How to Stop Procrastinating and Start Beating the Beast

Procrastination:  “the practice of carrying out less urgent tasks in preference to more urgent ones, or doing more pleasurable things in place of less pleasurable ones, and thus putting off impending tasks to a later time, sometimes to the "last minute" before the deadline.”  -Wikipedia

We have all been guilty of it: that school paper, work presentation, those last minute Christmas Eve gifts.  Not just to save 20% by registering by July 31^st, but more importantly to be physically and mentally ready to compete and complete the Beast on the Bay.  The time recommended for an athlete to prepare for endurance events in approximately 2-5 months depending on the type of event and conditioning.  We are rapidly approaching that 2 month timeframe, so now is the time to develop your conditioning plan.

Develop a Plan:

Whether you work with a trainer, use the prior training blog posts, or follow a program that you can easily find with an online search, the goal is to create a plan and follow through with it.  Initial goals need to be more easily obtainable. As your training progresses, these goals should continue to be advanced in difficulty.

Keeping Motivated and Being Mentally Prepared:

As your training becomes more intense, having like-minded partners to be accountable to will keep your training schedule on track.  You will also benefit from developing psychological coping skills to mentally prepare yourself for the event.  Negativity can adversely affect your performance.  Controlling negativity through use of self talk, visualization, and adequate preparation by educating yourself on what the obstacles of the event are.  Having minimal surprises on competition day will decrease event anxiety and control negativity.  For the “Beast” be sure to prepare yourself for sand and “heartbreak hill.” You'll be crawling under nets, climbing over walls, and racing through various obstacles. Be ready.

Recovery:

As you prepare for the event you may feel the need to push thru your training sessions; however, you need to keep in mind that the improvements you have made through your conditioning routine can be put in jeopardy by musculoskeletal breakdown if you do not allow for appropriate recovery.

No matter what training style or program you follow, it will only be successful if you stop procrastinating and get ready for “The Beast."

Philip St. Julien, DO

Saint Vincent Sports Medicine

Saint Vincent Hospital