My March Challenge is all about creating inner stillness and focus by completing a simple breath practice ladder. It starts with 1 minute of deep breathing on day 1. You choose when to move up the ladder with progressively longer practices. Create a little extra balance and focus in March with this one!

The power of visualization isn’t new, but it’s a challenging field to research. I found this recap of a new study intriguing, as it gives us a glimpse of how the latest mental rehearsal research is conducted. And it’s always good to have a reminder of the value in visualizing your desired state of doing or being!

This article serves as a quick checklist for things to do when you’re feeling burnt out at work. My favorites: swap “should” with “why”, move more, and have a look at your expectations outside of work. 

On that last one, I’ve worked with too many endurance athletes over the years who nearly ran themselves into the ground preparing for a major race while at the same time undergoing a tremendously stressful work project. Add in any challenging situation at home and it’s a dry forest awaiting a lightning strike! 

When work, home, and sport all have peak demands, pressure, and workload in one focused time period, my guidance is always pick 2, or risk failing at 3.

Here’s a look through a sports psychology lens at peak performance in cycling. It covers fear, solo vs group energy, and maintaining focus on a goal. Nothing ground-breaking, but these reminders are good for a quick scan and the photos are motivating.

What caught my interest is the guidance on dealing with fear in descending. The author suggests redirecting attention to “visual cues or aural distractions such as the wind or the sound of the tyres.”

I agree with the redirection approach (in cycling, other sports, and general fears in life), but wouldn’t redirect to things linked to the fear, but rather to the sound and feel of breath, or to colors in nature.