Sorry I have not blogged in so long, life again busy and I have needed some focus. I will try and do better. Here is part of a message sent to a group of runners I coach. I hope you find knowledge and inspiration in it. also this book I refference is excellent I suggest you go read it.
To get everyone fired up and focused this week with some motivational and educational stuff I’m going back to this excellent book by a local Olympic swimmer Katrina Radke title of the book is “Be your best without the stress”
“No one can listen to your body for you. To grow and heal, you have to take responsibility for listening to it yourself” ~ Jon Kabat-Zinn
I tell you this a lot through training and I give you options on many days of workout or rest, cross train or run. Team I don’t know how you feel inside I can see it if I get to run with you but I don’t know how you might ache etc… so I trust you to listen to your body and communicate with me. If you are sore and tired from a previous workout, if you are sick, stressed, not sleeping well etc… you need to communicate that with me and listen to your body. Don’t be afraid to miss a workout, don’t be afraid to go easier than the workout might call for and don’t be afraid to back down miles if the workout calls for more. Do those things and stay healthy, don’t let ego or competitiveness get in the way and leave you over exhausted and beat up. Sure fatigue is normal and you should feel tired after hard workouts and it is good to push through some normal fatigue in order to train the body right for racing. But know your limits and know when you might be going into a place that might have a negative affect rather than a positive one if you know what I mean.
The importance of rest… “Take rest; a field that has rested gives a bountiful crop” ~ Ovid
Every person is different when it comes to rest. Some need more than others so again learn your body and what works well for you. I know you all hear me talking and that I take very little rest. But even though I might be doing something almost daily some of those activities are really rest for me. And what I have trained my body to handle over the years might not be best for you. But yesterday (Sunday) I did take one full day of lazy rest and it was great! I always suggest that each of you take one full day of rest a week. But I also want you to look at cross-training and Yoga etc… as a form of rest. So maybe one day you don’t run or do anything strenuous but you take a one hour yoga class that is OK and that is great. If you got quality sleep and feel rested and then use the yoga or maybe the pool as a means to loosen up the muscles and stretch things out that is a perfect way to call it a rest day with staying a little active.
Nutrition; You are what you eat… (Choose wisely)
This is from the book; “I used to view food as fuel for my performances. Now, I used food to heal my body. Food, like a drug, can alter your mood, energy level, and how your body functions. It can destroy your immune system or enhance it. Like medicine, when food is improperly mixed, there are side effects.
Similarly, what you eat can alter your pH balance ( measure of acidity or alkaline nature of water) You can test pH balance of water in your body by peeing on a stick designed for this purpose. If your pH is lower than 7, it is considered acidic, and if above 7, it is alkaline. You want your pH to be alkaline. This is when your body can heal. Cancer and most diseases can only live when your pH is at a 5 or lower. Focus on eating foods that can create an alkaline pH, and cut out those that are acidic. A simple place to start is to eliminate sugar, dairy, caffeine, alcohol, and breads from your diet. Eat more whole foods that were planted in rich organic soil and fewer processed foods.”
This is a tough one for many of us. I love my whole grain breads as much as the next person I enjoy a glass or two of wine and I like some dairy. But this week I’m trying some new diet things. Trying to cut out as much processed foods as I can, no wine all week, no red meat all week, less bread etc… I don’t drink dairy milk typically but I drink a lot of almond milk I really like it and think it is a good place to start for many. I will eat yogurt this week to go with my natural granolas that I like and then eat more salads etc… and try to have a more green and fish based diet. Everyone is a little different but know subtle little changes that you make might make big differences in how you heal and recover. So think about what you eat and then how you feel during workouts and after as that might have a big part in things?
Self acceptance;
Again a snipit from Katrina’s book.
“Realize your own power and strength. Honor your fear, but take action anyway. With each change, no matter how small, you will begin to realize what you are cable of. Have compassion for yourself as you face life’s obstacles. Trust that you are strong and resilient enough to handle all the challenges and adventures that will come your way.”
I tell you all the time, have faith and belief in yourself! Look at yourself daily and say positive affirmations. Except yourself for who you are and know that if you want to change something about yourself you can but it will take hard work and dedication and as you face life’s obstacles you have to be strong and withstand their blows and keep getting up over and over until you reach your goal.
Setbacks and obstacles:
“We might think we want to avoid setback and obstacles, but they are what help us grow. Life’s ups and downs give us opportunities. We all make mistakes, but we carry on, and we get to appreciate this about ourselves, too. Humility and awareness help us tap into our true power instead of fooling ourselves (with narcissism and rationalization) by pretending to be “perfect” which is exhausting. We all experience setbacks- illness, injury, job loss, breakups. How do we overcome them? Mainly, we do not let them define us! Know that you are still great even if you cannot do what you used to do. In sports if you have been doing well and then have a bad meet, season, or year, you will tend to doubt your abilities, and this can affect your confidence. It is important to stay focused on who you are and what you can control.”
That last line I say a lot to you. stay focused on what you can control and don’t let what you can’t control bring you down. We all have bad days bad weeks whatever. Sometimes we have that perfect race when things click and sometimes we don’t. some workouts just plain are hard and feel bad, we miss our paces etc.. that happens and we can’t let that bother us or bring us down. Having those kinds of setbacks only make us stronger, more determined and more focused as long as we use them as a positive and not a negative. Be happy with yourself and don’t let one bad workout or one bad race define you and make you doubt yourself.
Cheers
MB
Tags: Be your best without the stress, Katrina Radke
