In 1996 the British Olympic Rowing team had a disaster. They finished in 8th place.However, in the following Olympic Games in 2000 they pulled of a remarkable turnaround and managed to win the gold mevdal despite their terrible performance 4 years earlier.
So how did they manage such an improvement?
After the failings of 1996 they went back to the drawing board and adopted a very simple strategy.
Everything they did, they asked the question “Will it make the boat go faster?” – if the answer was ‘yes’ then they would go with it, if the answer was ‘no’ they wouldn’t.
They had one goal and one goal only – make the boat go faster and everything revolved around this. This is why they ended up victorious in 2000. They put 100% focus in the goal.
How can this approach help you?
If you have a specific goal in the gym or in life you can adopt thks strategy of asking yourself simple questions when faced with choices throughout the day.
For example, if your goal is fat loss, you can ask the question “Will this help me lose fat?”
If the goal is a priority to you, then asking yourself this question before you make a decision should help you to develop habits.
“Should I set an earlier alarm and go to the gym before work?”
“Should I have the tea time biscuits with the others in the office?”
“Should I skip the gym tonight, I’ll do it tomorrow?”
“Should I go for a walk after dinner tonight?”
“Should I spend an hour preparing a healthy home cooked dinner?”
“Should I skip that last set on my workout?”
All these are questions you will be faced with on a daily basis. At each occasion, asking yourself “Will this help me lose fat?” should help you in the decision making process and ultimately help you progress towards your goal.
If your goal is important to you constantly ask yourself the question “Will this make the boat go faster?”
Whatever your boat is – you should aim to make it go as fast as you can.
Coach Milligan 