FitLifeSF

I’ve been back at Bikram a few times a week for about 3 weeks now, due to my stress fracture. I used to do Bikram 4+ times per week for nearly a year at a stretch. It used to always be a constant struggle against the clock. “Can I make it through the 90 minutes?” Often, the answer was “no,” and I’d sneak out early. Not always from heat but often from boredom.

Since starting running at the beginning of this year and subsequently getting injured and returning to Bikram, though, I find it MUCH easier. I’m sure physical fitness has something to with it, and the new studio I’m practicing at has more windows so it feels more open and may be a few degrees cooler, but I think it’s also because running has taken my mind off of watching the clock and helped me build my “endurance muscle.” Which, of course, is all mental. When I run, I don’t go out for “40 minute” runs, I went out for 5 mile runs. Running has changed my state of mind from “putting in time” to “accomplishing a goal.”

Instead of watching the clock and wondering if I can make it 20 more minutes, I now think, “If I can get to camel, I’ll be OK.” (Which is very much a running thing for me, “Once I can see the park, I’m nearly there,” etc.) I am also taking the mental tenacity flexing during Bikram and consciously applying it meditatively to running. For example, when staying in Stick, I imagine holding a sprint up a hill, etc. And, oh yeah, I figure I need to spend some time in a 110 degree room if I ever have a hope of running Badwater. (Check out the blog of a fellow from San Francisco, Jonathan Gunderson, who I “know” from the Runner’s World message board who’s accomplished this amazing feat twice!”)

I am hoping that this helps me keep up the important mental skills required for running while I’m recovering- as I truly believe that 80% of running is a mental game.