A couple of years ago, when I was writing a column for Ski Racing Media, I interviewed Steven Nyman, US Ski Team veteran and current American Downhiller, as part of the article my teammate Nina and I were writing on what advice older athletes wish their younger selves knew.
When we asked Steven what he would want to tell his younger self, he replied (among other things) that it’s important to know and listen to your own body. He said that when he first joined the US Ski Team he was pushed to work primarily on improving his weaknesses in the gym, instead of focusing and capitalizing on his strengths, and it wasn’t until much later on that he realized this was doing more harm than good, as he was loosing the qualities that made him fast. This advice has stuck with me.
Up until that talk with Steven, I had always been focused on finding weaknesses and working diligently to correct them, whether it be on the hill, in the gym, in the classroom etc. In the gym, my quest for improving has been working on lifting more and getting stronger. And this is still something I am working on today, because you need a base threshold of strength to make it down a two minute long downhill or 100 gate slalom course. But what I didn’t realize before our interview with Steven, was the importance of also knowing and capitalizing on my own strengths. In the gym, my strengths have always been my agility and dexterity that allow me to recover from crazy crashes or bobbles. Steven’s advice and the resulting reflection was hugely important for my progression in the gym and on the hill moving forward because it shifted the goal. It made me conscious of what skills have gotten me to the point I am today, and to make sure never to loose those. I could focus on lifting all summer long and I still won’t ever be the strongest skier on the circuit. And what’s more is then I would lose my biggest strength and differentiator, my agility and dexterity. So instead, I continue to work to find a balance between building my strength and maintaining my agility.
Of course, I still think it’s crucial to understand weaknesses and work on them. And it’s hard to progress if you only work on things you’re good at! In fact, I often ask for feedback on what I could be doing better instead of what I’m doing well. But I think the biggest lesson I’ve learned from our interview with Steven, is that maybe capitalizing on strengths is not necessarily about ignoring our weaknesses, but rather harnessing what we’re already good at to improve on what we’re bad at. I think this is a really positive and constructive way to approach improvement. And if nothing else, this process of reflection allows me to take a step back and think critically about what I’m trying to accomplish and why.
Update
This blog post is very relevant to me right now, as I am home in Buffalo in the middle of my final conditioning block before the season starts. Once I head to Europe at the end of September, my dry-land workout focus will shift to primarily strength maintenance. So now is the time to make the final gains in the gym that will hopefully take me through the whole season.
I have worked with a number of trainers and performance coaches over the years which I am very thankful for because it has given me exposure to a number of different programs and strategies for improving fitness. This year I created my own hybrid out of some of the programs that worked best for me, in an effort to capitalize on my strengths while working on my weaknesses :) For example, instead of doing three heavy lifts a week, I will turn one of them into a strength endurance or a circuit to maintain my explosive power and aerobic threshold. It has definitely been a learning experience to find a good balance, especially because putting on muscle takes time and I have to learn to trust the process. But I am feeling as strong as ever and my work in the gym definitely made me feel more confident on the snow.
Also, it has been great to workout at home this summer, as there is usually a family member in our garage gym to keep me motivated and working hard!
Love the local hill sprints. Remember EVL as you get after The World!