With running, actions will ALWAYS speak louder than words. Though if we put some words to those actions…
[click to enlarge, but please contact me if you’d like prints! š ]
In case you missed last Sunday’s Morning Running Inspiration
1) What are you grateful for this Sunday?
2) Take a minute and dedicate at least one mile of your run to a friend, person, or injured running NOT able to run today. Who are you running that mile for?
3) What is one line of text you’d add to this picture?
Trust me, there is something special about those endorphins…more powerful than even speed goggles. EVERYTHING just looks and feels better with a brain full of post-run endorphins. Those problems feel just a smidgen less monstrously terrible, food tastes better, even that neighbor you hate is slightly more tolerable. The world is just a better place after you’ve got your run on.
Now, certainly endorphins have a shelf-life…gosh, dang it! The answer though is simple…get up, run, get your endorphin shot, go to bed, repeat.
Living the life of a runner is like being in one of those revolving doors. It’s not a stagnate state, it’s ALWAYS moving. Tomorrow wipes the slate clean, and you have to start that run all over again. Some people could see that as a negative, “Dangit, I worked by butt off yesterday but when I go to bed I’ve gotta get up and do it all over again.”
Wiped clean, but not erased. Let’s look at the many positives of living in the running revolving door:
* Injures pass: Stuck in the middle of an injury it kinda feels like that door is stalling out…maybe it’s broken and you’re trapped in injury purgatory FOREVER. But time passes, injuries heal, and eventually you get back to your runs. Then savor them.
* Training accumulates: When tomorrow wipes the slate clean, it HARDLY erases all that hard work put in. This is the beauty of training cycles, the runs and hard workouts build upon the next, so that revolving door is more like an escalator. Riiiiide it, baby. BUT…it only goes up if you stay consistent in moving through those doors, you have to be consistent with your running and putting in the work.
* Bad races are wiped away: There will always be days that bring you bad races and horrible workouts. Can’t avoid them, the good news is you can LEARN from every off performance and after that, shake off the crappy run and get moving towards the next AWESOME run.
* ALWAYS another opportunity: Perhaps the most wonderful and motivating part of the revolving door is that there is ALWAYS another run, race, day, workout, waiting. So even in the most down times of your running, take a shower and set your sights on tomorrow. And the tomorrow after that…and just keep running.
So if you’re reading this in brilliant HI-DEF, magni-color vision…you must have gotten back from your run. If the world is looking a little grey, though, you know what you need to do…
1) List another benefit of tomorrow always ‘wiping’ away yesterday.
2) Name another major perk of endorphins?
3) Last lesson you learned from a bad day?
So you remember how just a few days ago I was saying how running during winter can really suck?? Weeeeeell…that’s not always the case…
I honestly DO feel bad for all you running out there in states that actually DO have winter weather. Snow? Sleet? Hail? Crazy-@$$ wind?? It’s not fun stuff…but it does certainly make you tougher. I mean within reason, no use running outside just FOR the torture, sometimes running on a treadmill is the smarter choice. If it allows you to avoid a potential injury and if you’re needing to run faster than outdoor conditions may allow. So treadmills ARE training tools that have their place.
That said…I’m not going to lie. I’ve run in snow, I’ve run in sleet, hail, and into crazy winds that blew me to the side. But *please karma don’t come back and bite me on this for writing the next line* not this year. So I’m going to REALLY enjoy wearing my running shorts.
The other *perk* of being a runner?? #stronglegs #awesomelegs
1) Treadmill running? How often have you been hitting the treadmill the winter?
2) What are some of your favorite treadmill workouts?
Longer repeats or tempo runs on the treadmill…doing 400’s or 200’s sorta freak me out because when the belt gets going I’m afraid I’ll get spit right off! š
3) I wear running shorts in public….
anywhere I can.
Article Inspiration: This Runnerchick
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What the heck is Run-Arta-Gram? If you missed the explanation catch it HERE
Running as an underdog rocks. Being an unknown is easy, and it’s just as fun to shock people. But shock wears off and then expectations can start to build. The thing is, EVERYONE has failures, set-backs, off-days and that’s when the critics start. The underestimating.
Dealing with nay-sayers comes in running and it comes in life. The thing is, you can USE those crappy words to your advantage. Let them underestimate you, let them think you’re not capable. Flip all that crap into motivation to prove them wrong.
The times you get into trouble are when you start to doubt YOURSELF. Everyone have doubts, those moments of weakness, but the key to keeping those moments fleeting is by looking within yourself and believing. Believe in your abilities and your goals. Much easier said than done, certainly…kind of like saying running is just putting one foot in front of the other and then go really fast.
The mind is quite tricky, it can fool you into believing you can’t. But you can also fool IT…it’s all in how you think of it. Confidence comes in waves and it’s malleable; to get to the point of BELIEVING in yourself you sometimes just need to fake it ’til you make it.
