), one thing that often slips by most folks, is that they pedal SMOOTH and STEADY. All day, everyday- That is of course except for when they are attacking, or putting the hammer down- and even then it's pretty damn smooth, and/or it hurts like you've never hurt before!

Yes there are natural variations during the ride due to topography, wind, traffic, etc, but for the most part, the pros are smooth and steady.

So why is it that so many cyclists, ESPECIALLY those who consider themselves serious competitive cyclists, continue to miss this FREE and SIMPLE thing that will make them so much better!?!?

Because we get caught up in the WMD-Weapons of Mass DISTRACTION.

We're sold by marketers telling us that this new frame set saves you 15 watts over a 40k TT. Or that by purchasing this new Grouppo that you'll shift smoother and faster, thus making you more agile on the bike.

It's the same problem I, and every other coach, has to battle when we try to tell a prospective athlete that by working with us, they'll get stronger, fitter, and faster- helping them achieve their goals.... but why pay for something you can't show off to your riding buddies, when you can get these SUPER STEALTH LOOKING WHEELS that all your riding buddies will comment on?!?!

And so it goes on.... Every rider I work with, it's an uphill battle to get them to understand the most simple, and basic concept in cycling: stay smooth and steady on the pedals, and you'll progress quicker than you can imagine.

"But the group I ride with hits the gas on every uphill, and coasts down every downhill!"

Do you want to be like everyone else in your group, or do you want to become the strongest one- the rider that people follow YOUR lead?

It's not easy, staying smooth and steady on the pedals- Try to do it for just 10 minutes on your next ride: keep your power +/- 5-10 watts for that time period (on similar terrain), without major surges or changes in pedal cadence.... It's HARD!!!

But it works.

If you live in a super hilly area like Western Pennsylvania, Invest in a triple chainring for your base training. Learn to pedal smooth and steady over each and every climb, keeping your power within the allotted range.

Forget the other riders in your group. If you want to really grow and become a faster rider, smooth and steady is the way to go-- and ESPECIALLY on your recovery ride days!!!

That is one of the many reasons why I absolutely LOVE the rollers for recovery days. not only do they boost bike handling abilities, but they also give phenomenal feedback on your pedaling, and whether you're staying smooth and steady.... or not.

But that's a post for another day.

Why 99% of us won't accomplish 60%+ of what we could

I am siting here writing this post, listening to  Aesop Rocks' "No Regrets"
Listening to the lyrics and reflecting back, I’ve realized that through my whole career, the short-lived one as an athlete, and my current, much longer career as a coach, that there is a common thread in those who succeed:

They don’t think.

They don’t THINK they can make it.
They don’t THINK they have what it takes.
They don’t THINK about putting in the hours.

They don't THINK about the long hours they've put in so far.
They don’t THINK about what the competition is doing (but they do "keep an ear to the ground")
They don’t THINK why they shouldn’t succeed.

They don’t THINK why they should succeed.
They don’t THINK about whether that other person is "better" than them.

They aren’t THINKING about the obstacles they’ve overcome, or the obstacles that lie ahead.

They know.

They KNOW.

THEY. F-ING. KNOW.

They know that there is someone else out there gunning for the same goal.
They know that there are those who don’t believe in them.

They know their weaknesses.
They know their strengths.

They know to get there it’s going to take hard-ass-work.
They know it’s going to take shoveling the crap.

They know it’s going through repetition. Repetition. Repetition. Repetition. Repetition. Repetition.
They know that when they take a break “just because everyone else is/does it/is doing it, that it’s time lost.

HOWEVER,

They also know that they aren’t a machine, and that in order to get to their goal, they MUST take care of themselves. And that means going hard when it’s time to go hard, and RELAXING and RECOVERING, when it’s time for that.

They know they must work smarter, not harder, than the competition.

What many of you may not realize, is that nearly every Olympic athlete knows that they may not be the most talented. That there are other athetes out there who are better, faster, stronger.
This goes for professional athletes and professionals at work in industry alike.

What drives successful individuals to keep going? To, as Tony Robbins says “Commit to CANEI”? 

CANEI= Constant And Never Ending Improvement.

