Goal-setting is a common weakness for struggling athletes and a common strength for successful athletes. Do it wrong – or avoid it altogether – and watch your chances for success plummet. Do it right, and watch your motivation and self-confidence improve. For many athletes, it’s the key to enhancing performance.

In a complete training program, the mind is as important as the body. Many top amateur and professional athletes know that mental fitness, as much or more than physical fitness, gives them an edge over their competitors. But just what is mental training and what is it not?

Whether you’re racing, thinking about your cycling, or just out for a ride, you’re likely comparing yourself with other cyclists at times. Is it increasing your motivation and insight? Or is it creating too much pressure and draining your self-confidence? The mentally fit cyclist knows how to use comparisons wisely and how to stop comparisons when they’re destructive.

If your season is like most in North America, races are winding up, injuries are being addressed and naps are much longer. Hopefully, at some point this fall you will sit down with your coach, discuss ‘08 goals, decide what your limiter was for 2007, and how you can improve it.

Easier said than done right? Not necessarily. Numerous studies have shown that when athletes use the power of their mind to actually see themselves perform their sport, they can go on to achieve the image set forth in their minds.

Inner Peace Once reserved for monastery-clad monks, the 5,000-year old practice of meditation has become mainstream as a way to improve performance and cope with modern-day stresses.

Ask an athlete what percentage of their athletic performance is mental. Then ask them what percentage of their time they dedicate to improving the mental component of their athletic life. For some, the discrepancy is huge and many athletes are neglecting the mental aspect of their sport.

When you are out training, it is empowering to start becoming aware of your though patterns. Obviously the way we think and the things we focus on in practice become habitual over time, and that place we regularly visit in our mind and spirit become an automatic response to stress and stimuli on race day.

Athletes are always searching for the "key" to iron-distance training and racing. Magazines flaunt sure-fire plans and training partners try to convince you of the merits of a special workout. But just like all those diet fads, deep down we all know that there are no short cuts. We know that training for an Ironman isn't just about the swim, bike and the run. It's about training for the Ironman.

I know what you are thinking, "Why should I read an article about handling negative thoughts?" You would probably prefer some tips on the latest "run-till-you-puke" mile repeat track workout or possibly a "swim-till-you're-dizzy" pool workout, but as Yogi Bera said, "sport is 90% mental and 50% physical." While his math skills may need some work, his point was well taken.