Cycling is a popular leisure activity that doubles as an exciting professional sport. You can clear your mind while you enjoy the beautiful scenery provided by Mother Nature on a bike, and you can also relax by watching experts compete against each other. However, you can also experience cycling at its professional level, and your safest bet is to gamify your training routines.
What Is Gamification?
Gamification means introducing concepts used in game designs in scenarios unrelated to gaming. Rather than using a conventional approach in any design, gamification alters the final result to make it feel like a game. The essence of gamification is to increase user excitement and responsiveness such that basic and strenuous activities become more exciting. Gamification has proven helpful in athletic training (e.g. cycling) and increasing user engagements for new crypto projects.
Is Gamification Synonymous to Gambling?
Casino games are only a subset of what the gaming world offers, so gamifying activities and gambling are different. It may feel similar since both cases involve strategy; you face risks for potential rewards and will have a blast throughout the game. Just remember that the aim is to get you more ecstatic about activities that are not so enticing.
You can always introduce betting into any activity you want, but it’s best to reserve it for online platforms. Virtual casinos are much better gambling options since they have many games dedicated. You will certainly love the experience at any top online casino in the UK, especially those recommended by Slotozilla. These casinos offer mouth-watering rewards to gamblers, so you should claim yours, too, in this article.
How do I Gamify My Training Routine?
You can get a lot of apps to help you through a quick search on the web, but you don’t have to do that since you can do it on your own, too. Here are the essential tips for gamifying your training routine:
You Must Create a Personal Challenge System
Just like every game ever created, the first step in playing is to complete tasks, and the tasks, in this case, are parts of your training. You can break it into daily quests, for example, maintaining a cadence of 80 rpm on Tuesdays and awarding points based on the minutes. If you are relatively disciplined, you can make the tasks more complex and give yourself a week to finish them while keeping track of your daily progress. For example, you can focus on building your endurance or speed for this week and award yourself points based on your progress.
You Have to Define a Reward System as Well
Part of gamifying your training is acknowledging every milestone you hit with a reward system. The rewards could also be long- or short-term, just like the challenges, and you must keep track of them. For instance, you can award points for being consistent or reward yourself for exceeding the predefined requirements. You must attach real-world rewards to these points so these points hold value for you. Real rewards include unlocking new challenges or phases in your training and getting new gear or equipment that can further boost you.
You Should Always Track Your Progress in Training
You should keep sight of the ultimate goal, which is to improve yourself as a cyclist. You have to continually track your progress so you can review and modify your training methods to stay on track. Track your consistency and award points for consistency and recovery so you will always be encouraged to bounce back. However, when recording your streaks, you should pay attention to performance metrics like your cadence peak and consistency.
Your System Has to be Progressive Yet Maintainable
An essential tip in gamifying your training routine is to increase the difficulty with time or introduce new tasks so they remain challenging. Considering your basic skills, for example, you can increase the goal for your cadence or start working on your pace and climbing. Once you have mastered the basics, you can increase your strength and endurance. However, remember that the system should be sustainable to maintain your motivation.
You Don’t Have to Do It Alone
Getting a few on board can keep you motivated in your training by competing with you or sharing your achievements. You can partake in informal challenges with other cyclists, which helps prepare you for actual competitions. If you would instead fly solo, you can retain your motivation by competing yourself and trying to top your records.
What Are the Benefits of a Gamified Training Routine?
You already know that gamified training will increase your motivation to cycle, but there are way more advantages beyond that. Here are some of the benefits you will enjoy:
It “Reduces” the Effort You Put Into Training: Conventional and gamified gaming methods require the same amount of effort, but the perceived effort in gamified training is less. Hard work feels different when playing a game and hunting for rewards. Yes, you will feel the same level of discomfort, but somehow, your mind focuses less on that and more on your goal and rewards. It can be such a huge plus to your endurance training.
It Improves Your Consistency in Training: Thanks to the boost in your motivation, it is much easier for you to maintain your streaks during your training. You would hardly ever default from your schedule in a gamified system and will be more than happy to work to recover for the times you defaulted. Consistency is essential for every athlete, so this is a big plus for you.
It Improves Your Mental Health as an Athlete: Many athletes struggle with confidence in their ability and anxiety in training, and both of these are issues that are less pronounced with a gamified training method. The promise of rewards and progression helps to reduce anxiety, and continuous achievements can help with self-confidence, too. You won’t even feel stressed mentally training this way.
It Simplifies the Process: Mastering basic skills to expert levels or taking on complex ones may feel like you’re reaching too far ordinarily, but not in a gamified context. You can break down a complex task into several achievable milestones and gradually take them on. The process won’t overwhelm you if you go about it this way.
Its Benefits Expand Beyond Mastering the Skills: Gamification builds dedication and discipline in you, creating habits beneficial in other spheres of life. It also helps to shape your routine as a rookie into a habit you can maintain even professionally. All you have to do is keep raising the bar and challenging it.
Gamification is a proven method in various spheres and can be helpful for you, too. You can gain several benefits if you gamify your training method, so be bold and start your journey this way. Remember to be consistent and reward yourself periodically if you want the desired results in your training.
The post The Ultimate Cyclist’s Bet: Gamifying Your Training Routines appeared first on PezCycling News.
