The Endorphin Fitness Youth Team has been racing the Healthy Kids Run Series on Sundays. We have had two races, and I have left both pretty excited after watching some amazing racing. I had witnessed kids “running outside the box.”
As athletes, the norm is to place ourselves in a box. We are comfortable training and racing inside this box but don’t ask us to step outside of it. Countless past workouts and races have taught us that we can only go so fast, and trying to go faster than that, is just poor pacing. Trying to run with that person who “always” beats us will only leave us disappointed. Taking a risk will only lead to failure. Better stay in the box and hit good goals than try for great.
I fall victim to this all the time. I put myself in a box….except those few times when I decided I was sick of good and wanted great. On all these occasions, I decided to stay with a person who I never had before and just see what happens. What happened was something great – I ran faster than ever before. I realized my mind was holding me back from achieving what my body was fully capable of doing. I just needed to get out of the box.
Kids usually have the ability to do this best. You see, they have not had enough time to fully build their box. As a coach, I am trying my best to knock the boxes down every time they make progress. I want them to constantly break through perceived limitations, and luckily, their minds are open to this. As adults, we should be following their lead.