Hit a Training Plateau

Are you struggling to make any gains in your running? Are your constantly frustrated as you just don’t seem to be making any improvements? Research shows that humans are happier when they make progress, when we work hard for something and we don’t see progress we get unhappy! This is so true in running, when our hard work appears to go unrewarded, it’s easy to give up and say, “I’m a failure.”

There is a term known as “training plateau” which means “a sudden and dramatic decrease in any noticeable results of your regular workouts”.

It is quite common in running and it isn’t anything to worry about, it can become a problem if it sucks the motivation out of you but there is plenty that you can do to get off the “plateau”.

Let’s go back to the start, do you remember when you were building your new running habit and any new run was exhilarating, you quickly progressed from wheezing and coughing after running between two lampposts to then being able to run a whole mile. A few months later, that progress slows, and you find yourself struggling with the same distances and speeds even though you’re doing all of the right things.

Part of the runner’s journey is being able to anticipate these plateaus and plan for them so that they don’t completely derail us.

How do we progress during the plateaus when we feel like our hard work is a waste of time?

We focus on small wins and find a way to get a teeny tiny bit better.

Are you running the same pace over a similar distance using the same route week in week out? Getting into good habits and being consistent is key to successful running, however, doing the same thing over a long period of time often gives you the same results.

Try changing the pace on your runs, mix it up a bit, add a bit of variety into at least one of your runs in your week can make a difference.

Getting into the “ugly zone” as I like to call it doesn’t have to be awful, start off with baby steps, you don’t have to turn up to a track session, just use the lamppost method again to see what running a bit faster actually feels like. Pick up the pace between 2 lampposts, focus on being in the moment, enjoy what it feels like to run a bit faster, listen to the body’s reaction, check your posture and by the time you’ve done this it will be over.

When you’ve finished your sprint, stay in the moment, what is your heart rate like, how quickly has it returned to normal, did you die? Probably not. Then go again and repeat a few times. You don’t have to do miles and miles of this, just a few to start off with and then build it up.

Could you be too fit?

Is your body work not in alignment with your engine?

If the physiological capacity of your heart and lungs, (your engine), exceeds the bio-mechanical capacity of your body, then your body won’t be able to keep up with your engine, hence the car analogy.

Since you started running have you just worked on putting the miles in without a thought to conditioning or strengthening the mechanics of your body i.e., your arms, legs, glutes, core etc. If this is the case then think about adding some strength and conditioning work into your weekly routine, lifting weights, running hills, working on strengthening your glutes and hamstrings so you can build up the body ensuring it is in alignment with your strong, powerful heart.

This could be another reason why you may have hit a training plateau, ask yourself if you are employing any of the following reasons (the list is not exhaustive) because you would rather opt out than push yourself.

Fear of Failure

Is the thought of failing stopping you from trying something new? Some people are crippled by the thought of looking stupid/failing/embarrassing themselves that they will do anything to avoid getting out of their comfort zones.

“too tired, too busy, too fat, too slow, not the right shape to be a runner, look stupid, too weak, too many other things to do, too hot, too cold, too hungry, too guilty for putting myself first, too anxious, what will people think of me” You may even experience a bad run and instead of chalking it up to experience you convince yourself that you just aren’t a runner.

Changing your thought process’s is harder than it looks but by remembering WHY you are running or training for a specific event gives you purpose to help you over these difficult brain mutterings or mental errors. You could start off by visualising your success, whatever it might be, it could be just heading out of the front door, a tough hill session, whatever the why is for you by keeping focused and imagining yourself doing it then the more it becomes a reality. Even imagining your success creates neuro pathways in your brain which in turn enables you to succeed as your brain is creating a new reality. If you imagine the failure, then you will always be expecting awful results as this is your reality.

And what is the worst that can happen? Failure isn’t something to be ashamed of, lots of people fail all the time, getting back out there and learning from failure helps you ultimately to succeed.