“Adaptability is not imitation. It means power of resistance and assimilation.” –Mahatma Gandhi

Adapt to every type of weather condition, terrain, emotion and competition.

Be ready for anything.

To be ready for anything you must train in all conditions, emotional states, terrains, and with all types of competitors.

If you can perform well under any circumstance you’ll win; every time.

Weather for most people will be the hardest. Rain, snow, sleet, ice, humidity, scorching heat, freezing cold, freezing rain, etc. It’s not going to be easy. You can make it fun. Think positive and stay positive. No matter what type of weather make sure you get out there. It will pay off in the long run (pun intended). Just show up and run.

“Long distance running is 90% mental and the other half is physical.” –Rich Davis

Emotions can take over in a negative or positive way in your running. You choose. If you tell yourself, “I don’t feel like running”, “I don’t need to run today”, “It’s just one day”, “I can always run tomorrow”, “I’m just not feeling it today”, you chose to not run. You tricked yourself into feeling bad…for yourself. When these feelings hit you, it’s the best time and most needed time to run. As soon as you start feeling like this commit to running. Tell yourself, “I’m going to run”, “I feel good”, “I can’t miss today”, “I will feel so great afterwards”, “I can do this”. Stay positive. Focus on your long term goals. Mental toughness is essential to running. Push your mental and physical limits. You won’t know what heights you can reach until you break down these mental blockades.

Train on the flat, easy, downhill surfaces and the hardest and steepest of hills. If you had to chose between the two paths which would you take. Close your eyes and imagine there are two paths in front of you, a metaphorical fork in the road, to the left is a nice easy downhill and to the right is the steepest and longest hill you’ve ever seen. Which path do you chose? The simple answer is…the hills! Hit the hills hard. Whenever you have to chose between a hill or downhill choose the hills. It will pay off. The mental and physical barriers you will break through will be well worth it. CRUSH THE HILLS.

Run with all types of runners. Slower than you and faster than you. The same pace. You need to be able to feel what it’s like to run slower or faster than you’re used to. It will make you a better runner by gauging your speed. Being able to tell when you’ve gone out to fast or slow is a lesson learned over time. Run with people who have just started running and who have been running much longer. You can learn something new from everyone. Be opened to hearing from others in terms of the way you train, what you eat, how much you should stretch, etc.

Ultimately, you want to push through the hard times. It’s easy to say but hard to follow through. Set a strict schedule for running. Make sure you run the same time each day but remember to mix it up. Run hills one day fast, then run slow and on a flat surface, run long and slow or run short and fast.

“Eighty percent of success is showing up.”– Woody Allen.

As long as you get out there each day, give it your all and stay positive, that’s all that truly matters.

Have fun. Happy running 🙂