Training the Mind

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by Shibumi
Does anyone have any advice on how to develop the correct mental approach in a TT?

I find it difficult to motivate myself in a TT, when I am cycling by myself. I know others do as well, and that this is why it is called the "race of truth".

Last week for example, I was caught for 7 minutes by the eventual race winner with 4 miles to go. I managed to keep up with him (without drafting!) and finally overtook him before the finish, so what was I doing for the first 21 miles?! I clearly could, and should, have been riding a lot faster, although at the time I thought that I was going as fast as I could.

One of the best ways of 'mentally' getting a TT correct, is to pace it correctly using a power meter. I find that even riding 15% below my (usual) TT power hurts just as much (as does riding slightly above -- except i crack at this pace and have to slow) as riding at my known best.

Thus, without the PM i tend to find my PE goes off slightly (as is very likely to happen in races - due to increases in e.g., adrenaline, anxiety, excitement, etc).

If i get caught (and i haven't been using a PM), then i find i can raise the pace to match the other person (like yourself).

Ric

I drive around the course (when younger my dad drove) and we would pick out key features on the course (e.g. turn, 1 mile from the start, 1 mile from the finish, etc.).

These features would be used to break up the distance and a strategy for each section of the race would be devised (e.g. first 200m get up to speed and settle into position, last mile gradualy lift the pace every 200 m so that you blow accross the line).

This strategy effectivly makes a 10 mile race into a series of 3 to 8 smaller races. On longer races I had longer distances between features (e.g. 8 stages over 25 miles).

One 5 mile course I had 15 sections marked by road signs, corners and bridges - this kept me very focused and driving hard as needed in a 5 (in my last 5 (6 years ago pre university) I did my PB of 10 mins 08 seconds (@18 years of age)).

Its also worth sticking paper on your bars with 'key'/motivational words or phrases on, you can read these when you notice your power drop off. Mine always related to pedaling/gearing (making me change into an easier gear than I normaly selected) and words that I used to describe how my legs felt when going well (i.e. 'drive' as in driving those legs around).

You shouldn't judge your pacing on other riders - how do you know the guy who caught you hasn't been going too hard from the start and has blown shortly after catching you? Most people lift their pace to catch someone, so it's often easy to retake them, especially due to the high level of motivation you get from having to defend your honour! You've got to ride your own race, unless you're in the final few miles when it can be helpful chasing someone to get out that final bit of energy.

I've used SRM's during a large number of TT's this year and I've found them to be really beneficial during the race.
I have found that trying to hold a specific power is not a good approach though, as the power you can maintain during a TT varies quite a lot depending on you, the course, the weather etc. This can lead to you either overpacing at the start and then having to slow right down at halfway (very demoralising), when actually you may be doing a very good ride for the day.
The approach I use instead is to set wide limits. For e.g. If I think I can maintain about 325W during a 25mile TT, I'll set a top limit of 350W and a bottom of 300W. If I see powers above 350W I know this isn't going to be sustainable, so I consciously back off and get things back under control. Powers under 300W signal that I should be lifting it. If I do have to exceed 350 for a while (e.g. during a really steep climb), I know that I should go a little easier on myself for a few minutes once I've got up to speed on the descent.
Even if you just use a Powermeter for a few TT's you gain a massive amount of knowledge about pacing. I now hardly have to look at mine as I know as soon as I start pushing too hard - I don't have to wait for the lactate to build up. It also gives you the confidence to use a small gear and slow down on the climbs so you maintain a constant power output during the race (which I'm convinced is the best way to ride).
One drawback to riding TT's with a Powermeter is that you can become too focussed on what you are putting out (i.e. thinking about your wattage compared to what you thought you should be riding at). After a few races with a Powermeter I was getting my pacing right so I changed my focus to thinking about what I was 'putting in'. By this I mean that I started thinking a lot more about riding smoothly and efficiently - relaxing my legs as much as possible, breathing regularly and deeply, feeling at one with the bike ;-) If you really do this well you can mentally detach yourself from the effort and pain. This is not 'thinking about what you're gonna have for tea', instead you are completely focussed on the moment and getting the most out of every part of the race.

Shibumi:

Mental toughness is by far one of the most important aspects of athletic competetion.

If you are not tough, you don't stand a chance.
We could always use more toughness. You seem to be making good progress, and thinking about the mind can only improve your results.

It helps a lot if you have a mentally tough personality to start with, but by far the most important factor is burning desire to achieve goals.

You will recall many months ago lots of people thought I was crazy when I said you could get extra watts in a race if your head was in the right place.

They said it couldn't be done.

Well, you can clearly see based on your last TT, this is absolutely true. The mind is the only thing controlling skeletal muscle. When the mind is not properly focused, maximum performance will not occur.

Whether or not you could have maintained the last 4-mile pace over the entire course in unknown, but it's obvious you could have worked harder from the start.

First, let's get back to mental toughness. One of the best ways to see how tough you are is to ride a fixed gear bike in training.

There is nothing fun at all about riding a fixed gear, especially going downhill when the natural tendency is to coast.

Riding a fixed gear bike is a total commitment. A 42x17 thru 42x14 is plenty for most riders.

If you have been doing TT/power work on the flats on a fixed gear and you hit a nice decent, you will hate every second of downhill pedalling.

You are forced to do constant work. Climbing is very hard since you don't have access to easier gears. Fixed gears force you to use a wide variation of cadences, which most riders don't like to do as well.

Many, many riders would drop out of the sport if fixed gear bikes were the only type available.
Fixed gears will make you very tough mentally if you can tolerate riding one.

I would encourage all riders who time trial to accept the fixed-gear challenge. A fixed gear and a turbo form a potent combination for greatly improved fitness and mental toughness.

Back to your racing. You should finish every time trial completely spent, without the energy to turn the cranks for another 30 seconds at that pace. If you could have maintained your pace for another 10 minutes, you didn't do enough work.

The best TT'ers go by feel. It takes time to figure this out, but is really the only way to maximize your human potential. Use technology to review you performance once home.

If you are training properly, all thresholds and performance-testing data are constantly changing, making the data from last month possibly null and void this month.

The ONLY thing that does not change is your feel. As Greg LeMond once said: "It doesn't get easier, you just go faster" meaning riding at your limits for a 10/25 will always feel the same, only your times will change.

Focus on developing proper feel for just how hard you can push to cross the line completely spent.

For your next TT, try one of the following:

1) Increasing your TT cadence 3-5 rpm in the same gear.
2) Use a 55-56 tooth chainring with the same gear and normal TT cadence.
3) Go for it and use the next harder gear at normal cadence.

So what if you crack using more gear??? At least you tried. However, you may find you are really capable of a lot more than you think and last the entire distance. You won't know until you try.

Good luck!!!