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- Attitude- It’s about being organised & prepared, punctual, displaying positive body language, resilience, belief, work ethic and bringing your best self to each and every day.
- It’s all about relationships – Athletes connect with your coach, be open & honest, show them a great work ethic, commit to the plan and watch the benefits ten fold
- Enjoy what you do!!! It is sport and the central tenant to success is enjoying it, being passionate and loving what you do, which is running.
- Success in endurance sport is reliant on patience, consistency in training/racing and staying injury/illness free. Do everything you can to make these things happen.
- Athletes must be prepared for doing the basics right over & over again and enduring the mundane for long periods of time. Sometimes improvement as an endurance runner is not sexy, having the ability to endure the mundane and the repetitive nature of running is fundamental to long term success.
- Athletes must be accountable for the training/race performances also and especially for their lifestyle choices (Accountability is like rain, we need it but nobody likes getting wet). Normalize Excellence and bring your best self to each and every day.
- Don’t be afraid to fail, this is where we learn. Sometimes a poor workout or race is not always a negative; this is where we learn and what keeps us grounded. It provides a platform to get better at what we do.
- Get comfortable with being uncomfortable, get out of your comfort zone. Live on the edge of chaos, this is where the magic happens!!!
- Athletes should: Train hard but not too hard, Use technology but don’t rely on it, Listen to their bodies’ feedback its rarely wrong, Not always about doing more things right but doing less things wrong, Have variety in their training!!!
- Adaptability is key for athletes (Ability to adapt to any situation during training/racing and cultivate this by keeping yourself uncomfortable at times during training)
- Self-reflection key for both athletes to foster learning and make improvements going forward. Reflect on your lifestyle choices, your training/racing, your motivation/drive etc and make changes where needed.
- If as an athlete you are not responding positively to a certain type of training, then change it. All athletes have different physiological and psychological make ups, so different types of training works for some and not for others.
- Do not neglect the foundations of athletic development at a young age i.e Stability, mobility, Balance, Coordination, Agility, Speed, Strength, Skill of running, quality of movement etc. This will put you in a better place to handle a certain amount of volume & intensity at a later stage.
- Athletes there are no short cuts. There will be many road blocks and highs & lows along the journey but if you are willing to continue on the road to be the best you can be, there are big performances always around the corner with the right dedication and hard work.
- Belief- Athletes believe in yourself, believe in the plan you have set, believe in your coach, and believe that anything is possible with the right mind-set. Take risks and go all in!!!
