The Joy Of Training

[limerickman]

Do you derive happiness from training?

In what way do you derive happiness from training?

Is it the physical sensation of training that brings you happiness?

Or is it the by product of that training - better race performance, losing weight, feeling of better physical well being - that makes training joyful for you?

I fell away from the sport in the past 18 months for the first time in my life.
Recently I got back on the bike in earnest and the joy from training again is hard to beat.

The feeling of putting in hard miles, sweating buckets, heart racing in my chest, is hard to beat.
And what's even better is the feeling after a training session has ended where you your body relaxes from the strain of physical effort but the endorphin rush lasts for another couple of hours at least.

 

[Corzhens]

I admire this thread title. It is very positive. However, I am just a habitue and my only training I can speak of are the stretchings I do before and after riding. As with my riding, it is more of a recreation for me and not a competitive one. But I can understand trainings and such because I have 3 brothers who were 3 horse jockeys. I used to see them train and do some exercises as well like lifting weights especially when they become overweight. Training is a challenge to oneself and I understand that there are people who enjoy challenging themselves.

 

[limerickman]

I admire this thread title. It is very positive. However, I am just a habitue and my only training I can speak of are the stretchings I do before and after riding. As with my riding, it is more of a recreation for me and not a competitive one. But I can understand trainings and such because I have 3 brothers who were 3 horse jockeys. I used to see them train and do some exercises as well like lifting weights especially when they become overweight. Training is a challenge to oneself and I understand that there are people who enjoy challenging themselves.

That's a reasonable argument.

I expect that many of us train for different reasons. Some of us might be training without even being aware that we're training!

For those that are training, there must be some happiness/joy dividend to be gleaned. And I'm just wondering what that dividend is for posters here.

 

[Keyan]

The training itself makes me want to quit every time I feel the pain, the fatigue and everything that makes it difficult. I derive satisfaction from the training mainly on the results. These are normally observable for me after the training. Let us say a more resilient stamina and strong body plus a nice toned physique. All of these motivate me to push even harder but the process is definitely killing me

 

[RapDaddyo]

I do actually enjoy training. I enjoy developing a set of training ride objectives (even if they are only in my head) and then meeting my objectives. I parse my ride files by time at level and I enjoy seeing the results for a ride or a week or a month compared with my plan. It's not that I don't enjoy being on my bike on the road or the views (I have some very scenic routes) or the wind on my face. It's that I can enjoy both simultaneously. About the only times I have not enjoyed a training ride is when I run out of gas but I'm still miles from home. But, after I developed a virtually effortless way to ride back at ~150W, I don't even mind those rides so much now. I even enjoy riding on my trainer, although I do have a pretty well equipped bike room. About the only thing I don't have (yet) is the ability to control the room's altitude and temperature (I'd prefer 12K feet and 35F).

 

[An old Guy]

I used to be addicted to riding. I would go out early and come home late.

Now I don't feel to badly about going out late and coming home early.

 

[Uawadall]

I'm the type of person that gets hooked to the latest challenge. When I started running consistently 7 years ago, I did serious damage to my body. I was the poster child for "too much too soon".I ran no matter how my body felt(shins in my case) with an old beat up pair of shoes. The results, massive shin splints and a stress fracture to follow. I took a little time off, healed up and continued to run as much as I could. A few years later I found out that I could use bare foot style shoes(Vibram five fingers) and run twice a day if I wanted to with no serious issues. Recently, running kind of lost its fun for me or should I say cycling took over. For the last 4 months training on the bike has been one of the few things that always makes me feel good. I'm 28 and am wondering how it took me so long to find out about this sport,lol...I don't gain weight(6'4" 165 ectomorph), don't race(yet) and don't cycle for my physical well being. I currently cycle because it is the exciting shiny new challenge and gets the blood flowing.

 

[AtlantaSports]

I love training. I love pushing myself to new limits every single time I get on that bike. I like seeing how much I can ride in a single day. That competitive streak that is instilled in me always comes out whenever I am riding that bike.

 

[limerickman]

The dividend for me from training can vary.

One dividend is the joy of wringing out the sweat from my cotton undershirt after a very tough training session. This may sound weird but watching the pool of sweat liquid expand on the grey concrete is a visual representation for me for how hard I worked in a training season. This process (of wringing out my shirt) gives me a tangible feeling of satisfaction.

Another dividend is that in a tough bloc of physical training days, my focus becomes much more sharp. I feel more aware, more alive, during a concentrated period of training days. Mentally I feel far more sharp than I would otherwise feel. I like that benefit.

 

[sunshiney]

I love pushing myself.
In the moment, when I'm hurting and I just want to quit, I kind of hate it, but as soon as I'm done I love it again.
If I feel like I didn't try hard enough, it will bug me afterwards. The feeling of overcoming something I thought was going to force me to quit is definitely the happiness in training for me.

 

[GemmaRowlands]

I do get a lot of happiness from my training, and the truth is that if I didn't, I wouldn't bother to do it - because life is far too short to be doing things that you don't enjoy when there are so many other things that you can choose from. I love being able to just cycle to wherever I want to go without having a care in the world, and I particularly enjoy it when there is very little else on the road, which is something that I am used to in the early morning when I like to cycle. So yes, I do get a lot of enjoyment from my training, and it is even better to know that it is doing my health so much good at the same time.

 

[PelotonPete]

Hey there,

I couldn't agree more about finding joy in training and cycling. It's all about the freedom of the road and the thrill of the ride! When it comes to team-based cycling tactics, communication is key. Regularly checking in with your teammates, signaling road hazards, and coordinating sprints can make all the difference in a race. Plus, it's a great way to build camaraderie and have fun out there. Happy cycling!