That’s right—this morning I was out on the track before the sun was up. I had my alarm set for 5:45am, 5:47am, and 5:50am and luckily was able to get up without hitting snooze. I quickly poured myself a mug of coffee—it was a little too early for me to actually enjoy it. I chugged it and slowly (really slowly) headed to the field…
Let me give you the run-down on the Interval Test: The test is designed to be game-like and involves sprinting, rest, and running varying lengths around the track for a 21-minute period. The goal is to get 8 6/8 laps. The timing goes as follows:
Now, don’t get me wrong—I absolutely love running… This blog would not exist if I didn’t. But the thing about the Interval Test is that it’s ALL mental. Of course I can run a little under three miles…especially when I get a break in-between sprints. So what’s the big deal?
The big deal is that if I tell myself I can’t do it… I fail. Mental toughness is key. I planned it all out in my head. For the first 4 minutes of sprints I wanted to get a total of 4.5 laps. From that point on, I decided that if I just sprinted my ass off until I heard a whistle, I would make it. Sounds easy.
IT’S NOT. Lap 1 I thought to myself “Oh my goodness, I made it and I’m doing it!” The second lap I kept telling myself “OK, OK. Stick with it.” Lap number 3… “Holy smokes… I thought I was in better shape than this.” Lap number 4 “I AM GOING TO THROW UP.” From this point on the only thing going through my head was “AHH. I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT LAP I AM ON.”
But, mission complete! I did it and got in an extra 1 1/2 laps! So, as much as I was dreading this morning… I learned two lessons:
1. Positive talk only!
2.“No pain, no gain.”
Running challenges us not only mentally by physically and, in order to be successful, we must mentally believe that we are capable of achieving more and moving forward. Plus, if we are not fighting for more, we won’t get anywhere.
Happy Wednesday!
Hello, Sunshine. 