Three years ago, I was juggling big track meets with important Spartan Races, and competing on American Ninja Warrior, too. People told I was “unfocused,” but ya know what? I had just spent a couple months in Omaha watching Tim, my husband, undergo a 12-hour surgery to remove cancerous mucin and then be confined to the couch with tubes sticking out of him, so enjoying life to the max got bumped up even higher on my list after that.
So when people ask if they should be focusing only on their main sport (say, OCR) or if they can add in things they also love, like skiing, without feeling guilty, I tell them this story…
In 2016, after a year off the track in my new life as a pro obstacle course racer, I felt a yearning to jump back on to the oval that changed my life, giving me confidence as a teen and a scholarship to Georgetown…
So I signed up for the most competitive event I could find: the Stanford Invitational, knowing I could finish last, but not caring about that. I wanted to get pulled to a fast time by the country’s best, and cheer for/feel inspired by those pushing to make the U.S. Olympic Trials.
People told me I needed to focus, but I knew I needed to feed my spirit, too.
Though my 800 meter (half mile) best from before I switched to OCR was 2 min 7 secs, I figured breaking 2:10 after only a couple months of track work was a good goal. I gave it my all (hence the contorted face above) and finished in 2 min and 10.15 secs, just .16 secs short of goal time.
So I trained hard for three more weeks, joining the local professional track group’s workouts, barely able to keep up, and then raced at the next Stanford meet, and hit my goal with room to spare, 2:08.46! (It wasn’t record-breaking, and still 5 seconds off of the 2016 Olympic Trials qualifying time, but very satisfying all the same.)
The first Spartan National Series race was a two weeks later, and even though it was the only one in which I didn’t podium, I was only fourth by a few seconds, and even though the hills felt extra hard after mainly track training, my heart soared, knowing I could still fly on a track and race OCR well (plus qualify for Ninja Warrior Vegas finals a few weeks later, too, and pace my friend for 20 miles of her top-ten Western States finish – quite the neat variety of experiences around the country)!
I felt empowered, challenging myself in new ways, and juggling so many different skill sets, but the main thing is that I loved the experiences of both the activity/sport and the communities of people I got to be surrounded by.
I finished the OCR season strong and most importantly, happy. Doing three sports that year helped me avoid emotional burnout, which can be almost worst than physical burnout.
So if you’re trying to focus on doing your best as a runner (or a triathlete etc.), but a friend asks you to hike the Grand Canyon with them, I say go for it! Your mind, heart, and spirit will thank you. And who knows? A little break from sport-specific training might be best for performing well in your main sport anyway. Either way, I see it as a lovely version of “living life to the fullest,” and if you’re like me and you value experiences over winning, then I bet you won’t regret it. I sure don’t!
The first Spartan National Series race was a two weeks later, and even though it was the only one in which I didn’t podium, I was only fourth by a few seconds, and even though the hills felt extra hard after mainly track training, my heart soared, knowing I could still fly on a track and race OCR well (plus qualify for Ninja Warrior Vegas finals a few weeks later, too, and pace my friend for 20 miles of her top-ten Western States finish – quite the neat variety of experiences around the country)!
I felt empowered, challenging myself in new ways, and juggling so many different skill sets, but the main thing is that I loved the experiences of both the activity/sport and the communities of people I got to be surrounded by.
I finished the OCR season strong and most importantly, happy. Doing three sports that year helped me avoid emotional burnout, which can be almost worst than physical burnout.
So if you’re trying to focus on doing your best as a runner (or a triathlete etc.), but a friend asks you to hike the Grand Canyon with them, I say go for it! Your mind, heart, and spirit will thank you. And who knows? A little break from sport-specific training might be best for performing well in your main sport anyway. Either way, I see it as a lovely version of “living life to the fullest,” and if you’re like me and you value experiences over winning, then I bet you won’t regret it. I sure don’t!