There are some things we can control and many more that we can’t.

And I’m sure you’ve heard it before, specifically regarding racing: Don’t worry about the things you have no control over.

The weather, the hills, the competition.

These are energy leaks. 

Like your physical energy, you only have a finite amount of mental and cognitive energy, so don’t let it leak.

You wouldn’t cycle with flexible shoes or with your saddle slammed as low as it could go.

You wouldn’t let energy leak in such obvious physical ways.

Focus on yourself and your own situation.

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Interview with Craig Alexander

I once heard a pro – I think Craig Alexander – say he’ll do a full body inventory, from his toes to his head of how he feels and what the status of each of his body parts are. 

He suggests – when you’re in pain and struggling in the run –  you worry about your immediate self, where your pains and stresses are, and what to do to mitigate those.

And ignore everything else.

It’s the same even outside of triathlon or sports.

I try my best not to waste time and energy on trivial garbage that surrounds us. Though it can be hard, as we like to tell ourselves “it’s entertainment.”

There are so many energy leaks around us and we all fall prey to them.

Social media, gossip, office politics, and more. They do not enrich your lives – they only drain you of that limited amount of energy you have presumably worked so hard to build up.

Plug your energy leaks, on and off the course.

Of course.