It wasn’t planned that way.
You can also build beautiful things with the stones placed in your path.
—J.W. Goethe
In life things don’t always go according to plan. Quite the contrary! Where there is light there is also shadow. And yet we frequently hear particularly successful people from very different spheres of life say that personal defeats and failures have been a very important elixir on their road to success and growth. No matter how unpleasant and disappointing it is when things don’t go as planned, when we fail in one way or another, don’t get the results we are looking for, maybe even run into a wall, or have to struggle with other negative experiences and events, one thing always applies: Crises also present opportunities. Or more simply put: Where one door closes another door opens. To seize these opportunities we must keep our eyes open.
We are all familiar with this: Whenever we are in a difficult situation, are not doing well, or are dealing with a failure, the following well-intended piece of advice is never far away: “Hey, think positive!” In the previous chapters we focused a lot on positive attitudes and perspectives. Those are, of course, very valuable and can be very functional. But—and I hope that message came through loud and clear—you don’t have to think positive all the time. In fact, I expressly advise against it, and for good reason. Of course feeling confident, being goal oriented instead of failure oriented, and having a realistic dose of optimism have a positive effect on our health and life satisfaction, physical and emotional well-being, professional and athletic success. Many studies verify this. We also know that intelligent activation of positive images, thoughts, and feelings has a motivating effect during training, enhances performance during competitions, and can have a healing effect to injuries. But the dogmatic use of what is touted all over the land as positive thinking is less promising and possibly even dangerous.
Many people find the concept of positive thinking appealing, and it is a commercial success on the coaching and motivational scene. Countless books and CDs with unbelievable sales promote the easy way to happiness, wealth, and success. According to the credo, all you have to do is think positive. Many lecturers and motivational coaches jump on the bandwagon and preach that we can achieve anything if we just want to. But practical experience shows that this is usually short-sighted and simply untrue.
A running buddy and entrepreneur is very interested in the subject of motivation. Years ago, he participated in a firewalk with a famous motivational trainer. After a day of mental preparation, the participants were supposed to walk on glowing embers without burning their feet. In spite of the fact that cheap tricks are employed at some of these firewalks, such as burning down the coal until the top layer provides sufficient insulation, this curious runner’s path led directly to the hospital instead of self-motivational nirvana. The soles of his feet were burned and for weeks he was unable to walk normally without crutches.
There are three bad things about this personal story: First, this is not an isolated incident. Second, it can result in instant physical damage. And third, this often has negative psychological consequences like increased self-doubt and shame, even guilt and the feeling of not being good enough, not being able to think positive. In July 2012, 21 participants at a motivational seminar held by the famous motivational guru Tony Robbins had to be taken to hospital with burns after an unsuccessful firewalk. One of the participants was quoted in a newspaper as saying that he had been unable to enter an optimal state (Burkeman, 2012).
A number of studies now show that those who should benefit most from positive thinking methods are most likely to experience negative effects. People who are plagued by illness, depression, or self-doubt; are unhappy with a current life situation; or don’t possess the measure of success and recognition they wish for are often pushed further into disaster by positive thinking. Instead of dealing with challenges and negative things in a constructive manner, positive self-affirmation is imposed on them that has little to do with reality, let alone that takes into account individual or socio-structural circumstances (Scheich, 2001; Ehrenreich, 2011).
Do you really think you can run a marathon in 2:00 h just because you really want to and regularly expose yourself to a constant stream of positive messages like “I am strong,” “I am a rocket,” “I can achieve anything I want,” or “I’m going to run a marathon in 2:00 h”? Admittedly, maybe you are an undiscovered talent with perfect biomechanical and physiological abilities, but in case you’re not, these strategies from the school of positive thinking can quickly create frustration and self-doubt. Besides, it is important for your personal development to be aware of negative experiences like defeats and disappointments, to process them and grow with them instead of covering them up with positive thinking (“I’m fine, I’m super!”). This can lead to performance blocks or even loss of reality and psychosis. So let’s keep our optimism and attitudes realistic without denying real difficulties. Let’s also deal with the negative things that come our way, because that gives us some important material to find consistent answers to the question of precisely how we want achieve our goals, what we want to experience along the way, and how we want to handle sticking points (Oettingen & Gollwitzer, 2010).
