COACH’S CORNER - Ensuring You Have Your Why by Adam Keighran

Running can be bloody tough, right? And that’s just on a good day! The weather always seems to be throwing curveballs—whether it’s sweltering heat, bone-chilling cold, relentless headwinds, or a torrential downpour. And then there’s that crazy thing called life – babies keeping you up all night, bosses hurling deadlines at you left, right, and centre. Injuries, niggles, sicknesses…so, inevitably, you might find yourself skipping a run, convincing yourself that tomorrow will be a better day and the planets will align.

But let’s face it, those excuses, however valid they may seem, have a tendency to linger. The stars unfortunately won’t magically line up, and waiting for the perfect conditions just leads to endless waiting. The real question is, do you allow these obstacles to derail your training? Do you keep putting your training off and allow these things to get in the way?
Well, that is purely up to your own, individual mindset and it is up to how you respond to these happenings. You’ve heard it all before, but this following quote sums up todays post. This timeless truth is exactly what I’m talking about and should illustrate perfectly what I’m talking about. And that is, if it’s important to you, you’ll find a way. If not, you’ll find an excuse.

And that is the unfortunate truth of the matter.

It all boils down to finding your why – that deep-seated motivation that propels you forward, even when the going gets tough. It’s about uncovering that driving force, that inner fire that infuses meaning into every stride you take. Because, let’s be honest, without a clear sense of purpose, it’s super easy to lose sight of the bigger picture. Without that burning desire, it is totally understandable to choose the easy path and to give in.
But determining your why is much easier said than done. You cannot just click your fingers to find external motivation. And you cannot rub the magic lamp to find your purpose and manufacture inspiration. A true why can only be felt from the depths of your core.

I once stumbled upon a powerful method for delving deep into this why. It’s called the six-times-why technique. The premise is simple: You keep asking yourself why until you unearth your truth. Here’s a glimpse of how it works (this is just a loose example to demonstrate the process and, for the record, I don’t always settle for six):

• “I want to train hard and consistently. Why is this important?”
• “So I can perform well in the race and reach my full potential. Why is this important?”
• “To experience a sense of achievement. Why is this important?”
• “To serve as a positive role model for my kids. Why is this important?”
• “So they understand the value of hard work. Why is this important?”
• “So my kids can take pride in their Dad! Why is this important?”
• “Because their pride means the absolute world to me.”

As you can see, and as it turns out, I train hard not just for myself, but for the pride and admiration of my children. So instead of focusing on the fact that I just want to “train hard and train consistently” I have now attached a super powerful “why” to the scenario.

So, when the rain is pouring, the sun is scorching, or exhaustion from work threatens to overwhelm me and derail my training block, I remind myself of my “why”. It’s my secret weapon, my guiding light in the darkness. And while my motivations may evolve from one race to the next, or from one training block to another, one thing remains constant: Once you’ve identified your true reasons for running, you’ll never look back. It’ll get you out of bed in the morning. It will reinvigorate your energy when needed, and most of all, it will steer you right towards where you, deep down, want to be.