The idea of mental toughness and mental strength is thrown around a lot in the world of triathlon. A lot of people think others are just born more mentally tough and that’s just not true. It’s a skill that takes practice just like anything else you want to get better at. I found it helpful to think about it in a different way.
Your ability to be mentally tough begins with your result capacity.
When we’re dialed into our training, we focus a lot on perceived exertion, watts, pace, heartrate, FTP and all that good stuff. And I’m the first to admit, I’m all about those metrics too! They’re important measures of our effort and progression as athletes. If we want to get better at cycling then we periodize the training to ensure our bodies adapt to new levels. The same is true for swim and run training.
The same is also true for our minds.
When we increase our result capacity, we increase our mental stamina or mental strength.
You may be all about that FTP and VO2 Max, but the one metric you don’t currently measure enough is called: result capacity.
Result capacity is the current capacity you have to create the result you want.
If you haven’t read my previous blog post on the Self Coaching Model, definitely go back and check it out because it’s a concept that needs to be understood in order to understand the idea of result capacity.
Because the results in our lives are ALWAYS evidence for our original thoughts, that means our result capacity is a reflection of our thought or belief capacity. Said in another way, what we choose to believe about our capacity to achieve something directly impacts whether or not we achieve it.
Your ability to create or change a result begins with your result capacity. Every single one of us has the ability to increase our personal result capacity.
I started racing triathlons 12 years ago as a back-of-the-back finisher, then I moved to a middle-of-the-pack age grouper and now I’m a Kona qualifier planning my first trip to the big island next year. How? By deliberately putting in the work to increase my result capacity.
There is nothing better in the world than unleveling your mind to achieve something you once thought impossible.
