Thoughts of a disillusioned athlete

I’m burnt out.  I’m disillusioned.  I want to get back into my routine, but the thought is scary as hell.  I’m tired of the concept that one size fits all, because it doesn’t.  I’m tired of the guilt associated with taking a break.  I know that if I quit I’ll become a pariah; I don’t want to quit.  I want to change (update: I don’t want to just change, I want to evolve.)

I need to create something sustainable.  The key word in that previous sentence is “I.”  Not “we,” and not “my coach.”  No one can give me a training plan — hell, a life plan — that I didn’t have a hand in making.  It’s my goals I need to achieve.  All these plans can do is hope to help me.

One thing I love about Robb Wolf is how he basically refuses to answer questions about training athletes for their sports.  The short of it is… if the person is still progressing, if they’re happy, then why mess around?  What’s the takeaway?  The formula to get someone to continuously improve, at first, is simple.  It’s when the progression stops that it’s hard.  Why is that?

Training changes from physical to mental.  I have a 400+ lb deadlift, but if I just don’t feel like working on that, it’s not going to get any better.  I have a reliable 1:43 half marathon; if I stop running, it’ll only get worse.  At some point, I’m just going to run out of steam.  I’ve got a full-time job, 2 part-time jobs, I need to train for some races I want to run, and I’ve got a social life that is too hectic for its own good.  In the rare time that I can balance all of this stuff, I’m a rockstar.  When something gets out of balance, I’m a mess.

In the last few months, from say late February through today, I’ve been more of a mess than a rockstar.  So how do I fix that?

I’ve been burnt out before, or just tired, or something.  But in those times, I knew that if I got up at 5:30 and went to work out at 6:15, there would be a group of people that would welcome my return, which would fuel my desire to get back on track.  More and more, this is not the case — that group of people is completely different.  The community is so large that it’s hard to re-enter.

This is a different kind of burn out.  This one is making me rethink everything.  For you CrossFit haters that read my blog, it’s got absolutely nothing to do with that… I still believe that CrossFit as GPP and sport-specific training layered on top is way more powerful than the traditional weekend warrior training plan.  Everyone should know how to clean a barbell and squat effectively.

It’s time to go back to square one, to come up with goals.  I need a coach for not only my athletic ventures but for life.  A confidant that knows how to motivate me, not just yell or criticize my food log (which I don’t have at the moment).

I don’t have the answer to this one… I don’t even have a good start at an answer.  All I know is that tomorrow, I need to move.  And how I move is going to be important.

How do you bring yourself back?  Post your thoughts to comments.

Offseason? What offseason?

Summer’s almost over, and we’re all about to see the articles in our favorite sports magazines about what you have to do during the offseason to get better for next year.  Are you kidding me?  I already know I suck at swimming and my run needs to be about 30 seconds faster to have a shot at top 3-5 in my age group.  What is the magazine going to tell me that I don’t already know?  Nothing!

I can tell you what they will say.  They will say you need to hit the gym and get stronger.  There’s a concept.  Here’s the problem:

Bullshit.

You may hit the gym in the offseason, but the moment you need to start training for the season again, you stop the weight training… something about dropping muscle because those big arms and legs aren’t going to make you aero on the bike.

Those big muscles are the ones that propel you… and they don’t have to be huge.  (aside: if your legs and arms are growing out of control, check out your diet… I bet you’re eating stuff that promotes packing on muscle… like lots of milk… or maybe that protein shake (again, with more dairy) you get after every workout, I mean, really, do you not get enough protein through your regular diet?)

The notion of an offseason is garbage. Like you’re really going to stop running, biking, swimming, because you need to lift weights.  If anything you’ll stop because it’s too damn cold out to bear it.  But you’ll replace it with an indoor pool, a treadmill, a spin class, maybe even a rower.  You’re still putting on those miles, maybe a few less.   But you still neglect to hit the gym… and here’s the kicker.

You’re an athlete that’s not training like one.

Sure, the concept of getting stronger is useful and worthwhile.  So is the concept of focusing and improving your skill at a certain sport.  But you should be doing all of these things, all the time, anyway.  We’re athletes — we’re always trying to get better, we’re always trying to improve our skill.  It’s not like the season begins and you’re stuck at that 8-minute mile or 19mph bike split (or whatever gain you made during the offseason).  You can always improve!

This “offseason,” try something else… change your perspective…. be always on… train like an athlete. Train like you’re racing at any time.  Instead of piling on long miles during the season, cut those miles down into quality miles, executed at high intensity across broad time and modal domains.  Doing more of the same crap isn’t going to make you faster, it’s just going to solidify the fact that you can run 10 miles at that 8-minute pace, but damn, you can’t break through!

What about recovery, you say?  Take time off as you need to, always listen to your body.  But to be honest, you should be actively focused on recovery anyway.  Fix your diet!  Go find that TriggerPoint kit!  Hit the Yoga class you’ve been meaning to!  And please, one more time, fix your diet!

Then, you won’t need an offseason.