Several months after a sport psychology lecture, I was contacted by a marathon runner who thanked me for my suggestions. After several attempts, he had finally reached an important goal: running a marathon in under 3 hours. The following was something he found particularly helpful: No rose-colored glasses that only see the positive based on the motto “You can do anything” and “Everything will be fine.” Next to staying consistently focused on a goal and accessing performance-enhancing positive mental images and feelings, there was primarily one thing that heled him to succeed: mentally running through difficult situations during the race, particularly during the second half of the race, when your legs are running on fumes and burning. Not only did he achieve his goal, he even did a half-marathon best time in the second half of the race.
You’ve prepared for weeks and months, sometimes even years, for an event that is very important to you. You’ve sacrificed lots of time for this athletic success and in the process may have occasionally neglected your family. You have worked painstakingly to achieve specific performance or result goals in the XYZ race, be it a new PR or simply just finishing. You are confident at the start, and for good reason, because the overall preparations and the training went perfectly well and you have the right gear. All signs point to success and goal attainment. And then you missed the goal. Sometimes you already know during the race, sometimes it’s a close call, and sometimes it’s just brutal (e.g., you completely falter or have to drop out). The failure happened and the disappointment grips you to the marrow. All of the assurances to see things in a positive way don’t seem to help. Now what?
Almost every athlete experiences failures, athletic slumps, and setbacks during his career. There are many different reasons for this (e.g., physical deficiencies, wrong attitudes, unsuitable equipment, underestimating the task, personal problems, bad luck). Athletes usually search for explanations to action results. In doing so, the results are attributed to a possible cause. Researchers also refer to this as causal attribution. We differentiate between two types of causal attribution. When a person blames himself for the cause of an event, it is internal causal attribution. When someone views other people, environmental influences, or other external factors as the cause of an event, it is called external causal attribution.
People tend to use an internal causal attribution when they are successful, meaning they see themselves, their abilities and actions as the cause for success. For instance, a runner thinks he has reached his competitive goal because he trained a lot and chose the right running strategy. If he fails, he will most likely use the external causal attribution, meaning he will attribute the cause for his failure to another person or environmental influences. For example, a runner may think he missed his goal because he had bad luck, the weather was bad, or the orientation wasn’t clear.
This type of attribution protects one’s sense of self-worth because we don’t have to see or portray ourselves as the cause of negative events. We call this causal attribution success oriented. It has a positive effect on self-confidence and can be seen in people with lots of achievement motivation. People who ascribe success to themselves and failure to circumstances primarily look for tasks with a medium degree of difficulty, set realistic goals, and are more likely to achieve them, which leads to a realistic, positive self-image. However, they run the risk of ascribing failures to very external causes, letting a little healthy self-criticism fall by the wayside.
Failure-oriented causal attribution attributes success to external causes (e.g., luck) and failure to internal causes (e.g., one’s own incompetence). Such a pattern damages self-confidence and is commonly linked to mindsets that are typical in people with depression. Failure-oriented people look for very easy or very difficult tasks, thereby avoiding realistic feedback on their abilities.
The manner in which we process and deal with failure is extremely individual and always depends on the situation. When we actually see something as a failure is also an important factor. Blanket advice that doesn’t take into account individual everyday reality can therefore make things much worse. Below are some suggestions based on the previous statements that have proven helpful in one way or another in dealing with temporary failures as well as veritable lows. It may not come as a surprise to you that I begin before a failure even occurs, then take a look at the moment a failure becomes apparent and how we, should it become a reality, can deal with it.
It makes sense to regularly ask yourself: Why am I running? Why and when do I enjoy running the most? When does running make me feel particularly good and what goals am I pursuing apart from possible performance goals? Someone who can answer these questions will be considerably more relaxed in dealing with potential failures.
Set realistic performance goals with a medium degree of difficulty. This will increase the likelihood of success, and a 50/50 probability of success motivates the most.
Avoid overemphasizing result goals and always formulate process goals. The latter are just as important. Answers to the question “How do I want to reach my goal, and what do I want to experience?” may be used for specific action regulation and can have a positive effect on performance. And in the event you don’t reach a performance goal, focusing on process goals is a powerful anchor that offers support, direction, and a potential reset into the next challenge.
Positive ideas may be extremely helpful, but instead of picturing your positive goal attainment strictly through rose-colored glasses based on the school of positive thinking, also set flexible alternative goals and go through them in your mind for the worst-case scenario. What would be the best goal when everything goes really well? And what would be a minimum goal when things aren’t going so well? What does failure even mean to you? In a competition, in training, or in some other area? And what would you do during training or a competition, or afterwards, when such a failure becomes apparent? What would be the worst that can happen? And how would that affect the rest of your life? Doing this removes some of the dread of failure beforehand, and, if worse comes to worst, you can take timely countermeasures, or at least prepare a softer landing. It is usually more helpful than strictly programming yourself for success, as some mental coaches advocate.
