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| Just google "Brain Lifting Weights" There are PLENTY of hilarious images. |
One of the things I want to work on this marathon training season is my mental game. I'm tired of making myself feel bad about not being as good as (aka, as fast as) other people I run with. I'm tired of comparing myself with others and falling short every time. Despite all the progress I've made, I still feel like the slowest runner of my group of friends, because of course they're getting faster too!
I was reading Competitor (my new favorite running website) the other day, and they had a few articles about mental focus and mental training. I found them helpful, but I still feel like I'm not sure what is going to work for me.
Through Competitor, I came across Running the Mind. Joseph Renguso is a runner and psychotherapist, who has two audio programs on his website that claim to help you learn to focus and help block out negative thoughts. While it sounds intriguing, I'm also a bit skeptical. I also feel like my focus and ability to push myself while racing is good (cue dismissive glare from my coach) but I feel like it's during speed workouts, or post runs when the anger/frustration kicks in.
What are some of the techniques that you've used to help prevent you from beating yourself up?
This post would not be complete without him....
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| You're fast, you're capable, and gosh darn it people like you! |
I am interested in this topic too! Our marathon PR is about the same time. :)
ReplyDeleteI will try and keep you updated!
ReplyDelete"The Mental Athlete" by Kay Porter has some good info on this. I try to incorporate some of her thoughts on the subject frequetnly.
ReplyDeleteThanks Steve! I'll definitely have to take a look into that.
DeleteIt sounds silly, but for me sometimes its as simple as forcing a smile. Something about the simple act of smiling has a way of eliminating the negative thoughts. There are so many positive associations with smiling that making yourself go thru the physical act of it has a way of bringing on positivity by default.
ReplyDeleteHm! That's really interesting. I like that idea!
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