Nine Necessary Qualities Needed to Achieve Athletic Success

Dr James Loehr writes that there are nine qualities an athlete must have to attain athletic success. Read the following and evaluate how you stack up against the nine steps. Are there any areas you need to work on? The comments made below the numbered qualities are by Joe Vigil, the outstanding former distance running coach at Adams State College
An athlete must:
"1. Be self-motivated and self-directed.
Motivation and direction comes from within.
2.Be positive but realistic.
The athlete's tradenark is a blend of realism and optimism,with an eye always fixed on success,on what can happen and what is possible.
3.Be in control of his or her emotions.
Anger,frustration,and fear must be controlled or they most certainly will control you.
4.Be calm and relaxed under fire.
Athletes don't avoid pressure. They are challenged by it and are at their best when the pressure is on and the odds are against them.
5.Be highly energetic and ready for action.
The athlete is his own igniter and can do this inspite of fatigue,personal problems or 'bad luck.'
6.Be determined.
They are relentless in their pursuit of  goals.Setbacks are taken in stride as they move forward.
7.Be mentally alert.
Athletes are capable of long and intensive periods of total concentration.They are capable of tuning in that which is important and tuning out that which is not,regardless of the pressure.The athlete has attention control.
8.Be doggedly self confident.
The athlete must display a nearly unshatterable sense of confidence in their ability to perform well.They do not succumb to self defeating thoughts and ideas.
9.Be fully responsible.
The athlete must take responsibility for his or her own actions.There are no excuses.They must be fully aware that their destiny,as an athlete,is in their own hands."

An excellent comprehensive list with relevant,thought provoking comments by Vigil.
So what areas do you need to work on?

A Marathoning Tactic

The mind and the marathon;controlling your emotions and anxiety is critical to racing that distance well. Don Kardong offers a technique you may want to consider in the future if you have had troubles in those areas in the past. Kardong,an excellent distance runner and writer, finished fourth in the marathon at the 1976 Olympics.Sadly, he was denied a bronze medal because the winner in '76 was  years later found to be a "druggie." Consider the following:
"I have a theory on marathon running,where a rational approach is so important.During the first ten miles of the race,I try to disasociate myself from what I am doing.I talk,joke and daydream in ways that remove me from the race. But after 10 miles,my consciousness re-enters the picture,and concentration begins.From that point on,the problem is concentration,and the feeling is one of acute association with the task at hand.I switch from automatic pilot to manual control,and through the last part of the race I pick off those people who have over-associated,i.e.,who have tried to concentrate from the start.The people who disassociate(daydream) the whole way are never in the race.I believe the combination of passive with active running is the most effective mental condition for marathoning."
As one who has been guilty of "over-associating" in marathons in the past, what Kardong says makes sense.I recall being on what he describes as "manual control",being too preoccupied with how I'm feeling right from the start of the race, in the state of potential panic where I interpret something going on with me physically as being potentially disastrous.It's exhausting physically and emotionally.

Personalize It!

It's the how to train books that take up most of the space in the running section at your local bookstore.Readers to this blog realize that a "one size fits all" approach to training is not always a good idea. Lydiard recommended that runners take his schedule, which build strength and fitness progressively, then personalize it to fit their strengths and weaknesses.
Bill Bowerman,Nike co-founder and great Oregon running coach offered these related thoughts on the subject: "If someone says, 'hey,I ran 100 miles this week,how far did you run?' Ignore him! What the hell difference does it make? The magic is in the man,not the 100 miles."
 As far as the mindset that further or faster is always better he offered the following:
"runners tend to think the farther and faster they run in training,the better it's going to be for them...A runner can have just as much success,if not more success,by finding what his limit is in relation to his progress.It just doesn't make sense to think,'I'm going to be successful because I have run farther than anyone else.' "
The go to guy on running physiology,Dr.David Costill, sums it all up in this excerpt from 'What Research Tells the Coach About Distance Running', "It is unlikely that any one type of training will produce perfect results for all runners since the combination of anatomical,physiological and psychological factors which compose the distance runner are too divergent."
What Costill and Bowerman recognize is that slavishly following someone elses training regimen or a schedule taken as is from a book is unwise and can be counter productive to a runner's development.The answer lies in the runner evaluating his progress and discerning his needs along the way. This requires an athlete who is not only knowledgeable but thoughtful and patient as well.

One Thing You Must Not Forget

As human beings we are all capable of change,mentally and physically. The big question is, do we want to change and do we believe a change can actually happen?
Emil Zatopek,who won the gold at the 1952 Olympics in the 5,000 and 10,000 meters and the marathon, has something to say about this:
"By a persistent effort of will it is possible to change the whole body. The athlete must always keep in mind this concept of change and progression; he must never accept his limitations as being permanent,because they are not."
Emil was living proof of the validity of that quote.The logical question is, are we accepting our perceived limitations as being permanent?