Everyone has doubts, the people who achieve their goals do two things:
1) They set goals with passion. It has to REALLLLY mean something to you, because you’ll have to work your @$$ off to reach them.
2) They refute their doubts. When you catch your mind slipping, “I don’t think I can do this” you need to refute that, “H*ll yes, I’m doing this!” It’s not a question.
Of course goals can change, and there is a difference between being totally delusional and just confident in yourself. Certainly. Sometimes you have to be flexible and wise enough to know when the current course for your goals isn’t working and THEN you adjust. Just like with a training program, you need enough flexibility to know when to change the workout, tweak the plan.
But with confidence, you can’t let others shake you. In fact, once they start to underestimate you and your abilities…you’ve once again become the underdog, do you not? And everyone knows being an underdog rocks! š
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Confidence at the starting line of a race or workout is imperative, read my post HERE on how to be a gamer.
Sometimes expectations feel like pressure, but they shouldn’t. THIS POST is all about handing pressure.
Posts on how to set goals with meaning HERE
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1) When has been a time that you’ve been an underdog?
2) When was the last time you’ve dealt with nay-sayers? How did you prove them wrong?
3) When you’re having a ‘low confidence’ moment, how do you push to refute your doubts and believe in yourself?
Honestly, it’s SUPER hard, and everyone struggles. You refute even when you don’t believe it in the moment, and it’s okay to seek out the support of others who believe in you. And in those ‘lows’ remember that your confidence comes in waves and you need to just make it to that next ‘high’.
It never pays to be a slacker.
Let’s be honest, running in the middle of a snowstorm, heading out into sub-freezing temperatures, when the wind is blowing in your face THE WHOLE way…it’s not all that appealing. Love running, love running in ALL weather conditions, maybe not?
But for those poor folks living in States with crueler than cruel winter weather conditions, gain strength and know that being a baller NOW will pay off big time come Spring and Summer. The penance for slacking off is steep…the reward of being the one DOLING OUT that punishment is sweeter than chocolate cake.
#365RUN
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Winter is no joke, and don’t look at running on a treadmill as the ‘weenie’s way out’…READ WHY.
More tips for staying warm and safe during winter HERE
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1) Finish this sentence: “It might suck training right now but I’ll be rewarded…”
…really any time I finish a run I know it was for the better. I chant that during the runs that suck really hard.
2) What’s winter running weather like for you currently?
I feel SO horrible, and a little bit like a hypocrite because I’ve been running in shorts. Hate me? Move to Cali.
3) What races are you looking forward to?
I love running, I think it’s the BEST sport in the World. But it’s a hard sport, mentally and physically. Like really hard. Running isn’t like most other team sports, there can be a fantastic team aspect, but ultimately running is a test of YOU against YOURSELF.
The rigors of training, hard workouts, are a lot to ask of oneself, us runners are quite demanding. Those demands should come internally and 99% of runners are the type-A, OCD personalities who tend to be their own harshest critics. THAT kind of drive and motivation is what separates runners from the slew of people making New Years Resolutions that don’t eclipse January. The traits that can make you the best can also suck the joy from your running if you’re not careful.
The lessons running teach are incredible and lifelong.
When youth running can turn into a nightmare, often times it’s because TOO MUCH is being done. Too much mileage, too many workouts, too much intensity of workouts, too much pressure that’s NOT coming from within.
When a child is running more for a parent or coach, when that child feels like their own self-worth is tied up in that, THAT is when things are ugly.
It’s hard to pinpoint or assess, as with so many other things with running, the line between a healthy relationship with running for youths and one that is destructive is fine, unique to each individual, and a bit ambiguous to explain.
I’ve written a few articles on this topic, one HERE for Run, Blog, Run, and I’ve talked to many coaches and other athletes as well. In short:
* Professional, REALLY KICK BUTT amazing runners that become parents, most of them take the opposite extreme when it comes to their kids and running. They stand WAY back, get their kids involved in tons of other things, and if their child winds up going into running their parents can be sure it was of the child’s own desire. I think that’s how it should be done.
* Fun, fun, fun: The younger the kid, the more fun, loose, relaxed relationship with running they should have. We’re talking short runs, most of those just being totally easy and not even aware of the pace. Not running every day, and preferably in a group environment. Let them be with their friends, who cares about a ‘training regimen.’
* Plenty of Time: Running isn’t gymnastics, you don’t peak at 12 years old, it’s a sport that rewards the patient. When I say PLENTY of time, lots of amazing runners weren’t even serious until college. I liked the story Coach Dena Evans, who ran as a youth and was the Women’s coach at Stanford, told me. When recruiting two of the then top high school females, Katy and Amanda Trotter, the twins were struggling to decide between running cross country or playing soccer their senior years. “I told them, go, have fun, do the soccer with your friends, Iām not going to recruit you any less,ā advised Evans. Incidentally the twins DID run cross country and Evans jokes, “Katy ended up second at Footlocker Nationals, so what did I know, right?!ā But the point is: Dena Evans KNEW they were talented, had the work ethic, and that there was PLENTY of time for them to develop in college. She wanted to let them just keep it fun as long as possible.
