Mental Strength

So much is made of raw speed and power in track and field events. But there is not a single event that does not require some mental capability.

For example, the strategy that goes on in races 800m and above is intense. And it takes a lot of thought and preparation. During practices the day before meets, we simulate the race for our distance runners. Placing them on different spots on the track and letting them know what should be going on in their heads during certain times of the race. We know our opponents and how they like to approach a race. So if someone we are running against is an out and front runner, we'll make sure our team knows that. Or if someone sits back and kicks at the 300 or 200 mark, we'll remind our team of that too.

We even do this for sprinters and hurdlers. We do this for them a little less often, because strategy isn't quite as important. But we still encourage them to visualize the race in their head and making sure they always finish first.

Its so important to know your opponents, prepare, and have that mental strength to outlast who you are racing against. It's what makes good runners, into great runners.

Things to do:

1. Use the restroom well before your events. Athletes are horrible about this. It's one less thing to worry about.

2. Eat and stay hydrated, especially on hot days. High school athletes sometimes have poor nutrition. Bananas, yogurt, Graham crackers, bagels, are all great snacks for a meet. As well as having water or a sports drink around. Nutrition is a huge topic though. I encourage people to test what works best for them.

3. Meditation. I'm not talking about sitting cross legged and humming. I'm talking about finding a quiet place before your race where you can relax, close your eyes and visualize your race.

4. Take a few deep breathes right before your race. This allows you not to panic and focus on the task at hand.

Heroes

Boys Thoughts Before A Race

Follow-up to the Girls Thoughts.

Boys Thoughts Before A Race

1. How much is pizza?
2. I should not have drank that third Red Bull.
3. Oh well.
4. Have they had first call yet?
5. Maybe I should warm-up.
6. I wish we had uniforms like that team.
7. I wish I could listen to my iPod while running.
8. Second call!?!?
9. Ok well maybe a shortened warm-up today.
10. Dude. That guy looks freakin' fast.
11. What lane did Coach say I was in?
12. I guess I should pay attention to the official.
13. Third call. Let's do this.
14. How much was that pizza again?

Girls Thoughts Before A Race

1. What time is my race?
2. How many events away is it?
3. Did I take out my earrings?
4. Why can't I wear earrings?
5. Ok...I need to warm-up.
6. Why do I need to warm-up so much?
7. Shoot! I have to pee.
8. Do I have time to pee?
9. Where is Coach so I can ask him if I have time to pee?
10. Oh well. I'll go anyway.
11. I wish we had uniforms like that team.
12. Where are my spikes?
13. SECOND CALL?!?!? Oh crap.
14. WHERE ARE MY SPIKES?!?!
15. Whew.
16. Where do I check in?
17. Where is Coach?
18. AHHHHHHH!!!!
19. Ok, found the bullpen. I'm good.
20. Third call. Here we go.
21. Wait. What lane was I supposed to be in?

Win or Lose

Addiction

A lot of people in this world struggle with addiction. What matters though, is how you persevere and overcome it.

Athletics is no exception.

Josh Hamilton of the Texas Rangers is a former addict. Anybody who has heard of him is probably aware of his struggles. It was widely publicized on ESPN and the like. When he was drafted, he got his hands on a lot of money and fell into the wrong crowd. But soon Josh found himself to be a father and then he found Christ. Josh gave up drugs and alcohol but had been kicked out of MLB for failing drug tests.

But the Cincinnati Reds gave him a chance and they picked him up. After several seasons with the Reds and now the Rangers, Josh has become one of the best players in baseball. He is a regular All-Star and put in one of the best performances in the Homerun Derby ever.

I have a triathlon addiction. I love the sport. I love the challenge and the competition. But I also like hearing the stories.

Eddie Freas is another amazing story about overcoming addiction. In Eddie's case, it was heroin. Eddie was an avid druggy. But one day he saw a story on TV about a triathlete who was competing in Ironmans for Racing For Recovery. Eddie was instantly inspired and quickly joined the Racing For Recovery team. He got himself cleaned up. And while working 40 hours a week, he was also training 20-30 hours a week.

Eddie trained hard for his first half Ironman and competed in the Racing For Recovery Half Ironman in Michigan. While he said multiple times during the swim and bike he really struggled, and that he couldn't believe how hard it was to run after being on the bike, he never considered stopping. He fought through the pain and gave everything he had to finish, which he did, believing that maybe he too could save someone's life.

Now Eddie competes in Ironman races regularly and is still drug free.

Addiction can be a horrible thing. Please seek help, and choose your friends wisely. Don't become something you're not.

Get Spiked

During our district meet this year, we had some rain. So much rain in fact that they delayed the boys field events for a couple days because conditions were too poor. But even when the girls and boys were jumping, conditions were still slick.

The reason I tell you this, is because one of our high jumpers kept slipping each time they went to approach the bars. Fortunately we saw this problem during warm-ups. So I looked at their spikes and noticed they were all worn down and they were even missing a couple. I quickly replaced the spikes before high jump started.

This is a pretty obvious case. Having spikes in your shoes is going to help with traction and improve forward momentum. I was a little upset with my athlete because they were unaware of the poor condition of the spikes and didn't even think to check them since the ground was slick.

Spikes can help a runner, no matter what event they are doing. Throwers, especially discus, can utilize spikes just as much. While they might not be running, it still helps with traction while they are spinning. As I previously mentioned, the forward momentum improvement they can provide, makes them extremlly useful to runners, especially sprinters. And for runners who compete in events 800m and above, may consider cross country spikes, if they are legal.

You can see more about spikes and their importance here:
What Are Spikes For

Just Keep Running! Just Keep Running!

For Graduating Seniors

No matter what you do in life, make it your own. Never forget who you are and where you came from.

Congratulations and good luck!

It's A Hard Block Life

I've learned a lot about blocks over the years, some from my own previous experience and even more from coaching. You can read stuff online about feet placement on the blocks, angles of your legs and knees, block placement, height of our head and butt, etc. But what I can tell you is that a lot of that stuff goes out the window. Most of that stuff is actually recommendations of what has worked for the person writing it.

The first time I placed one of my athletes in blocks, I followed all of the recommended stuff I had found online. I made sure her feet were perfect, angles were as close as I could get them without using measuring tools, blah blah blah. But as soon as she came out of the blocks, it looked and felt so awkward for her.

Now blocks are extremely awkward to begin with. So we did it again and again and again. It never worked right for us. She said the placement of the blocks was just too far apart. We moved up her back block. When I had her get in the set position I was nervous. It didn't look right and her butt was too high. I was worried she would come out and fall flat on her face. But as soon as she busted out of those blocks, she flew. After a few minor changes of her few steps and some back and head placement, she was well on her way to beating everyone out of the blocks.

So what I learned from this, is the athlete has to do what works best for them. You can follow all the rules and guidelines you want, but it may not always work. Test your athletes in different placements. Move the blocks around. Try different angles of legs and blocks. You never know what will work for that particular athlete.

Good luck and go fast!