Mind + Body Reset: Taking a Break from Racing

Racing season is the most exciting time of the year for runners. As nervous as we get at the start line, we are anxious to sign up for another race just seconds after crossing the finish line. At least that’s what happens to me! I spent the last three years training my butt off to PR at every race I signed up for. I had an incredible start after beginning a serious training program in 2016. I dropped 31 minutes off of my previous PR in the 2017 Miami Marathon and 11 minutes off my Miami Beach Half—both within one year. I was itching for more, so I added miles to my training, switched up my speed work and strengthening program, upped my recovery game, and trained my mind at the same time. I rang in 2018 with another 16 minute drop in my marathon time and 5 more minutes off of my half.

Of course, this success comes with so much sacrifice, but the feeling of reaching goals gets addicting and I just kept wanting more! The issue I did not see coming was that I was about to have a “down” season, which is actually pretty normal in a runner’s world. I used to blame it on my DNF at the 2018 Boston Marathon, where the brutal weather conditions got the best of me and made it a difficult and slow process to get back in shape. Since i was not seeing progress in a short time like I was used to, I ended up hiring a coach, thinking my self-coaching abilities were limited. I trained hard for another PR at the Sydney Marathon (which happened to have the most perfect running weather!), but it just didn’t happen. I was close—two minutes slower than my previous PR, but not good enough for me. The rest of 2018 was miserable—my entire training program was completely different than what I was doing, which I thought was a good thing, but it only got me out of shape and ultimately discouraged me.

Mind Over Body

Disappointed with so many failed attempts at hitting my goals, my mind went into a negative state, and this was when I realized how much the mind can control. I switched courses during this year’s Miami Full Marathon to the half when so many things went wrong from the start, including the fact that my head was not into it this time around. After my short-lived tantrum about my running abilities was over, I realized that getting a coach was not a good idea. It’s true when they say “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”. Coaching myself was actually going so well. Why did I feel I needed to change that so badly? It was at this moment I decided to take a break from racing (after I ran the last two Spring races I was signed up for—the Miami Beach half and the Boston Marathon). It was the best decision for me to not set any specific goal for a while and just focus on my weaknesses.

During these last few months I have dedicated my time to coaching my own athletes, which I have grown to love! I also have been focusing on rebuilding the training program I once had that I know gave me the best results. Although the Summer heat has been brutal lately, making me feel like I am getting nowhere, I’m making sure this does not get the best of my mind this time around.

A Learning Process

My intention for this detailed rant is to show how any runner can have a “down” season—this even happens to the elites! I have a passion for inspiring others to stick to their programs no matter how many times you fail. We learn so much from these times..I certainly did! I learned to believe in myself. Now I make sure to evaluate situations and make changes where it’s needed and not touch what’s actually going right. I feel extremely proud of myself for always staying dedicated to my goals and more confident in myself as a coach. If you are considering working with a coach for your upcoming races, don’t hesitate to reach out! If you are doing just fine on your own, do not change a thing!

Three Weeks to Marathon #6

I am officially three weeks away from my 6th full marathon. The Miami Marathon is my absolute favorite race—not only because it is my hometown race and it’s where I train every day, but also because everything about the events that go on during the weekend, the race organization, and the course is so fun! I am looking forward to seeing all of the familiar faces from every year, as well as so many others I am going to get to meet. I will also be hanging out with the My Olympic Coach team at their booth at the expo both Friday and Saturday, so that will be pretty cool! Before all of this happens though, I need to really focus hard on getting in a few more quality sessions during my last peak week, as well as a proper taper.

I have a few workouts this week that have me feeling excited but nervous at the same time. Since I have had some not-so-good races this Fall, I am missing a bit of confidence to run the paces I need to run for my goal. The Turkey Trot in November, which was my very first 10k race, was the hardest race I have ever done (yes, harder than the marathon!). Most of you read in my recap post that the 10k basically leaves no room to makeup any lost time, whereas in the marathon, if you have a couple of slow miles, you have so many more to speed up on to catch up. I finished that race with a 6:34 average pace—slower than my best half marathon pace! A week and a half after the 10k, I ran a half marathon in West Palm Beach. Thankfully I went into that race with the mindset that I was just going out for a long tempo training run in prep for this month’s marathon. I ran a 1:30:58, which is over 5 minutes slower than my current half marathon PR. This really discouraged me at the time. Since then, I have had some pretty good training runs so I’m back to feeling more confident and I know those upsetting races landed on “off” days.

