Praise for The Brave Athlete “Lesley Paterson is one of the most mentally tough professional athletes I know, and Simon Marshall knows why. Their special sauce has finally been bottled, and the strategies described in The Brave Athlete promise to help athletes of all abilities become dirty fast.” —TIM DON, WORLD CHAMPION TRIATHLETE “Forget marginal gains; Dr. Simon Marshall understands the most important part of performance: the athlete’s mind. His expertise is an invaluable resource to help athletes master theirs.” —DAVID BAILEY, PHD, HEAD OF PERFORMANCE AT BMC RACING TEAM “My training background and philosophy evolved under the coaching of Lesley and the mental slapping of Simon.” —JESSICA CERRA, PROFESSIONAL CYCLIST “I have admired Dr. Simon Marshall’s talent as a scientist and a communicator for more than two decades. In The Brave Athlete he brings this talent to the fore as he translates psychological science into meaningful strategies to help athletes become more confident, motivated, and calm.” —DR. KIRSTEN DAVISON, PROFESSOR OF PUBLIC HEALTH, HARVARD UNIVERSITY “This book will take you deep inside yourself so that you can identify what you thought were your limits and, with Simon and Lesley’s help, smash them to smithereens.” smithereens.” —BOB BABBITT, HOST OF BABBITTVILLE RADIO, USA TRIATHLON HALL OF FAME INDUCTEE “Simon and Lesley get to the heart of what it takes to be a brave athlete. It’s about creating a mindset that goes to bat for you rather than against you. The Brave Athlete is an invaluable guide to help you sort out your head. Plus it’s funny. Really bloody funny.” —FLORA DUFFY, WORLD CHAMPION TRIATHLETE “Marshall and Paterson, in some kind of post-Western duo, limn their own version of Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday. Only the guns and whiskey are replaced with doctoral degrees and world titles. In The Brave Athlete they challenge the reader to draw swords on the psychic battlefields of sport but do so with the gift of Continental mirth and compassion.” —SCOTT TINLEY, TWO-TIME IRONMAN WORLD CHAMPION, AUTHOR, AND TEACHER “Simon and Lesley bring years of training at the world-class level, in multiple sports, together with years of working in academia—all in the real world.” —JANEL HOLCOMB, PROFESSIONAL CYCLIST AND COACH “I always struggled with my inner self and demons during races. Simon taught me not only how to deal with those demons, but also how to manipulate them in such a way to take my racing to an entirely different level.” —KYLE HUMMEL, IRONMAN 70.3 AGE-GROUP WORLD CHAMPION “Lesley has shown me the ability to suffer like no other with the strategies outlined in this book. With these skills neither family or sport is jeopardized, bringing a much-needed balance to my life.” —BRANDON MILLS, AGE-GROUP MOUNTAIN BIKER “The formula for The Brave Athlete is a winner and can be applied to any challenging situation.” —DR. JACQUELINE KERR, PROFESSOR OF FAMILY MEDICINE AND PUBLIC HEALTH, UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT SAN DIEGO “Working with Lesley and Simon has been one of the biggest life-changing experiences.” —MAURICIO MÉNDEZ, XTERRA WORLD CHAMPION AND IRONMAN 70.3 CHAMPION TO ALL THE CONFIDENT, MOTIVATED, WELL-BALANCED, AND HAPPY ATHLETES . . . THIS BOOK ISN’T FOR YOU. THE BRAVE ATHLETE CALM THE F*CK DOWN AND RISE TO THE OCCASION SIMON MARSHALL, PHD LESLEY PATERSON Copyright © 2017 by Simon Marshall and Lesley Paterson All rights reserved. Published in the United States of America by VeloPress, a division of Competitor Group, Inc. ® CrossFit is a registered trademark of CrossFit, Inc. ® Ironman is a registered trademark of World Triathlon Corporation. 3002 Sterling Circle, Suite 100 Boulder, CO 80301-2338 USA VeloPress is the leading publisher of books on endurance sports. Focused on cycling, triathlon, running, swimming, and nutrition/diet, VeloPress books help athletes achieve their goals of going faster and farther. Preview books and contact us at velopress.com. Distributed in the United States and Canada by Ingram Publisher Services The Library of Congress has cataloged the printed edition as follows: Names: Marshall, Simon (Simon J.), author. | Paterson, Lesley (Triathlete), author. Title: The brave athlete: calm the f*ck down and rise to the occasion / Simon Marshall, PhD, & Lesley Paterson. Other titles: Brave athlete: calm the fuck down and rise to the occasion Description: Boulder, Colorado: VeloPress, 2017. | Includes index. Identifiers: LCCN 2017005951 (print) | LCCN 2017008297 (ebook) | ISBN 9781937715731 (pbk.: alk. paper) | ISBN 9781937716912 (ebook) Subjects: LCSH: Sports—Psychological aspects. | Athletes— Psychology. Classification: LCC GV706.4 .M358 2017 (print) | LCC GV706.4 (ebook) | DDC 796.01/9—dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017005951 Art direction: Vicki Hopewell Cover design: Kevin Roberson Handlettering: Molly Jacques Illustrations: Chi Birmingham Photos: cover photo, Matt Wright; author photos, David Friend and Larry Rosa v. 3.1 A note to readers: Double-tap on exercises, tables, and illustrations to enlarge them. After art is selected, you may expand or pinch your fingers to zoom in and out. CONTENTS Preface Introduction THE BASICS 1 Hello, Brain! A peek inside your 3-pound lump of crazy HEART Hone your passion, motivation, and identity 2 I Wish I Felt More Like an Athlete Tackling the flawed thinking around your athletic identity 3 I Don’t Think I Can Building confidence and self-belief 4 Setting Goals Is Not Your Problem The secret of doing WINGS Deal with obstacles, setbacks, and conflict 5 Other Athletes Seem Tougher, Happier, and More Badass Than Me The power and peril of comparison 6 I Feel Fat Dealing with body image in a world of athletes 7 I Don’t Cope Well with Injury How to respond to setbacks, big and small 8 People Are Worried About Me Exercise dependence and the incessant need to do more FIGHT Get stuck in with new battle skills 9 I Don’t Like Leaving My Comfort Zone How to cross the fear barrier 10 When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Leave Me Behind Resisting the urge to quit 11 I Need to Harden the F*ck Up Learning to embrace the suck 12 I Keep Screwing Up Developing Jedi concentration skills to become a better athlete 13 I Don’t Handle Pressure Well How to cope with stress, anxiety, and expectations on race day Epilogue Acknowledgments Notes Index About the Authors