What You Can Learn From Endurance Training

I’ve been a runner for a long time, and I never thought I could do a 10km let alone a half marathon, full triathlon, marathon or anything beyond that. I continue to set my goals and I surprise myself everyday. 

I was a cross country runner, so 5-8 km runs were normal and what I typically trained for. In 2019 I completed the YMCA-CHOK Bridge Race, a 10km road race over the Bluewater Bridge from Port Huron, MI to Sarnia, ON. This was my test run for a 10km as I was training for my first Olympic size triathlon. Upon finishing the road race, I remember thinking to myself how will I ever do that after swimming 1.5km and biking 40km.

The human body is capable of unbelievable things. Physically, we often underestimate what our body can do. While in high school, I was running a 3000m at an invitational meet at University of Western Ontario’s track in London, ON. I was struggling, it my first 3000m (a very boring 7.5 laps of the track might I add), when a coach, unknown to me, cheered me on and said your legs can take more than your brain is telling you. To this day I have no idea who the woman was that said this to me, but it’s something that has stuck with me. I say it to myself everytime I run.

Your legs can take more than your brain is telling you. I understood this as referring to my physical capabilities. I now understand that my mind might be telling me NO but my body can handle it, so keep going! While training over the last year and a half it dawned on me that it’s a mental game; the power the brain has over our legs. We have mental blocks that tell us we can’t do something, when our body is actually often capable of it. 

I’ve always known there was a mental component to training, but didn’t understand the true power of it until I completed endurance challenges like a triathlon and 5 day hike in the mountains. I can do anything I set my mind to. The mental game is now part of my training. Physically I will still have barriers like injuries and a training schedule around a female hormonal cycle. But with the proper treatments for injury, training schedule, nutrition for the body and some positive self talk, we as humans can do some pretty incredible things.

Several things have helped me improve my mental game over the last two years. I think most importantly it’s being comfortable in your own shoes and knowing who you are. Are you comfortable when you are alone? And I don’t mean sitting in your den by yourself reading for a couple hours, while your significant other is watching tv downstairs. I mean a few days on your own, eating meals, going for walks, sleeping all on your own with just you and your thoughts. This is a place you will learn so much about yourself. 

For anyone that knows me, they know that I am pretty independent. I think of it as my time to learn more about myself and what I’m capable of. This not only helps my mental game when it comes to endurance training, but also in my work at the YMCA, my volunteering with the Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary and officiating with Ringette Ontario.

I’ve set my goals and next on the docket is a marathon. I’ve never come close to running this far, only half to be exact. But I know I’m capable of it and I will persevere. I encourage you to find comfort in who you are and learn how to harness your capabilities. Something I continue to strive for. We can do anything we set our mind to.

Kate