Mastery of mental toughness and self discipline is essential to gain an edge in training. With running, it’s easy for people to give up whenever they start to feel uncomfortable.
In High School, I would ease up on hills during the race because it was something difficult. Only the top runners in the race would power through an intimidating hill. Of course, it wasn’t an easy task. The thing is, however, is that these top runners recognize that all of the mediocre runners will give up at the hill.
My heart was pounding. The scorching heat of the desert suffocated any willpower left in me. All of my mental strength and l discipline flew out of the window after the first two miles of the race. Now everyone was on the last stretch. One more mile left and it’s all over. Sounds simple? Right? My eyes lit up at what was approaching us. Yes, there was one more mile left, but there was one more hill left. This thing was a wall. One last attempt of this course to destroy our confidence.
It’s easy to give up.
Second best isn’t bad, right?
It’s too hot, I need to take it easy for a bit.
It’s easy for people to give into the resistance.
Eliminate these words from your mind and buckle down because it’s time to take care of business. The Hill is going to suck, but what can you do?
Put one foot ahead of the other and grind.
On Quora, one of the most popular questions revolves around the idea of “mental toughness.” A lot of people struggle with self discipline, and these people want to take back control of their life.
They want to destroy mental barriers that hold them back.
I smiled at the sight of the hill because I knew I held the mental strength and self discipline to overcome it.
How do you develop mental strength?
- When you wake up tomorrow or the next time you finish a tough workout walk over to your shower.
- Put the temperature all the way on cold.
- Endure.
You’ll lose your breath, and for a brief moment, you’ll feel like you’re going to drown. You might even decide that this is a stupid exercise and you’ll return to the comfort of a nice hot shower.
If you do stay, you’ll regret your decision. Go ahead and yell because of how uncomfortable the water is.
“AGHFLKJLJFSDADF WHY AM I DOING THIS….”
“There’s no escape to this. I’m trapped in a frozen oblivion.”
After a couple of minutes, you’re finished. You become numb to the water, you’re screams stopped. The exercise is complete.
“Never again…”
After about two weeks of doing this straight, the cold shower doesn’t phase you.
After a hard run and a brief stretching session, I had to get ready for work. I walked into the shower exhausted from my run; I put the knob all the way to cold without any second thought.
…the cold temperature felt soothing.
I stood under the water for about 3 minutes. No pain or discomfort. No screams.
I stepped out of the shower with a newfound feeling of power, control, and discipline. In the mirror, I noticed a slight glow on my skin.
Let’s get to work.
J