1:46/3:39 or bust wrote:
Is durability based on nature or nurture, ie are some runners born with it and some aren't or is it based on past training and how much focus is spent on recovery?
I have definately seen runners who were exremely durable, and it is a talent....just well aligned, balanced musculature, light for their frame, etc. Also there are those that are just patient, mature, and listen to their body. Some nature, some nurture. I think we all could work on our psychology during the build up and run our easy days easier, and take that occassional day off, or lighter week to recover when you are in a rut.
One thing that I am certain of is that injuries happen on the off days...not the hard workouts. When you are going hard, you need to go hard--remaining durable should not be an excuse for holding back. But the easy days should be easy. I use to hate to run alone, but now that I look back I should have done more of it so that I could listen to my body. Remember that the Kenyans also have a survival rate...they train hard and 50% dont make it..you just never hear about them.
If you are consistently getting injured you have to change something. I knew someone who was constantly getting injured in the fall base training, so after years and years of frustration, he finally tried more speed work in the fall and found that keeping his calves sharper protected them from injury. Counterintuitive. Coe would keep his mileage down with the plyos (also, he lived in a place with bad winter weather and steep hills so training indoors was a way of life).
I think this is where a good coach comes in. Elite athletes 18-22 are impatient and lack the last level of maturity...knowing yourself and your weaknesses. I think a great coach came help teach them how to stay healthier...but at the end of the day you have to be pushing the envelope to get to your best condition.