10 commandments to help you overcome your fear of mountain biking

1. The more you ride, the less fear you will be.

Overcoming the same obstacles, returning to the same difficult situations, they will seem "normal" to you.

You will gain confidence and your confidence in your bike will increase.

Pleasure comes when you feel comfortable, when it takes over fear.

Practice in the rain, in the mud: falling hurts less (protect yourself well and learn to fall anyway!). You will understand that it is okay to fall...

2. The more you prepare, the less fear you will become.

For walking and jumping, practice gradually, first choosing small obstacles and then gradually increasing their size.

You have to work on your fear of the unknown, upstream. In front of an obstacle that you do not want to overcome, find a similar obstacle, but a smaller one and “grind” it until you feel comfortable.

Repeat this process as needed until you can rely on your skills to overcome 90% of the obstacles in standard mountain biking.

An objective knowledge of their abilities allows those with a mind to exercise regularly, overcome fear, and build self-confidence.

Self-confidence is not something that falls on you one fine morning. It's not something you were born with or not. Self-confidence comes from trying to do things you're not used to. When it works, you are very happy and gain confidence in yourself. When that doesn't work... you see, there's nothing dramatic in the end.

Feel free to openly express your thoughts when everything works out for you: a loud “yes, yes, I did it” is good and impresses your neighbors.

Forget about your surroundings and their possible pressure.

Be positive, the goal is to make you happy and congratulate you. The very fact of gradual progress reduces the feeling of fear. It's all about knowing yourself and knowing your technical side. Gradually you will feel more comfortable and as you progress your fears will lessen... You have to get out of your comfort zone, that's the key.

3. The more relaxed you are, the less fear you will be.

Let the motorcycle do for its work: it was created for this!

Is it your friend.

Release the pressure on the handles and release. Drive on your own, in your own way, without worrying about others. Forget about "productivity concerns," the chronic fear of our modern society of not getting there.

Take a step back and this anxiety will no longer paralyze you. Trust your experience and your intuition, if your mind cannot do this, then rely on your body to set the limits.

Remember to smile: when you do this, you release endorphins; it relieves stress! Take a deep breath and enjoy!

4. The more you use your experience, the less you will be afraid.

At first, in order to overcome obstacles, you were nervous, and then, as you walked, you overcame all difficulties: this is what you have to think about.

Don't waste your energy: think good.

Focus only on what's safe, I try to get through this step, engage, fold, push, move, land and ... I'm still alive!

This is the best way to develop and not be afraid. What I decide to take, well, it will pass! And I will continue to improve my driving, having fun, because that's what matters.

Don't take yourself too seriously: if I fall, it's okay, I'll be back in the saddle. If I have a few bruises, it will go away (we live in an environment where you don't put yourself in danger of serious injury, eh!)

5. The more you understand that the fall is not serious, the less you will be afraid.

Often, your perception of danger is greater than the danger itself. You must learn to identify danger in order to overcome your fear of cycling, as well as look deep inside yourself for the trigger for your fear and sometimes anxiety.

Your main fear is hurting yourself: in front of a big obstacle or after a bad past experience?

So take a moment and stop.

Breathe slowly with everything in your mind.

Analyze, visualize the obstacle and be objective: is your safety at stake?

If you cannot do this, release the pressure and just get off the bike: no big deal! Practice a positive attitude. But be careful, you must always remain humble in the face of obstacles and falls. There is no point in persisting and trying ten times at the risk of being hospitalized!

6. The more confident you are, the less fear you will become.

This is true in any discipline, and this is what will set you apart from the other person.

In mountain biking, you are one with your bike, so you have to trust not only yourself but your car as well. You must know him perfectly. Stability, traction, suspension response, weight distribution, braking power, gear ratios, etc. These are points you should know by heart, instinctively.

If you're happy with that, you can work on your self-confidence by:

• Practicing virtually passing a difficulty (visualizing a difficult passage) to emerge victorious,
• Getting help from someone who knows your level and your abilities. She assures you of the difficulties and explains the mechanisms that will allow you to stay on the bike: the most difficult thing is to find this person (that's good, we know this person),
• Overcoming your fear and knowing yourself,
• Overcoming the fear of falling.

7. The more pleasure you have, the less fear you will become.

We have all had the negative experience of our first mountain bike descent down a steep slope. The most difficult thing is to overcome this paralyzing fear and be able to stifle it. The only solution is regular practice, there is no secret! At this point, pleasure will take its place.

The descents are the most fun part of mountain biking.

The key is to understand what needs to be “replaced fear go down the mountain bike pleasure make a mountain bike. " And especially do not vilify yourself if you fail!

8. Improve your technique and you will be less afraid.

Improvement requires analysis, focus, and a little practice:

• Downhill stance in mountain biking: extreme back posture is the fundamental basis for very steep descents. Return your hips to the rear wheel by bending your legs and spreading your arms (not completely). Heels down, head straight, looking forward to avoid obstacles.
• Look ahead: (not a wheel) this is the most efficient way to better visualize the trajectory. It helps to move faster, avoiding the most important obstacles, the ones that scare me.
• Use only one finger for braking: this allows the other fingers to hold the steering wheel correctly, preventing fatigue and improving handling and safety. One finger (index or middle finger) is more than enough today for hydraulic and disc braking systems.
• Mount the telescopic bar (it will change your life!) Or lower the saddle: Raising the saddle during descents restricts movement and prevents torso pushing when leaning is important.

9. The right gear to wear and the less fear you will be.

Knee pads, elbow pads, reinforced shorts, full face helmet, gloves, goggles ... and, if necessary, back protection.

10. You will practice meditation and the less fear you will be.

This is a powerful technique for technical descents. The advantage is that you can practice it anywhere: on the couch or in the dentist's office!

Of course, this goes hand in hand with other commandments, but in itself does not guarantee results. Give it a try if you're skeptical, but know that imaging has proven to be effective in top athletes. Thanks to this tool, you can reproduce almost real conditions of descent on the ground, this very useful cerebral gymnastics, and you will see how you progress and you will be less afraid! Patience…

For study and practice: Petit Bambou and Headspace.

Conclusion

Do not forget that fear is a useful self-defense reflex, but it can and should be dealt with in order to get more pleasure, more sensations. By following these few tips, you can greatly improve your ability to overcome this.

To take it a step further: in MTB coaching training, we are talking not only about the technique, but also the psychological preparation that will help you do better MTB.