Mental Struggles (Read 209 times)

Naw baby, i dont doubt myself during a run, or ever for that matter. 'course i'm not running quite like you guys do, right now MAYBE 20 miles a week, i'm dialing it back a little in order to spend more time in the mountains. My only real doubt is whether i can make it back home before the coffee kicks in and i need to lay waste.

 

Do I poop here, or is there a better spot up the path; is that poison ivy?  I can never tell.

Move west of the Rockies - you'll never worry about poison ivy again 

 

 is that poison ivy?  I can never tell.

3 leaves and shiny,

don't use them on your hiney.

Ok, I just made that up.

As to the original question,sometimes you have to dig deep. Go way down to where your endurance and mind have never comfortably been before. Find that spot and hold on to it as long as you can.

Hope that helps.

I like your questions.

When I've had bad trail races, it's usually been because of a gradual accumulation of small bodily insults- another steep incline, another fall, turned ankle, bloody knee, a deep creek crossing- that begin to assume epic proportions as they mount up. It's something that slowly wears away at you.

My self-talk that helps me through has something to do with respecting the trail, slowing down for a time, accepting the gifts of the trail (the energy from the downhills, the beautiful views, the sound of the leaves crunching, twigs snapping), and trudging on. Ça ne fait rien.

Nice! I love your line "I'm a runner, not a ... quitter..." I actually use that kind of thinking of, too! I think of something like, "keep running, don't quit". That's not only for running, it can apply to life challenges, too.

For me, mental exhaustion, like physical, builds up over time.  I have no doubts that they go hand in hand.  For just one long race, I just continue cheering myself on... I say things like "I'm a runner not a ... quiter, walker, whiner... whatever I'm doing wrong.."   Tell myself how lucky I am that I have the free time, and support system to allow me to run, that I am not running because i HAVE to, but because I get to.   Remind myself what a lucky person I am to have this incredible body that is strong enough to endure.  Sometimes I focus only on my breathing and the sounds of my footsteps, and try to keep my attention there and bring it back whenever my mind goes into whining, etc.  If I'm uncomfortable, i sometimes try to focus in on the discomfort.  If it's not a sharp pain, I try to mentally embrace the pain, and tell it that I am one with it-- try to let my body and mind fully accept it not by ignoring it-- that makes the mind even more agitated sometimes-- but by experiencing it fully while keeping the negative talk quiet.  

 

Sometimes after a long season or 2, all the above begin to fail me. When run after run after run is continuous mental or physical struggle, you may just need a break... and sometimes it'll take more than a week or 2, perhaps even a couple of months.  But always remember, you've built up your strength once, and you can always do it again even after a long break.  If you have given yourself sufficient healing, relaxing time, you will come back totally renewed.