I haven’t understood what being in a good headspace actually felt like until now. I have been coaching myself for a few months now and the feeling is invigorating.
My training is going really well, I’m taking it slow, making sure that I am listening to my body while still working hard to get fit. Sometimes it can be hard being a coach and an athlete to yourself, for example, when you’ve done a hard workout and your lying on the ground gasping for air, you look up and there is no coach to give you a hand and tell you its going to be ok. I have relied on my 16 year old training partner/ athlete I coach to fill this position. I haven’t asked him for his support but he is willing to offer a helping hand.
I’ve always been a self-motivator, especially for training and working hard but sometimes its nice to have a coach by your side to take the pressure off and pick you up when you’re struggling. Given this, I am still passionate about my sport, I still love to get up and train everyday and the most important part is, I still enjoy it. I mentioned that I am coaching my training partner; I am really enjoying this role, it takes my mind off the pressure that I sometimes feel coaching myself. He is a very hard worker and he is willing to dig deep to achieve his goals. I can’t wait to see what he achieves this season with his new found motivation and excitement.
Separating an athlete and coaches mind can be difficult but I think that I’ve done a pretty good job differentiating the two. When I am writing programs I believe I can take the athlete mind out and be a coach, when I’m on the track all I want to do is curse at my coach for writing such a horrible session. I’m thinking this while also listening to my body making sure I’m keeping my body in check. This has been difficult for me to do in the past but now I am taking full responsibility for everything I am doing, thinking and feeling.
I have been out of the game for a while now because of injury, which totally sucks. I haven’t been able to reach my full potential for over a year. It really hurts to know how much I have to give but cant deliver. I have had plenty of sleepless nights and a lot of crying myself to sleep nights because of it. I feel now I have finally got on top of everything and am ready to really see what I can achieve. I haven’t competed consistently for a while which can sometimes be a concern for athletes but I am going to take my time and as soon as I feel ready I will compete; who knows it may be sooner than you think.
Ciao for now.
Love,
Sally Pearson
KWIKCHIK