You ever get split fingers?
Every winter, I get those little cracks in my fingers that hurt and make it hard to hold stuff.
I have one on my right hand now that’s making is mildly unpleasant to type.
I’ll be clear, this isn’t me asking for advice or ways to fix it or improve it.
I tried pretty much everything while working at the ski resort and the only thing that seems to work is a constant alternating combination of gloves and vaseline.
And I’d rather have a couple split fingers than multiple months of greasy hands.
I’m sure some people would disagree with me, but that’s the choice I’ve made.
They’re just one of the things I get to experience as a result of running with my dog in the desert winter.
I can never get his poop bags to separate with my gloves on, so I always have to take a glove off and after you do that a few too many times in a week in a dry, cold climate…
Split fingers.
For me, it’s a situation with no good solution, so I just get to pick the least hateful option.
Kind of like some aspects of training.
For example, a lot of people don’t exactly enjoy strength training.
Yet they also don’t really want to get injured.
They also don’t want to grow old and lose their independence.
So they choose a bit of weekly strength training because it’s the least hateful option.
Same with certain running workouts.
I know very few people who enjoy a proper VO2 workout – or whatever we want to call the short, fast stuff that stimulates a lot of top-end cardio.
5×3-minute hills a bit harder than your 5k race effort isn’t exactly what most people would qualify as a good time.
Yet a lot of people also want to get faster.
So they do the intervals.
Again, least hateful option.
Now there are a couple things that can really throw a wrench in the gears when it comes to making these choices.
1 – It requires you to know your options.
If you don’t know what the alternatives are, then it’s impossible to make an educated choice as to what you want to do.
I see this a lot in training.
Someone doesn’t really know the full consequences of their actions, so they might choose an option that doesn’t actually serve them.
The solution?
More information.
You give someone more information and it’s possible they’ll make a change in their behavior.
For example…
A runner comes to me complaining about IT band pain.
It cropped up early in his marathon prep, so he went to a PT and they gave him some exercises. The exercises helped, but now the pain seems to be back and he isn’t sure what to do.
9 times out of 10, the answer is actual strength training.
The guy is looking to run a marathon in under 3:30.
Do you think he actually has weak legs?
Probably not. He might not be able to express that strength well under a squat bar, but I doubt they’re actually weak.
So do you think a rubber band is probably providing a sufficient strength stimulus?
Also probably not.
So let’s pick up some weights and the IT band pain will probably go away.
This is a situation where education solved the problem.
We discussed why those PT exercises helped – they were rudimentary strength exercises that told his glute med to do its job.
We also discussed why they’re not helping any longer – they’re not enough of a stimulus.
We discussed solutions – including greatly drop running volume and rebuild with an obsessive focus on form or do some sumo deadlifts a couple times per week.
He chose deadlifts.
His IT pain went away.
Cool.
I will admit that this “education” aspect is difficult in our current environment.
The internet is a grab bag of bullshit.
But I don’t know what to tell you… it’s what we have.
If you trust me for some reason, I truly appreciate that and I’m happy to provide advice how I can.
Anyway, the other problem is…
2 – It often requires you to pick something that sucks in the moment over something that sucks in the long term.
As humans, we don’t do well at keeping the long-term in mind.
I’m not even talking about the “function as an old person” level of long term.
I mean today versus a month from now.
The ability to do something that kinda sucks today in order to get something you really want a month from now is a lot of the mental load of training.
And if you can’t do that, you’re probably not going to get very good results.
Or you don’t actually want it that badly – which as I’ve said hundreds of times is fine, then let’s just change our goals and stop beating ourselves up about it.
I mean, most of your training should be enjoyable.
But if you really want to hit some big goals, then you’re probably going to have to do some stuff that isn’t your favorite.
Know how I know?
Because if achieving your goals always came as a result of your favorite stuff, then you’d probably have achieved them already.
So whether it be stretching.
Or core training.
Or deadlifts.
Or eating well.
Or hydrating.
Or determining a fueling plan for your race.
Or leaving your dog at home so you can do an actual speed workout.
Or….
There are a hundred things that we could call “not our favorite” when it comes to training.
And the it’s often going to be different for different people.
But at some point you’re going to have to decide on your own least hateful option.
Again, if you decide “Hey, I get all the consequences and I don’t really give a shit about that and I’m gonna do this instead.”
Great.
I support that.
But just make a choice and own it.
Figure out your options – again, internet, cesspool, I know… Just do your best and be willing to adapt as you grow.
Then pick the one you hate the least.
And if you want some help figuring out said options, hit me up.
I’m happy to help or point you in the direction of someone else who can.