Goal setting - life outside of sport

This time of year is the dreaming season. Where we would normally be planning out our races for the upcoming year, then starting to structure our training to meet these goals. However, if 2020 has taught us anything, it is important to have an identity outside of sport.

So as part of the goal setting exercise this year I’m also asking my athletes to explore goals which help build their identities outside of their sporting life. What hobbies or activities do you enjoy doing which have no bearing on your sporting life?

Why as an endurance coach am I encouraging my athletes to develop themselves in areas outside of sport? Simple, my philosophy is to help people develop both Health & Performance aspects of their life. What happens if you get injured and can’t train? What happens if races don’t happen (as in 2020!)? What happens when you finally decide to ‘retire’ from sport? Who are you if you can’t introduce yourself to someone as a ‘runner’ / ‘cyclist’ / ‘triathlete’? This is really important for your mental health, as much as keeping your physical health in check by not becoming obsessive in your training.

You can see from the Technical Planning Process which I use with my athletes, that beyond the usual goal setting and planning activities there is also a section for planning life outside and after sport! This forms part of the ‘deep health’ philosophy put forward by Precision Nutrition and we as coaches need to ensure we address all aspects of our athletes health, not just the physical.

So what about me? I’ll be making more time for music and learning to play some new pieces on the piano. For a bonus point - which musical score am I working on here?