The Mental Side of Speedwork

Monicac2 delurked (thank you and welcome!) and asked: I did RLRF last year and it made me dread speed work. How do you maintain a love for speed work?

Great question! Yes, speed work is hard. Gut-busting, even puke inducing if you let it be. But like any hard work, it pays off in spades.

Don’t go into speed work already hating it, telling yourself you’re not fast, you’ll never be fast, you don’t care if you’re ever fast, etc. Self-talk like that becomes your reality so you’re setting yourself up for failure before even starting.

I’m not saying speed is for everyone, certainly it isn’t. But you don’t know until you try.

Start with some gentle pickups and alternate with walking/slow jogging. Slowly build from there.

Sometimes just reading the speedwork prescribed in the RLRF plan made me throw up in my mouth. I caught myself pre-judging and mentally giving up before I even started. I made a deal with myself to try one interval. I survived. Try to do half the workout. Still standing. Go for 2/3?? Holy cow still alive, I think. Maybe I CAN do this? Done. So often we underestimate what we are capable of and feel defeated before we even try. You may be surprised at what you can do!

Look at your plan early and often so you know what you have coming up and prepare mentally for it.  The first time I laid eyes on a track ladder (2x1600m, 4x800m,) I simply howled. But I let it marinate in my head for a few days so I was mentally ready to take it on.

Does 8x800m seem way too overwhelming? Break it down in your head into smaller chunks. Do two 800’s. Then two more. Suddenly you’re halfway there. Visualize your goal race and your strong finish as you fight for the final minute. Really struggling? Break one of the 800’s into two 400’s.

Use your running time to banish all negative self-talk. Replace the “I’ll never be fast” sentiments with “I am a warrior” “Light and fast” “I’ve totally got this” or whatever mantra works for you. It may sound ridiculous at first but eventually you will buy in and start to believe it!

There are plenty of times I come up short on pace. Do what you can. Your pace calculations should be based on a recent race so in theory they’re achievable. Try to at least hit goal pace for a few seconds, just to see what it feels like. You may surprise yourself and hold that pace longer than you ever imagined.

Remember also that heat, wind, hills etc. all detract from pace. If it’s ungodly hot, there’s no shame in taking your speed work to the mill.

Join a running club and run as part of a pack. Chances are you’ll reflexively work harder to keep up. Do speed work with a running buddy, coach, someone to spur you on, who won’t let you give up.

Despite possibly feeling like hell during your speed workout, the feeling of accomplishment coupled with the endorphin boost that follows will hopefully keep you coming back for more. Your body will adapt to running faster and you’ll start seeing results. Your running efficiency will improve. Easy runs will seem easier. Race times will improve. Celebrate your progress and be motivated by it.

Speedwork is hard! Do not hesitate to move speed day to another part of the week if you’re coming off a hard race, super-taxing long run, whatever. Listen to your body. Remember recovery is part of training.

When you stand at the starting line of your goal race, think back to all the work you did. How you fought through to finish tough workouts. How your confidence increased with every interval, new distance, etc. Remember how you performed all through your training and KNOW that you have what it takes to execute your plan perfectly. 

A cycle or 6 of hard training with speed work is draining. I think it’s important that you take a break afterward. I was so burnt out on RLRF last winter I took a runbattical. By giving myself that physical and mental rest, I found that I was ready to return to running fast.