Surfing in the Rain

A podcast I can’t get enough of nowadays is the wonderful Michael Gervais’ ‘Finding Mastery’. Not only does Dr. Gervais possess qualities I want to find and fine tune in myself, his interviews with his guests are always interesting and a bit unpredictable. I mean, if you’re going to eavesdrop on two people talking for an hour-plus, you want some good juice and Mike and Co. haven’t failed me yet.

This post was practically written on my 90-minute drive to see family as I listened to Mike’s episode interviewing NFL Rookie Quarterback Sam Darnold. Important side note: don’t worry guys-I wrote it in my head not actually as I was driving! Anyhow, back to the ‘cast; I don’t currently work with a ton of football players but am always curious to see how athletes across sports think and view their respective worlds.

A few minutes in, I was hooked on this discussion; especially after a moment when the conversation turned to surfing, of all things. Surfing apparently is Dr. Gervais’ thing and he mentioned going out on windy and rainy days, noticing his competitors all tucking their chins down, bracing, and squinting to shield themselves from the environmental challenge. Apparently, these were the days when Dr. Gervais thrived and others faltered. Why? As the story goes, he found a way to relax into what was happening and just focus on what’s important. The other guys Gervais described were basically reacting with resistance instead of responding to the situation; accepting with what was happening in that moment. Yes, this is an art form, but don’t worry, I’ll attempt to unpack this as we move along.

Funny how a surfing story in a podcast mostly about football stuck with me, but then again-that’s pretty much how my brain works anyhow-gravitating toward the most aberrant details of a conversation (just ask any of my athletes!). In addition, I had a relatable moment just days after as I got caught in a rain while stand-up-paddle boarding. See? Just like Dr. Gervais; we both like sports with boards! Anyhow I digress.

To add a little background, I recently took up the ‘board after admiring others doing the activity for years and craving another outdoor activity to do besides running (What can I say? Sometimes I am slow to grow.) After a wobbly first few moments on the board I was immediately taken with how calming and relaxing the activity is-just me on the water and I can move as quickly or as slowly as possible. Absolutely perfect. Until it rains on you.

So, I made the mistake of not checking the forecast as I headed out to little Lake Woodlands a short time ago, half because of carelessness and half because I was trying to process some thoughts related to a family health scare. I couldn’t get out on water fast enough. After cruising the canal and listening to a band play for a bit, I started heading back and the wind picked up. Apparently, I was a little too zoned in as I failed to notice the black clouds had replaced the sunshine. How’s that for being in the moment??

Naturally, it started to rain while and I’m still in the middle of the lake. Then it rained harder and the water was no longer, uh, calming. Whoops.  Standing up and cruising became ‘try not to fall in’. And the raindrops did kinda sting a bit. I recall briefly thinking: “Oh s#$^, I’m still new at this” and felt all my muscles fire at once. This was no fun anymore. Or was it?! Based on everyone else out on the water’s reaction-it was chaos in suburbia. So, should I tuck my chin and squint too? 

Nah.  After the initial "oh crap" moment, I immediately laughing at myself and the situation, I just decided to just go with the current keep paddling calmly to the shore. I really wasn’t in any danger, there was no thunder or lightning and the rain felt good in the heat. Besides, I had nowhere else I needed to be, so why not take a little wet paddle board ride?

* Disclaimer: In no way or form am I suggesting you go do things out in the rain. It isn't always a safe or smart thing to do. Okay, not back to the post....

Once I drug my board out of the water and walked to the car in the pouring rain, I reflected this simple choice applied toward the big picture.

OK great, we get it-you’re so brave and calm. So, what’s the point here?

How many times do we misjudge a situation based on how we immediately feel or think?

Why don’t we lean into situations more instead of immediately trying escape them?

Why don’t we look inward more when the outside shifts?

It’s human nature to have the tendency to respond with fear and tension when we get uncomfortable or if the situation is not what we expect it to be. A lot of runners are guilty of this, and myself included. Say you go out and you expect it to be an easy day when maybe the heat is high or it’s just one of those days when things don’t click well. What’s your first response? A lot of the times it’s “oh crap, what does this mean?” or “this sucks”,  or “I’m dying”. That, folks is the fear response talking to you because your real and your ideal are not syncing up. And, by the way, you’re probably not dying-because if you were you wouldn’t be wasting your time by reading this rambling post!

What if we went into situations just accepting it? If we call upon our strengths and resources and just make the decision to relax into the effort and discomfort, how would things be different? In a competitive situation, it would give you a distinct advantage. The one who doesn’t lose their “S” when things get challenging or the unexpected happens is typically the one who fares the best. This, of course does not just apply to sport but very much to our lives in general. 

Okay, great. How do we get from here to there?

Pay attention. Pay attention to your thoughts, reactions, and your initial impressions of situations. Then try and look at them objectively and without emotion. Calmly. Choose to apply strength and rational thinking to the situation, then find ways that the adversity can be an advantage to you. Then do it again. This begins to counter the fear response and give us a better handle and perspective of a situation. Simple things like my lake experience can also be teachers, as can be races, presentations, tests, difficult conversations, or anything else that gets us uncomfortable and a little afraid. Choose to take control, it’s more fun that way.

Accept the situation. It's hardly ever what we want, but if we choose to work with it, we give ourselves a chance to overcome. Accept the initial resistance and negative thoughts that happen, but simply observe them instead or chasing them down. 

The more we practice this, the better we get at it. So be patient with yourselves and don’t be afraid to practice this. Trust me, you’ll find that you like it. And you don’t have to go out surfing in the rain to experience it 😉

Tuck in or lean in. Up to you!