Know your Limits, but Push your Comfort Zone

Happy Thursday Everyone!

Yesterday evening, my husband and I took our kids up to Cochrans to ride their new pump track.  We had gone to look at it the night before, so I knew what to expect, and though I was interested in trying it out, I was nervous too!  It seemed tight to me with lots of little whoops,  rolls, and berms crammed into a smallish space.  

When we got there, we played in the parking lot on a bridge and a teeter-totter for a little while, and then we headed up to the pump track.  My son jumped right into it.  He's still a newish biker, but enjoys it and is interested in getting better, so he didn't have any hesitation.  My daughter took it slow as she is new to trail riding, but she was game.  I, on the other hand, was a different story.  Here I was, bike at the ready, and I felt nervous about dropping into this track.  I was especially rattled by three very experienced looking riders already taking turns with my son.  They had nice bikes, the right clothes, and they were moving fast and even getting air off some of the rolls.  

My son kept encouraging me to try it, but I was totally psyched out.  I couldn't make myself do it until the other riders finally bugged out.  Once it was just me and my kids, I worked up the courage and gave it a try.  I realized that I had totally had performance anxiety.  I was worried about being judged, wondered if I would look silly, and didn't want to mess up and look like a total rookie!  I felt like I was back in middle school!!  I know that these are the very same feelings that many kids I work with have when up against something that is new or difficult.  

Reflecting on it later, I tried to think about the steps I took to work through my fear.  Here is what I came up with:  

1.  I waited for the environment to feel right.  In this case I waited until the other riders left.  I was then able to focus more on the task at hand as opposed to what others were thinking of me.

2.  I took deep calming breaths and used visualization to imagine myself being successful.  

3.  I took baby steps.  I started from a lower place first and practiced it in stages, finally working my way up to riding into it from the trail above and completing all the elements in both directions.  

4.  I allowed myself breaks in between runs to evaluate and create a plan of attack for future success.

5.  I listened to suggestions from my husband, who is a much more experienced rider than I am, and tried to focus on some small technical aspects that made the riding easier.  

6.  Lastly, I kept my expectations in check, reminding myself that I am not an expert rider and also don't need to be.  I reminded myself of my goals which are to have fun while moving my body being healthy!  

I am sharing my experience with self-doubt, and my steps to success with you in hopes that you will think about creating similar plans when you doubt your ability to be successful with something hard.  In the end, we had a really fun evening riding for about 2 1/2 hours on the pump track and beginner trails.  If I had let my fears get the better of me, I would certainly have missed out on a really fun experience!  

As we roll into the long weekend, I wish you happy adventures!  

Be Well, 

Mrs. Hempey