Visualization & Running III
Adapted from Dean Hebert
In my first post on this subject, I outlined many of the ways athletes use imagery as well some supporting data for its use. The second post included some criteria for creating your own script and a sample. Here is the third post on visualization. This one shares a second person directive voice or approach. It appeals to many people.
[If you would like to have a script developed for a unique circumstance or race situation, drop me a line. In the future, I hope to develop podcasts with various imagery scenarios.]
Take a deep breath, inhale all the air you can… exhale slowly. All the tension in your body-is leaving you. You are feeling relaxed. You are relaxing. Let go of your worries and concerns, your mind is clearing. Your mind is free of clutter. Let go of the day. Let go of worries and concerns. Let go of the events of the day. You are thinking clearly. Your body is relaxed, ready to perform. You are focusing on your body. Take a deep breath… exhale slowly. You are poised for action. You are focusing on your body sensations. You are comfortable. You are prepared, fit, healthy,-well trained, strong, confident. You are confident you can meet the challenge of this run. Take another deep breath, inhale all the air you can… exhale slowly.
Imagine yourself running… your posture is erect, arms swinging back and forth crossing in front just about to midline. Your shoulders are relaxed and your head is looking straight ahead. Your eyes are focus 10 yards in front. You see the ground in front of you moving past steadily. Your arms and legs are in perfect synchronization, moving effortlessly. Your legs move back and forth like a pendulums. Your feet glide over the ground, touching the surface only briefly, lightly, as if springs are in your legs. The heel of your foot strikes the ground first just for a second your foot roles forward, up to the toes as you push off from the forefoot, as your other leg lifts high and thrusts powerfully forward, powerfully striding forward, effortlessly, moving like a gazelle over the ground. You feel light. You have boundless energy and enthusiasm. You move effortlessly over the ground, you feel light, your feet glide over the surface, lightly touching, only for a second, moving forward gracefully, mechanically, powerfully, controlled, with spring in your stride …moving over the ground like a gazelle. Light. Your legs move in perfect synchrony… automatic… and effortless.
You feel your body moving smoothly. Your body temperature is comfortably warm. There is a light flow of perspiration over your body. Perspiration drips from your forehead down your face perspiration drips down your neck, down your chest, down your back you feel a cool breeze, it cools your body; your singlet is wet, you feel the breeze blowing through your singlet, there is a cool sensation on your skin. Your shorts are damp from perspiration the perspiration continues to drip down your legs, the light breeze blows across your skin, cooling your body. You are comfortably warm. You feel the moisture of your perspiration and cooling sensation of the wind.
Time is drifting by without notice, time is of no concern. You are feeling free of barriers. You feel confident. You feel free. You are strong. You are ready to do your workout.
Take a deep breath. Open your eyes. You will rise; move deliberately and confidently into your workout.
You are prepared mentally and physically to succeed. You are relaxed. There is no pressure. You are focused on your workout. Nothing stands in your way. Take three more slow deep breaths and go forth.
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Visualization/Imagery II
Visualization & Running II
Adapted from Dean Hebert
Imagery scripts should be unique to an individual. There are many examples you can use and start with. But, you must make it “yours” in order for it to be as effective as possible. Here are some tips to make them most effective for you.
Generally, use “I” in your script to make it more personal.
If you prefer to be “led” through the process; then script it with direct instructions (”Close your eyes”, “Imagine your legs like pistons”).
Active or passive voice work (”Relax your arms”, “I’m focused on the ground in front of me”, “I’m relaxing my arms”).
Use words & phrases that you normally use. The vocabulary has to seem natural to you.
Use key affirmations - those positive reinforcing statements - that resonate with you (”I feel strong”, “Nobody, but nobody beats me in the last mile”).
Emphasize elements that have power with you. If it stirs emotion, creates a vivid image, gives you goosebumps - then you are on the right track!
In your mind use a voice - tone & emphasis - that makes it real for you.
If you don’t like hearing your own voice, have someone else record it for you.
You can record a script, actively read through a script or in your mind recite the script. It doesn’t have to be exact word-for-word but the power comes in the images, feelings, senses that are stimulated.
With those things in mind start with relaxing and clearing your mind. Allow noises to drift into the background. Hear them and just let them go. Begin to focus your attention on the here and now. Nothing else is important at this moment.
Here is one sample script focused on preparation for a run and getting mentally into a workout: I am taking a deep breath, inhaling all the air I can… exhaling slowly. All the tension in my body-is leaving me. I’m feeling relaxed. I am relaxing. I am letting go of my worries and concerns, my mind is clearing. My mind is free of clutter. I am letting go of the day. I am letting go of worries and concerns. I’m letting go of the events of the day. I am thinking clearly. My body is relaxed, ready to perform. I am focusing on my body. I am taking a deep breath… exhaling slowly. I am poised for action. I am focusing on my body sensations. I am comfortable. I am prepared, fit, healthy,-well trained, strong, confident. I am confident I can meet the challenge of this run. I am taking a deep breath, inhaling all the air I can… exhaling slowly.
I can see myself running… my posture is erect, arms swinging back and forth crossing in front just about to midline. My shoulders are relax and my head is looking straight ahead. My eyes are focus 10 yards in front of me. I see the ground in front of me moving past steadily. My arms and legs are in perfect synchronization, moving effortlessly. My legs move back and forth like a pendulums. My feet glide over the ground, touching the surface only briefly, lightly, as if springs are in my legs. The heel of my foot strikes the ground first just for a second my foot roles forward, up to the toes as I push off from the forefoot, as my other leg lifts high and thrusts powerfully forward, powerfully striding forward, effortlessly, moving like a gazelle over the ground. I feel light. I have boundless energy and enthusiasm. I am moving effortlessly over the ground, I feel light, my feet are gliding over the surface, lightly touching, only for a second, moving forward gracefully, mechanically, powerfully, controlled, with spring in my stride …moving over the ground like a gazelle. Light. My legs move in perfect synchrony… automatic… and effortless.
I can feel my body moving smoothly. My body temperature is comfortably warm. There is a light flow of perspiration over my body. Perspiration drips from my forehead down my face perspiration drips down my neck, down my chest, down my back I feel a cool breeze, it cools my body; my singlet is wet, I feel the breeze blowing through my singlet, there is a cool sensation on my skin. My shorts are damp from perspiration the perspiration continues to drip down my legs, the light breeze blows across my skin, cooling my body. I am comfortably warm. I feel the moisture of my perspiration and cooling sensation of the wind.
Time is drifting by without notice, time is of no concern. I feel free of barriers. I feel confident. I feel free. I am strong. I am ready to do my workout.
I take a deep breath. Open my eyes. I rise; move deliberately and confidently into my workout.I am prepared mentally and physically to succeed. I am relaxed. There is no pressure. I am focused on my workout. Nothing stands in my way. I will take three more slow deep breaths and go forth.
I’ll post the same script next but in a directive approach instead of first person. Visualization/mental rehearsal is one critical element to successful racing.
