Winter is often the most challenging time to train. Not only is it cold, the trails are often snowy and slow while the roads can have dangerous ice. Goal races are months away. Add to that the limited daylight…and it’s sometimes hard to motivate. However, my college xc ski coach used to say ‘good skiers are made in the summer’. Similarly, some of the most important training you can do towards an awesome Vermont 100 is during the winter.
So, how do you motivate? Much of what you really need in the winter is simply to stay active and commit to consistent training. I went to a talk last week where the US Cross Country Ski Team coach Matt Whitcomb spoke. What struck me was what he said about a few of the athletes who elevated their performance by not just focusing on training, but also working to improve their ‘toughness’.
The example given was that one athlete would end a lifting session by trying to climb a rope, hand over hand, to the ceiling. Sometimes she would make it, sometime she didn’t make it. Either way, she would leave the lifting session knowing that she worked hard and pushed herself to her limits. On days when she did reach the ceiling after a hard lifting session, she gained mental strength to draw on when things got tough during a race. And through consistently attempting to climb that rope, she realized both physical and mental improvements.
Matt left the talk by issuing a challenge of ’60 days of toughness’. He encouraged us all to commit to two months of this behavior, to push our limits just a bit farther, to see what we are capable of and test our limits. And I now pass this challenge along to you.
So, what is your rope? What can you do to improve your toughness through the winter months? It might mean trying to hold your plank for 10 seconds beyond when you would typically drop to your belly. You might pile 5 more pounds onto your squat rack. Maybe you do one more mile at the end of the run, or push yourself a hair harder during an interval. Perhaps you run 5 more seconds of an uphill when your legs are screaming for you to walk. Whatever it is, find something each day to push yourself a bit further, go beyond your preconceived limits, and expand your understanding of what you’re capable of.
My motivation comes from running with friends all winter....it keeps us all focused and we push each other to go out in the elements....some of my fondest memories of training for VT last year, were during the long winter months.....Thanks Amy, love this post!
ReplyDeleteGreat post.
ReplyDeleteOne of my mottos is “If I fail to remember I’m doomed to repeat.” That said, I keep moving forward, and climbing out of a warm bed in the dead of winter well before the sun is up because I don’t want to go back to where I was before I found running. And learning from my many failures..and successes...helps me set bigger and better goals year after year.