Athlete identity is something I’ve been thinking about a lot in the past year, even before the pandemic wiped goal races off the calendar. I know a lot of people who’ve trained hard for a year, run a marathon, and… stopped running. Why? Because at no point during the process did they start thinking of themselves as runners — they were just people trying to get to one finish line to prove a point to themselves or others. But what if we all started thinking of ourselves as athletes, and treating ourselves accordingly? Personally, I know that the more I think of myself as an athlete, a serious athlete, I start making more space for mobility, eating better, banking more sleep and really giving my all in training. So, over on Bicycling, I talked to some sports psychs and mental consultants as well as some would-be Olympians and masters racers to figure out how they’re thinking about athlete identity at a time where a finish line simply can’t be your only metric for success. I’m really excited about this story, so give it a read!
(Psst… if you’re struggling to figure out how to train right now, we have a few basic plans for improving and training smart without a goal in sight.)
