12 April, 2023
When training for my Greenland Half Marathon I knew I had the physical side of the training in hand, it was the mental side that I needed help with.
"Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you're right." - Henry Ford
I knew I needed to power up my mindset.
I knew I needed to manage my fear and not let it overwhelm me.
Why was I scared:
The course was very remote: literally at the top of the world
I was running on ice with spikes: never done that before and you can’t practice that in Brighton
The temperature can drop to -20: that’s definitely scary, energy sapping and makes it hard to breathe.
The environment was wild: icy, rocky, slippery and totally new to me.
You run most of the course on your own: this scared me the most but actually was what I loved the best!!
Over the last year I have been working with a Performance Coach – Zoe Carroll to work on my mindset and create mental strategies that I tap into when the going gets tough.
Zoe always said fear is big, vague and noisy, so break it down, be specific and you can then address and quieten each worry.
When I set off to Greenland, I had several strategies ready to call upon when I felt I was beginning to wobble. They all needed practicing and tweaking as part of my training.
My two favourite strategies: I will always carry with me, my magic pink circle and my inner Arctic Wonder Woman – these will be my power strategies for life.
Here’s a summary of what Zoe and I worked on:
What’s a mindset anyway?
We honestly believe that you can achieve anything that you set your mind to.
Setting your mind to something, however, is more than vaguely thinking about it. It’s more than wishing, hoping, dreaming and waiting.
When we are talking about setting your mind to something, we are talking about really setting your mind to it.
Let’s say that you’ve been saying that you’re going to get your book written, that you’re going to finally leave the job you hate and start your own business, or take that round the world trip. It might not be such a big step, you might be setting your mind to improving your health, running a marathon, creating time for yourself to heal from burnout or simply clearing the clutter from your home. Whatever your goal is, you need to set your mind to it properly.
You:
And when you have all of these pieces in place, that’s when you can achieve anything that you set your mind to.
THIS is what we are talking about when we talk about MINDSET.
Once you begin to understand what mindset is, what your clear goals are, you can then learn to improve each element of your mindset, apply tools and techniques that will help you succeed. Once you know the techniques that you can master your mindset, you can apply them to anything, and life feels easier.
Throughout my time working with Zoe, one of the things that I felt helped me the most, was having her believe that I could do it. She become part of my cheerleading team, having others believe in you, creates a powerful nudge to elevate your mindset into a more positive space.
"It is time to power up your Arctic Wonder Woman" - Zoe Carroll
Thank you Zoe for helping me create my inner Arctic Wonder Woman! #pinknicky
My very first adventure was on a Tall Ship called The Sir Winston Churchill when I had just turned 18.
I have loved adventures ever since. Although I still get seasick 30 years on!
I would describe myself as an everyday adventurer. I try and squeeze adventure into my every day from walks, swims and runs to film, podcasts and books. I am always on the look out for communities to connect with and adventures to be found.
I have just hit 50 and my adventure journey has changed so many times over the years, from a 20-year-old canoeing and sailing instructor, to a Mum with young children teaching them to embrace the outdoors through camping, building dens and cooking on open fires, to a mum of young teens when we surfed, coast steered, climbed Ben Nevis and swam in the North Sea!
My boys are in their late teens now and are slowly flying the nest, it is here I find myself now, ready to embrace the next stage of my adventure journey.
Embracing my new found freedom and loving being outside, I am ready to do some exploring!
My adventure journey has included Moonwalks, marathon walks along Hadrians Wall and the South Coast, firewalks, abseiling down castles, coast steering, a cross country ski marathon in the Arctic Circle, a wing walk and training in an Environmental Cold Chamber at the University of Sussex at minus 20!
I have just come back from running a 1/2 marathon in Greenland - the biggest and most extreme event I have ever taken part in. This Arctic adventure has definitely left me with a fire in soul for more adventures.
This year I am off trekking in Peru, visiting the Amazon Rainforest, hiking around the Isle of Wight and organising a mega sea swim for over 500 "mermaids" to celebrate International Women's Day.
When I am not on an adventure I am working with my beautiful VW Camper Van called Daisy on photo shoots - if you want you or your business to stand out from the crowd then its time to book a branding shoot with Daisy.
See what DaisyVW has been up to
Photo Shoot Dates: Private shoots also available on request
Check out The Big Mermaid Dip for International Women's Day in Brighton - March 11th - Watch out for March 2024 Dates
Happy Adventuring
Nicky Chisholm aka #PinkNicky
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