Search Results for: mental toughness

The Greatest Test of a Runner’s Mental Toughness is an Injury

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For an injured runner, the HARDEST part of recovery is all mental. Okay, yes, there will be the cross-training, the physical therapy, any necessary strengthening exercises, stretches, icing, massage, etc…that stuff is never easy but the TORTURE is all mental. Strip the miles from a runner and they feel naked. Half of themselves. A shell. The mentality a runner takes and holds throughout their recovery will either make them stronger or cripple them. Running is wrought with highs and lows, injuries are unavoidable, as are the lows. Retaining sanity entails keeping the right perspective during the lows and the crappy injuries…because an injury never comes at a ‘good’ time. Faking Rainbows I just wrote an article for Competitor.com: “The Mental Side of Recovery”. Do read it but what I’ve said time and time again is that a positive outlook allows an injured runner to 1) be proactive in their recovery 2) gather the strength to keep moving forward 3) makes them even tougher when they do get back to running. * Staying Productive: Hey, cross-training does suck; but it’s the medicine we suck down. It feels overwhelming imagining yourself ellipticalling away for months, so DON’T. Think of making it through this single workout and that’s it. Deal with this moment before you tackle the next. * Money in the Bank: Doing that cross-training makes a world of difference when you get back to regular training. You can bust out some dang hard workouts on a cross-trainer; remember EFFORT is what counts. * Appreciation: These injuries should give you a renewed appreciation for healthy running. When you eventually DO get back to regular training, when you catch yourself feeling ‘greedy’ take a moment to remember that your running is NEVER a given. Also remember on the days you’re thinking about wimping Continue Reading →

The Fascination of Mental Toughness: When we pass the point of running and into training it’s the mental aspect that really comes into play

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Getting back into running after any kind of break is rough sailing. Be it out of injury, post-season recovery, yes, even some are afflicted by the lazy monster, can we get a collective, “Ouch” from the crowd? That said, battle through those first couple weeks and then soak in the awe of muscle memory. Runners, once you’ve been at this long enough, have pretty much conditioned our legs to bend to our will. The quads, hamstrings, calf muscles, core, and even those biceps alike, know the motions thanks to the hours of repetition; they can to a degree function on auto-pilot. So we suck it up those first few awkward runs, try to not look at the pace and cringe too much, and eventually slip into a more reasonable state of shape. Getting to our own ‘casual’ running pace doesn’t take too long but then, as with any other runner out there who wants to race or test themselves, the work is as hard as heck. Training involves the intervals, tempos, repeats and pain. Training involves the mind games; the pendulum between good days and the days when you feel like utter crap are more extreme and the exertion level is felt to a higher degree. Training is far more uncomfortable. I tend to talk a lot about the mental games, the importance of tenacity; tips and tricks about how to get through tough workouts, talking yourself into a gamer state of mind, how to NOT let your mind hold you back from achieving what you want out of your body. I think the reason I do is that the topic on the whole fascinates me; it isn’t something you can quantify, gauge it like you can a certain pace, there is no formula, you can’t tell by looking at Continue Reading →

The Big Three: Talent vs. Work Ethic vs. Mental Toughness- Which matters the most?

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What makes the most successful runners, is the talent, hard work ethic or mental toughness that matters the most? Sure, genetics come into play, one can’t overlook that as a factor, but running isn’t the kind of sport where you can make it to top off of pure talent alone. Eventually even the most talented ‘slackers’ hit their glass ceilings and get outpaced by the runners who refuse to let their genetic short-comings stand in their way and rely on dedication and perseverance. Then there is grit. There are runners who make running look ugly, each step painful and torturous, mostly because it is, but they battle the pain, embrace it, run towards it even unlike their competitors can. There are also the types of runners who tend to rise to the occasion, when they toe the line they are able to step it up to a new level and perform even better than their workouts may have predicted. I like the term Shalane Flanagan has used, these are the ‘gamers.’ All runners possess each of these but to varying degrees; of course we’d like to be blessed with all of them to the utmost but we can’t, so let’s not get greedy. However, which would you say is the most important, which would you say should be factored in the most, and which is the hardest to make up for? Talent. You can’t fake that, you can’t really change much of it either…you sort of have it or you don’t. Fast-twitch to slow-twitch muscle fiber ratio tends to predispose you to the event you’re best at; with certain training and exercises you can increase or build up the kind you may be lacking in, but to at a certain point you’ll max out. Your max heart rate and VO2 Continue Reading →

Runner’s Strip Cartoon Movie Shorts: “A Runner’s Mid-Workout Mental Twitter”

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Running a hard workout or race takes a LOT of lying to yourself. “I SWEAR it’s the last repeat!” “Just make it ONE more mile…” “I promise it won’t hurt THAT much.” Hey, if it takes a little self-deception to push through to the end, then so be it, right?! My latest Runner’s Strip Movie Short: “A Runner’s Mid-Workout Mental Twitter” [Here is the embedded version to give you a preview but it’s tough to read…click link BELOW to view larger.] Twitter Movie Here’s to all those lies that get us through the runs, workouts, and races!! ——– Posts on MENTAL TOUGHNESS Posts on RACE TIPS More Runner’s Strip! ——– 1) Share a bit of mental Twitter Chatter you might have mid-workout. 2) Do you share about your running on social media sites? Which ones? 3) Best trick that you use to stay mentally tough?