Adapted from Dean Hebert
Imagery scripts should be unique to an individual. There are many examples you can use and start with. But, you must make it “yours” in order for it to be as effective as possible. Here are some tips to make them most effective for you.
Generally, use “I” in your script to make it more personal.
If you prefer to be “led” through the process; then script it with direct instructions (”Close your eyes”, “Imagine your legs like pistons”).
Active or passive voice work (”Relax your arms”, “I’m focused on the ground in front of me”, “I’m relaxing my arms”).
Use words & phrases that you normally use. The vocabulary has to seem natural to you.
Use key affirmations - those positive reinforcing statements - that resonate with you (”I feel strong”, “Nobody, but nobody beats me in the last mile”).
Emphasize elements that have power with you. If it stirs emotion, creates a vivid image, gives you goosebumps - then you are on the right track!
In your mind use a voice - tone & emphasis - that makes it real for you.
If you don’t like hearing your own voice, have someone else record it for you.
You can record a script, actively read through a script or in your mind recite the script. It doesn’t have to be exact word-for-word but the power comes in the images, feelings, senses that are stimulated.
With those things in mind start with relaxing and clearing your mind. Allow noises to drift into the background. Hear them and just let them go. Begin to focus your attention on the here and now. Nothing else is important at this moment.
Here is one sample script focused on preparation for a run and getting mentally into a workout: I am taking a deep breath, inhaling all the air I can… exhaling slowly. All the tension in my body-is leaving me. I’m feeling relaxed. I am relaxing. I am letting go of my worries and concerns, my mind is clearing. My mind is free of clutter. I am letting go of the day. I am letting go of worries and concerns. I’m letting go of the events of the day. I am thinking clearly. My body is relaxed, ready to perform. I am focusing on my body. I am taking a deep breath… exhaling slowly. I am poised for action. I am focusing on my body sensations. I am comfortable. I am prepared, fit, healthy,-well trained, strong, confident. I am confident I can meet the challenge of this run. I am taking a deep breath, inhaling all the air I can… exhaling slowly.
I can see myself running… my posture is erect, arms swinging back and forth crossing in front just about to midline. My shoulders are relax and my head is looking straight ahead. My eyes are focus 10 yards in front of me. I see the ground in front of me moving past steadily. My arms and legs are in perfect synchronization, moving effortlessly. My legs move back and forth like a pendulums. My feet glide over the ground, touching the surface only briefly, lightly, as if springs are in my legs. The heel of my foot strikes the ground first just for a second my foot roles forward, up to the toes as I push off from the forefoot, as my other leg lifts high and thrusts powerfully forward, powerfully striding forward, effortlessly, moving like a gazelle over the ground. I feel light. I have boundless energy and enthusiasm. I am moving effortlessly over the ground, I feel light, my feet are gliding over the surface, lightly touching, only for a second, moving forward gracefully, mechanically, powerfully, controlled, with spring in my stride …moving over the ground like a gazelle. Light. My legs move in perfect synchrony… automatic… and effortless.
I can feel my body moving smoothly. My body temperature is comfortably warm. There is a light flow of perspiration over my body. Perspiration drips from my forehead down my face perspiration drips down my neck, down my chest, down my back I feel a cool breeze, it cools my body; my singlet is wet, I feel the breeze blowing through my singlet, there is a cool sensation on my skin. My shorts are damp from perspiration the perspiration continues to drip down my legs, the light breeze blows across my skin, cooling my body. I am comfortably warm. I feel the moisture of my perspiration and cooling sensation of the wind.
Time is drifting by without notice, time is of no concern. I feel free of barriers. I feel confident. I feel free. I am strong. I am ready to do my workout.
I take a deep breath. Open my eyes. I rise; move deliberately and confidently into my workout.I am prepared mentally and physically to succeed. I am relaxed. There is no pressure. I am focused on my workout. Nothing stands in my way. I will take three more slow deep breaths and go forth.
I’ll post the same script next but in a directive approach instead of first person. Visualization/mental rehearsal is one critical element to successful racing.
Visualization/Imagery I
Visualization & Running I
Did you know that 99 % Olympic athletes practice visualization (also referred to as mental imagery) for an average of 12 minutes a day four days a week (Terry Orlick) ? You probably think this applies to the skill or technique events (shot put, high jump, etc.) in track. Not so! Distance runners also use visualization. It can promote relaxation, attentional focus as well as confident and resilient mindsets.
Visualization is a completely natural process. We do it all the time but don’t realize it. Think of it like vivid day dreaming. So vivid, you think you are in that moment.
More good news about imagery is that it is trainable. It is a skill that can be honed. It does take practice. You can use imagery just at home laying on a couch relaxing; but actually doing the activity itself… while doing a workout… according to the research may be the more effective approach. It reinforces the reality of all the senses and integrates it into the sport instead of being an additional activity or practice.
There are volumes of research conducted on visualization and its affect on performance. In Sweden and Russia there were several cool and replicated studies with visualization on basketball free throwing. They did controlled studies which divided up groups into physical practice and imagery practice In the following proportions: 100%/0%, 75%/25%, 50%/50% and finally 25%/75% respectively. The 25% physical and 75% imagery ended up performing best.
As an aside, imagery doesn’t work well for a novice athlete in a skill sport since they have not learned and mastered the physical skills yet. Think of it this way, if you don’t know the physical movements well then how do you replicate them in your mind to reinforce the “right” way to do them.
But, imagery goes way beyond learning a physical skill. It is a key to better performances and overcoming mental melt-downs in any competition. Once an athlete is conditioned physically, the difference in performance comes down to many mental or psychological dimensions.
Mental imagery is more than some pictures in your head. Properly done it incorporates all your senses. Researchers do not know all the exact mechanisms of how or why it works. But, they have found that when it is done vividly, it appears that your mind cannot tell the difference between reality and your “created reality” - your visualization. The bottomline is that it works.
The question I have had most often in regards to imagery is “…but what do I visualize?” Running is just putting one foot in front of the other right? Simple, right? Yes, and there are many aspects of racing and running that will benefit by imagery practice. Here are just a few:
Relaxation while running
Tenseness or nervousness before competition
“Choking” at the big race
Maintaining good form
Coping with unexpected race occurrences
Coping with adverse weather conditions
Coping with “bad patches” during the race
Fear of failure
Dealing with competitors’ behaviors
Dealing with outside distractors
Finding your “zone” or groove
Dealing with discomfort
Promoting the ability in having a kick
Promoting tenacity under adverse conditions
Worrying about the competition
Maintaining intensity throughout a race
Improving confidence
Staying consistent with training
Persisting on bad days
Almost any of your emotional or psychological factors can be addressed through proper imagery. It will not override your physical limitations. If you haven’t trained, it won’t suddenly make you a world class runner. It will help you remove mental barriers which prevent you from performing or training your best… optimizing how you can perform.
