Faster Than Your Couch!
I know I'm a somewhat competitive person, and most of all, I like to challenge myself. Lately, despite some lower mileage, I have improved my personal bests on several of my routes, and this has led to a lot of self-created "performance pressure" on myself. I set the personal bests without really trying, they happened, I registered only afterwards (when I logged the run), and I think I might have done even better if I had tried really hard to beat my best time.
My expectations are high now, and growing higher each time I go out for a run. And this "pressure" is taking the fun out of my running. I feel that if I don't perform well (read: if I allow myself to just run easy and plod along), it was a bad run (which it isn't, of course). Sometimes it is so bad that if I don't feel at my best for optimum performance, I'm anxious and afraid of going for my run.
I KNOW that this is silly, but I just FEEL that way.
Any strategies or tricks to get my mind out of this self-competitive mode and get back to some purpose-free, fun running again?
Run for fun.
flashlight and sidewalk
Maybe find some new routes that you don't know your personal best for. Leaving the watch at home might help. I have dealt with this kind of self imposed pressure before...it usually ends in injury for me.
ETA: I thought about it, and it doesn't always end in injury for me...sometimes it goes the other way and I slack off because I'm worried about not making my self imposed goals.
**Ask me about streaking**
So the takeaway is train less, do better!
Take Charge. Train Harder. Suck Less. No Excuses.
Le professeur de trail
+1 to leave the watch at home and find a new route (although once you have a new route you may then feel the pressure to PR that...)
That is quite an interesting dilemma you have but sounds like maybe not a bad one. It depends how you look at it. You have a big race coming up this year. Train smart.
And dare I suggest that you take some time (not much) off. Maybe a week or two. It would maybe "reboot" your perspective on running. A week or two is not enough to lose your fitness either.
But really this is not a bad problem to have. It could be worse. You could be injured and not running at all.
My favorite day of the week is RUNday
I'm very competitive, and used to try to break my records most times I went running. I believe that was the main contributing factor to myu 1.5 years of AT. Recovering from that, I had to force myself to take it slow. I guess the mental trick I used to re-learn was to aim for 90 seconds per mile slower than race pace. That sufficiently de-couples the performance from my fitness.
I still enjoy pushing and running faster though. But I've learned to save those occasions as special treats.
3/8 Way Too Cool 50k WNS
4/19 Tehama Wildflowers 50k
Couch, i've been wondering the same thing lately. I've been running a lot more miles and I lost maybe 10 pounds it seems like my easy pace is 30 to 45 seconds faster. My problem is on days I just want a slow recovery run I keep going faster than I think I should be. I guess I can say I'm running by feel, but when I want to go slow it seems like I'm going faster than I think I should be. But then again I really have no idea what I'm talking about?
Eat to run, Run to eat
The best (especially for common routes) is the day when all the stars aligned; rest, fitness, attitude, weather, fueling etc etc. It's not likely they will align again, so I can't expect to run that fast all the time. If I could, then my best would be higher still, the next day everything goes right.
Bad days have their place; mental toughness, perserverance, pain threshold, learning what NOT to eat the night before a long run. I think I learn more, get stronger on crappy runs; the results just show themselves on the good runs.
Stone Mill 50m 11/16/13 12:42
Febapple Frozen 50k 2/22/14 9:20:55
DIrty German 50m 5/18/14 12:06:16
Are you putting out extra effort (tempo or faster pace) to achieve these "PR's" on your day to day runs? If so eventually that may catch up to you. If you can keep the faster segments short, like fartleks you'd be ok but it sounds like you are racing the clock each day. I'm not sure what to advise but maybe having a set of times, normal/easy/fast for some of your routes might help you mentally. Generally speaking you'd only want to go for that fast time once a week. There is no shame in getting out there and just running at cruise control speed.
Then again, maybe your day to day effort/pace is simply improving.
Tips: no watch, new routes, get a running dog, get a slower running companion, stop and smell the roses.
In dog beers, I've only had one.
I agree with this ^^^^^
LB2
...will be easier when the flowers begin to bloom. Couch - maybe you are just trying to race winter?!? (it's almost over)
Tim
Agree with all the above.