Combat Excuses and Run Mentally Tough Even When Things Suck

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It’s ‘easy’ to run fast when everything is going right. Ideal conditions, you’re hitting perfect splits, the legs have POP. The thing is though, the real test of a runner and their mental toughness is how they respond to all the other days. There will workouts in heat, wind, and rain. Runs where, for whatever reason your legs just don’t ‘show up’…they are flat. Other times you’ll be left gutting out a really tough workout but forced to run it solo. But you can’t take those things as EXCUSES. FACTORS, certainly, perhaps you’ll have to adjust the workout, but don’t start looking for a cop-out. See, your mind is an expert manipulator. It’s already looking for ANY kind of excuse, viable reason to tell you to stop this silly running, ease up, slow down, cut yourself some slack. A runner’s constantly working against that sort of ingrained human trait, to push past the limits the mind is imposing on the body. A runner must combat the voices of doubt and complaining already…think of it like a basal level of white noise in the background that you must ignore just to get out the door and running the first few steps. Hard workouts up the ante, taking that constant background chatter and giving it a megaphone; you’ve got to not only ignore it but COMBAT it by telling it to, “Shut the h*** up!” Gearing yourself up to run hard takes extra mental reserves, through the course of the workout the amount of positive self-talk escalates as you tire, as the pain REALLY sets in. Running that hard workout when things are all falling into place, the momentum of hitting the splits and you’re clicking, is infinitely easier than when even ONE thing is off. (ex: it’s hot out) That single Continue Reading →

Running Mentally Engaged: Keeping your brain in check when the pain sets in

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Running is tough. Racing is tougher…downright painful. The brain has a funny little way of dealing with that pain, it gets sneaky and tries to coax us into slowing down. Runner Brain: “I want to run a PR, dang this hurts, but I’m going to put the work in and stick this out.” Annoying Tired Brain: “Well, fine, if you’re not going to listen to my complaints and willingly slow down I’ll just find other ways to trick you into it!” Oh the brain, you slippery little eel, you. * Self-Defeatist Thoughts: This would be when you’re running and your mind starts screaming in your ear, “You seriously can’t keep this pace up for any longer.” * Dwelling on the Future: This is when your mind has on repeat, “Umm, and HOW much further do you think you’re going to be forcing me to do this? Think again buster, you CAN’T last that many miles more!” * Bargaining: When your runner brain and your sane tired brain get into a war, your lame-o brain argues, “C’mon, just ease up a little, trust me you’re not going to feel guilty or regretful about it, just ease up.” This is also known as a lie, because your runner brain knows you’ll feel regretful. * Wandering: This is when your brain full-on goes on vacation, if you catch yourself mid-race thinking, “Wow, I really like the zebra print on that lady’s shirt, you see her, the one sitting on the 20th row of in the stands.” A Wandering Mind = A Slowing Body See, when the mind decides to check-out and wander like that what inevitably ends up happening is the pace starts to lag. Running through pain takes a special kind of focus, focus on forcing yourself to relax, to keep pushing, Continue Reading →

Running Through to the End: The Mental Benefits of Getting Through a ‘Bad’ Workout

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Run to your happy place. But honestly the route to that happy place may not always exactly FEEL like you’re running on clouds, does it? Pretty sure my answer to that question between intervals 3 and 9.99 would have been a resounding, “Heck no!” Though finish the cool-down, or the run, and I’m a firm believer that I’ve reached a happier place. Workouts and runs are interesting because to a certain degree there’s always the ‘surprise’ variable; you can plan your hard and easy schedule but sometimes the legs have the final word in what kind of run it is. For hard workouts the goal is to push yourself, get better, see improvement, and you want to have some extra oomph in those legs. There are times where your legs feel anything but oomphy and during certain training periods that’s just par for the course: you’re running more volume, more weekly miles can suck some of that spring, but sometimes you know the end result will get you where you want to be and you must gut out those workouts regardless and remember that by the time you’re sharper it’ll be worth it. There are instances where the smart thing is to adjust the workout if it’s going awry BUT there are times where you need to plow forward not just for the physiological benefit of the workout but for the mental aspect. Someone once told me that the workouts they have been most proud of were not the ones that were their fastest but rather the ones that were going anything but stellar time-wise but they finished them anyways. Today I got my booty worked over by the workout; I expected it and saw it coming, I’ve done a sparse number of actual harder workouts since my foot injury, Continue Reading →

