keeping it short to go long

"a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step."

-- Lao-tzu: The Way of Lao-tzu, Chinese philosopher (604 BC - 531 BC)

no truer words were ever spoken. in my job as coach, I need to help my clients set long-term and short-term goals. of course, those long-term goals, if taken by themselves, can seem a bit daunting and overwhelming. but that seems to be the methodology many of my clients take when planning their season/career. as humans, it's not in our nature to think of the "little picture." instead, we think about the big results.

for example, I have a client who would like to lose 20 pounds in order to become a more competitive climber. 20 pounds is a huge percentage of his body mass and almost impossible to conceive. but if we break that down to a 500 calorie deficit each day, we know that he should be able to lose that weight in just 20 weeks.

I have another client who would like to bring home the stars & bars from masters nationals. that's the only race she's targeting for a win this season. but we need to look at the full season to build in the appropriate peaks and recovery to prepare her for her target event.

and as another example, I have a client who plans to ride AIDS LifeCycle in June. this will be her first multi-day event. actually, it will be her first long ride. okay, reality is she's just getting back on the bike after years of being sedentary. and everytime she thinks about 500+ miles in a week she has a major freak-out. so we've put together a schedule of progressively longer, consecutive rides and she knows that if she is diligent in her training she'll be more than ready in June.

so as you think about your year, go ahead and look at the big picture. pick your important events. think about how you'd like to change your life. but then, break it down a little more and choose some intermediate and short-term goals that will support your long-term objectives.

and then get out there and take that first step!