The end of one year and the start of the next can feel heavy as an athlete.

There’s pressure to reset.

To recommit.

To decide right now what kind of season this is going to be.

Speaking for myself, I’m midst of planning and plotting next year’s races — entering race lotteries—creating training plans.

For some athletes, goal setting feels motivating. For others, it brings anxiety, self-doubt, or a quiet sense of dread, especially if you’re coming off injury, burnout, or a season that didn’t unfold the way you hoped.

If that’s you, it’s often not a motivation issue. It’s a sign that goal setting is missing context.

This is a different way to start the year.
One that keeps ambition intact while reducing unnecessary pressure.

Do you get in your head at the start of a race?

Keep asking yourself, ‘why am I doing this?’ as you contemplate dropping out of a race?

Finish part of a workout and start telling yourself ‘you suck, go do something else.’

Feel like an imposter?

You’re not alone. All athletes battle with up’s and down’s in their mental game. However, we’re not necessarily taught these skills and certainly isn’t what a lot of coaches are teaching.

Mental skills training is not just for elite athletes. Everyone can benefit from it. Whether you’re training for your first ultramarathon, racing Ironman Kona or trying to qualify for the Boston Marathon, developing and enhancing your mental skills is not just going to prepare you for race day but longevity as an athlete.

Failure is freightening.

Mostly, the fear of failure seems to come from a fear of what other people ‘may’ think of us. Usually those thoughts are our own projections of stories that we’ve told ourselves over and over again throughout our lives.