Thoughts About Intrinsic Motivation and Running

As a running coach (click for more information) of both teenagers and adults, I often encounter

something that claims us all: motivation deficits. Whether you are the weekend warrior trying to improve upon your daily five miles or trying to complete your first marathon or hit a Boston Qualifying time, motivation can be an issue. There are days that a ten miler in 95 degrees seems daunting, something that tests not only the body but the inner workings of the soul. We want to be somewhere else, to do something else, and lack the drive and/or faith to maintain our self-discipline. The same can be said when you bring teenagers to school two hours early to get in a run before the sun comes up—they are sleepy, and while engaged with the team, they do not always have their motor turned on. Their goals are the farthest thing from their minds at such moments.

So what can we do about motivation? As much as I wish I could say that there is one answer, there is not. As I have discovered over the years, each and every person responds to different ideas and cues. Some people want to be yelled at for failures, others want to be lauded for the groundwork laid in those very efforts (check out the Talent Code if this topic interests you more), some need to be cheered for, others respond to indifference. Regardless of our ability to be coached or respond to coaching (our ability to be whispered to), most motivation remains intrinsic.The key for all coaches and mentors, as well as their disciples, is to tap into this well.

"Be unrelenting. If you don't believe, then who will?" ~ Kara Goucher

Intrinsic motivation is the key indicator and driver of success. We need to self-motivate.  To be good, one needs to push themselves. A writer must writer, a runner run, and they must find ways to complete these tasks when obstacles (intrinsic or extrinsic stand in the way). Thus, when it comes to finding that daily push, there are a few things one can focus on:

1. Break each task down into segments that have achievable goals. Write 200 (or 2000) words a day to complete your novel. Break a five mile run into five pieces, so if you need to run it in 45 minutes, you have five goals there, each of nine minutes. Hit one, you feel better, hit another, confidence and motivation grows. One run turns into two, two a week, a week pushes you out.
2. Instead of examining a marathon as 14-18 weeks of training, break it down into three phases. Each phase has weeks, each week days, each day has a goal. Meet your days and weeks, complete your phase, reach the endgame, the ultimate goal. This compartmentalization creates moments of success. Like the individual run mentioned above, you get to bask in your glory on a frequent basis. Likewise, in moments of failure, you have another, short term goal to latch onto as you drive towards the long term one. Thus, a novel comes chapter by chapter, page by page. Build a foundation and go with it.
   
3. Share your goals and hold yourself responsible for them. Remember the P90x craze? One of the big things behind the success was that people shared their progress, plastering social media. When you fail to complete a workout detracts and it from your social stigma and your internal motivation grows through external shame. Running groups and writing circles will pull you through. People will comment on your progress, ask you questions, and seek to stand in your way--the latter often pissing you off and creating more drive.
4. Consider a mentor or a coach—they can and will guide you through the process. Even a lot of coaches have mentors and coaches. Guidance and support build motivation.
5. We all have bad days, days with less than ideal conditions or where we fail to reach our goals. Sometimes we don’t wake up in time, meet a deadline or goal, or race/workout the way we want to. Do not wallow in self-pity. Move on and make up for it. 
6. Reward yourself. Take time to look at what you accomplished. When your legs ache and burn after a 40 mile week, think back to when you only could make it through 20 miles. Now celebrate and find a way to reward your efforts.  If it is something material great, a night on the town, or with a scheduled but needed day off. Whatever it is, be sure you take the time to do it.

Online Running Coach for Hire

After flying under the radar with online coaching, going more by word of mouth than anything else, I have finally gotten around to doing a write up on what I do and why. First off, I coach for multiple reasons: I love running, I want to spread that love with others, I want people to train the right way, and most importantly I want to keep people healthy. These items can be spread to anyone and everyone, even if I cannot meet face-to-face.

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"Before I would just run what I felt like running for the day, with no real plan, or understanding of how to change things up to get better. I always heard people talking about tempo runs, easy runs, intervals, etc.—before working with you I wasn't really sure what a tempo run actually was, and I definitely never would have done intervals." –Nathan, Orlando

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Online coaching works in the following way: I design a plan around your life, if that is running four days a week, then fine, if it is seven days a week (my favorite), then I do that as well. Some people integrate their biking, others November Project cross training, yoga class, spinning, etc. so we alter and adapt. Ideally we shape a running based plan—for no one will hand you a bike in the middle of a marathon and say you get to ride for five miles—but leeway exists for many people are wed to their fitness groups and activities.

Once you have the plan, we talk after runs, via twitter or email, and discuss what went right and what went wrong as if I was coaching you in person (if you elect for daily communication, or we talk weekly if not). While I can't deal with each interval as I do with the runners I coach, I consult and edit and discuss. Where your random internet plan will have runs etched in stone, I will alter things as we go. If your legs are baked, we back off, if your paces improve, the workouts evolve. If the weather goes wacko or a sudden life event pops up, same thing. Life is not static and a training plan is not either. An online plan you grab from a website cannot account for life, but I can.

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"In April 2013 I ran 13.1 miles in exactly 2 hours. This was also the day I got my first stress fracture due to over training. 11 months later, I ran my first official half marathon (race) in 1:37. I had been working with Steven for a little over 3 months at this point, and there’s no doubt in my mind that the speed work he had me doing (plus the hills with NP… it was a VERY hilly course) attributed to a 23 minute PR." -Jonathan, Boston

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So, why a coach? As mentioned above, specialization. Most people train for marathons and 5k's from standard plans. Plans are not person specific, they do not change or adapt to your needs. They don't transition or account for sudden aches, pains, or life events. Coaching helps in that we can build an adaptable plan, one that fits your wants and needs as a runner. Beyond that, I can think for you, allowing you to avoid injury, avoid training too much or too little, and thus work to reach your peak. The process is interactive.

About me, I have experience in all distances from the 800m to the marathon. I strive to build plans that accommodate your current level of fitness while working through various phases of training: building a base, early quality training, transition to quality training, and final quality (key fitness building workouts), and Taper/race time. Depending on time, I design a 6 week plan for each phase. I hit every facet from warmup to core to other forms of injury prevention. Proper, safe running comes from the ground up. You need to recover, strengthen, and train with appropriate paces in order to fully achieve.

So interested in bettering your 5k or running your first half marathon? Looking to take your marathon training to the next level or get through injury free? Email me here with the subject of "Coaching."