Remember that you cannot force yourself to run well. The more internal pressure you build up, the more tense and inefficiently you will run, and the more negative your thoughts will be. Focus on your process goals!
Admittedly, this next tip might sound glib, but it is powerful, and it is always an issue for people who largely define themselves by their achievements. Cultivate the attitude you are a good person and are fine the way you are! No matter what you achieve (in a competition or elsewhere)!
Use helpful self-talk strategies and turn problems into challenges and learning opportunities (e.g., “If I can’t make progress the way I want to, then I’ll practice being patient,” “What’s done is done and can’t be changed,” or “Failure is a chance to work on my inner attitude or rethink my training system”).
Being disappointed every once in a while is totally okay and the most normal thing in the world. Disappointments and sadness, particularly when they are bitter disappointments, should be allowed to play out and be processed instead of being pushed away with positive thinking. That can backfire, just like when you try to push a ball under water and it pops up on the other side (e.g., inexplicable motivational problems, shaken self-confidence, recurring failures because you have made the same mistakes again). But the athletic failure should always be put into perspective: How serious is this really? What else is important in life? How much does this athletic failure affect the rest of your life? Your job? Your family, friends, other hobbies, etc.?
To get out of a failure phase and not remain in a negative spiral, it helps to work with new wish goal visualizations (e.g., What will it feel like when I have gotten over this loss of form or this failure phase? What do I do? What has helped me come out of it and improve?
From which role models could you learn to handle failure with confidence? What do they do? What could you borrow?
And once the initial frustration has subsided, the most important part happens: The chance to view failure as an opportunity and seizing this opportunity to learn and improve. What can we learn from this failure? Failure is an excellent source of feedback, offering the most valuable advice on what you could do differently and improve in the future. And maybe it is a kind of starting signal for making some adjustments or changes? The first step could be to begin with the first item on this list.
Or maybe you will write a book from which others can learn. How about the title “Shit happens, and it is the fertilizer for personal growth”?
A very nice example of how to use failures constructively is presented in the next chapter by Florian Reus, the 2015 World and European Champion in the 24-hour race, as well as the winner of the legendary Spartathlon race and thereby the double in the same year. He would most likely not have accomplished this lifelong dream without a few major failures that initially really wore him down.
When I was planning this book, I initially wrote down dealing with crises as a possible topic because it is always hotly debated and generates an active exchange within the running and endurance community. But I quickly discarded the idea of addressing this topic, or at least this terminology. Because what does crisis actually mean? Do we talk about a crisis when things get physically or mentally difficult during training or a competition as we come up against our limits, or think we do? Or does crisis mean events are so extreme that it is a matter of life and death?
According to the dictionary, a crisis is a difficult situation or time that represents the apex and turning point of a dangerous development. When this development takes a permanently negative course, we call it a catastrophe. If we want to go with this definition, we will come to the conclusion that we very rarely, if ever, enter a crisis situation during our recreational runs, regardless of how performance oriented we are or how subjectively important something may be to us. The same should be true for professional athletes. I therefore suggest we disown the strategy we are all too familiar with from the media, namely immediately blowing everything up into an alleged crisis, and instead talk about challenges that need to be mastered.
While organizing the running event TRAILDORADO, which, along with a 24-hour trail race, features a supporting program with numerous lectures and workshops, I was able to recruit Florian Reus, winner of multiple German national championships and World and European Champion in the 24-hour race, for an exciting lecture. The topic was his path to becoming a World Champion. I talked to Florian beforehand and asked him for an honest lecture without clumsy, superficial, pretentious motivational babble, that instead focused particularly on the failures and obstacles on the way to his world championship title. Unfortunately I was so busy with organizing the event that I did not have time to attend the lecture myself. I merely managed to occasionally listen in to make sure the technology was working properly. During one of those moments, I heard Florian talk about how, after winning several German national titles, he experienced a series of bitter failures and had to repeatedly drop out of races. At that moment I realized that I also wanted Florian to be a contributor to this book to exchange views on strategy, attitude, dealing with failures, and maybe also on dealing with crises. During our conversations, it quickly became apparent that Florian is also careful with his use of the word crisis. Let’s see what Florian had to say about his path to becoming a World Champion.
