We head to the North Woods to regenerate and celebrate the past year and new decade!
Gathering Energy
Chris Palmquist, December 26, 2019
The holiday weeks are a chance for everyone recover from year of working, training, accomplishing, battling and achieving. Over the years, I have found this time to be critical for mental health and emotional and physical energy. Here are some things that athletes can do to be primed to start 2020 off with energy and enthusiasm.
Family/Friends First
If you are lucky enough to spend extra time with family and friends over the holidays, make those experiences your top priority. Go for a walk with everyone rather than that solo run - it may feel like a sacrifice today, but you won’t regret the opportunity to talk with your teenagers or reconnect with a relative when you look back on this in the future. Slow down and play a game with your kids. Eat the holiday food and enjoy it. Do the things that you don’t have time to do in the thick of a competitive season.
Reflection
Take some time to formally reflect back on 2019 (and the decade). Go through your calendar, training log and notes. Remember the races, the key training sessions, the workout buddies, the successes and the misses. What worked well? What accomplishments make you proudest? Write all of this down in a journal. How does this reflection effect your 2020 goals? Celebrate and learn from the past.
The best athletes and coaches have a strong reflection practice. Now is a good time to start this practice if you have not reflected formally and regularly in the past. Get a journal and start writing your reflections. This can be one of the most powerful tools for endurance athletes.
Effective Goal Setting for 2020
As you may have heard, resolutions usually do not work. They are often grand ideas for self improvement that are simply too lofty to keep for long. Instead, create some 2020 goals that are based on the daily processes that you can control, measure and build on over the year to great success!
Examples of process-oriented goals include:
I will swim 2 times per week in January
I will eat 5 servings of vegetables and/or fruit per day when possible
I will do my easy workouts at a true, easy effort so that I can crush the hard training days
I will find and commit to some training days with workout buddies
I will get 7 hours of sleep when possible by setting an alarm to shut down the electronics and get to bed on time
The above goals, are examples of process goals - controllable, achievable and measurable. When met regularly, these processes will add up to success at races and in overall health later in the year.
Recover, Reprioritize, Reflect and Set Good Goals
Use these last days of 2019 and the decade wisely. Recover and reflect deeply. Enjoy family and rest. Set process goals for January. Do these things well and you will have energy and a plan for success in 2020.
My family will be doing the same and wish all of you a Happy New Year! I am so thankful for all of you!
