Stop counting miles and stop worrying about the number of workouts! It can become addicting logging miles. Many runners hit a point where they forget to listen to what their bodies are telling them and instead focus on numbers, ending up injured. Rest is the number one workout that is forgotten by coaches. They are almost always former athletes who have a competitive gene that pushes them to sometimes forget about what is best for their athletes. Therefore, I have a simple point to make that I hope a few coaches and athletes may hear. “It is impossible to improve if you aren’t on the starting line.” Injured athletes may do a great job of recording splits, but that won’t be their goal, and it shouldn’t be mine. I must push my athletes, but I will err on the side of caution, pushing quality not quantity. A healthy athlete will race, but an injured one will be taking splits.
The next number epidemic applies to qualifying standards and personal records. I, of course, love running a lifetime best, just like all runners do, but to be honest, it is taking the real excitement out of running. There are days when it’s cold, days when it’s hot, courses that are long and others short, tracks that are at higher elevation and others on the beach. Whatever happened to the joy of just racing? When we hear the theme from Chariots of Fire, we should feel compelled to run, not for a PR but for the love of running.
Coaching in the NAIA, our national rankings are based on times. I am not a fan of this when so many schools have warm beautiful weather for their whole season, and here in Kansas it’s cold and windy at nearly every meet. It’s really hard to say who is running a true 8k or in what conditions. I am a proponent of regionals being reinstated to assure that the best teams make it to nationals. When it comes to individual performances, I still want my athletes to give everything they have. If they do this, I could care less what their times or places are because their effort would reflect the attitude and character of the runner in which I want to coach. I would trade five sub25 minute 8K runners who never work hard for five who would run 2 minutes slower if they would give everything they have and believe in me and each other. I want my runners to improve, but in a way that is conducive to the love of running.
As a coach, I am forced to also face another number game. That game is known as weight. Weight should not matter. I have seen and raced against all sizes. I am tired of girls and guys thinking that speed and success comes from being thinner. This is not to say that a 300 lb man will have the same success as a 160 lb man. However, if one is running my prescribed workouts and eating sensibly, there is no reason to fret if you are gaining weight. If the day ever comes that I have a runner who is losing a battle because of genetics and can’t stay at a healthy running weight (which is heavier than most think), then they will hopefully talk to me so that they can hear how important their health is and not how important their weight is. An athlete who is living on lettuce and calcium supplements will not be strong enough to survive a full career of college running. Taking these pills may hold off the early stages of osteoporosis and bone deterioration, but not for long. Also, in addition to ones bones becoming brittle and unhealthy, another worry for a coach of girl distance runners is amenorrhea. If a woman loses her menstrual cycle for too long, she faces being infertile the rest of her life. When it’s all said and done, I want my athletes to look at me with respect rather than resentment. As a male coach, I know I must be extra cautious about how I speak to my female athletes. I keep my eyes open for signs, such as cut knuckles, discolored teeth, bad breath, and irregular eating habits.
I hate the numbers games. Simply said, run hard and have fun.
No comments:
Post a Comment