Visualizations usually follow a script (formally or informally). It may follow a race from start to finish or may reproduce the problem point in the race you are working to overcome. The more descriptive, the more detailed, the more you incorporate all your senses… the more effective it will be.
Did you know that 99 % Olympic athletes practice visualization (also referred to as mental imagery) for an average of 12 minutes a day four days a week (Terry Orlick) ? You probably think this applies to the skill or technique events (shot put, high jump, etc.) in track. Not so! Distance runners also use visualization. It can promote relaxation, attentional focus as well as confident and resilient mindsets.
Visualization is a completely natural process. We do it all the time but don’t realize it. Think of it like vivid day dreaming. So vivid, you think you are in that moment.
More good news about imagery is that it is trainable. It is a skill that can be honed. It does take practice. You can use imagery just at home laying on a couch relaxing; but actually doing the activity itself… while doing a workout… according to the research may be the more effective approach. It reinforces the reality of all the senses and integrates it into the sport instead of being an additional activity or practice.
There are volumes of research conducted on visualization and its affect on performance. In Sweden and Russia there were several cool and replicated studies with visualization on basketball free throwing. They did controlled studies which divided up groups into physical practice and imagery practice In the following proportions: 100%/0%, 75%/25%, 50%/50% and finally 25%/75% respectively. The 25% physical and 75% imagery ended up performing best.
As an aside, imagery doesn’t work well for a novice athlete in a skill sport since they have not learned and mastered the physical skills yet. Think of it this way, if you don’t know the physical movements well then how do you replicate them in your mind to reinforce the “right” way to do them.
But, imagery goes way beyond learning a physical skill. It is a key to better performances and overcoming mental melt-downs in any competition. Once an athlete is conditioned physically, the difference in performance comes down to many mental or psychological dimensions.
Mental imagery is more than some pictures in your head. Properly done it incorporates all your senses. Researchers do not know all the exact mechanisms of how or why it works. But, they have found that when it is done vividly, it appears that your mind cannot tell the difference between reality and your “created reality” - your visualization. The bottomline is that it works.
The question I have had most often in regards to imagery is “…but what do I visualize?” Running is just putting one foot in front of the other right? Simple, right? Yes, and there are many aspects of racing and running that will benefit by imagery practice. Here are just a few:
Relaxation while running
Tenseness or nervousness before competition
“Choking” at the big race
Maintaining good form
Coping with unexpected race occurrences
Coping with adverse weather conditions
Coping with “bad patches” during the race
Fear of failure
Dealing with competitors’ behaviors
Dealing with outside distractors
Finding your “zone” or groove
Dealing with discomfort
Promoting the ability in having a kick
Promoting tenacity under adverse conditions
Worrying about the competition
Maintaining intensity throughout a race
Improving confidence
Staying consistent with training
Persisting on bad days
Almost any of your emotional or psychological factors can be addressed through proper imagery. It will not override your physical limitations. If you haven’t trained, it won’t suddenly make you a world class runner. It will help you remove mental barriers which prevent you from performing or training your best… optimizing how you can perform.
Visualizations usually follow a script (formally or informally). It may follow a race from start to finish or may reproduce the problem point in the race you are working to overcome. The more descriptive, the more detailed, the more you incorporate all your senses… the more effective it will be.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Your Personal Imagery Program
Your Imagery Program:
1—Goal Setting:
Start with an imagery goal. Do you want to focus on technical skills (stride), tactical (strategy), mental (managing anxiety), or improving overall performance (personal best)?
2--Plan—Design a plan and schedule 10 to 12 minutes into your day where you can perform your imagery at approximately the same time every day.
3—Create an Imagery Scenario—write down your athletic imagery scenario in specific detail: location of the event; race conditions; specific event; thoughts feelings and expectations.
4—Relax precede your imagery session with some form of active relaxation such as deep breathing, yoga, or PMR.
Tips for Utilization of senses for Imagery:
Visual---see the course, the scenery, field of runners
Smell---scents of the environment and smell of sweat
Auditory—sounds of feet striking the running surface, miscellaneous sounds in the environment like crowd noise, noise and breathing of crowd of runners
Kinesthetic—transfer of weight as your foot strikes and coordination of hand and foot movements and your stride
Tactile---note how your clothes feel against your body and fit and feel of your running shoes
Gustatory—experience power of gels, electrolyte drinks, and energy bars
The more you utilize all the senses the more vivid, powerful and beneficial the images will be.
Attach positive emotions to the imaged experience—recall an event highly positively charged, where you experienced a great accomplishment, overcame an adverse situation, succeeded against difficult odds, set a personal record. Immerse yourself in these situations for a bit. Upon completion of an imagery session recall those powerful emotions. This will help associate the successful imaged event with the feelings of success.
Keys to effective imagery:
Internal vs. External images: Internal images have the advantage of emphasizing the feel of the movement and the emotional component of the experience.
Practice: Imagery is a skill requiring practice. Daily imagery practice should be adopted as a part of your training regimen.
Image vividness: the closer you can approximate the imaged event in your mind to the actual experience, the more likely the successful imaged event will transfer to your physical performance.
Controllability: It is important to manipulate your images so the imaged event is what you want it to be.
Relaxation: enhances image vividness and controllability; allows you to focus, immerse yourself in the images and reduce competing thoughts by quieting the mind.
Positive Outcomes/emotionality: focus images on successful outcomes, enhancing the emotional component and helps program the body for successful outcomes.
Image in real time: time spent imaging a skill should be equal to the time the skill takes to occur. Break down a marathon into 4 to 5 minute segments. (Start…battling the crowd; middle…as you push through fatigue; finish… developing that strong kick into the finish.)
1—Goal Setting:
Start with an imagery goal. Do you want to focus on technical skills (stride), tactical (strategy), mental (managing anxiety), or improving overall performance (personal best)?
2--Plan—Design a plan and schedule 10 to 12 minutes into your day where you can perform your imagery at approximately the same time every day.
3—Create an Imagery Scenario—write down your athletic imagery scenario in specific detail: location of the event; race conditions; specific event; thoughts feelings and expectations.
4—Relax precede your imagery session with some form of active relaxation such as deep breathing, yoga, or PMR.
Tips for Utilization of senses for Imagery:
Visual---see the course, the scenery, field of runners
Smell---scents of the environment and smell of sweat
Auditory—sounds of feet striking the running surface, miscellaneous sounds in the environment like crowd noise, noise and breathing of crowd of runners
Kinesthetic—transfer of weight as your foot strikes and coordination of hand and foot movements and your stride
Tactile---note how your clothes feel against your body and fit and feel of your running shoes
Gustatory—experience power of gels, electrolyte drinks, and energy bars
The more you utilize all the senses the more vivid, powerful and beneficial the images will be.
Attach positive emotions to the imaged experience—recall an event highly positively charged, where you experienced a great accomplishment, overcame an adverse situation, succeeded against difficult odds, set a personal record. Immerse yourself in these situations for a bit. Upon completion of an imagery session recall those powerful emotions. This will help associate the successful imaged event with the feelings of success.
