(the most important post I’ve written in months)
Before I write this, I want to be clear.
This is something I need to write for myself.
I know a few different people who read my emails who might think this is about them.
It’s not.
This is a chat I badly need to have with myself and I’m sharing it because I have a feeling someone else might find it helpful.
—
I have a question for you.
Do your goals match your training?
Even better question.
Do your stated priorities match your actions?
In other words, do the things you do on a day-to-day basis actually support what you say you’re trying to achieve?
Now before you answer, I really want you to think about it.
If you want to “get faster,” then what does that mean the priority needs to be?
Speed work and running volume.
Now, is that actually what you’re prioritizing?
Or is it one of the first things to drop off in the week?
Or do you go so big through the rest of the week that you aren’t able to really put in the work on the intervals?
Or do you prioritize your gym sessions over some extra mileage?
And do the exercises you’re doing in the gym actually carry over to speed?
Or are you prioritizing lifts you like over the ones you need?
And are you stretching regularly enough?
Or are you skipping it because you find it unpleasant and boring?
When it comes to food, are you eating enough?
Is that food spread out throughout the day?
And are you getting a wide variety of foods that actually provide the nutrition you need to reach our goals?
Are you fueling your runs?
If so, are you fueling all of them or just when you happen to remember?
Are you hydrating well?
Or are you relying on nothing but 2-3 cups of coffee until noon?
If you feel a sign of injury, are you stepping back and taking it easy for a day or two to prevent it from spiraling out of control?
Or are you pushing through because that’s what was on the schedule and you’ll be damned if you have to change it?
Are you getting in bed early enough to support recovery?
Or are you still fucking around on your phone on the couch when you should be brushing your teeth?
Do your actions actually support what you say you want to achieve?
If not… why not?
Maybe you just want to achieve more stuff than you have time in the day.
But that doesn’t change the fact that certain actions support certain outcomes.
If you keep acting in ways that don’t support your stated goals, then we should ask why…
Is it a lack of understanding?
If so, then we should double down on learning why certain methods of training are required to get faster.
Is it a lack of care?
If so, then we should change our goals to support training you actually want to do.
Are your goals just unrealistic right now?
In other words, is the rest of your life just too much of a mess?
If so, then we should table your current goals and find another one that better fits your current life.
Or do you just care about all of it so much that it makes it hard to pick?
If it’s that one, I hear you.
But we also need to understand that “waiting it out” is a decision.
You’re choosing a different priority – just in a way that doesn’t require you to have to admit it to yourself.
I know this is an email filled with a lot of questions and almost zero answers.
But I can tell you by writing it, I answered a few things for myself.
I said “no” to a lot more things on that list of questions than I’d like.
So I have two options:
1 – Change my actions (make more of the answers on that list a yes)
2 – Change my priorities (decide speed isn’t actually the target this year)
In this case, I’m choosing option 1.
That’s not always true – I’m happy to adjust priorities when needed – but this time I just got derailed.
Honestly, the foot injury and winter darkness broke my running habit. I took up other forms of movement to fill the gap and now I’m trying to add running back to an already-full schedule.
Which doesn’t work.
So I have to drop some other things I really enjoy in order to prioritize running (which… I also really enjoy).
It’s a good problem to have – but a problem nonetheless.
So I’m going to spend some time today figuring out my training for the next couple of months.
I do really want to get faster and I genuinely enjoy the work required to get there.
I just need to drop some of the other things I enjoy in order to make time for it.
—
I hope this email was helpful.
As I said, I know there weren’t a lot of answers here.
If you’re struggling to figure out your goals for the year and would like someone to act as a sounding board, then I’m happy to help.
We’ll set up a short chat and who knows… maybe you’ll get some clarity.