· By Sarah Conklin
55: Analysis Paralysis, Cyclocross Workouts
Juggling work-life balance can be a real three-ring circus, which Lauren & Jesse know first hand. Led by listener questions, the Work, Play, Love Podcast is all about sports, biz, and family. [ASK YOUR QUESTION]
55: The Middle Of The Race, Resentment And Family, Analysis Paralysis, Cyclocross Workouts
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Description:
When you’re trying to achieve balance and stability in your career, on the field, or in relationships, it can be tough to take risks. Maybe you don’t have the data you need to feel confident in a business decision. Maybe you’re struggling with the differences in parental roles. And maybe you’re running your butt off, but you can’t ever seem to close the gap with the leaders in the pack. Jesse and Lauren talk about each of these topics through their own experiences and suggest that taking risks is a great way to switch it up and find new paths forward.
What’s goin’ on?!!
Lauren’s headed out to Oiselle’s annual Big Birdcamp. The event is the ultimate summer-camp meetup for the Oiselle Volée. She talks about Big Birdcamp and what she’s looking forward to and points out that the Oiselle Volée has open enrollment a few times a year, and one of those times is now! You can check it out here.
She also gives an overview of some injuries she’s struggling with, including some bummer news she received just before recording the show.
Speaking of sweet events, Jesse just headed up Picky Bars Life Points weekend with a bunch of awesome Picky Club members. The Lifepoints weekend is an opportunity for Picky Club members to come to the Picky Bars office, hang out in Bend and get some local hangs like a great hike, a bike ride, and a float in the river.
Jesse also gives an injury update and talks about some future opportunities for competition. Plus, the two talk about Jude digging in on soccer practice.
Lastly, the Flomas duo is headed out to Rebecca Rusch’s Private Idaho event. Check out her memoir and documentary.
Tasty Bites
14:43 - What are your go-to inspirational movies for when you need a pick me up?
Are you ready to pop some popcorn and jump in for some Picky cinema recommendations?!
Lauren doesn’t have too many movies she digs on for inspiration, per-se, but she does like a good comfort film that she can watch for a few laughs of a feel-good moment and then turn off after 30 minutes or so. Her picks?
For Jesse, it’s all about Chariots of Fire. But he also mentions Hoosiers and says that if you don’t cry at the end of Rudy, you have no soul.
Lastly, as a shout out to Picky Bar co-founder Steph Bruce—she loves the Rocky movies and finds them super inspirational.
17:14 - Do you have any favorite dates you’ve been on? Do you have any recommendations for fun dates?
Jesse and Lauren talk about some recent experiences where they’ve gotten to do some fun activities together, like going on a bike ride and unexpectedly going on a hike in Bend neither had been on before. With that in mind, the Work Play Love duo recommend doing something active together, like going to a rock-climbing gym, or mountain biking. Just make sure it’s an activity you both are comfortable doing at the same level.
Separately, going on an adventure and sharing and experience that neither of you have had before can also be fun! Go to a concert, discover out some new music, head to a museum, check out cool art, or try a new restaurant.
20:29 - Jesse once ate 17 Picky Bars in one day. HOW? WHY? WHAT FLAVORS? ANY REGRETS? And Lauren, what's your max picky bar count for a day?
Jesse had a big training day and he knew that he was going to eat a lot of Picky Bars, so he decided to put a Picky PR on the books and, yep, slammed 17 of those puppies. As far as flavors go? On intense training days he likes to keep it on the savory-ish side, so it was probably something along the lines of Need for Seed, Cinnamon Roll’n, Chai and Catch Me, and Moroccan Your World. His only regret will be if someone out there has a higher count than him, so let us know?
Oh, and Lauren’s max count? That’d be six.
23:48 - Are there good interval/intense cycling workouts for beginners that you would suggest? Something that you think would translate well to cyclocross…
The trainer can be an awesome place to do some cyclocross prep. It’s a great way to do intense intervals without worrying about where you are or managing different types of terrain. Doing laps around a Zwift course with short timed climbs and sprints is a great way to see how fast you’re going and get other useful data.
Hill repeats in this scenario can be great for building endurance. Anything from 30s to 3m climbs with an easy ride in between will definitely improve your fitness.
All that said, it will be important to get some time on an actual course or get outside. Cyclocross will put you on different types of terrain and will require you to be skilled at handling your bike, so try and get some time in with that type of outdoor training as well.
26:29 - What are runners doing on their runs to prevent scary dog/animal interactions?
Be prepared to call for help and don’t hesitate to attack back if a dog is attacking you—a kick in the ribs can cause the dog to retreat. For owners out there, please follow leash laws!
29:23 - Jesse, have you read The Dark Age yet?
As of August, 2019, Jesse’s in the middle of reading it…
Meat & Potatoes
30:05 - I have a 3-year old and a newborn and I am struggling with the parental role I need to fill as a mom. I feel like I’m missing out on my 3-year old’s experiences and missing out on fun that they are having with my partner while I am nursing and managing time with my infant. How can I avoid resenting my partner or my child? Any tips on how to balance having a newborn and a toddler?
First, it’s really important for you to know that you are not alone! This is a really common experience a lot of new parents face. Here are a few suggestions:
- Consider pumping more—this can free up some time and can help you balance responsibilities with your partner
- Make sure to let your partner know how you’re feeling—they’re likely having struggles of their own and communication is really important
- Try to remember that this is a temporary stage and hang in there!
37:34 - How do you stay connected with the lead pack of runners in a race? How do you close the gap on someone ahead of you in a race? How do you avoid slowing down in the middle of the race?
If you find that you’re constantly slowing down in the middle of your races and you can’t quite close the gap on the leaders, one of the best things you can try is switching up your race strategy. Try committing to being with the pack for the first 2/3 of the race and see what happens. Be OK with your race falling apart after that, and be OK with your risk paying off!
Next? If you know the pace of some of the leaders in your races, you can train against that pace and try to set yourself up for success by consistently hitting that pace or 5-10s faster.
Lastly, put yourself in a position for success. That means taking a risk early on in the race or taking opportunities when they present themselves. If you see a chance to close the gap or jump out in front early on, take it. The risk might not payoff later in the race (and you have to be OK with that), but you might surprise yourself, too.
42:39 - Has analysis paralysis been an impediment when running your own business? If so, how have you overcome the challenges presented by perfectionism and “over-optimizing”?
Yes, sometimes trying to over analyze can make it really difficult when it comes to decision-making. If you don’t have enough data—and you’re not going to have enough data in the short term (or ever)—you can spin your wheels waiting to feel more confident in the decision you need to make.
If you’re a data nerd, you can try to record the time that it takes you to do the over-analyzing and put some constraints on how much time you’re taking to get to a decision.
The reality is that sometimes you’re not going to know everything you need to know to make the “right” decision. So you just need to be confident and be strong for the folks around you and take the steps you think are the right moves.
Follow-Ups
48:27 -
Listeners follow up about the importance of doing those dreaded PT exercises every. dang. day. They also write in to talk about aging and injury, aging and weight loss, and just aging and being active in general. And lastly, a user writes in to share some thoughts on climate change and how they think about communicating it to their youngster.
As always, submit your work/play/love question at pickybars.com/workplaylove - Thanks for listening!
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