Keys to effective imagery:
Internal vs. External images: Internal images have the advantage of emphasizing the feel of the movement and the emotional component of the experience.
Practice: Imagery is a skill requiring practice. Daily imagery practice should be adopted as a part of your training regimen.
Image vividness: the closer you can approximate the imaged event in your mind to the actual experience, the more likely the successful imaged event will transfer to your physical performance.
Controllability: It is important to manipulate your images so the imaged event is what you want it to be.
Relaxation: enhances image vividness and controllability; allows you to focus, immerse yourself in the images and reduce competing thoughts by quieting the mind.
Positive Outcomes/emotionality: focus images on successful outcomes, enhancing the emotional component and helps program the body for successful outcomes.
Image in real time: time spent imaging a skill should be equal to the time the skill takes to occur. Break down a marathon into 4 to 5 minute segments. (Start…battling the crowd; middle…as you push through fatigue; finish… developing that strong kick into the finish.)
Monday, November 24, 2008
Visualization
What is Visualization?
The most important mental skills runners/athletes can use include goal setting, positive self-talk, positive mental attitude, staying in the present, and visualization or imagery.
How valuable is imagery to an athlete? Almost all Olympians use the technique, including Lance Armstrong, Tiger Woods, tennis players, generally all athletes to whom performance in critical.
How does it work? There has been an abundance of studies proving its effectiveness. European studies of free throw shooting serve as the best examples of its validity. Several groups are formed: 100% Practice/0 % Imagery; 75% practice/25% Imagery; 50/50; 25/75. The group that performs the best always is the 25% Practice/75% Imagery. Given all the hype about practicing one would think that more practice would be better; these results prove the power of imagery in sports performance.
I mentioned this on Saturday, that visualization allows you to “act like you’ve been there before.” It allows you a greater sense of confidence since you’ve already done it. The subconscious mind is unable to discriminate the real from the imagined. On the science of muscle side, when you use imagery you are actually performing micro-muscle movements that mimic the action you are imaging. So in a small way you are actually practicing.
There is one significant prerequisite for imagery/visualization to be most effective. You must be relaxed; i.e., you have to be physiologically relaxed, achieved through yoga, progressive muscle relaxation, deep breathing or some other method.
There are two kinds of visualization. Associated imagery is your experiencing something first hand through your own eyes. Dissociated imagery is as if you were watching yourself performing something. In the first case you are experiencing your run through your eyes as if you were actually running; in the second, you are watching yourself run. The latter is not nearly as effective for positive behaviors.
Since most of the examples of using imagery involve athletes who perform a specific skill, like hitting a tennis ball, a golf ball, a baseball, shooting a basketball, or competing against other athletes say in a diving competition, etc., what about running which is basically putting one foot in front of the other?
There are a myriad of possibilities for running imagery. You can see yourself having good running form, persevering, running relaxed, having a kick, having mental toughness, being in the “zone,” persisting through bad weather.
Next time I will speak more about the specifics of imagery training. I will post some scripts for doing so on my BLOG.
The most important mental skills runners/athletes can use include goal setting, positive self-talk, positive mental attitude, staying in the present, and visualization or imagery.
How valuable is imagery to an athlete? Almost all Olympians use the technique, including Lance Armstrong, Tiger Woods, tennis players, generally all athletes to whom performance in critical.
How does it work? There has been an abundance of studies proving its effectiveness. European studies of free throw shooting serve as the best examples of its validity. Several groups are formed: 100% Practice/0 % Imagery; 75% practice/25% Imagery; 50/50; 25/75. The group that performs the best always is the 25% Practice/75% Imagery. Given all the hype about practicing one would think that more practice would be better; these results prove the power of imagery in sports performance.
I mentioned this on Saturday, that visualization allows you to “act like you’ve been there before.” It allows you a greater sense of confidence since you’ve already done it. The subconscious mind is unable to discriminate the real from the imagined. On the science of muscle side, when you use imagery you are actually performing micro-muscle movements that mimic the action you are imaging. So in a small way you are actually practicing.
There is one significant prerequisite for imagery/visualization to be most effective. You must be relaxed; i.e., you have to be physiologically relaxed, achieved through yoga, progressive muscle relaxation, deep breathing or some other method.
There are two kinds of visualization. Associated imagery is your experiencing something first hand through your own eyes. Dissociated imagery is as if you were watching yourself performing something. In the first case you are experiencing your run through your eyes as if you were actually running; in the second, you are watching yourself run. The latter is not nearly as effective for positive behaviors.
Since most of the examples of using imagery involve athletes who perform a specific skill, like hitting a tennis ball, a golf ball, a baseball, shooting a basketball, or competing against other athletes say in a diving competition, etc., what about running which is basically putting one foot in front of the other?
There are a myriad of possibilities for running imagery. You can see yourself having good running form, persevering, running relaxed, having a kick, having mental toughness, being in the “zone,” persisting through bad weather.
Next time I will speak more about the specifics of imagery training. I will post some scripts for doing so on my BLOG.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
The Importance of Goals
Study about goals at Harvard MBA program, 1979.
From the book What they don’t teach you at Harvard Business School by Mark McCormack:
In the book What They Don't Teach You in the Harvard Business School, Mark McCormack tells a study conducted on students in the 1979 Harvard MBA program. In that year, the students were asked, "Have you set clear, written goals for your future and made plans to accomplish them?" Only three percent of the graduates had written goals and plans; 13 percent had goals, but they were not in writing; and a whopping 84 percent had no specific goals at all.
Ten years later, the members of the class were interviewed again, and the findings, while somewhat predictable, were nonetheless astonishing. The 13 percent of the class who had goals were earning, on average, twice as much as the 84 percent who had no goals at all. And what about the three percent who had clear, written goals? They were earning, on average, ten times as much as the other 97 percent put together.
In spite of such proof of success, most people don't have clear, measurable, time-bounded goals that they work toward.
In the bestseller "Goals!", Brian Tracy teaches you how to identify in the clearest terms the things you want out of life, then how to make the plan to help you achieve those things. Brian Tracy says there are four reasons why people don't set goals:
1--They don't realize about the importance of goals. If the people with whom you spend the most time — family, friends, colleagues, and so forth — are not clear and committed to goals, there is a chance that you will not be, either.
2--They don't know how to set goals. Some set goals that are too general. These are, in reality, fantasies common to everyone. Goals, on the other hand, are clear, written, specific, and measurable.
3--They fear failure. Failure hurts, but it is often necessary to experience failure in order to achieve the greatest success. Do not unconsciously sabotage yourself by not setting any goals in which you might fail.
4--They fear rejection. People are often afraid that if they are unsuccessful at achieving a goal, others will be critical of them. This is remedied by keeping your goals to yourself at the outset; let others see your results and achievements once you've accomplished your goals. Make a habit of daily goal setting and achieving, for the rest of your life. Focus on the things you want, rather than the things you don't want. Resolve to be a goal-seeking organism, moving unerringly toward the things that are important to you.
