Hey everyone! Sorry I didn’t get any posts out in March. Things have been busy, but mostly I just didn’t want to write for the sake of writing. In this week’s newsletter, I’m going to talk about training going into outdoor track season and then dive into a reflection of some mental stuff I have been working through. And, of course, a little baby update.

TRAINING UPDATE:

The last 3 weeks have been about what I expected. My legs don’t feel great, energy is lower than I would like, and motivation is slowly coming around for outdoor track. However, I have been pleasantly surprised with how doable mileage is right now. In the past few years, my biggest struggle has been stacking weeks of good mileage, workouts, and strength training. This year it seems *knock on wood that my body can handle 80+ MPW relatively comfortably. This is important, especially in this next training block as its the last time I can really train hard without the interruption of races, tapers, and travel.

Right now I’m maxing out my highest mileage weeks, while also putting in quality workouts. Once racing season comes up the mileage will drop a bit, and the workouts will be a tad shorter. I’m not reading too much into how I am feeling from workout to workout. If I hit the intervals and walk away from a session knowing I can be ready for the next one, that’s good enough for me. This is also the only other part of the year, where most of the team can show up and workout together semi regularly so it’s been nice having larger groups together for workouts again.

Key Workout Focus

I wanted to highlight three types of key workouts I’ll be doing the next month or so before my outdoor season kicks off. This is for you data nerds who love to follow splits and the structure of different runner’s training. Although, I’ll admit, mine is quite simple and boring.

• HILLS AND SPEED. i.e- 8-10×200 Hill, 8-10×200 Flat:

  • The hills about 3-4 seconds slower than the track reps, and the track reps about 1500/mile pace. 200m jog rest between everything and about 3-5 minutes jog after the hills. It feels like every pro distance group does some variation of this workout and Tinman Elite (mainly the 5k runners and down) is no exception. Nonetheless, this is my favorite workout of the week. It always feels productive, and never hurts that bad. I always walk away from this session feeling lighter on my feet. Its also fun to feel mile race pace during these longer training only months. I do have to note, the On Running Group does Hills AFTER the track reps and they’re pretty good at running so maybe give that order a try.

• THRESHOLD INTERVALS: 1000 meter repeats, Mile Repeats, 6 Minute Reps, you get the point

  • Typically, around 5-6 miles of uptempo work and very short rest (1 minute to 90 seconds between reps most of the time.) Should be hard enough where you’re tired by the end, but easy enough that you can replicate this year round without too much strain or mental fortitude. This is a my favorite team training day of the week because it’s where the milers and marathoners can come together and all share the work load. It’s basically the only time I get to run with my long lost Marathon friend, Reed Fischer.

• LONG RUN. 13-15 miles. Low 6 minute mile pace.

  • Without a doubt, my least favorite workout of the week. I have always struggled with long runs, especially out on the hilly Boulder roads. The team usually makes quick work of me after a few 5:50 miles. However, I know how important this run is for me, both physically and mentally. A successful long run feels a lot like a good race. It’s a gut check that the body is firing on all cylinders, things are clicking, and I am in good shape. I’m really trying to approach these with a more positive mindset these days.

Like I said, it’s simple and boring. I will do some version of this until May, or until I start racing relatively frequently.

Getting out of my own way.

I posted a Instagram photo with a quote from Fyodor Dostoevsky’s novel, Demons, that received some attention. Many people messaged me saying it resonated. The quote was, “If you want to overcome the whole world, overcome yourself.”

The last few years have been a real battle against my inner thoughts; against the anger I feel toward myself for my failures over the last few years. It’s a daily fight that, if lost, can send me spiraling into a bad head space, ultimately affecting my running for the worse. I had a bad version of this during and after my indoor season. I felt like I did everything right this fall/winter, and was ultimately left with a D- indoor track season. Cue the storm of doubt, fear, and limitation to how good of a runner I can be. I think everyone in my circle (wife, teammates, coaches, etc…) saw this play out during and after practice with little comments I’d make about how much I suck, and how I should hang it up, and move onto something that I can be productive at. It’s hard and fricking humbling to give your all and still fall flat on your face. However, I recently picked up the book, The Confident Mind, and it’s really made me see all the things I’m doing wrong when it comes to dealing with failure - including being so self deprecating. One of the tasks the book has you do is fill out 10 moments you’re proud of. If you’re struggling with confidence like I am, try it out. Here’s mine (in no particular order):

1. Penn Relays DMR Comeback.

2. HS National record Indoor Mile

3. 5k Championships win.

4. Penn Relays 3k Sophomore year.

5. US Indoor 2 mile championship.

6. Brooks PR 2 Mile win.

7. Footlocker Championship run.

8. Qualifying for world 5000m team with broken foot.

9. 3:34 1500m.

10. 1:48 highschool 800m.

This is my confidence list, and the list I have to come back to when those negative thoughts start to creep in. My goal this outdoor season is to show up to races knowing I am a good runner, knowing I can compete with anyone, and to stop placing predisposed expectations on myself. I need a filter on what my thoughts are because those thoughts are leading the way and I want them to lead me in the right direction. This doesn’t mean I don’t address poor performances or races, but that I do so with an attitude that reflects a growth mindset. I am actively working on this at practice by taking each interval at a time and getting the mind right before I step into gear. I am also trying to show up with the belief that I can tackle the workout properly and then learning to be kind to myself whether it goes perfectly or not.

Other stuff:

My wife is right at the 37 week mark so things are getting real with the pregnancy. Any day could be the day. We’re both so excited, and can’t wait to meet our daughter. We took a natural birthing class and the mentality going into it seems to be similar to one you need to have during a race: calm, breathing into the pain, with a focus on the finish line. Obviously giving birth is WAY harder than running a race, but I’m excited to try to help Sandy stay in this peaceful mindset however I can during her labor. Baby’s due date is Drake Relays so if we go early, I can run at Drake. No pressure, though. Outside of this, I am staying busy working on sponsorship/partnership for Tinman Elite. This is kind of a new job for me, but the entrepreneur and big day dreamer that I am is loving it. It’s a dream of mine to have the running world infiltrate corporate America or at least try to branch outside the traditional shoe/watch sponsorship. A partnership with a brand like Airbnb or a car company would be so good for the sport. Not only would more money come into play, but runners could start to ACTUALLY be used as a proper billboards. The problem is, I am a 25 year old college drop out trying to talk to people like Jeff Bezos, but hey, you never know what a good LinkedIn message can do. It’s keeping me busy between training sessions and seems to be the intersection of all of my interests. I talk a little about this on a podcast I did with my friend (and Tinman Elite brand manager) Max McNerney. You can listen to it here. Finally, we have a training plan sale going on at Hammer and Axe, so if you want to use one of my plans, use code HAX30 at checkout for a 30% off discount.

That’s all for now. I am hoping I can get you all a tentative race schedule for my outdoor track season next newsletter. Cheers.