4 Steps to Getting Through the Grind

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Long runs and long workouts tend to scare people. It can feel intimidating looking down the barrel of a double digit run or mulit-mile repeats. We’re distance runners, we love this stuff, but large quantities of miles (especially faster miles) still intimidate us. Running and that mental component, can’t escape the mind games. Our bodies are apt to surprise us and prove our limit-setting minds wrong…BUT it’s a matter of pushing past the mind crap (doubts/fears/discomfort) before we can be ‘pleasantly’ surprised. The best thing about running into new territory, be it your longest run, the most number of long intervals, or the most volume of hard running, they’re all scariest before you do them. Once you’ve conquered the best you’ve proven you’re capable of it and you get a new frame of reference. Example: You’re afraid of running 10 miles because you’ve never run that far. You then run 10 miles and flash forward a few weeks and 10 miles doesn’t scare you at all. But 14 miles does…sooo, you run 14 miles and the cycle continues. See how DOING something takes the fear out of it. Let’s up the ante. You can run 10 miles but now you’re supposed to run them hard. EEK!!! New challenge. Time to fight through it: 4 Steps to Get Through the Grind 1) Relax: the first part is you gotta stop building the run or workout up into epic proportions. Say with me, “it’s just a workout (or race), all I can is my best, so that’s the goal.” Deflate some of that pressure and take the power away from the workout…give yourself the power by realizing that you’re going to give it your all and THAT is all that can be expected. Times are there for guidance and motivation to push…but Continue Reading →

Runners Breaking Fences: Accomplish more when you free yourself

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Our minds are experts in construction. They will build up fences quicker than nobody’s business. It’s actually a survival method, the brain ‘thinks’ it’s looking after our best interest, keeping us safe by setting limits. The problem is that this survival method is archaic and antiquated, most of the fence-building is stopping us from pushing ourselves in work or running rather than stopping us from trekking too far from our caves, getting lost, and gobbled up by a dinosaur. 😉 In breaking down your fences you are freeing yourself. Because on the other side, THAT is where you can push yourself to your best. The other problem with fences is that they stop you from even dreaming, or imaging that something epic is ‘out there’ that YOU could possible accomplish THAT! Fences keep you safe, in a comfort zone, they also suck because they rob you of really feeling and experiencing. We can easily relate this to running in a few ways: 1) Goals: if your goals aren’t big enough to scare you a bit, they should be bigger. That said, you should know that working towards something BIG is HARD. That’s the point, that’s what makes an accomplishment fulfilling though. Just don’t be fooled into thinking there won’t be times where you want to stop…that’s where true self-motivation and dedication is tested. 2) Going in over your head: everyone needs to be in the position of going in over their head, a few times, and get comfortable with the fact that, “Yea, I might bonk” because, “Yea, I might not bonk and break through to a new level.” There are times in races where you need to not look at the clock/watch/split and just race, get swept up in the faster group…this can be in workouts too. Confidence is Continue Reading →

A Gold Medal Mind: My interview with Dr. Jim Afremow

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To run and race your best it’s critical you’ve got the right mindset. Dr. Jim Afremow has made it his mission to help runners and athletes of all sports hone their mental training. Just as important and the physical workouts, an athlete’s mind can create a champion or turn into one’s own worst enemy. I wanted interview Dr. Afremow both because I respect his body of work and level of expertise and also because, let’s be honest, the psychology of our sport in straight-up fascinating! Often time elite athletes have trouble putting into words exactly how they get into gamer mode…so read on to hear a mental game’s coach put words to the ability: JIM AFREMOW, Ph.D.     1)    What got you started in athletics, and what were your favorite sports growing up?   I grew up on sports and physical activity primarily through my father who appreciated the importance of having an active lifestyle. He especially enjoyed hiking, mountain climbing, and participating in Masters track and field. As a youth, my favorite sports included track and field, soccer, and golf.   2)    How did you foray into becoming a mental games coach and working on the sports psychology end of the spectrum?   Sports psychology provides the perfect opportunity to bridge two of my passions: sports and psychology. I have always been fascinated by human behavior and how all of us can learn to reach our greatest potential. I earned a doctorate in sports psychology and a Master’s in counseling, both at Michigan State University.   3)    You work with a variety of athletes in different sports, but in working with runners what are some of the most common mental hurdles they struggle with?   Mental toughness is equally import to physical strength when it comes to shining Continue Reading →