Saturday Video

As I ran a slow and short 10K this glorious morning, I had the opportunity to reflect on the difference between the 16K TT last night (all-out) and this leisurely recovery trot in the sunny park. They are like Venus and Mars, apples to watermelons, dusk to dawn. Further, I realized the opposition that many folk have to the all-out efforts. They are uncomfortable. They hurt some. That semi-precious sting is an acquired sensation. To be successful one must learn to like it. To be a champion, one must embrace it like a lover. There is simply no getting around the fact that if you want to be faster, stronger, more powerful or possess more balance and endurance, eventually you are going to have to slide from your current zone of comfort into the zone of the challenging. And then, of course, the object becomes staying there until THAT becomes warm and cozy until it's time to inch again outside and HOLD THAT HURT.

The people that can do this longer than others are the people that consistently preform at championship levels. You can train this. You can practice this. YOU CAN DO THIS.

Start today. Get out and go. Or come in and go. The people that I admire most are those that want the velocity, the high-speed adrenalin thrill of working towards that obscure and abstract place we call POTENTIAL. You must flirt with your current limitations. You must prove to yourself that the best is yet to come. You cannot lose unless you quit.

I love the all-out. I love the challenge. I love the feeling of danger and the tingle of nerve endings and endorphin flow. I love feeling my heart trying to beat its way out of my chest as my lungs scream for mercy. I like the finish. I like the resulting sense of satisfaction and accomplishment. One more day, one  more test. All out, like everything else.

I can't wait for tomorrow to do it again. But today is a recovery run.