How to Skate a 10k and also Half a 10k, by Nils van der Poel.

https://www.howtoskate.se/ <—-(thats the link to the PDF)

The world is going crazy devouring this PDF. Ok, the world is going crazy trying to figure out what Kanye West is up to but everywhere I happen to click seems to be talking about this young man, his approach to breaking the 10k world record as well as winning gold in the 5k. First of all, these events are for speedskating. “But Yasser wtf mate? the title clearly reads “bicyling” and “books”! All I am seeing is “blabbering…bro”. Most other dads that call themselves amatuer bike racers spend a lot more time obsessing over their training strategy than actually training or racing. This PDF is clear and detailed insight into what it takes to be the absolute best in the world at something. This PDF also happens to include wattage for 30+ hour weeks of training on a bicycle. There is a lot of very specific training information in this document but thats not why I read it. It is why I downloaded it, but not why I couldnt put it down. I was once 25 years old too and I remember how little responsibility I took over what my dreams were. Shit, I’m 34 and can’t seem to put together a complete sentence regarding my goals. I have journal pages filled with good intentions, pages that would slowly become spaces to sketch while feeling bad for myself and my shortcomings. This man had such a clear vision, that the monotony of the same schedule and workout schemes for three years (!) did not deter him. Sounds a little more like Kanye now. With every passing subsection I felt more and more motivated to put my ideas down on paper, think through what it would ACTUALLY take to get there, and then to execute. I loved how self concious I felt everytime I thought “I could never do that” and how embarrased I would get when I realized that what I “couldnt do” was dedicate myself. He did, then he typed it up for mere mortals like you and me to read through.

The document is a poem about the weight of maturity against the strength of personal pressure. This man set a path like any great adventurer and didnt let up until he had come across his finish line. To call this inspiring would be to rob it of its actionable brilliance. Read it because you still believe that you can conquer something in your life.

The next book I’ll be blabbering about is Malcom Gladwell’s Endure: Mind, Body, and the Curiously Elastic Limits of Human Performance. I am not finished with it yet and already I know that I can apply a bit more mental fortitude and focus into day to day tasks. Ill wait and see where my brain takes the text with regard to my physical goals.