Too much tempo will lead to burnout (and injury). Set a plan for each run and stick to it! I've never like the term junk miles, because each run should have a purpose, and if it's a recover/slow day then that can't be junk.
Agree, leave the friggin' watch behind, and you have nothing to compete against. Stop and look at something during your run, you might be surprised what you are able to see,
“Paralysis-to-50k” training plan is underway!
Thanks, many good points that I can learn from.
The new routes sound good. I'll just have to get myself to step off my usual trails and try new loops. I might also take a camera with me, to force me to 1) take the new trail, and 2) stop and take some pictures to show to you guys.
waldo: This approach is not the worst, as long as some minimum quantity (with respect to race distance) is maintained. I have experienced that after a few weeks of building up, I often have a period of good running, even when I cut back. Quality beats quantity, at least for me (as long as I keep some good base).
Jamie: I have taken November and December very lightly, and my building phase in January and February has been quite gentle, compared to last year. So I am a bit reluctant to take some time off again. I have somewhat recovered from a burnout phase, but this new "I HAVE to run fast" is ruining my just-found motivation, and I'm sure it will burn me out before the big race is on. It's a dilemma between riding a good wave and crushing my motivation by burning out.
Chnaiur: "Treat runs" - sounds good. I might allow one of these per week for me.
Muppy: I TRY to start out slow, and after a while, I realize (either because I get very dizzy, always a sign that I'm too fast, or just from consciously watching my stride) that I'm speedy fast, almost without effort. So I think "This is great! I can go even faster!" Either I then crash at some point, or I set a new PR. Only when the dizziness gets really bad, and I even get nauseous, I might slow down, and then I realize what my pace "should be" in order for me to run a "normal, moderate-effort" pace.
Happened just recently when I was running up and around a mountain: I was slipping and sliding like crazy in the snow, about 4-6 inches with each and every step, so I felt as if I was just slugging along, and I got a bit angry at that. I got dizzy, then nauseous, and I would not recover, even when I stopped every now and then. Only after a 4 miles, I realized that I might be going a bit too fast, so I slowed down significantly. The slipping and sliding stopped, I could run with less effort. When I came back to the car, I saw that - despite all the slipping - I had been several minutes faster than my usual time (without snow) on that course. Duh.
jbyram: There's something true about the "bad" runs, they have to be taken as learning experiences. Only problem is, my body (brain?) seems to learn from those runs that running (in general) is a bad thing, makes me feel bad, and it tells me then that therefore I should rather slouch on the couch. Seems to go from black to white, with no grey shades in between.
Taper: The PR's just happen. I don't take a watch with me, I just check the time when I leave the car, and when I come back, the rest is to go by feel.
Maybe I should not look at the time when I leave the car.
I could stretch for a while after I come back, before checking the time.
This idea of purposely throwing in some fast intervals sounds very good to me. If I have to run fast at a certain stretch on the trail, then I won't run that fast on the other parts. Repeat a few times, and I'm quite sure my body won't ask for more fast intervals on a run.
Sometimes it is so bad that if I don't feel at my best for optimum performance, I'm anxious and afraid of going for my run. I KNOW that this is silly, but I just FEEL that way.
You're correct, this is silly and totally irrational. I suggest a good sports psychologist to help you work through this . But, when you do find one please let me know so I can schedule an appointment too!!!
Seriously though, I have the same problem and for some reason it's been worse this year then most years. I think some of my problem goes back to my bike riding days. Then every ride was as fast and as hard as possible, my focus was on getting better with each ride. I also keep a workout log so I'm always seeing how my performance is changing. This year I'm also somewhat anxious about my first race (Hyner 50k). I know I'm never well trained in the spring and I struggled all throughout last year.
Here is what I'm trying to do to change this. I'm trying to follow a training plan more tightly. Some days are fast days, others are more for distance and time on feet, speed doesn't matter. I've tried to do some run/walk cycles, even when I could run the entire way. This gives me "permission" to have a slower time and I keep telling myself that it's good training for long trail races. In general I'm just trying to make a conscious effort to slow down on some days. As the weather warms up and I get more time on the trails I'm planning on stopping more to just look at sights and smell the roses. I'm hoping this helps me.