Jo is in taper

Taper taper taper and I'm not running either, still limping. I was in the gym again this morning, bike and weights.
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I agree with these statements and I thought I would share. This may be more important for the older and more developed athletes, but also very true for the younger athletes.

Patience, then more patience:
Runners, by nature, are an impatient bunch. They want results now. Often, when a coach advises a runner that the real results might be three, four or five years away the runner can't handle it and steps over that fine line between being correctly trained and over-trained, under the false belief that he or she can somehow quicken the process by training harder and harder. Unfortunately, the harsh reality is that results take time, building strength in a runner takes time, building huge levels of mental confidence takes time, perfecting endurance whilst maintaining speed takes time, there are no short cuts.

The majority of runners worldwide fall victim to not being able to plan for the medium and long term and end up falling by the wayside or deciding it's all too hard. Therefore, athletes need to learn to enjoy the journey, enjoy the day to day act of running and let results take care of themselves. If a coach can get this message into the head of a runner, then that athlete may reach his or her fitness potential, whether that runner is a fun runner, or a potential world beater.

Enjoying the Journey:
Above all else, runners must enjoy the journey that running brings. There is no way that a runner can consistently cover the miles in training unless he or she enjoys the process. When a runner enjoys the journey it also relieves them of much of the pressure of winning or 'making it'. It is the harsh reality that although most young runners start off with high ambitions, very few will every make it to the highest level. However, if the runner enjoys the journey then the realisation that such dreams might never come into fruition is handled much better. Furthermore, running is a great way to meet life-long friends, it teaches you discipline, worth ethic and much much more besides.