Sunday, 24 May 2020

Son of Ergonomics - How To Become A Lean Cyclist Via The 5 Whys

At first glance this post may not seem to have much to do with cycling, but hopefully by the end its relevance will be clear.


Despite the hype there is noting new about the [Global Intergrated Supply Chain]. Web search [Phoenicans] or [Slave Trade Triangle] to find just two examples, one glorious, one infamous from the past.


Nor is the integral part of technology in such chains anything new. The Phoenicans not only spread trade but also their alphabet, the slave trade was an enabler that,in great part, eventually gave rise to the industrial revoloution.


The current global supply chains are more of the same, only this time it is information technology that is their distinguishing feature.


My time in work coincided with the birth of this technology and I was involved in some of its early implementations. In this connection I became aware of the succcessor to my dad's ergonomics, summed up in the single word "lean".


The ideas for this go back in time but had most recently taken forward by post WWII Japanese manufacturing companies, They visited factories in the USA and learned from them, first copying then improving to the extent that the pupils became smarter than the teacher and nearly caused the failure of the very industry that had inspired them.


The essence of "lean" is to focus totally on your purpose, most specifically what it is that you do that is both essential and adds value to whatever you are making. Anything that is peripheral or not relevant in this context should be stripped away to a minimum. This could be through automation, changing processes so that it becomes unecessary or subcontracting to a specialist organisation that can do it more efficiently.


The "just in time" process is one specific example of "lean". Manufacturing companies used to have huge warehouses containing raw materials, parts or sub-assemblies waiting to be used to make something. These implied huge sunken costs in terms of space, manpower and unutilised capital. "Just in time" minimises these by aiming to reduce on-site storage to a minimum and instead take delivery of items only when they are actually needed.


Central to the pursuit of "lean" are the "5 Whys". These are not rocket science. They simply involve taking a look at some part of what is involved in making, say, a widget, and asking "Why are we doing that". On receiving an answer the next question is and "why are we doing that". By repeating this process (5 is just an rough average)  then it should become clear whether or not everything that is being done is relevant and adds value to the enterprise. A special variant of this technique can be used when encountering problems, say that have stopped a production line. The intent here is to keep asking why until the real root cause of the issue is found. This may not be apparent at a superficial level.


So why are the "5 Whys" relevant to a cyclist? Here are three reasons, there are almost certainly more.


  1. Cycling to get fitter requires a lot of investment in terms of both time and money. When setting goals and deciding how much to invest in their pursuit the 5 whys can be a great way to determine if you are really doing the right thing. An example is aiming for a specific position or time in an event. These are often arbitrary and depend on luck. Asking why the result matters can be a good way both to check it is an appropriate goal and prepare for failute.
  2. Once a goal is set asking the "5 whys" during the lead up can be a great way to prepare. This might be in deciding which items to carry with you. Or in building the phases of a training plan. And asking "why" and getting the answer that it will help in achieving a goal is a great way to start every workout.
  3. Much of the information about how to train is wrong. It is either entirely wrong (maybe due to it being a throwback to the past that has never been questioned) or wrong for an individual (give two people the same training program and they will respond differently.) The 5 whys can act as a useful filter to check that the advice being offered or the information you are reading will actually be helpful to you.

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