Did you watch the Tour de France? The 3 week long suffer fest is a testament to how much an athlete is willing to suffer for the privilege of finishing Le Tour.
Shane Archibald, a rider from team Bora-Argon 18 suffered a high speed crash while descending on stage 17. It was so hard it snapped his bike frame in two, but he still managed to ride the remaining 70 kilometres to the day’s mountain top finish. The 27-year-old from New Zealand crashed into a stone wall coming down the Col des Mosses. He was going 80-90kph. He refused to quit. He was obviously in pain and his jersey was ripped and bloody, but he would not stop. When his team mechanic arrived at the scene Shane yelled “Pull me up! Pull me up and give me the bike!” Once he crossed the finish line it was determined that he broke his pelvis, but he still completed the stage.
What’s left of Shane Archibald’s Bike
Now we know why.
Researchers from the University of Kent and Australian collaborators shows that elite endurance athletes aren’t like the rest of us. They have a higher ability to resist mental fatigue. The researchers speculate that the superior willpower and resistance mental fatigue is developed over years of training and the very demanding lifestyle.
The good news, you can train yourself to be more mentally resilient and resist mental fatigue. The really good news, you don’t have to crash your bike to do it.
Change your mind, change your health,
Shayla
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