This is the most critical comment of any in this thread. It reinforces the old saying that there are no overnight successes. The winners are people who go out and practise and train more than the next guy. They concentrate not only on their fitness, but on technique so that under stress, they maintain better form and efficiency than the next guy. The examples are myriad. Woods, Armstrong, et al all were successful because of the work they did that the public did not see. Armstrong was particularly outstanding when lined up against the fat and lazy Ullrich.

I could say that without this all-encompassed training, success will elude the lazy, the overconfident, the uncommitted and the untalented.

But then that would be harshly unfair for those who really don't give a rat's root about "high performance" athletic pursuits, and just want to stay active and healthy.