Florian Reus: Inspired by a newspaper article I had seen by chance, I ran my first ultra-marathon in 2003, namely the 100 km race in Biel, Switzerland. I started doing 24-hour races soon after and have stuck with them. They are my main discipline still today. After several second- and third-place finishes, both at the World Championships and at Spartathlon, 2015 was supposed to be the most successful year of my running career to date. During that running season, I was supposed to win the World Championships and the Spartathlon. Another important success was winning the European Championships in the 24-hour race three times, since no other runner had previously been able to win this title that many times. My current personal best is 263.9 km.
Florian Reus: When I am not preparing for a competition, an average training week generally means running between 140 and 170 km. During the week, I usually train twice a day (i.e., morning and afternoon). On the weekends, I generally do a longer training unit of more than 35 km. When I prepare for a 24-hour race, meaning during the final eight weeks of the training process, my weekly volume goes up to 200 km, and in some exceptional cases it can be more than 250 km in one week. During this phase, the individual training units are also considerably longer (up to 80 km).
Florian Reus: In my current situation, motivation isn’t a huge challenge. In the past few years, my performance has reached a level that allows me to win important races, or to at least place near the top. By now, I can also rely on my vast ultra-marathon experience and I am now able to run these races with lots of patience. Based on this knowledge, I am convinced that I have a chance in any of these 24-hour races when I start in good form. This thought also motivates me to complete my training units even when I don’t feel like it, when the weather is bad, or when training isn’t going as well as planned. But motivation was much more of a challenge back when my performance level was still much lower, the anticipated short-term successes didn’t compare to those of today, and of course there was no guarantee that all of the effort would ever pay off in the form of great successes. Back then having a clear, long-term goal really helped me.
Florian Reus: What drives me are my specific goals, which I don’t just set a few months before a competition, but that have been with me for many years. These long-term goals in particular really motivate me during a competition because I am aware of how much work and sacrifice I have already invested in that goal. Of course I am also driven by the social recognition, but honestly, in a fringe sport like mine it is completely out of proportion to the effort. Instead I very much want to achieve my personal goal, if only because I know the magical moments that are the reward for a successful race, and that stay with you forever.
Florian Reus: Everything that happens before the start is pure routine, especially when it comes to practical things like, for instance, what to eat for breakfast. Everything that happens on race day is standardized because that is not the time to experiment. During the final hour before the race, I find it important to have a little private time. That’s when I usually mentally go through the impending race, but only superficially because at that point I’m already a little tense due to the upcoming strenuous task. This time of reflection isn’t a planned action—I primarily want to enjoy a few quiet minutes before the start—but thoughts about the race automatically penetrate just before the starting signal.
Overall, it is very important to me to start the race with a certain amount of humility and respect for the task ahead, because when you take a long ultra-marathon too lightly you’ve already lost the race before it even started. But those are things you can’t learn right before a race. They are ultimately a matter of attitude towards the sport.
Florian Reus: I don’t have one great role model, but I am very inspired by the Japanese ultra-marathoners. I love how they run their races with such stoic calm and exude such humility outside of the race. I believe that the qualities these runners radiate, such as humility, modesty, discipline, and internal equilibrium, are very important factors for real success in the 24-hour race.
Florian Reus: The low point of my career so far was definitely the 24-hour run at the 2010 World Championships. Back then, I already had the long-term goal of collecting international wins, and at this race I wanted to get at least a little closer to that goal, meaning I was aiming for a place in the top 20. After successfully qualifying for the World Championships, it was even more important to me to continue the upward trend after having had two so-so years, and to finally bring back some consistency to my results. But the race turned out to be a complete fiasco, so much so that I dropped out, completely unnerved, about four hours before the end of the race. That was the first time I completely lost my belief in my long-term goal, and the disappointment was huge because it meant that I had dropped out of four of the last five 24-hour runs. Back then, I even seriously considered ending my competitive career.
During my lectures, I always tell people that without those failures I would most likely not be standing in front of them, lecturing as a World Champion. I am absolutely convinced of this because in many ways these failures made me stronger. After a long break from competing, a greatly reduced training volume, and temporarily letting go of my personal goals after the aforementioned low point, I radically changed course. I took a critical look at my training, improved my parameters, and most importantly, I completely changed my attitude. These were all important factors that made the great successes in subsequent years possible.