I am basically done with really, really long runs, so the rest of my workouts will be short to medium runs, with marathon-paced miles in the mix. My coach, Luis Orta, does such a good job planning my training with workouts that challenge my weaknesses. I have always had a hard time with long tempos and holding my goal pace for more than a couple of miles, so I have had plenty of these during this cycle. I’ll keep you updated as I get more of these completed these next couple of weeks.

Nutrition will also be a focus. I do well with my diet, but I tend to wait too long to eat after workouts and sometimes slack on getting in enough calories on my busier days when I am on the road working. I do my best running when I eat a high calorie/carb/protein diet. So, I will be eating A LOT now!

I am so thankful to everyone who has supported my training on Instagram! As much as many of my followers say I motivate them with my posts, it is all of them who truly motivate me to stay on track and keep pushing towards my goals. When I have had a few tough days and I dread my morning runs, all I have to do is log into Instagram and read a couple of posts of those who have gotten up much earlier than I have and accomplished an amazing workout. That pushes me right out of bed and inspires my whole day! So, thank you :)

Why I Hired a Coach

This is one of the most frequently asked questions this year by my family, friends, and social media followers. Since I began training hard to break personal records back in 2016, I have made amazing progress along the way, even up until this year when I decided to hire a coach. It was not that my approach was not working, but I felt it needed more. While training for the 2018 Miami Marathon, I used the same sessions week after week—a tempo run, long run workout (that rarely was a success), and a speed session that alternated each week between three different workouts. I kept this up after the race to train for the Boston Marathon a few months later as well. I was one of the frozen few that day who ended up with hypothermia and a DNF, but that had nothing to do with improper training, of course.

I took a few weeks off after that race and once I got back into running, I felt extremely out of shape—more than usual. It was like the brutal Boston temperature took a major toll on my body for 30 kilometers as if I got hit by a train and was still in recovery. It took me a short time to realize that hiring a coach would be the best thing at the time to get expert advice and guarantee to be ready for my Fall race in Australia. This was the first time I ever trained hard for a marathon during the Summer, with Miami temperatures in the high 90s and humidity close to 100% almost every day. Just a few weeks into working with my coach, I knew I made the right decision for my running future.

Structured Training

From ongoing research while coaching myself, I learned the importance of including different training runs in order to get fast. The problem I had was that I did not have much variety with these sessions. I would alternate between mile repeats, 800m repeats, and lots of repetitions of continuous 200m repeats. Not that these workouts didn't benefit, but it was the same thing over and over every three weeks. This would soon cause my progress to plateau. I am still prescribed these workouts by my coach now, but I focus more on longer distance speed sessions, since my goal race is always the full marathon. Including challenging sessions of 5k and 10k repeats is not my strong suit but it has been a huge factor in my improved fitness and most importantly, my confidence.

Experience = The Best Advice

What better way to be coached than by someone who has experience doing a similar training program and has the same ultimate goals for themselves? My coach, Luis Orta, is an Olympian and currently still chasing after his dreams of being a faster marathoner and going back to the Olympics in 2020. He may run a marathon almost an hour faster than I do but we both experience the same training pain, fatigue, and satisfaction. The advice about training, racing, nutrition, and rest is much more useful when it comes from someone who has 'been there, done that'.

More Than Just Running

My Olympic Coach includes a team of professionals who work with every training component. Not only am I able to get a better, more structured, customized running program from my coach, but I also have a dietician who specializes in sports nutrition. I have learned so much within a few months about my fueling strategy for training and racing, as well as incorporating the best supplements for recovery. I thought I was doing a good job with my diet, but there was so much I was not paying attention to that has positively impacted my performance. Since a major component to marathon training involves mental health, having access to a psychologist through My Olympic Coach is a game changer. Many athletes struggle to improve their performance because of lack of confidence, so getting the mind stronger for racing is key.

Most runners will either hire a coach when just starting out or wait until their performance is suffering. I did not want to wait until having several bad races to realize I needed more help, since marathons take several months to train for and you can really only run two or three per year at the most. If you are looking for an experienced coach and a program that includes nutrition and psychological support, I highly recommend My Olympic Coach.