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A break for your legs, a fit mind

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I'd better say it straight away: I basically hate running. I've long since become too wide and heavy; youngsters would lap me at Hamburg's top running spots like the Alster.

Now it sounds like I'm out of place here. Not quite. Because I fell in love with a sport in which running plays a significant role, triathlon. In the three-way battle of swimming, cycling and running, I would like to forego the last stand, but that's not possible. So I have to motivate myself to jog every now and then. This works sometimes more sometimes less well, emphasis on little.

The topic of motivation is not only relevant in running. The battle with one's inner weakness is as old as sport itself. But sometimes I think that I am a case for the sports psychologist.

It was my assumption for a long time that sports psychologists were more for the upper ten thousand in the performance spectrum. Squad athletes may talk to such experts on a regular basis. And of course, professional athletes think about how they can improve their mental toughness. They learn techniques to achieve their goals, deal with defeats or overcome obstacles. But as a recreational athlete, do I benefit from the findings of mental training? I didn't believe it.

Mental coaches – not only interesting for professionals

But I recently became perceptive during a conversation with sports psychologists from the German Sports University in Cologne. The methods they used to support athletes mentally were actually always the same, they said - regardless of whether it was in the district class or the Champions League.

Does that mean I can also benefit from the findings of sports psychology? Can I even learn techniques that will help motivate me to run?

Basically yes. Top athletes are less likely to suffer from lack of motivation than recreational runners, who struggle every spring with returning to sport or meeting weekly goals. After all, such people are naturally more motivated than others, otherwise they wouldn't have gotten this far.

But actually that just means that the problems of amateur athletes are sometimes different. And it's not that these problems can't be dealt with using generally applicable methods.

If you talk to sports psychologists, they have a whole potpourri of tips ready. For example, we could imagine certain sporting moments from our lives - situations in which we were successful or had great fun running.

Research has shown that visualizations have a positive effect on athletes. A mental coach once told me that our brain cannot differentiate well between reality and fiction on a mental level.

For example, I like to think of running along the Elbe on a starry, cool winter night more than 20 years ago to prepare for my first marathon.

During the run I suddenly felt like I could run forever - keyword runner's high. For me it was a magical moment that I have never forgotten. And which is associated with many positive memories.

Top athletes also work with visualizations. Andre Agassi is said to have once said that he had imagined winning Wimbledon a thousand times before he actually triumphed on the hallowed lawn. It would be enough for me if I could motivate myself to run every now and then and maybe win a wooden medal in the forest and meadow triathlon. Maybe I'll try self-talk regulation. Internal communication is something that every person does, consciously or unconsciously, thousands of times a day, a mental coach once explained to me. Studies show that you can take advantage of this, for example by affirming yourself in a positive way. For example, I could tell myself how good running is for me and motivate myself more to actually go running.

Sports psychologists would probably throw up their hands if they found out about my attempts at self-therapy. But they help me sometimes. However, for some techniques it is better to seek professional support. I recently found out that this is easily possible even as an amateur.

The fitness industry is a gigantic business, we all spend money on expensive running watches or dubious fitness gadgets, consult coaches on training platforms or pay osteopaths. But the mental aspect is neglected in popular and health sports; for most people it is only linked to improvements in the performance of top athletes.

Nobody has to be a squad athlete

But why not book a few sessions with a sports psychologist? There are networks and associations of these experts on the Internet through which you can easily get support. Nobody has to be a professional athlete to use such services.

Think about that for a moment.

Kind regards,


Jörg Römer