Darren Hardy stresses the same principle in his book “The Compound Effect”- the key to success isn’t leaps and bounds improvements.

It’s 1%.

READ AGAIN.

1%.

That is NOT a typo.

ONE PERCENT.

I know what many of you may be thinking right now- “1%?!?! This guy is off his rocker!”

How the hell does this work? 1% improvement to be a “success” or “the best”?

1% per day.

Here is the graph that Darren Hardy Uses in his book, to show how it accumulates day-to-day…..notice anything?

Photo From:  https://www.marketingsavant.com/2012/01/what-im-reading-this-week-the-compound-effect/

--You should read the review of the book :-)

I sure as hell did right away!

The first 20 MONTHS it’s TINY improvement, barely noticeable! Who the Hell want’s to improve miniscule amounts that you may not even see day-to-day, or even month-to-month for a considerable amount of time?

Well, myself, for one. And nearly every single SMART competitive athlete, and coach. Ask any Cyclists who trains with Power if they’d be willing to work with a coach who could give them a 1% increase in power PER-DAY for even 90 days.

Perhaps they may need a calculator to do the math, but this would ultimately (to the untrained mind) lead to a 90% improvement in 90 days, WHICH IS HUGE! That’s the difference between a Category 3 average Lactate Threshold power, and a UCI-level PRO Cyclist! (roughly)

But here’s the thing….. your daily improvement of 1%, isn’t linear, it’s compounding!

Meaning:

Day 1, you improve 1% of 100% of your abilities on that day.
Day 2, you improve 1% of 101% of you abilities on day 1.

Day 3, you improve 1% of 102% of your abilities on day 1.
Day 4, you improve 1% of 103% of your abilities on day 1.

Ya dig what I’m saying?

Your improvement over those 90 days is WAY above 90% of your abilities, strike that, well over 150% of your abilities from day 1.

The problem we each face?

We don’t KNOW we can improve, we think.

What happens when you think? You think yourself out of a result. You think yourself out of that raise or promotion. You think you can. Screw that. KNOW IT. OWN IT. BE IT. 

I’ve always felt that we each communicate on subconscious and subliminal levels: be it Einstein's “Spooky action theory” of quantum physics, or the Vibrations or energy we send out to the world (Eastern cultures).

My biggest Role Model in my coaching career, and possibly my life (after my Dad of course) is Charles Shealy, a former NBA player, and current middle & high school basketball coach. He always told me that when you let that bad energy in, it tries to set down roots. But they’re not strong roots, but the negative makes you THINK they are. Ya can’t let that happen. Train yourself to ALWAYS be positive. ALWAYS be happy. ALWAYS let positivity BE you. Don’t try (AKA “think”) to be Positive, let Positivity BE YOU.

(Insert "In Russia, car drive you!" joke- here)

Understanding now, what I do about the world and life, he had a layered message:
1. Always let Positivity BE YOU.

2. Don’t think, KNOW.

Try it yourself:

Close your eyes and THINK you can win your peak race of the year. Feel your heart rate, be aware of your posture, your body language, and your breathing. 

Go ahead, try it. Close your eyes for 60 seconds and THINK you will win your peak race.

Now close your eyes again, being aware of all the same things, but this time, KNOW you will win your peak race.

How HUGE of a difference did you feel?!?! Right?!?

***Note- This exercise, is one of the few times I ever really mention "winning" in terms of a position or result, as Winning really is so much more than a result!---to learn more about that, you'll have to keep reading this blog

Now, what do you KNOW you will accomplish, and what do you KNOW you must do in order to attain it? 

What, or perhaps better yet, Who, MUST you BE?

“If you Believe it, you will achieve it.”

Now go get in the trenches, and shovel that crap, revel in the sunlight, bask in the small victories, get excited for the “failures”- ESPECIALLY the big ones…. Because it mean’s you’ve just gotten a redirection, a big, fat “NO!” telling you where you need to go to get that 1% each day.

It’s been in my experiences, that those big fat “failures” or “NO!” are a 5%+ day.

You just got 5%+ better because of that experience.

What do you KNOW you will accomplish in 2014?