The Other 90 Percent

Congratulations to Robyn, Brandon and John for their Ironman Louisville finishes! Incredible accomplishments on a tough course and an even tougher day. Here's an inside look into how each athlete made that finish happen on race day.

Brandon came to me filled with short course speed. His last experience with long course racing left him with a lingering IT Band injury. We started with short bits of running, extended those over time being smart about the build up and following HR zones. Healthy and fit at 12 weeks before the race, the other IT Band started barking. Rather than give up, we approached running a different way. Long runs were a mixture of running, pool running and elliptical. The rest would be done in his head. Writing out a plan and visualizing a healthy, strong marathon. He had never run a marathon before and didn't know what to expect. Expect to run strong, smart and pain-free. On race day, Brandon ran a 3:42 marathon. His goal was to finish in under 12 hours and he made it happen. After a few months coaching him I started calling him Crazy (in a good way) Brandon - why? Because he would send me text messages at 3:30 am from atop his trainer to fit in longer rides before work and family. Because he would call me Saturday night while riding his bike to talk about his training. Crazy because he had this crazy passion for a goal that he would absolutely not give up no matter what was thrown his way. Crazy - on race day it paid.

John came to me late this spring to prepare for an August Ironman. His challenge - train for Ironman while balancing it with his family and busy job as a neurosurgery physician's assistant. Often his work included several nights and days on call or long weekends. We kept the schedule flexible and worked around it. When he could train, he trained smart, he practiced his plan and did everything in training he would do on race day. John had one of the most easy going, patience and laid back attitudes I have ever seen. The race was simply a day where he would put it all together. His trust in the training, easy going attitude led his straight to the finish line. In his words, he followed his pacing and nutrition plan to a "T" and it paid off. And with his focus on that, he said he never did really feel the heat.

In the weeks before Ironman, Robyn finished school, got a new job and moved. With so many sources of stress, Robyn kept herself together and did her best with training. At times this meant giving up workouts in order to simply relax or get other life things organized. The approach was simple - do what you could when you could, relax the pressure on yourself. It worked. All of these outside factors did not interfere with her finish. Along the way the hills and heat tried to take the best out of her day but Robyn kept moving forward and found herself an Ironman.

As athletes, we arrive on race day at the whim of many things - the weather, other competitors, life factors, work-related stress, sometimes even in the late miles of an Ironman - ourselves. Those that succeed with their goals, those that cross the line come to terms with the fact that while many factors may be present on race day, the only one they can control is themselves, right there, right now on race day.

These three athletes arrived on race day with a goal in mind. One wanted to finish in under 12 hours. One with an injury history wanted to make it through the marathon. The other wanted to arrive at the start line uninjured and finish the race no matter the time it took.

All 3 reached their goals.

Why? They realized that their top priority on the race course was to execute their plan at that moment on that race course. Despite weather, course topography and other obstacles along the training and racing way they responded to the race as it unfolded and persisted with their plan. They were completely present in their race day and had a plan - not only that, they knew how to follow their plan because they had practiced it over and over again.

That's what it's all about.

When I work with an athlete I realize about 10 percent of their success is because of the workouts I provided for them. The other 90 percent is entirely up to them; a belief in our work togther, a committment to their goal, a discipline for executing a race plan. Anyone can master this 90 percent - regardless of age, ability, speed or sport background. Doing the 10 percent of workouts counts but what gets you to the 100 percent finish line is the distance in between - the 90 percent - you, the one out there making decisions, the one out there doing the work, the one out there overcoming yourself.

At Multisport Mastery we want to teach you how to command that 90 percent. We give you the knowledge and tools to prepare because we know that's what it takes to get to the finish line.

Congratulations again to our Ironman Louisville finishers!