Above is a picture of KP and I that JD posted on the Endurance Corner community site. The caption he wrote to go with the photo read..."Big Dog schooling Little Dog." I thought it was pretty funny even though I was most likely the butt of the joke.
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We just finished up with our first of two spring Endurance Corner camps in Tucson. It was a relief when all the hard work paid off and a successful camp was run. We hope to keep improving and learning from our camp experiences to make each one better.
I'm now back in Boulder for a few weeks before heading out for our April camp. It wasn't very exciting to be driving home and then run into snow as soon as you reached Denver. I keep telling myself that winter is over every time we are returning from a warm weather trip, but my positive thinking hasn't prevailed just yet.
The running weather is great, but I'm still laid up with the plantar fasciitis that I can't seem to shake. I'm going to try the rest method and not run for a few weeks and see how that goes. Good thing is that I can still bike and swim, but after leaving Tucson where the weather was great, throwing on everything you own to roll out in the cold isn't as motivating.
To be honest, I've had a hard time dealing with my injury and at times feel a bit hopeless. I've had this for over 4 months now. The good thing is that I have a very experienced and positive team surrounding me that I can rely on for help.
Scott Molina, who dealt with PF for 3 years has been giving me a bunch of tips. KP, who has always had to deal with some sort of rubbing, breaking, cracked bones...I can't even start to name all of his foot problems, there are so many. Kevin has never raced on healthy feet and I felt a bit silly when I was complaining to him about how hard it is to deal with not being able to run. Gordo, has also been on me about rehabbing the injury and taking complete responsibility for getting better. He has also done a good job of helping me remain positive with comments such as, "sitting around getting pissed off isn't going to heal the injury any quicker."
This brings me to the topic of this weeks blog, confidence. I'm starting to figure out the athletic hierarchy when it comes to confidence. I feel that most all people are capable of giving fairly good advice to others when attempting to calm their fears or worries, but how does that same individual react when the tables are turned. I think this is the true meaning of having confidence in yourself.
I'll use myself as an example this time. If I had a client who was suffering from PF, I would advise them to just focus on what they can do rather than what they can't and try and remain positive. I would go on to say that it is a long season and that a little time off won't hurt because you can still do other things.
Depending on my mood, I would come back with, "If taking some time off because of an injury is good, then why aren't you doing it?"
In reality, the advice that was given was the best advice. Sitting around getting upset and feeling sorry for yourself is only going to prolong recovery.
Most athletes feel as though they have something to prove and don't deal well with set-backs. I would put myself in this category. Being new to the sport, as long as I continue to train smart and consistent, I will continue to be on the upswing.
Seeing this rapid improvement is a good thing, but can also lead to problems. When your improving, you always want to do more because you are seeing results. However, as in my case, the body might not be ready to handle the fitness gains because of your freshness or pure lack of time in the sport. Over time, your body becomes more durable and is able to cope with the demands of the training.
I had the chance to spend some time with Gordo and Jonas Colting during the camp. These are two guys that have been there and done that. They have a great deal of confidence, prior experience and fitness as a fall back in case of bad performances or set-backs.
Before this camp, Jonas hadn't been on his bike since he won Ultraman Hawaii and was using this time to get back in the swing of things. Instead of jumping right in and showing everyone who's boss, Jonas was in the van, getting dropped, or turning around early because he has the confidence in himself to do so. Where others, like myself are burying themselves to prove that they are strong.
Everything is a learning experience and how you handle adversity is when your true color's shine. I doubt there is an elite athlete out there that hasn't had to deal with injury. It's just part of the game.
Mat
