Training Tip #6: Recruit Some Teammates

Training is hard. Training consistently is harder. Consistently training hard enough to achieve a big goal is harder still. So why should you go it alone? Well the simple answer is that you shouldn’t.

Committing to a training session is a conscious decision, it requires willpower. Willpower is part of the decision-making process and takes up energy, and we only have enough energy over the course of a day to make a finite amount of good decisions. Simply put, once you run into 'decision-fatigue', your ability to make good decisions is compromised and your subconscious takes over. As we're programmed to seek comfort, having your subconscious mind running the show probably isn't going to end well for your training plans. Recruiting a team to help you achieve your goals is a great way to take willpower out of the equation when you might overwise be more likely to make poor decisions.

Imagine a scenario where you’ve had a long, stressful day at work. The clock ticks towards 6pm as you prepare to leave, and you still need to get to the gym to complete your workout, and then prepare yourself a nutritious meal before getting to bed early enough to ensure you get a good sleep. It’s the middle of winter, dark and cold, and the latest Netflix series and a takeaway with your flatmate feels like a much more enticing proposition.

At this point, you probably have decision-fatigue from your day at work and so the chances of you making a good decision may be slim. We’re hardwired to seek instant gratification, and the nature of training for a goal makes it a long-term objective that may not satisfy you in the short-term.

This is where ‘Team You’ comes into play. Rather than going it alone, you took the time to recruit some trustworthy teammates at the start of your training process. This can be actual teammates if you play a team sport, or just people close to you if you’re an individual athlete. So as that clocks hits 6pm and you’re about to leave, your training partner messages you to say they’re on the way to the gym and will see you there. Then your flatmate calls to say they will cook dinner tonight and wants to check what would be good to eat to support your training. Suddenly, your focus returns and the tv and takeaway don’t seem like the best option anymore.

In this scenario, your willpower was low and your ability to make good decisions compromised. But because you planned ahead, your psychology was changed by your teammates. You didn’t need to do anything to convince yourself to get to the gym, they did it for you.

Another interesting way to ensure you stick to a goal and to get others to invest in your progress is to make your intentions public. Once you commit to something, tell everyone you know that you’re going to do it. This makes it harder to back out as you have a point to prove to everyone along the way.

The point of the post it that no matter how hard you try, going it alone is tough, and probably unnecessarily so. Strength in numbers works, obviously a professional coach to guide you is best, but friends, family, colleges and teammates can all be an important part of the process to ensure you stick to achieving the goals you committed to.