Motivation for Hard Intervals?

[Starfish]

Hmm. Some interesting things here. Veronica, I guess I really am going to have to break down and buy some Spinervals. There were some surprising (to me) responses here...thank you all!

Maybe I've just gotten soft.

[RoadRaven]

LOL Karen... you are probably right - I do have 5 kids and work as a teacher!

Thank you BlueSkies, for the link to the article - it was very interesting.

I meant to say the other thing I do with intervals is use my MP3. Focusing on the rythym and/or the words means you get through intervals better (though I still count using the kids )

[Starfish]

Well, I just got back from the indoor cycling class, and I think at least for awhile, I will have to just get myself signed up for those (there is always a wait list). I didn't manage to keep up the whole time, but my HRM says I got a hard workout.

(Although, that class is a much steadier, hard effort. The teacher is not an outdoor cyclist, and there are not many short, maximum intervals...more like long hard lactate threshold intervals.)

PS: I'm going to post on the For Sale/Wanted To Buy thread, but if anyone has a Spinerval DVD or two that they are sick of and want to off load for a lowish-good price, I would definitely be interested.

[z28cat]

OK, my training secret lies in 'pushing' for 3 intervals, 'pulling' for 3, then pushing/pulling for counts of 4 in the final 3. This seems to take my mind off the whole series and breaks them down into more manageable increments. I also do the dedication thing. However since I have no children, I do one each for the Father, Son and the Holy Ghost!

[OakLeaf]

Or for all you "old-school" ladies, a visualization I came up with before last month's 5K, that's worked really well for me doing intervals: straight out of the old arcade games. I'm picking up golden power-ups laid out on my path

[Andrea]

I think of stage races where I've lost a place by seconds.

[RoadRaven]

I think of stage races where I've lost a place by seconds.

Oh yes... very good motivation
I think of this too - when I start to ease off and start thinking - you can keep this up ... and start "swearing" at my legs I tell them how I just have push a bit harder, dig a bit deeper for a few more seconds... and remind them about a race where I have been dropped, or not quite been placed all because of those precious few seconds of not diggeing as deep as i possibly can...

Oh... btw... I do know my legs don't have ears...

Road - notcompletelymad - Raven

[hellostarshine]

A mantra really helps me. Find a really really corny phrase that involves the reason you're exercising (race, weight loss, health, ect) and repeat it. Something like (breathe in) strenght in (breath out) fat off.
And music! Anything with a groove! Mentally go ANYWHERE but wherever your trainier is. It's your chance to go beat lance!

[ehirsch83]

I was recently told a quote the other day that has now been playing in my head.

Let me give a little background to how it came to me being told this- Last Sunday I did the group ride up to Spanish River Blvd(it is the turnaround for the 30 mile ride), about 10 of us continued north up to Boynton(so making our whole ride 68 miles). After we hit spanish river we all slowed it down and just spun(these group rides are fast- they are every man for himself, if you can't hang in to bad). So anyways, as we are all spinning and talking one of the guys says you know I almost didn't get out of bed today because I was so sore from yesterdays group ride(Saturday had been a really fast and hard ride). He then went on to say that the only reason he got out of bed was because of something he had been told 6 or 7 years ago.(he was also told this by my boss, she is an elite cyclist)
So anyways, 6 or 7 years ago he was complaining to her about being sore and she asked if he wanted to know how to get rid of the pain, of course he said yes. Now this is the advice that repeats itself in my head now when I am hurting.

You must go out there and build new pain to put on top of the old pain, then and only then will the old pain stop hurting!!

[RoadRaven]

You must go out there and build new pain to put on top of the old pain, then and only then will the old pain stop hurting!!

Now this really appeals to me... funny though, my colleagues at work really don't understand that I get so much satisfaction from something that makes me so uncomfortable.