Practice: The Connection Race
For this week's mental skills practice, you’ll incorporate a Connection Race Simulation—a workout designed to help you experience competition as a shared experience rather than a battle.
Step 1: Find a Training Partner or Virtual Competitor
- If you train with a group, choose a partner of similar ability.
- If you train solo, pick a virtual competitor (e.g., someone ahead of you on Zwift, Strava, or an imagined rival).
- If you prefer a self-reflective approach, use a past version of yourself (e.g., trying to beat your best time on a known course).
Step 2: Set a Shared Intention
- Before the session, take a deep breath and remind yourself:
“This is not a battle. This is an experience I am sharing with others to bring out my best.” - Instead of obsessing over who “wins,” focus on staying connected—matching their effort, feeling the rhythm of their movement, and using their energy as fuel.
Step 3: Engage with Presence & Gratitude
- As you train, notice how competition brings you into the present moment. Instead of worrying about the outcome, simply be in the effort.
- If negative thoughts arise (“What if I can’t keep up?”), reframe them:
- Instead of: “I need to beat them.”
- Say: “They are showing me what I’m capable of.”
- Embrace discomfort as a sign that you are engaging fully.
Step 4: Reflect on the Experience
- After the session, write about how it felt. Did viewing competition as a shared experience change how you pushed yourself? Did you feel more engaged, more alive?
- If you raced a past version of yourself, what did you learn from this “connection” with your own progress?
Closing Thought
Competition doesn’t have to be about domination. It can be about connection—about pushing each other to places you couldn’t reach alone. When you shift your mindset from combat to collaboration, competition becomes an act of mutual elevation rather than comparison. It’s not about proving anything. It’s about discovering what’s inside you.
And what’s inside you is limitless.