I willl post more specifically on this topic this weekend.
From the book What they don’t teach you at Harvard Business School by Mark McCormack:
In the book What They Don't Teach You in the Harvard Business School, Mark McCormack tells a study conducted on students in the 1979 Harvard MBA program. In that year, the students were asked, "Have you set clear, written goals for your future and made plans to accomplish them?" Only three percent of the graduates had written goals and plans; 13 percent had goals, but they were not in writing; and a whopping 84 percent had no specific goals at all.
Ten years later, the members of the class were interviewed again, and the findings, while somewhat predictable, were nonetheless astonishing. The 13 percent of the class who had goals were earning, on average, twice as much as the 84 percent who had no goals at all. And what about the three percent who had clear, written goals? They were earning, on average, ten times as much as the other 97 percent put together.
In spite of such proof of success, most people don't have clear, measurable, time-bounded goals that they work toward.
In the bestseller "Goals!", Brian Tracy teaches you how to identify in the clearest terms the things you want out of life, then how to make the plan to help you achieve those things. Brian Tracy says there are four reasons why people don't set goals:
1--They don't realize about the importance of goals. If the people with whom you spend the most time — family, friends, colleagues, and so forth — are not clear and committed to goals, there is a chance that you will not be, either.
2--They don't know how to set goals. Some set goals that are too general. These are, in reality, fantasies common to everyone. Goals, on the other hand, are clear, written, specific, and measurable.
3--They fear failure. Failure hurts, but it is often necessary to experience failure in order to achieve the greatest success. Do not unconsciously sabotage yourself by not setting any goals in which you might fail.
4--They fear rejection. People are often afraid that if they are unsuccessful at achieving a goal, others will be critical of them. This is remedied by keeping your goals to yourself at the outset; let others see your results and achievements once you've accomplished your goals. Make a habit of daily goal setting and achieving, for the rest of your life. Focus on the things you want, rather than the things you don't want. Resolve to be a goal-seeking organism, moving unerringly toward the things that are important to you.
I willl post more specifically on this topic this weekend.
Saturday, September 6, 2008
Marathon Goal Guarantees
How Would You like a Virtual Guarantee to Finish the marathon or complete it in your time goal, or even qualify for Boston?
This morning I spoke about a 3 step process to do just that. First, understand that by participating in and finishing the program as outlined by Fort Bend Fit you have a 98% chance of successfully completing the marathon.
The other 2%, if you want that, is fairly straightforward, but does require you to think outside the box and to get out of your comfort zone.
So, step #2 is to make a promise to someone that you will do something. #3 is to at put yourself at risk, enough to put your stomach into a knot. You promise someone you will complete the marathon on the terms you set out or you will somehow experience a negative consequence. The examples I used this morning were cleaning your mother-in-law’s house or making a contribution to your opposition candidate’s campaign fund. In actuality, the possibilities are endless. As long as it is something you dread doing or puts you at some risk.
The reason this works is that it involves the concept of intention. When your “true” intention is to qualify for Boston, set a PR, just finish your first marathon, the three step process outlined above serves to reinforce your deepest commitment and to make your intention very clear. Thus, when your intention is clear a mechanism to accomplish your goal will appear.
One way to look at this is to look at the difference between being involved and being committed. Your being involved in a marathon training program compared to being committed to a marathon training program is much like the old story about making a bacon and egg breakfast: the , the chicken is involved, but the pig is committed!!! Marathon goal success, as well as any success in life, comes from being committed, not just involved. Think Pig!!
Until next time, there you have it. Stay “thirsty” my friends.
This morning I spoke about a 3 step process to do just that. First, understand that by participating in and finishing the program as outlined by Fort Bend Fit you have a 98% chance of successfully completing the marathon.
The other 2%, if you want that, is fairly straightforward, but does require you to think outside the box and to get out of your comfort zone.
So, step #2 is to make a promise to someone that you will do something. #3 is to at put yourself at risk, enough to put your stomach into a knot. You promise someone you will complete the marathon on the terms you set out or you will somehow experience a negative consequence. The examples I used this morning were cleaning your mother-in-law’s house or making a contribution to your opposition candidate’s campaign fund. In actuality, the possibilities are endless. As long as it is something you dread doing or puts you at some risk.
The reason this works is that it involves the concept of intention. When your “true” intention is to qualify for Boston, set a PR, just finish your first marathon, the three step process outlined above serves to reinforce your deepest commitment and to make your intention very clear. Thus, when your intention is clear a mechanism to accomplish your goal will appear.
One way to look at this is to look at the difference between being involved and being committed. Your being involved in a marathon training program compared to being committed to a marathon training program is much like the old story about making a bacon and egg breakfast: the , the chicken is involved, but the pig is committed!!! Marathon goal success, as well as any success in life, comes from being committed, not just involved. Think Pig!!
Until next time, there you have it. Stay “thirsty” my friends.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Motivation Revisited
BUILDING BLOCKS OF MOTIVATION:
First it is important to consider what motivation IS NOT. Motivation is not emotion. This is why being inspired may be short-lived, in terms of long-term exercise adherence. Putting together a series of runs or walks week by week for several months in a row requires something more stable and permanent than the motivation of a football team half-time speech or the emotion that football team uses to run through the paper team banner, the runthrough screen, at the start and at halftime of games.
Motivation is also not wishing or promising. Brian Tracy says that a goal that is not written down is just a fantasy.
How does one get motivation---the intrinsic kind that is self-perpetuating? What are these building blocks of motivation?
First, motivation comes from setting reasonable short and long term goals. Yogi Berra once said that if you don’t know where you’re going you might end up somewhere else. You need to have a track to run on, you need to know where you are going and have a plan for getting there. This gives you a focus. Olympians and other athletes all say that goal setting procedures account for the majority of their improvement in performance.
Secondly, motivation comes from Habit Formation. Look at time differently. Jeff Galloway has written several articles on strategies about alternative plans to get in workouts to help this habit formation. For example, it is much more important to do something compared to how long you do it. Doing is much more important than how long.
Here are some strategies to get through Marathon training in have intrinsic motivation at the end:
Do your long runs with a local running group and bond over common misery. Know any local running groups in Sugar Land?
Schedule your runs/walks and plan fun activities after them. Run to your rewards. Psychologists call this the Premack Principle.
Try crosstraining 1 or 2 days per week.
Run in a new place.
What to do when you are ready to drop out of a long run or you question your motivation:
Imagine the marathon start with thousands of runners lining up—the only way you can pull yourself to the starting line and then to the finish is by not dropping out today. Keep on running; aim for the lamp post ahead, then the big tree, then up the hill (if you can find one). If you stop, just take a walk break; it is great to rest the critical left brain and great for the right brain.
Pick a few friends you know to be committed runners with a proven track record of intrinsic motivation.
Lastly, motivation comes from results. Celebrate those results. Buy a new pair of running shorts or shoes to reward yourself for an accomplishment, like finishing the longest run ever, a race, or even doing all runs for a week or two week period.
