Implementing PST to youth runners isn’t exactly the target audience one can nerd-up the content or delivery, but rather, you have to be pretty adaptable with the audience you’re serving. For example, when we work on promoting better concentration, rather than discussing a classroom curriculum like, Internal versus External Focus and Narrow versus Broad Focus, we play games to harness their attention to a specific tasks, like blind-folded Jenga or practicing Concentration Grid exercises. What’s important is we aren’t performing anything, but rather, we are practicing these things. Presentation matters, i.e., performing versus practicing. My kids perform enough, so instead, we merely practice a lot of things, with the ultimate goal that these skills will be put into play when they need it – in a performance.
Phil Jackson, in his book titled “Sacred Hoops,” says that his team would practice meditation so that his players “can experience stillness of the mind in a low-pressure setting off the court.” When I work with my team on meditation, we do so in a classroom setting, away from outside distractions. My ultimate goal when performing mediation is visualization. Ultimately, if I can get my runners to control their breathing, then next is getting them to see with the minds eye, and if they can do that, then we bring in things of familiarity, like seeing their bedroom, a vehicle, a video game, etc. Then we begin to include different variables and senses, like color, sound, smell, taste, and others. As we practice visualization in these low-pressure settings away from the practice field (i.e,, in the classroom), in time, I begin to integrate visualization into actual running practice on the field we train on. For example, we have a wide-open field that includes a 1K loop that we run regularly. We run the loop as a warm-up, dropping cones every 200m. Before and during the workout, if there is anything I need to address, such as providing a runner with varying cues to consider in their next interval, I’ll point to a cone or zone and provide them with a suggestion on how to improve that specific area of their work, which usually means holding onto the emotional pain threshold a little while longer until they realize they don’t have far to the finish. This sort of course review, pointing things out, giving them cues and suggestions, etc., is a way to get them to internalize (Visualize) in a low-pressure setting (when I am talking with them, not to them), about their performance.
Fast forward to our national meet in Paris, Kentucky, on Saturday and Sunday, December 12-13. I am always one for spontaneity, and when I was warming up with the first athlete on the first day of competition, I figured I would try something new that I hadn’t done before – two doses of pre-meet visualization. With seven races on the slate, I figured Megan would be a good person to start with. First, we reviewed the course map of the 3K course, which resembled a three-leave clover. Then, we jogged most of the 3k course, and what we couldn’t jog, I pointed to and discussed strategies she could be mindful of throughout her race. After jogging the course, we stopped to perform about 15-minutes of drills. Mind you, Megan is 10, so the whole process is geared toward keeping things rather light, psychologically speaking, since she isn’t a die-hard runner. So, when the time was right, I stood with her, we closed our eyes, and I walked her through the course.
“When the gun sounds, head straight for yellow pole on the right. Its roughly 200m away, a straight line, and a steady downhill. You’ll get out fast, but it’ll be the perfect pace to place you into a great position within the field. At 300m, you’ll hang a hard-right U-turn and begin running on rolling hills and twists and turns, eventually circling back to the left. As you close out the first loop on a steady uphill, remain strong and keeping your foot strike sharp. At the top of the hill, you’ll turn right and head out for another 1K loop that includes a steady downhill, followed by an uphill. Let the feet fly on the downhill, and work diligently on the uphill. It should feel uncomfortable, but you’re ready for this. On the backside of the 2K loop, you’ll reach your midway point, then head back toward the starting area on flat ground. Feel tall, relaxed, and practice good form. The last 3k isa steady downhill for 500m, followed by an uphill 400m grind that you are ready for. Stay strong, drive the knees and hammer the nails (drive the arms) all the way through the finish.”
This session lasted about a minute, and when we were done, she ran to the team tent, changed into her racing shoes, took sip of water, and away we went, closer to the starting area. Rather than rushing her into the starting corral, we continued jogging around until about 5 minutes prior to the start. It’s running, rather simple, and there’s no need to stand on the starting line in the chilly weather, when we could be conversing and jogging together withing earshot of the starting line. In short, we had time, so I asked her to rehearse the course, just as I had done with her moments ago. We closed our eyes...
“Well, I want to get out hard on the downhill which is about 300m. I’ll go right, it’s a winding course. I’ll go out again on another loop that goes downhill, then uphill, then I’m halfway through the race. I’ll head back, do another loop, then hammer nails to the finish.”
This sort of visualization was performed with all of my runners. We would review the course map prior to the warm-up. Then we’d jog the course, perform drills, when the time was right, I would lead the first visualization session, then somewhere in the last 15-minutes of the warm-up, they would lead me through the visualization. This allows their voice to be heard (increasing their sense of control), encourages them to think about the course, and rehearse their strategies with me (and their teammates).
For this blog post, I thought it would be fun and insightful to ask the kids whether the two doses of prerace visualization helped their race. Here are some of their responses:
