What are the training principles that will take us where we want to go,
to realizing more of our individual potential?
Let’s look at two ideas that will get us started.
First we need self knowledge. Who are we and what do we want? I am training for a 50k run in April. A friend is training for a half marathon. My wife wants to improve her health, maintain
enough endurance to enjoy short walks, and live with less pain. Another friend
wanted to be able to continue to continue to play and practice the piano without
succumbing to pain due to long hours of practice in where she held habitual
positions at the keyboard.
There are no quick fixes. Better health and function are processes taking
place over a lifetime. This process
always involves learning. The more we
know what we want and what we are currently doing, the more we can do what we
want. Questions to ask might include:
- · How old am I?
- · What is my current state of training/ health?
- · What are my strengths/ weakness?
- · How do I approach training / life?
- · What is really involved in doing what I want?
- · Am I aware of the little things and their value?
- · Do we give our bodies/ minds the things they need to succeed?
- · Do we realize that it is as or more important how we do things as that we do them?
All these questions deserve a separate
article. Books have been written about each of them. In the long run, the process is as important
as the goal. It is all about particular
kinds of learning.
The next principle is consistency. We can all recall the story of the
tortoise and the hare. It is a great
parable. My dad had a number of sayings that he would use repeatedly and he
liked to say “slow and easy does it”.
Slow and easy gets the job done. I
had difficulty taking that advice as a kid, preferring to bull my way through
most things, yet the advice still echoes in my mind. Millions of Americans have seen the Grand
Canyon and marveled at how the Colorado River carved a mile deep gorge over
eons of time.
Persistence has no equal and yet
we are accustomed to everything happening quickly in the 21st
century. If we have to stand in line, we
may just go somewhere else where we can get served more quickly. We want the pizza delivered in 10 minutes,
perfect body in 30-90 days. We want a faster race time achieved quickly through
a generic training program. We come to physical therapy wanting to be “fixed”
as quickly as possible, instead of persisting or leaning new habits. It is simply the way of life in the modern
world.
Legendary champion Mark Allen, winner of six ironman triathlon world
titles trained smarter than most of his competition. He took days off when needed. He acknowledged
his age when going for his sixth ironman title at age 37 and modified his
training and focused his training to provide an optimal environment with enough
training challenges, sleep, and nutrition. He was ahead of his time in using carbon fiber
bicycles. Most of all he developed inner confidence. It took many years of training his inner and
outer self before he came to dominate the sport. Mark Allen also failed to defeat Dave Scott
six times before he finally succeeded in winning his first title in Hawaii.
Like Mark each of us can realize that we cannot do it all with determination
and brute force. Life-long experiential learning is necessary. Learn, persist, and be consistent. Consistency trumps a single hard effort. A
one days flood does not carve a very deep canyon.
For help with your training / goals, contact Scott Forrester at awareathletes@gmail.com
By Scott Forrester,
LPTA, CPT, Running form coach, Feldenkrais student Awareness Through Movement
Instructor
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