In the competitive world of high school cross-country and track, mental habits often play a crucial role in an athlete's performance. Developing a framework for discussing these mental habits is essential for both runners and their coaches. By understanding and articulating mental habits, high school runners can create a supportive environment that fosters growth, resilience, and a winning mindset. This framework involves identifying key mental habits, assessing their impact on running performance, and devising strategies to cultivate positive thinking while minimizing negative self-talk.

Here is a quick breakdown for this episode:

• You should be testing your iron quarterly (both men and women!)

• You are looking for a number between 50 and 80. Non-athletes may be fine at 25 but runners, especially distance athletes need much higher numbers!

• Increasing your dietary iron is a great first course of action (heme-iron from red meat or chicken or legumes, nuts, and seeds for vegetarians)

• Oral Supplements like Thorne - bisglycinate is highly recommended

• You can take iron before bed - it is slightly better absorbed after breakfast without caffeine!

The best race is the one where you collect as many "Excellent present moments". Shannon Thompson joins us for this weeks episode of Jog Your Mind!

Athletes who fall in love with the sport have a turning point in their training and racing career - they decide to “Turn Pro” in the sense of Stephen Pressfield. His idea of Turning Pro means that you think, act, and respond as a professional would. You stop taking the point of view of an amateur who steps back, resists the tough moments, dodges ownership, and shifts blame and shortcomings onto anything but themselves.