One of the secrets to riding to your potential is to be able to create a state of flow. Flow describes being fully immersed in what you are doing, where time flies, and your level of competence matches the challenge. It is a highly absorbing state, and a beautiful one to be in. The overriding basis for flow is that of being ‘non-grasping’ to the end product or outcome, and purely focused on the process. For example, maintaining focus on your breathing, posture and cadence, rather than focusing on being at the top of the hill. In this way logical steps take over and flow is created. Aside from focusing on the process, there are several other key factors that can help you get out of your own way. They will increase your chances of reaching flows optimal state and ensure you continually improve to allow you to ride to your potential.

Let go of judgments

Before you do anything, your emotional brain filters and judges your ability to do that thing you are about to do. How do you let go of this? Remind yourself that having an opinion about what you are doing serves absolutely no purpose. As an example, judging your ability to ride close to others in a bunch serves you no benefit. If you catch yourself doing this, let go of these thoughts by replacing them with process thoughts such as ‘relax shoulders, look where I am going.’

When you replace judgment thoughts with process thoughts, there is no room for judgment. You cannot think of those two things at once.

Routine

Our bodies love routine as this is rooted in our hormones, which have their own routine, regulating our bodies’ rhythm. When you create routines you are in harmony with your natural rhythms. Positive routines are those that move you closer to what you want. Having a solid routine of commuting by bike or training, and using skillful organisation and planning, moves you closer to your goal. It sets up ideal conditions to create flow. Your body knows and expects that at this time of day you will be riding.

Prioritize
When you want to achieve flow you need to set up the conditions to help you achieve it. Choosing to get up early before work and go riding is prioritizing riding over sleep and if you are going to do this, then prioritize further by training to achieve 100% gains in improvement in that session.

Stop before you need to

By setting aside a small amount of time to train, you don’t waste time. You want to have ‘golden minutes,’ and by always creating conditions whereby you stop before you need to, you keep enthusiasm and thirst for future training.

Remove distractions

Busy traffic routes, iPods or mobile phones can be very distracting. Plan quiet routes and put your phone on silent to remove distractions and ensure there is no engagement with the outside world that could draw you into thinking about things other than your cycling, that may ultimately prevent flow.

Intention

The last condition is intention. If you give yourself fully to an activity it is easier to initiate flow. You can do this by setting an intention. As an example, if I am going to have only 60 minutes to ride, my intention is quality training, not distracting myself with thoughts of my day. Having an intention of quality training, and of flow, switches on your mind and body to create this ideal state.

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