If You Are Thinking of Running a Marathon Consider This

Without a doubt the marathon is the distance that has the highest number of ill-prepared entrants.Something happened many years ago that led to this distance becoming the be all end all for runners.Whether it was Runner's World or people like Jeff Galloway, or the programs that seemed to appear overnight that said they could get you from zero miles to the starting line in 6 or 8 months,the marathon experienced a huge increase in participants. By appealing to people's desire to climb a type of personal Mt. Everest we saw the emergence of "coaches" only to willing to help them on their journey while making money in the process.
If you are a thinking,discerning runner you recognize that racing,as well as running a marathon, is something that should be done only after years of preparation. I know that flies in the face of those who believe that there is always a better, faster way, but, if you want to do it right and have a long running career, then you must be patient.Nothing can speed up the benefits your muscles,tendons and joints get from seasons of mileage and time out on your feet.Years ago everyone was shocked when Carlos Lopes,at age 37,won the gold medal in the Olympic marathon.When asked what was the secret for this success at such an age,he said that his whole distance running career had prepared him for the marathon.
While we're on the subject of age,far too many young promising runners,those in their 20's, prematurely begin racing the marathon. They either ignore or are unaware of the fact that as we age the drop off in performance times lessen as the distance lengthens. So what's the hurry?
I say ignore the marathon hype,race a variety of distances over different terrains and settings,see what you can do,find your ideal distance,then,when you've put in the time,laid the foundation,make the move to the marathon.

Lest We Forget: The Basic Requirements For the Stotan Are

Consider the following by Percy Cerutty:
"1.Realization that,as Wordsworth the poet says, 'Life is real,life is earnest'.which denotes that there is no time for wasteful ideas and pursuits.
2.In place of wasteful hobbies there commences a period of supervised and systematic physical training,together with instruction in the art of living fully.This replaces previously undirected life.
3.Swimming will be done all year round.It is obligatory to swim in the open sea at least once every month. This especially strengthens the will and builds resistance to quitting the task ahead.
4.The programme implies the cessation of late hours.Amusements,both social and entertaining,should be reduced to a minimum and then only in the nature of relaxation from strenuous work..
5.To become a leader it must be accepted that the first requisite for leadership is being able to give wholehearted loyalty,obedience and support to the leader at the time.
I hold that the human being cannot be reduced to the status of a machine--and I attribute the success of the athletes who received their early training at Portsea on my specialized fartlek methods,not so much to the initial ability of the athletes,but to the form of training we favour at Portsea,and the terrain we train upon.The introduction of resistance in the form of sand and hill is too important to be ignored and the track can never fulfill the lack nor the scientific formula replace 'natural and instinctive' effort."
As I've said before,it's hard to believe there was once an athletic coach who wrote things like the above.I especially appreciate the quote: "there is no time for wasteful ideas and pursuits." I was thinking that most of the above would be excellent advice for the college age athtlete.
For the rest of us, the question we might ask ourselves is,are we wasting our time and ultimately our lives? Consider,Commit,Plan--then Proceed with a Dedicated Discipline.

Hibernate

I don't mean to be critical,think of this as an observation with a question: why is it that everywhere I turn I see people talking on cellphones? Be it in the car,going into a store,in the store,going out of the store,walking down the street, I see people on cellphones. What is most disturbing is the number of people I see texting while driving.There is no doubt in my mind that cellphone use is habit forming, and to many,addicting. However the purpose of today's post is not to rant about cellphone use and abuse but it did give me the idea for what you are about to read. Today we consider the necessity for athletes to "hibernate" periodically,to get away from it all; away from the noise and the busyness of everyday life. Cerutty addresses this subject quite nicely in the following excerpt from one of his early writings.
"Few or no animals would appear to function without periods of rest. Many have periods of hibernation. Man can benefit similarly.For many years I practiced this principle.At least twice a year it is good to get away from it all.This does not mean tearing off to some social place for a round of fun. Hibernation is when we go to some remote place and rest.I conceive it as perfect when we assume a hut or cabin,with or without companions,where we are 'snowed in'.There is food,firing,books.We lie about,resting alot; eating a little,reading resting,dozing,perhaps chatting a little.After two or three days a man will leave and return to 'civilisation' like a giant refreshed."
To the above I'd add that your place of hibernation should have no TV or other electronic conveniences like radios and cellphones.If you do bring someone along with you make sure that they understand fully what is,or better said,isn't going to be happening.Solitude and having the opportunity to think and rest allows you to "recharge your batteries",to consider things you might never have considered if you hadn't taken the time to "hibernate".