Something New….

“It’s all mental!” Damn, I hate that phrase. Running ultra-marathons, running a single mile is not “all mental.” It’s one of those overused clichés that drops all the nuance from one of the most complex and rich experiences we have as human beings. Running is physical. It’s logistical, emotional, even spiritual.

And ok, it’s a lot mental.

I’m not just talking about mental gymnastics that we do to tell ourselves that we’re almost done with our 100 miles at mile 40. I’m not even talking about the pure grit it takes to pull yourself through the night, resisting your entire body, your fingernails, screaming at you to just stop. I’m talking about the hours you spend in the months or years before the race thinking about your values as you try and go just a bit further on your weekend jog. I’m talking about the mental energy it takes to roll out of bed at 4am to get your mid-week tempo run in on week 18, smack in the doldrums of a training plan. I’m talking about the mental clarity it takes to know when to skip that run to nurse a lingering strain or creeping cold.

It’s the hours spent listening to podcasts and growth books and running articles and race recaps. It’s the miles spent figuring how this running thing fits in your life. The miles spent figuring out life during a run.

It’s the time spending looking for a coach who fits – who gets what you’re trying to do. It’s the years you spend trying to figure out what you’re trying to do yourself.

Running, especially if you’re trying to go far or fast, is a lot of mental energy, and it starts before we ever even start our garmin. It starts with planning. It starts with goals. The mental energy it takes to create, prioritize, and track those big, scary, almost don’t want to say them out loud goals.

It’s a lot.

So why do we spend so little time there? Sure, as athletes we talk about our goals, pick 1 or 2 goal races a year based on our schedules or travel preferences. We download a training plan and maybe even throw it on our shared calendars. As coaches we do intakes and explain our processes, and then we get to work. That’s what you’re paying us for right? To help guide the work?

Hey I get it. As I said before, I’m a jumper. If there’s an idea in my head on Monday, I’m executing by Wednesday. If there is a project I’m excited about, my normal procrastination is nowhere to be found. “Just start,” right? That’s what they tell us.

Yes, and no. As that scene in Alice in Wonderland reminds us – if we don’t know where we want to go, we’re liable to take any path. We’re liable to end up “somewhere.”

But we don’t want to go “somewhere” or achieve “something.” We want something specific. Maybe we don’t know what or where it is. Maybe it’s all we’ve thought about for years. Regardless, it’s not just any old place, it’s a specific finish line or pace or person we want to be. It’s a goal.

But knowing where we want to go is only the starting line. We gotta figure out how to get there. Trust me, I’ve certainly done the fumble and bumble, figure it out on the run method – and there’s some romance there, but there is also a lot of risk. Risk of failure, or even worse risk of the wrong success. Maybe it’s the Mom in me, or the aging Marine, but if I have something I really want, I’m planning for it. I’m holding back jumping in for just a beat longer than feels natural. I’m setting up systems and structures to my big goals. I’m writing the outline. I’m thinking it through. I’m testing and refining. I’m editing.

And I love it.

I’ve tested a new system for goal setting (and achieving) with a couple clients over the past few months focusing on both running and general life goals. We’re in the initial phases of the program, but the energy it’s brought is incredible – to the both the clients and me, the coach.  

Really thinking through a plan feels like bringing the mom, the military planner, the diplomat, the therapist, and the writer in me, all of me to coaching.

I’ve been coaching runners for nearly five years now, figuring out how to help folks run their first, or fastest marathon, helping runners set new distance PRs or even win ultras. I’ve loved helping moms figure out how running fits with their new roles as caretaker, nurturer, grower of human beings. Now, I’m more than excited to expand my coaching practice to focus more all that “mental” aspect of running and training.

If this resonates with you, whether it’s a running goal or just some big scary life goal, if you’re struggling to map it all out – shoot me an email at maggie@runfreerun.com (or text or DM)