So, motivation has three building blocks: Set Goals, Develop a new habit, and Celebrate the results.
What is the purpose of goals besides developing our motivation? John Ruskin, English critic in the early 20th century said, “the highest reward for a person’s toil is not what they get for it, but what they become by it.” Jim Rohn says the purpose of goals is to become the kind of person who could accomplish that goal. Very similar.
Since we have the Olympiad as a backdrop, Gold is not the glory, the pursuit of Gold is.
Until next time, there you have it.
First it is important to consider what motivation IS NOT. Motivation is not emotion. This is why being inspired may be short-lived, in terms of long-term exercise adherence. Putting together a series of runs or walks week by week for several months in a row requires something more stable and permanent than the motivation of a football team half-time speech or the emotion that football team uses to run through the paper team banner, the runthrough screen, at the start and at halftime of games.
Motivation is also not wishing or promising. Brian Tracy says that a goal that is not written down is just a fantasy.
How does one get motivation---the intrinsic kind that is self-perpetuating? What are these building blocks of motivation?
First, motivation comes from setting reasonable short and long term goals. Yogi Berra once said that if you don’t know where you’re going you might end up somewhere else. You need to have a track to run on, you need to know where you are going and have a plan for getting there. This gives you a focus. Olympians and other athletes all say that goal setting procedures account for the majority of their improvement in performance.
Secondly, motivation comes from Habit Formation. Look at time differently. Jeff Galloway has written several articles on strategies about alternative plans to get in workouts to help this habit formation. For example, it is much more important to do something compared to how long you do it. Doing is much more important than how long.
Here are some strategies to get through Marathon training in have intrinsic motivation at the end:
Do your long runs with a local running group and bond over common misery. Know any local running groups in Sugar Land?
Schedule your runs/walks and plan fun activities after them. Run to your rewards. Psychologists call this the Premack Principle.
Try crosstraining 1 or 2 days per week.
Run in a new place.
What to do when you are ready to drop out of a long run or you question your motivation:
Imagine the marathon start with thousands of runners lining up—the only way you can pull yourself to the starting line and then to the finish is by not dropping out today. Keep on running; aim for the lamp post ahead, then the big tree, then up the hill (if you can find one). If you stop, just take a walk break; it is great to rest the critical left brain and great for the right brain.
Pick a few friends you know to be committed runners with a proven track record of intrinsic motivation.
Lastly, motivation comes from results. Celebrate those results. Buy a new pair of running shorts or shoes to reward yourself for an accomplishment, like finishing the longest run ever, a race, or even doing all runs for a week or two week period.
So, motivation has three building blocks: Set Goals, Develop a new habit, and Celebrate the results.
What is the purpose of goals besides developing our motivation? John Ruskin, English critic in the early 20th century said, “the highest reward for a person’s toil is not what they get for it, but what they become by it.” Jim Rohn says the purpose of goals is to become the kind of person who could accomplish that goal. Very similar.
Since we have the Olympiad as a backdrop, Gold is not the glory, the pursuit of Gold is.
Until next time, there you have it.
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Running Motivation
I recently read Brian Klemmer’s If How To’s Were Enough We’d All Be Skinny, Rich, and Happy. Great title and it indicates that just knowing the steps one would take to accomplish something isn’t necessarily all there is to doing it. Take running for example; it seems very simple. You may hear some of us joke that it is just putting one foot in front of the other and doing it for however long you will go, 10k, half marathon, 25k, 30k or the marathon. Sounds simple enough. Simple doesn’t mean easy. The hard part may be in getting out the door to do the actual training.
Actually, what gets in the way of this simplicity is the other “M” word. Motivation is another of the key skills successful athletes have developed. Research indicates that, among professional tennis players at least, that there are 5 key personality traits considered important to success: Athletic ability, emotional stability, character, self-confidence and self-motivation. Of these five there is one trait that accounts for most of their success: self-motivation. In addition, 80% of this factor is accounted for by what the athlete does off the court. This has obvious implications for running/walking the marathon.
So what is motivation? The dictionary definition is: the interaction of cognitive, affective, behavioral, and social processes contributing to purposeful, often goal directed behavior. You can see that motivation is not a single entity or trait, but rather a dynamic model made up of many different components. Motivation, as it pertains to exercise/running/walking, is often separated into two distinct categories.
The first category focuses on external, or extrinsic, factors involved in motivation, e.g., personal appearance, weight loss, and social support. These factors may be important when beginning an exercise program, or say when becoming a new member of FBF. The motivation may be losing weight or getting in shape. These external rewards may be enough to motivate an individual to start a program. However, research has shown that body-related motives are not, on average, sufficient to sustain regular exercise regimens and thus should not be made the most salient justification for engaging in exercise. The goal must be to move an individual’s focus to internal motivators in order for one to adhere to their fitness plan
The second category of motivation focuses on internal, intrinsic, factors associated with exercise adherence. Internal motivators are those that produce long-lasting adherence to exercise. Some motivators are health factors, personal competence, increased energy, and decreased stress. People who successfully maintain a workout regimen learn to shift their focus from distant, external outcomes like losing weight to positive, internal experiences in the here and now. The Intrinsic Exerciser (IE) looks inward in the attempt to discover what holds true meaning for them. Whatever the reasoning behind one’s motivation for exercising, it must come from within in order for meaning to be attached to it.
Jay Kimiecik, the author of The Intrinsic Exerciser, has developed his own philosophy of intrinsic exercise from years of performing research in the field of exercise psychology. He says the answer to becoming a regular exerciser/runner/walker over a long period of time is simple: You must learn to love moving your body, and make a connection with that experience. The first step in this process is to develop an Intrinsic Mindset, in order to maximize the enjoyment of moving your body. You don’t become a regular IE or runner by telling yourself it will help you lose weight or decrease the risk of disease. You become an IE by finding the joy and fun before, during and after every running/walking experience.
There are 4 core concepts in Jay’s system to be understood.
Vision---one must visualize oneself as an exerciser/runner/walker without actually doing the activity. Get an inner vision of yourself as an athlete.
Mastery---learn to recognize improvement in your performance; the longest you’ve run/walked; a PR in a race. Base success on your own criteria.
Flow---you are totally connected to the exercise; you have deep understanding and concentration in the run/experience at hand. Once flow is achieved an individual will want to run/exercise for the deep psychological connection gained by the activity. Stay in the moment; you practice this by becoming aware of what you are doing mentally and physically and enjoy the sensation of every moment.
Inergy: here, you let exercise help you meet other life needs. This allows you to attach meaning to your exercise beyond the health benefits. Some examples: Houston Marathon Run For a Reason program; Team in Training by LLS; the MS 150 cycling event. Actually, running/walking for any cause accomplishes this. This allows you to be part of something bigger than yourself.
The syngergistic, simultaneous combination of these four factors will lead to your developing an Intrinsic Mindset. You will learn to love moving your body and you will become a regular exerciser/runner/walker over a long period of time. You are now an IE!!!
