If you are a high school or collegiate aged runner prepping for the upcoming XC season…please…please…please…BE LONG-TERM FOCUSED.
One of the things I always say (stolen from something one of my mentor’s always said) is this: NO ONE CARES WHO WINS THE FIRST MEET OF THE YEAR. THEY ONLY REMEMBER WHO WON THE LAST MEET OF THE YEAR.
And sure, not everyone can win the last meet of the year, but it’s just a reminder that the important meets are at the end of the year…not the beginning.
And the work that you are doing in the summer should reflect that, as well as the effort you are giving. The summer is not the time to have your hands on your knees, grasping for air, and finishing runs puking into the trash can.
The summer is the time to prepare for the work that’s coming…Arthur Lydiard always said that you have to do the work to do the work to do the work…
So, show up, every day, but be focused on the long term. It’s not what you can do in September…but what are you doing in November? Right?
Phillips Running 