* Parents and Coaches: For parents, the bottom line is whatever happens on the race course or during anything running related should be TOTALLY separate from all else the child does. Keep the two identities separate, don’t bring the running to the dinner table. As for coaching youth runners, less is more. From my article, Emily Sisson says it well, “It’s always important [for parents] to remember to put their [children’s] happiness first…I attribute a lot [of my improvement] to the fact that my parents and coaches held me back a bit.” Eventually in 2010, Sisson lowered the 5,000m US High-School Record, after-which she’s continued to improve. “Running should always be something that you do because you love to do it. It shouldn’t become something you do to please someone else.”
Personally, despite both my parents being runners, I didn’t even test out running until about 8th grade. I joined a local club and thought running a WHOLE mile was amazing, didn’t run every day, didn’t even count mileage until maybe Junior year of high school, and my parents held me back when they needed to. I never lost my passion for running, not once.
Youth running should be dictated BY the youth runner. Meaning the passion must come from within, it should be THEIR goals. Ultimately any parents or coaches are merely there to guide them, following from behind. Often times that means holding back eager young runners and assuring them that LATER is when they can do more, more, more, and they’ll be much better off with patience.
1) Do you think there is an age that’s ‘too young’ to run?
Not an age, it’s more on the relationship the child is having. I LOVE seeing kiddies genuinely pumped about running.
2) If you have kids, are any of them interested in running?
3) Anything you’d like to say on the topic?
You’re a runner. You’re special. It’s okay to think that.
[Click to enlarge, but please if you’d like prints of any work you see here contact me! š ]
PS- For all you runnerdudes just pretend that the hair isn’t there. Unless you’ve got long hair, double points if you’ve got a mullet! The words still apply, maybe the could be added on to the arms…
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MENTAL head games tips HERE
More MOTIVATION
More CARTOONS
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1) What are your Sunday plans? Sunday runday status?
2) Come up with a line of text you would add to this.
These days it aren’t just our feet that are running like crazy, the whole world runs at about a mile a minute. Peoples’ attention spans are fittingly just as blitzy, it’s no wonder social media sites like Twitter and Instagram are so popular. In T-minus 2 seconds you GET THE POINT.
In keeping with short, to.the.point nature I’d like to test out a new theme for some of my posts here. I got the inspiration HERE from an artist, Maria Fabrizio, who takes current news stories then creates an image for viewers in what she calls ‘Wordless News’. I loved how she explained many of her subscribers enjoyed the ‘figure it out’ part, a little brain game to see if you’re hip to the latest news tidbit.
Clearly most of the news I’m reading is running or fitness related, and I’ve no desire to rip her ingenious idea off completely, her work is amazing. But I think it would be a neat creative and artistic stretch for myself to cut out the words and see if I can’t provoke in my readers a similar mind puzzle in grasping the concept. I’ll call it a Run-Arta-Gram Challenge; every picture will be related to running, fitness, and health either news or a tip. Below each image will be a link to the news headline or article I got the inspiration from. Without further wordage…the first Run-Arta-Gram:
Article Inspiration: NY Times
There’s ‘Normal People World’ and ‘Runner World’…but the best place is where they intersect.
Running is a special sport because you could be 1-foot or 7-feet, 3 lbs or 300 lbs, not have a lick of coordination, but if you put in the work and are motivated you WILL improve. That’s it. Of course that motivation part is what defines the sport and no amount of good genes can make up for a lacking there.
On the flip side that’s what makes running even more fun and exciting…it’s the MENTAL factor. That gamer-trait and tough as dirt runner spirit are what makes those stories of triumph, the inspiration the breeds motivation in others, and thus makes a nice little circle. It’s the circle of (runner) life?? š
And let’s be honest, the ‘Real World’ can get downright stressful, glum, and hum-drum at times…so it’s always refreshing to be able to escape, if for only a short bit, into ‘Runner World’.
Run. Smile. Live.
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More Runner’s Strip Cartoon Animation Shorts HERE!!
Post on the METNAL factor of running HERE
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1) What does your ‘strip’ to runner world look like? Do you have to wear a certain uniform to work/school, or do you try to get away with wearing runner clothes as often as possible?
Ummm…take a guess?
2) What’s one genetic trait that you may be lacking in but doesn’t matter in ‘Runner World’?
No coordination. Like negative 200. But I can turn left and run straight!
3) What’s something that inspired or motivated you recently?
My dad. He used to run casually but now he’s running ultra’s.