If you’re out and about you’ll probably see groups of cyclists out on the road. This is because it’s a whole lot easier for the group to move quickly than it is for one cyclist to do it alone. A decent group will always beat one brilliant solo rider up a hill. But why?
You can cycle alone if you want, but every hill will be that much harder than if you were in a group from time to time. Solo you have the wind in your face the whole time. There’s no time to grab a quick rest. No friendly faces to look at when the going gets tough and no one to share a joke with when the pace lets up a bit. It’s just you, your legs and your lungs.
Those in groups can rotate who is at the front. They can cover for each other so that from time to time some riders are sheltered from the wind and can ride along at the same speed with a lot less energy being spent.
The clearest example of this on a world stage is the Tour de France. One man wins, but the team gets him there. They shelter him from being crowded out when the peloton is big. They burn their energy so he can save his. They absorb the wind so he can stay as fresh as possible. And it’s tradition for the winning rider to give all of his prize purse to his team rather than keep it. No one has won the Tour de France by going solo.
So what does that mean for you in the gym?
Don’t try to go it alone…
The most successful individuals have a team around them. Sometimes they lead the team forwards, sometimes they get lifted up by the rest of the team.
What if you could be surrounded by friendly faces, be spurred on by others and be inspired by the words and actions of other people on a daily basis? That’d be a sure fire way to progress faster and further wouldn’t it?
At gyms around the world, the average daily attendance is just 18% of the members! But at SC FIT, it’s a strange day when we have less than double that through the door. Our members know that they might not be feeling unstoppable on any given day, but the energy of the staff and members around them will lift them up and carry them along.
Gyms are full of equipment and weights designed to help you get fitter and healthier. Just like libraries are full of books designed to fill you with knowledge. A very small number of people will succeed if they are given the right tool. Some people will get super smart given enough books, but not many.
You’d be better off finding a team. A team that has the same mindset as you do. A team who wants to succeed as badly as you do. It’ll probably involve some coaches and some friends. It might be a different group to the one you usually hang around with, but your new tribe will make things easier for you in the long run.
Once you have found your tribe things can become a little easier. You still have to work hard and your goals are still for you to get to the top of the hill. The tribe will pull you on the days you’re not quite feeling it and when you make good progress, you will pull others along with you too.