Mental Preparation for The Year Ahead
Athletes have practised mindfulness for some time now in preparation for successful performance in the field. When I started running, I happened to chat to a friend who had been a top class track athlete. I had been talking about running for some time and had longed to be free to take exercise whenever and wherever I wanted; but had not actually started running yet. He asked me how much time I had spent thinking about running; I answered that I was not sure; but I had really only spent time practically preparing for it (new trainers, shorts etc). Funny then that one day when I was driving to the gym after this conversation I stopped the car and like Forrest Gump "I just started running"! I had been looking at a map of our area. I knew that near my route was a moor that gave onto a racecourse with woods where I could run to my hearts content - away from the roads and in natural setting within the citty limits. I had been imagining running the...