Get out of the way!

Leave it to U2 to inspire another post. I happened upon a song they wrote entitled Get out of your own way. Funny that one of the inspirations for the song was more fatherly wisdom to Bono's daughters. To me this song hits home on many levels. As a coach, as an athlete, and as a person. Too many times I look at the things that I have done that got in the way of keeping me from reaching my full potential.

As an athlete, there are certain things that only you have control over. Those are the things that you should work on the most. Control what you can control and don't fret over the things that you can't. What can you control? Rest and fuel. How much sleep do you get at night. Some kids wear it as a badge of accomplishment. I only got 4 hours of sleep last night. While you are sleeping your body is seeking the rewards of working out. According to Healthline.com, Many biological processes happen during sleep:

The brain stores new information and gets rid of toxic waste.

Nerve cells communicate and reorganize, which supports healthy brain function.

The body repairs cells, restores energy, and releases molecules like hormones and proteins.

Skip out on hours of sleep will hinder any gains one expects to get from working out.

Fuel comes in to forms. Hydration and caloric intake. Obviously with as much running distance runners do, they are in constant need to stay hydrated. People look at protein shakes, sports drinks. Nothing beats plain old H2O. How much soda/sugary drinks are you consuming?

Now caloric intake basically comes down to your diet. Are you eating enough protein, what is your iron intake? These are all questions female athletes should be asking themselves. Far too many times it seems HS aged girls are bombarded with unattainable goals for their weight. Everyone is unique in their own way. The culprit here is processed foods. How much of what you eat comes out of a box, or has a list of ingredients that one needs to be a chemist to figure out what everything is? One of my coaches came up with a diet sheet for our athletes. Not one to lose weight, but how to maintain a healthy weight. Often times when you see how much protein an athlete should be consuming, they find it hard to hit that goal. My fear as a coach talking about ones diet, is it would be interpreted as to I need to go on a diet. Isn't that what Hollywood is always talking about? So and so went on this diet lost this so many pounds etc. Trying to fit yourself into this unattainable mold. How many in Hollywood go under the knife to constantly try and keep themselves looking young? This is true for men and women. Bottom line, just watch what you are eating. Everything in moderation. Ice cream? yes, but not every night. Candy, sure, but not as one of your main meals. This might require you to make your own meals. Get them set up for the week on Sunday. That way you just need to grab a bag and go in the morning(after eating breakfast of course).

How else do we need to get out of our own way? The mental aspect of distance running is in my opinion the biggest factor in how well you are going to perform. The gun goes off, the first 400m seems way to fast, and then the mental battle begins. Do you listen to the inner voice that is telling you to just slow up and it will feel easier? Do you take yourself out of races before the gun even goes off. I have been able to witness girls doing some pretty remarkable things over the years I have been coaching. I believe that all of those accomplishments came first from self belief and second from surrounding yourself with like minded individuals. For myself, I was fortunate to have coaches that put big goals in front of me. My cross country coach Joe Schramm took us to so many things when we were in high school, that I graduated with goals of running in the IC4A meet, getting a Penn Relays medal and competing at Nationals. I can stand at the end of my athletic career and say I hit all those goals. Probably not in the order that I would have wanted, but I wouldn't go back and change a single thing. Secondly was the group I surrounded myself with. In High School I was fortunate to have a group of like minded distance runners that wanted to do big things. At times when I knew that certain habits or life choices had to change, that meant I had to drop some of the friend groups that I was hanging out with. One of the biggest reasons I saw a huge jump in performance when I started running at Liberty University, was I surrounded myself with people that were better than me and with people that set the bar high.

The group of girls that I am blessed to coach continue to set the bar high. They continue to challenge me to be a better coach whether they know it or not. Every year each season has new personalities, new challenges, and new structure. I look across the team and see girls that are all at different points in their journey through life. The hardest thing about track is dealing with the disappointments. There are going to be far more than most people realize. I have watched some girls end their high school careers with a personal best. They are few and far between. I have also watched some girls limp off the track and that is the last time they would have put their spikes on in a Cherokee uniform. This past Penn Relays we sat in the stands and watched the 80+ masters 100m dash. Domenic Stillato (82 year old) won running 16.02. Now I know all you track nerds out there, my watch is not FAT, but just the fact that I got the same time was funny. There was even a 97 year old that ran 25.90. The joke with the girls was could I beat them. Oddly enough, I was wondering the same thing. Due to various health issues I have had over the past 12 years, my fitness level isn't quite what it use to be. Safe to say, I have not sprinted in quite some time. The challenge was on this past Tuesday. After the team was out doing what they needed to be doing, I geared up to run 100m. Nothing crazy, didn't want to pull/strain anything, but wanted to see what I had in the tank. Needless to say I ran 16.02 on my watch which I knew was the exact time Domenic had run. After waiting around and then running down my distance girls(who were not sprinting) I clocked a 15.12. Afterwards I reflected and said "You never know when your last time is going to be your last time." When was the last time I actually ran a 400m in shape? When was the last time I actually came out of blocks. I certainly didn't know it at the time, and if I did would I have treated it differently? Bottom line, enjoy the fact that you get to compete. One day, you no longer will. Rejoice with your teammates when they run a personal best. Enjoy those relays that do the impossible. Enjoy the moment.

~ M Jarvis