Actually, what gets in the way of this simplicity is the other “M” word. Motivation is another of the key skills successful athletes have developed. Research indicates that, among professional tennis players at least, that there are 5 key personality traits considered important to success: Athletic ability, emotional stability, character, self-confidence and self-motivation. Of these five there is one trait that accounts for most of their success: self-motivation. In addition, 80% of this factor is accounted for by what the athlete does off the court. This has obvious implications for running/walking the marathon.
So what is motivation? The dictionary definition is: the interaction of cognitive, affective, behavioral, and social processes contributing to purposeful, often goal directed behavior. You can see that motivation is not a single entity or trait, but rather a dynamic model made up of many different components. Motivation, as it pertains to exercise/running/walking, is often separated into two distinct categories.
The first category focuses on external, or extrinsic, factors involved in motivation, e.g., personal appearance, weight loss, and social support. These factors may be important when beginning an exercise program, or say when becoming a new member of FBF. The motivation may be losing weight or getting in shape. These external rewards may be enough to motivate an individual to start a program. However, research has shown that body-related motives are not, on average, sufficient to sustain regular exercise regimens and thus should not be made the most salient justification for engaging in exercise. The goal must be to move an individual’s focus to internal motivators in order for one to adhere to their fitness plan
The second category of motivation focuses on internal, intrinsic, factors associated with exercise adherence. Internal motivators are those that produce long-lasting adherence to exercise. Some motivators are health factors, personal competence, increased energy, and decreased stress. People who successfully maintain a workout regimen learn to shift their focus from distant, external outcomes like losing weight to positive, internal experiences in the here and now. The Intrinsic Exerciser (IE) looks inward in the attempt to discover what holds true meaning for them. Whatever the reasoning behind one’s motivation for exercising, it must come from within in order for meaning to be attached to it.
Jay Kimiecik, the author of The Intrinsic Exerciser, has developed his own philosophy of intrinsic exercise from years of performing research in the field of exercise psychology. He says the answer to becoming a regular exerciser/runner/walker over a long period of time is simple: You must learn to love moving your body, and make a connection with that experience. The first step in this process is to develop an Intrinsic Mindset, in order to maximize the enjoyment of moving your body. You don’t become a regular IE or runner by telling yourself it will help you lose weight or decrease the risk of disease. You become an IE by finding the joy and fun before, during and after every running/walking experience.
There are 4 core concepts in Jay’s system to be understood.
Vision---one must visualize oneself as an exerciser/runner/walker without actually doing the activity. Get an inner vision of yourself as an athlete.
Mastery---learn to recognize improvement in your performance; the longest you’ve run/walked; a PR in a race. Base success on your own criteria.
Flow---you are totally connected to the exercise; you have deep understanding and concentration in the run/experience at hand. Once flow is achieved an individual will want to run/exercise for the deep psychological connection gained by the activity. Stay in the moment; you practice this by becoming aware of what you are doing mentally and physically and enjoy the sensation of every moment.
Inergy: here, you let exercise help you meet other life needs. This allows you to attach meaning to your exercise beyond the health benefits. Some examples: Houston Marathon Run For a Reason program; Team in Training by LLS; the MS 150 cycling event. Actually, running/walking for any cause accomplishes this. This allows you to be part of something bigger than yourself.
The syngergistic, simultaneous combination of these four factors will lead to your developing an Intrinsic Mindset. You will learn to love moving your body and you will become a regular exerciser/runner/walker over a long period of time. You are now an IE!!!
Saturday, August 2, 2008
Hydration and Electrolytes
HOW IMPORTANT ARE ELECTROLYTES TO PERFORMANCE ANYWAY?
In regard to many concerns about electrolytes, especially during this hot season, I feel compelled to express my concern that they may be considered the “magic bullet” to performance and the key to the rehydration puzzle. While important, they are a piece of the puzzle.
In actuality, regular nutrition may be the ultimate long-term answer. This would include optimal nutrition at the cellular level, using a broad spectrum of antioxidants, vitamins and minerals. Research indicates that endurance athletes use 12 to 20 times the amount of oxygen that an average person uses and as a result create oxidative stress equivalent to that of a cancer patient. There is a “dark side” to oxygen. Free radicals are created in this process of endurance running/walking. Antioxidants at optimal levels may be more important to performance than electrolytes. Our free radicals come from more than the exercise we do. They come from stress, radiation from the sun, pollution -good old Houston air, toxins in the water and poor food choices.
In order to evaluate the importance of electrolytes, I think it is important to understand how the body uses electrolytes. In addition to being a catalyst for muscle contractions, electrolytes function to hold water in the blood stream so it doesn’t empty into the bladder or send signals to the sweat glands to produce sweat. This is what happens when you drink plain water while running. Water turns off the thirst mechanism and its rapid gastric emptying results in the body’s need to get rid of the excess water by producing urine or sweat. As a result, it doesn’t get into the muscle where it is vitally needed. You end up feeling that you are sweating a lot. You are, but you are just sweating out the water you just drank. Runners/walkers need to have those fluids in their muscles, not going to their skin.
The key is to keep the water in the bloodstream. This is where the electrolytes become involved; the salts keep water in the bloodstream, and also make us drink more. However, there is no guarantee that the fluid with electrolytes is going to get into the muscles, where we need it. Muscles that are working are being depleted of glycogen so “they” go “looking” for carbs, which are big water attracters. Carbs flood into the muscle, dragging the water with them. The end result of this process is rehydration of the muscles, allowing us to work more efficiently and avoid later headaches, stiffness and soreness.
Electrolytes alone will not result in this process occurring, unless they are attached to carbohydrate molecules. Another important factor is the speed with which this process occurs. The quicker the better you’re saying, right? This is where the concept of “osmolality” comes in. In simple terms, blood has an osmolality of 250; anything less than 250 will be absorbed by the muscles very quickly; anything greater is absorbed more slowly and may have to be digested in order to be absorbed; delayed absorption is the result. Research indicates that Gatorade, at an osmolality of 280, can take as long as 45 minutes to get to the muscles after ingestion.
Low Oz, used by many FBFers, has an osmolality of 150, resulting in very rapid absorption; research again indicates its absorption within 45 seconds, with an average of 90 seconds. This is 30 to 60 times faster than Gatorade. This lower osmolality is accomplished by using long chain carbohydrates; so you may have just as many carbs, but there are fewer molecules (lower osmolality), resulting in more rapid absorption. Science on our side.
The implications are clear. Optimal rehydration occurs when the correct level of electrolytes, in concert with long chain carbohydrates and the correct osmolality level, are taken in to the body. You need a product with electrolytes and carbs. LowOz is a convenient way to accomplish this; the electrolytes and carbs are already at optimal levels.
There are many other good options to Gatorade or water. I have used Gookinaid, Elyte sport and Ultima Replenisher. All good and effective. But just as there is only one Boston Marathon, there is one optimal fluid replacement drink. If you cannot get Low Oz you might want to try on of the others listed. I can provide you with details on how to get them.
