During the last three weeks we’ve been talking about pushing your limit then we spoke about not overdoing it now tell me are you confused? If yes don’t worry it’s all gonna make sense and if you’re not confused but you’re eager to learn about the benefits of having clear specific things you want to spend time on during your practice
No matter what workout you currently have, no matter how much money you paid for it or how recommended or how good your coach is. It’s down to you, and you know this.
You becoming a faster runner is only going to happen when you’re proactive about that aim that goal in your mind that you want to improve on
Means what? What should you do when you go for your Cooper test for example? What should you be thinking about?
Unfortunately too often runners think about distractions. I wonder if I shouldn’t have bought those compression socks he is wearing. Wow those shades look good on her, I bet you they keep the sweat from running in your eyes.
What a nice color of a water bottle. I wonder if it’s comfortable holding it in one’s hand whilst running
I should have worn another jacket or I shouldn’t have won this extra layer. How many more laps until the test is over?
Maybe I didn’t find your exact thought or example, but I’m sure whilst reading to me you found your own. From today onwards is going to replace those thoughts with the following
I am going to run every hundred meters as precisely and focused as I can.
I am going to remain fully focused on how I take each stride.
I am going to focus on myself and my lane. I know not about Elaine in your lane.
Whilst in the corner of the 400 meter track I will pay extra attention to maintain my speed.
See, those examples are what is called a focused driven approach to your training. Any training session can feel long. A Cooper test can feel along and the confidence that comes from improving on your personal records that’s what actually keeps you motivated and will ensure you come back the next time with even a bigger zeal and enthusiasm for your run.
And if it is not a Cooper test you’re doing maybe today is your day where you plan to do a 8K run how about including some fast intervals they can be reps of quick short sprints of hundred meters or 200 m, or without being complicated and relying on a super complicated training regime which you may not even be able to remember because you didn’t read it properly, how old picking up the pace for the next 1000 m.
Or if there is a hill section and you are already feeling out of power, how about running it up on purpose with a speed that normally you never would. Surprise yourself as what might happen you might just reach the top and not drop dead like you thought you would, but rather you might have more energy than you thought possible. Can you imagine what that’s going to do with your mindset? And then you imagine what the effect that will have on your approach towards running? I bet you’re going to be much more brave and much more dashes in setting your next milestones. No I wouldn’t recommend you to change your goals and try for a new personal record on your long-term goal. But changing your short-term goals definitely recommends it.
There are so many options and so many differences and variations you can put in that will help you stay on track. Which track? No, not the track when you’re running or doing the Cooper test, but staying on track on your part to become a better stronger and smarter runner. It will help you stay motivated with no reason to look for something outside of you to get you going. You will have an appetite and a desire to come back to the track again and again.
See, this is what the pros know, this is what the pros are doing. The professionals figured this out a long time ago. It’s your time now to figure out what is going to make you fail or improve. The desire to chase something, the desire to figure out what is your best condition to improve. Don’t you think that is more valuable than any training plan? Why is it that some runners go from coach to code from online course to online course because they’re not improving or getting the results they want. It’s because they failed to develop their own map. The territory is never the map is it? It’s your own ability with your own unique circumstances where you’re going to find your best approach to improve.
Writing down your training runs and writing your effort not just relying on your Strava or whatever app you are using. By documenting with honesty that hey perhaps this run wasn’t good and you page through your book and you find out that the whole month hasn’t been good. Why would you then for example expect to run a personal-best? It will be nearly impossible. So develop honesty with yourself.
Or to change it around, once you have a crush that you repeat the one with you were able to complete it much faster than you thought, write the word impossible and draw a big red line through it because suddenly you have realized you are capable of more than you thought. By writing that down, you are documenting for yourself your progress. You are proving to yourself that these steps are possible for you, and that by repeatedly doing them you will reach a new fitness level.
Not only a new fitness and level you will be able to identify that you know what I need to improve on my strength training. All my cross training I need to work on injury prevention because suddenly you will give much more importance to staying fit because now you have tasted that spirit of improvement. So they’ll be no more guessing about when it will be possible or I just don’t have time. It’ll be a training plan that adept whilst you are training you will analyze your data you’ll adjust your plan to always make the best compromise. Isn’t training all about making compromises between daily tasks? Of course it is
And by taking the time to rehearse your visualization of that successful he’ll repeat all that successful Cooper test and we spoken about that already in the previous blogs, taking a run episode that was a great and immersing in it mentally just taking five minutes practicing that’s another five minutes you’ll develop into a 10 minute into a 15 minute deep meditation session that is geared to improve your unique run experience. Not somebody else’s, not somebody who just wrote the script and now you are reading it and trying to relate to it and it doesn’t even feel like it’s yours and no wonder it’s not working so it means brain training doesn’t work because obviously you tried somebody else’s. This is the way to train and become a better version of yourself.
And this is one of the most important discoveries and this is from William James a American philosopher and psychologist he said and I’m not quoting exactly here but this is how I remember it
The most important discovery of our generation is that each person can change his life by changing his attitude
The formulation of goals and the inner representation that you can reach it always develops internal strength which intern creates more self-confidence
If you have the internal strength and confidence you will hear you in a dialogue changing and you know that running up a hill doing a Cooper test with a negative dialogue is setting yourself up for failure. And we will do some of these exercises in the next couple of blogs.
Are you actually aware that whilst you’re reading this you’re saving money? Why? Because you’re going to improve by applying these techniques simply by doing things you can already have been doing right now you could’ve been doing since a long time already.
These little experiences where we do much better than we thought we could help you expand your horizon. And the small successes in real life are necessary so that you can visualize during your brain training sessions.
Especially those runners getting close to 40 sometimes one lacks the courage to sit higher targets. However there are many possibilities or areas in your running that can improve that don’t have to do with pure speed. And it doesn’t matter if during your visualization you are imagining a potential that is completely unrealistic. I would encourage you to do this rather than to set yourself lower targets and thereby creating limiting beliefs.
See the power of optimism to develop it and to improve it there is a strong correlation between improved performance and improved optimism. We always need to find a reason for a result and the reason quite often is not the true improvement. Athletes will even people who are not athletes develop descriptions of successes and failures, descriptions which become etched in stone but so often or not correct and that’s my aim here to help you eradicate thoughts which are hindering you to become the best runner you can be
Proverbs 4:25 TPT
Set your gaze on the path before you. With fixed purpose, looking straight ahead, ignore life’s distractions.
Your 365 Day Run Streak, one whole year of running Why who or what would you want to do that?
And if your first thought is “I couldn’t do that” then definitely you should get the book.
Remember that our minds sometimes cruise around the same negative thoughts
Colossians 3:2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.
Thanks for your interest. Do leave me a rating and share the blog to someone who needs to hear it. My name is Heiko thanks for reading.
God Bless You and remember, take it easy.
