So, I'm at a mid-major D-I, and, yeah, I've had some really shite races lately. Ran like crap in my first race of the spring, pulled out of the second due to a cramp, after which I've had a few weeks to prepare for my next race. I've been really working out well these last few weeks and felt really confident this week going into the race (tomorrow night) about my race plan and my fitness. Then, today, as I'm leaving the team locker room to get on with my night, my coach pulls me aside and says something to the effect of "I've been letting it slide, but you've really underperformed so far this season. You better step it up tomorrow or else". Yeah, he's not wrong. I am coming off a string of disappointing races. His assessment is 100% spot-on. My confusion comes in why he would mention this to me the day before a race that I'm trying to massively PR and, hopefully, chase a school record in. Is this typical of D-I coaching? Am I missing something here? Am I supposed to be motivated by this? Ever since he told me this, I've felt like absolute shite and my prior confidence is gone.