In regard to many concerns about electrolytes, especially during this hot season, I feel compelled to express my concern that they may be considered the “magic bullet” to performance and the key to the rehydration puzzle. While important, they are a piece of the puzzle.
In actuality, regular nutrition may be the ultimate long-term answer. This would include optimal nutrition at the cellular level, using a broad spectrum of antioxidants, vitamins and minerals. Research indicates that endurance athletes use 12 to 20 times the amount of oxygen that an average person uses and as a result create oxidative stress equivalent to that of a cancer patient. There is a “dark side” to oxygen. Free radicals are created in this process of endurance running/walking. Antioxidants at optimal levels may be more important to performance than electrolytes. Our free radicals come from more than the exercise we do. They come from stress, radiation from the sun, pollution -good old Houston air, toxins in the water and poor food choices.
In order to evaluate the importance of electrolytes, I think it is important to understand how the body uses electrolytes. In addition to being a catalyst for muscle contractions, electrolytes function to hold water in the blood stream so it doesn’t empty into the bladder or send signals to the sweat glands to produce sweat. This is what happens when you drink plain water while running. Water turns off the thirst mechanism and its rapid gastric emptying results in the body’s need to get rid of the excess water by producing urine or sweat. As a result, it doesn’t get into the muscle where it is vitally needed. You end up feeling that you are sweating a lot. You are, but you are just sweating out the water you just drank. Runners/walkers need to have those fluids in their muscles, not going to their skin.
The key is to keep the water in the bloodstream. This is where the electrolytes become involved; the salts keep water in the bloodstream, and also make us drink more. However, there is no guarantee that the fluid with electrolytes is going to get into the muscles, where we need it. Muscles that are working are being depleted of glycogen so “they” go “looking” for carbs, which are big water attracters. Carbs flood into the muscle, dragging the water with them. The end result of this process is rehydration of the muscles, allowing us to work more efficiently and avoid later headaches, stiffness and soreness.
Electrolytes alone will not result in this process occurring, unless they are attached to carbohydrate molecules. Another important factor is the speed with which this process occurs. The quicker the better you’re saying, right? This is where the concept of “osmolality” comes in. In simple terms, blood has an osmolality of 250; anything less than 250 will be absorbed by the muscles very quickly; anything greater is absorbed more slowly and may have to be digested in order to be absorbed; delayed absorption is the result. Research indicates that Gatorade, at an osmolality of 280, can take as long as 45 minutes to get to the muscles after ingestion.
Low Oz, used by many FBFers, has an osmolality of 150, resulting in very rapid absorption; research again indicates its absorption within 45 seconds, with an average of 90 seconds. This is 30 to 60 times faster than Gatorade. This lower osmolality is accomplished by using long chain carbohydrates; so you may have just as many carbs, but there are fewer molecules (lower osmolality), resulting in more rapid absorption. Science on our side.
The implications are clear. Optimal rehydration occurs when the correct level of electrolytes, in concert with long chain carbohydrates and the correct osmolality level, are taken in to the body. You need a product with electrolytes and carbs. LowOz is a convenient way to accomplish this; the electrolytes and carbs are already at optimal levels.
There are many other good options to Gatorade or water. I have used Gookinaid, Elyte sport and Ultima Replenisher. All good and effective. But just as there is only one Boston Marathon, there is one optimal fluid replacement drink. If you cannot get Low Oz you might want to try on of the others listed. I can provide you with details on how to get them.
Characteristics of a Positive Mental Attitude
Successful athletes:
Realize that attitude is a choice.
Choose an attitude that is predominantly positive.
View their sport---running---as an opportunity to compete against themselves and learn from their successes and failures.
Pursue excellence, not perfection, and realize that they as well as others are not perfect.
Maintain Balance and perspective between their sport and the rest of their lives.
How do you develop one of these? Some helpful tips:
Develop an awareness of your attitude and its influence through self-monitoring.
Realized that attitude is a choice.
Identify appropriate role models---FBF is full of them.
If you can find apt quotations, anecdotes and stories use them. Nearly every FBF coach has a favorite quote.
Emphasize a “commitment to excellence,” meaning you focus on getting better.
Emphasize “Mastery” vs “Winning.” You have control of mastery issues, but not whether you win or lose.
A major factor in developing a PMA is making self-to-self comparisons as opposed to self-to-others comparisons. There is a great danger in self-to-other comparisons. When a person sees the vast difference in ability of other runners he may conclude, “I could never do that,” or “she/he must have a natural talent for running.” You may reach a premature conclusion that “I’m just not good at that.” This conclusion can be discouraging and may result in the erroneous conclusion that “I’m not cut out to run a marathon.” Well you can figure out the rest from that.
However, the royal road to results is measured by our own progress. When we have this self-to self comparison in mind we can look to others’ accomplishments for inspiration, for models of excellence and for sources of high quality of information on our own improvement, not as targets of envy or jealousy.
As mentioned this morning, one of best sources on this topic is Marty Seligman’s Learned Optimism published in the 90’s. Dr. Seligman did the seminal research on pessimism and how people got depressed and turned around his research to study optimism instead. It is a great read and also great to work with you children in terms of their own self-concepts.
Realize that attitude is a choice.
Choose an attitude that is predominantly positive.
View their sport---running---as an opportunity to compete against themselves and learn from their successes and failures.
Pursue excellence, not perfection, and realize that they as well as others are not perfect.
Maintain Balance and perspective between their sport and the rest of their lives.
How do you develop one of these? Some helpful tips:
Develop an awareness of your attitude and its influence through self-monitoring.
Realized that attitude is a choice.
Identify appropriate role models---FBF is full of them.
If you can find apt quotations, anecdotes and stories use them. Nearly every FBF coach has a favorite quote.
Emphasize a “commitment to excellence,” meaning you focus on getting better.
Emphasize “Mastery” vs “Winning.” You have control of mastery issues, but not whether you win or lose.
A major factor in developing a PMA is making self-to-self comparisons as opposed to self-to-others comparisons. There is a great danger in self-to-other comparisons. When a person sees the vast difference in ability of other runners he may conclude, “I could never do that,” or “she/he must have a natural talent for running.” You may reach a premature conclusion that “I’m just not good at that.” This conclusion can be discouraging and may result in the erroneous conclusion that “I’m not cut out to run a marathon.” Well you can figure out the rest from that.
However, the royal road to results is measured by our own progress. When we have this self-to self comparison in mind we can look to others’ accomplishments for inspiration, for models of excellence and for sources of high quality of information on our own improvement, not as targets of envy or jealousy.
As mentioned this morning, one of best sources on this topic is Marty Seligman’s Learned Optimism published in the 90’s. Dr. Seligman did the seminal research on pessimism and how people got depressed and turned around his research to study optimism instead. It is a great read and also great to work with you children in terms of their own self-concepts.
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