Me and Chris G in New Mexico... WOW that seems like a long time ago... i can't wait to go back when I'm 40 and beat my time!
I would like to say that physical state has nothing to do with endurance performance, but I can't. I beleive that the mind is a very powerful tool, and that slight changes in mental preparation, can make dramatic effects in the outcome. Physical readiness will make it mentally less challenging if you don't have to push as close to your maximums.
I have ran many km's in training for endurance races, and they played an important role in mentally preparing me to know that I can complete further distances. The interesting thing that I've found is that the shorter high intensity workouts put me on the mental/physical edge of quiting much quicker and much more often that the traditional LSD (long slow distance) training.
Crossfit has really amped up my metal readiness. I really love the aspect of being prepared for the unknowable task. It's been my experience as a naturally good runner with a great running base, to have success getting faster at longer distance without a large focus on it and getting much stronger in the process.
"In the martial arts, the mental state should remain the same as normal. In ordinary circumstances as well as when practicing martial arts, let there be no change in the state of mind- with the mind open and direct, neither tense nor unfocused, calmly relax your mind, and savour this moment of peace." - Five Rings
Managing stress and disorientation over long periods without panic or confusion and the pressure of potentially failing is a skill to develop.
many athletes will lose track of a simple count during a high intensity workout....what other basic thought processes do you lose during a maximal effort?
something to think about....
2 comments:
Great article Dave. This is one of the reasons I don't enjoy working out at Globo Gym. I was interupted twice today during my workout and I lost track of my reps. Once because a couple wanted to tell me they thought my pushups looked to hard but wanted me to walk them through it ( I balance a swiss ball on my toes and flip a bosu upside down for my hands), the other time was to be told I had bad form on my shoulder press. They had never heard of a push press before. So I did the only thing an insane person would do. Start at one. Let me tell you that really sucks during a chipper style workout.
My responce to th person telling me I have bad form doing a press would be "If I was doing a press then you would be right, this is called a push press"
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