Hi, team. Coach Alexa here, coach for Redding, South Oxford and online.
Today I wanted to reflect on a bit of a post-race conversation I had with one of my runners last month. He ran the Ring of Fire, which is a pretty decent length ultra marathon around the coast of the island of Anglesea, off the northwest coast of Wales.
It was, I think it is fair to say, pretty atrocious weather. It was very windy and very rainy. Like the rest of the UK, there had been a lot of water falling in that area for the weeks prior to the race. So the underfoot conditions were very, very muddy.
It is very coastal, so you get a lot of sea in your face and around your feet depending on the tide times and the wind levels.
A brutal day on the coast
What I absolutely loved about our post-race conversation was how much he loved it. That really quite challenging bad weather that a lot of people might describe when talking about exactly the same race was, for him, part of the excitement.
For him it helped him focus on his running. He almost used the conditions to keep himself really in the moment with each aspect of the race.
He described it as flicking a switch to become incredibly focused and keeping his mind on the running. Suddenly an aid station would appear, because he had not been thinking too far ahead. He had just been in the moment with what he had been doing.
Loving the route and the elements
He really loved the amazing route. It is a spectacular part of the world with that coastal aspect and the feeling of being out in the elements.
He was absolutely caked in mud right from the beginning and thought that was brilliant. In his final summary, he said he was smiling all the way round.
That delighted me, and it also fascinated me. Quite honestly, I had reached the point where I was incredibly fed up with getting back from every walk or outdoor activity – whether it was a walk, run or cycle – and simply being wet and muddy.
A powerful mental reframe
What struck me was that mental reframing. Instead of fighting the weather, he was using it. Enjoying it. Picking up energy and excitement from it.
He was using the conditions as a tool to stay very tuned in with his senses and with what was going on in the moment. Almost being really mindful and using the weather as part of that experience.
Why it is worth embracing the weather
Because when you think about it, there is nothing you can do about the weather. That is simply the situation at the moment.
You might as well enjoy it. Feel the wind. Feel the mud. And have a bit of fun with it.
Food for thought.
