Ladies,
Here we go. First step of the State Series is upon us this Saturday. Are we ready? I like to think so. We have a group that has trained since June, and runs have looked really good in practice. Physically at least I think we are ready.
Mentally... well, that is something you can never tell. I talked to a couple of you tonight of the mindset you have to have on the line of a race. You have to set your mind hard on a central idea, a point really, and focus on nothing else.
When I coached boys I had some real head cases. I had this one boy who would hit the line and his eyes went nuts looking up and down the line. He looked scared out of his wits. I would have to grab him by the singlet, pull his face into mine, and I would give him three simple things to think about. There was no use getting to technical at that point - he was only a brain stem by then. Panic can do that to you. The thing with him was if I could get to him at the right moment, those ideas would stick and he would be great.
We all get like that at some point. The bigger the race, the bigger the stakes, the bigger the pressure. You have to believe me when I say most of that pressure is self-inflicted, and therefore you can push it off. One of the best ways to do that is with confidence. In what? Your training.
Look, when I train for an event, it's not just for a few weeks before - it's months, if not a year in some cases. A standard marathon plan would be 6 months with 8-10 weeks of 20-mile runs once a week, 50+ miles a week total training. More than that, the 20-milers would be (by the end of the cycle) done at or near race-pace. In that way I could line up knowing I could carry that pace easily for 20 miles. Taper would take me through the rest. And it worked.
Think of what you folks have done. I've standardized your distance at 7-8 miles on regular days for a reason... so you would be over distance. The more you do that, the more comfortable 5k becomes. Comfort brings confidence, confidence brings effort, effort brings success. It may not be fun to do those runs all the time, but they add up - and they matter.
Think of the intervals, the speed you've held. You have the speed to go the goal times I've set - easily! You have the endurance. You have to dig for the desire. I'm not doubting your hearts... only your focus. Think of it like this: if I told all of you that instead of letting you color my beard I would give you $500 if you hit the goals I gave you, how long before you all blew through them? Not very long, I promise you that. So what changed? Easy: you had a very good reason to take the hurt.
Think on that this week... what is it that motivates you? Is it internal or external? I'll delve more into that tomorrow, I think...
Practice at BNL tomorrow.
Here we go. First step of the State Series is upon us this Saturday. Are we ready? I like to think so. We have a group that has trained since June, and runs have looked really good in practice. Physically at least I think we are ready.
Mentally... well, that is something you can never tell. I talked to a couple of you tonight of the mindset you have to have on the line of a race. You have to set your mind hard on a central idea, a point really, and focus on nothing else.
When I coached boys I had some real head cases. I had this one boy who would hit the line and his eyes went nuts looking up and down the line. He looked scared out of his wits. I would have to grab him by the singlet, pull his face into mine, and I would give him three simple things to think about. There was no use getting to technical at that point - he was only a brain stem by then. Panic can do that to you. The thing with him was if I could get to him at the right moment, those ideas would stick and he would be great.
We all get like that at some point. The bigger the race, the bigger the stakes, the bigger the pressure. You have to believe me when I say most of that pressure is self-inflicted, and therefore you can push it off. One of the best ways to do that is with confidence. In what? Your training.
Look, when I train for an event, it's not just for a few weeks before - it's months, if not a year in some cases. A standard marathon plan would be 6 months with 8-10 weeks of 20-mile runs once a week, 50+ miles a week total training. More than that, the 20-milers would be (by the end of the cycle) done at or near race-pace. In that way I could line up knowing I could carry that pace easily for 20 miles. Taper would take me through the rest. And it worked.
Think of what you folks have done. I've standardized your distance at 7-8 miles on regular days for a reason... so you would be over distance. The more you do that, the more comfortable 5k becomes. Comfort brings confidence, confidence brings effort, effort brings success. It may not be fun to do those runs all the time, but they add up - and they matter.
Think of the intervals, the speed you've held. You have the speed to go the goal times I've set - easily! You have the endurance. You have to dig for the desire. I'm not doubting your hearts... only your focus. Think of it like this: if I told all of you that instead of letting you color my beard I would give you $500 if you hit the goals I gave you, how long before you all blew through them? Not very long, I promise you that. So what changed? Easy: you had a very good reason to take the hurt.
Think on that this week... what is it that motivates you? Is it internal or external? I'll delve more into that tomorrow, I think...
Practice at BNL tomorrow.
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