An Endurance Mindset for a Covid World

Do you find yourself waking up every morning, asking yourself when this will all end? How am I going to be able to keep it together through this? How will I be when this is over? It can be overwhelming, and a little unnerving. Endurance athletes deal with similar questions. Uncertainty, doubt and anxiety can be commonplace in their lives. They take on large volumes of training for months at a time just to get the chance to take on something that most people wouldn’t dream of; a marathon, a tough mudder or a triathlon. Never really sure if they’ve done the right things to get them to the finish line. Whenever competing in an endurance race, I’ve learned to repeat to myself something that my wife Amy has yelled to me for the past 15 years; “just pick em up and put em down!” That has become my mantra thanks to her, and its become a big part of my life mindset. It can be deflating to think about the 20 something miles you have left to run. It can send you spiraling down the rabbit hole of self doubt. Focus on the ground in front of you. Knock it down, one step at a time. Take strength from the ground you’ve conquered! Don’t worry too much about the endgame, rather focus on what you need to do today, to make yourself better. Celebrate daily victories. That’s empowering! That will keep you motivated! When speaking with some of my student athletes, I’ve asked them how they want to come out of this? Did they want to spend this extra time on the couch playing video games, making questionable nutritional choices, both staying up and waking up too late? Or did they want something more? Did they want to be better and stronger (physically and mentally). Two time Olympian and IronMan World Champion Chris Hauth put it this way: “Don't ask yourself how long this will last, ask yourself; how far can I take this and how much can I grow.” I think that’s a question that we all need to ask ourselves. During this time, how much can we grow physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually? Can we take this time and become more physically fit? Can we make better nutritional choices? Can we work on being more mindful and present? Can we be more grateful and empathetic? Will this mindset help us through this? If we can rise to the challenge, say yes to these questions and wake up every day with the goal of bettering ourselves just a little bit, then, hell yeah it will! Start each day with the goal of simply getting better. Go for a run or walk, have a salad for lunch, try a little yoga, meditation or prayer, look for ways to help in your community. Enjoy small, daily successes. Who knows, you may find that these days leave you feeling happier, healthier and more fulfilled. Stay safe, healthy and happy, John Baldwin Mental Conditioning Coach Headstrong Performance Training