18 weeks out and moving with intention...
The last three weeks have been a good push overall by life. From a professional standpoint, I am officially my own boss for the first time ever. About a year ago I made a full switch to personal training and run coaching, but it wasn't until roughly 4 months ago that I started trying to give it a go on my own. It's a journey I am very excited for, but have slowly started to see all of the individuals challenges that come with the new life change. While none of these challenges are necessarily a fun thing to deal with, I feel like they are helping me mature in the business world. Looking back, it is very easy to slack in certain areas or spend less time doing certain things when you know, in the long run, you have something to fall back on or that it will all be okay if something gets messed up. Take my in-person clients for example...I have spent a considerable amount of time figuring out my systems (onboarding, maintenance, etc.) when it comes to giving my clients a well rounded experience... without overcomplicating everything for myself at the same time. From proper training plans (macrocycles, mesocycles, goal mapping) to keeping up with their individual goals (InBody scans, life/nutrition check-ins), everything has a higher importance. When you are inside of a company's system, it's very easy just to "cruise" through problems that you caused and never properly address them (I am not saying that is what you should do, but it happens). When you become your own boss and your sole income is decided on your actions, you quickly realize a few things:
Your clients are your business. If you slack and the quality of their experience drops, they notice and are more likely to discontinue.
Intention and efficiency are your best friends. You realize how much more value your time has, because "business hours" do not apply to you.
Most likely, your situation is not brand new and there are people who have been through something similar... Ask them questions. Learning from people in your industry who are successful can help limit your mistakes and give you an idea of what a successful path looks like.
Don't overcomplicate it, but create routine systems for yourself to use. Try and identify areas that you are weaker in and address them head on. Inconsistencies lead unneeded stress & complications. Avoidance behavior can and will ruin your business if you let it.
Now add in Leadville100 training to life... It hasn't been easy, but I am always trying to create those systems for myself so I don't feel overwhelmed with everything. Let's get into the last couple of weeks.
Running Update:
There are no complex training updates this time, which I would say is a good thing. Previously, I had the spin bike programmed 6 days a week to make up for my lower mileage (due to the achilles rehab plan). Now... things are MOVING. The spin bike was knocked down to 2 days a week and my mileage sits around 50 miles per week.
Two weeks ago (20 weeks out), I was finally able to give a long trail run a test. We've been building for about 8 weeks to get to a point where I felt comfortable doing this, so when the 15 mile trail run went well I was so relieved. I feel like it gave me the mental green light to push myself a bit harder moving forward since the training plans we have in place are working. Last week (19 weeks out), I knocked out 45ish total miles on the week. This included my hardest incline treadmill workout to date as well as an 18mile trail run to finish out the week. This week (18 weeks out), we are going to build on last week's progress and have one more hard push week before next week's reload on mileage.
All in all, good. Taking the training day by day, and trying to make sure I am doing everything I can to stay healthy and consistent with the training.
Building the house, brick by brick. See you next blog.
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Also, if you want to support my fundraiser for Leadville100 as well as Magan Hall's Cancer Treatment, check the link below!
- Andrew