Florian Reus: The training error was relatively easy to fix by paying more attention to a gentle buildup and avoiding the abrupt acceleration of my training volume. Back then, I worked full-time in my profession as a wine cooper. During those weeks of critical reflections, I also realized that such a physically demanding job that included seasonal peaks and which prevented training for several weeks could not be reconciled with the major demands of my performance sport. These factors gave me the courage to pursue a long-lost dream of starting a sports-related course of study. With respect to my attitude, there wasn’t that one day when everything changed, but during that time I gradually became much more humble again. After first cracking the 230 km mark in 2007, I started subsequent races with the mindset of also having to crack the 250 km sonic barrier. Back then I did not see any alternative, and I had no plan B if, during a race, it should became apparent that I would not be able to achieve that goal. When I started over, I swore to myself that what was most important in these long races was finishing, and that should never be taken for granted. With that attitude, I staged my comeback 15 months after my low point, and was able to improve my previous best performance by 10 km. I still embrace these tenets today because since then I have not prematurely dropped out of a single race.
Florian Reus: Patience is a very important factor, particularly during these phases. In such situations, I am able to stay very calm and patient by thinking about my experience. I have seen many times how one can regain one’s rhythm after a major crisis and how the page can gradually turn with respect to rankings as well. It’s not like I visualize a specific example, but it’s worth a lot to me to have this experience-based knowledge in the back of my head during such phases. Moreover, during such crises, I think it’s important not to start walking, but to keep running. That means you sometimes have to grit your teeth, but at least I know beforehand what I have gotten myself into, because these types of situations are inevitable during a long ultra-marathon. That is why it is extremely important to prepare for these phases.
Florian Reus: Actually, during competitions, I rarely experience crises caused by a lack of motivation. The inevitable lows during such a long race generally have other causes. During training, I of course have phases when I could use a little more motivation. For me, dealing with those phases largely depends on the respective phase within the season. During the time following a competition, I allow myself a lack of motivation without feeling guilty, even if that phase lasts two or three weeks longer than planned. I believe that’s important to be ready to really fight again. During the training phases in which I cannot afford a motivational low, I use short-term, purely quantitative intermediate goals. For instance, I am motivated by achieving an intended weekly running volume or by completing my self-imposed daily working hours, which also includes my training.
Florian Reus: During a race, I just try to do my thing with as much stoic calm and patience as possible. Consequently, I don’t even really tolerate baseless euphoria that often arises after running a few kilometers, because over the course of such a long race that high is most often followed by an even greater low. Sure, if, for instance, the race seems to progress in my favor, I might permit the euphoria because then there is actually a reason that might also lend me wings for the long haul. But during a competition I basically try to focus exclusively on running, meaning I am constantly busy checking my speed, thinking about my nutritional situation, or questioning my strategy for the following hours. In the beginning years of my ultra-marathon career, I often purposefully kept myself occupied with thoughts that had nothing to do with the competition, or I used my MP3 player. But over time I learned that this wasn’t really ideal for me personally, because I quickly fell into a state of lethargy.
Florian Reus: When it comes to competitions, I am actually pretty blasé now about the expectations others have of me, which usually surprises me the most. But that is probably only due to the successes or primarily my consistent performance in recent years, and the associated faith in my own performance. I feel like I don’t have anything to prove anymore, and my perceived self-efficacy before competitions like a 24-hour race is most likely very highly developed. The last few days before a race, I usually worry about catching a cold. But when I am at the start feeling healthy, I feel like I am calling the shots. As a competitive athlete, I of course put pressure on myself, but I don’t feel great pressure from others.
Florian Reus: In my estimation, the state of flow with respect to ultra-marathons is often greatly exaggerated, especially by the popular science media. When I think back to past competitions, I can remember one or two running phases, during which I experienced a state of flow. But it was ultimately just a temporary phase that presented a very small portion of the 24-hour race. To date, it has therefore never been a race-defining factor for me. Due to that fact, I don’t even try to consciously achieve a state of flow. To do so, I would probably also have to back away from my tried-and-proven recipe of complete focus on the competition.
Florian Reus: I think what’s most important in ultra-marathon is an ability we have often forgotten in the age of limitless acceleration, and that is patience. Of course this ability doesn’t just happen, but by learning from running and by consistently envisioning its immensely important impact, I am able to increase my patience. I have personally benefited greatly from these experiences in other areas of my life as well. In that regard, we may be able to learn something from the ultra-marathoners.
Florian Reus: Generally speaking, you could say the longer the race, the more important the head. Thus the mental aspect is very significant in my races. Over the past 13 years, during which I have been an active ultra-marathoner, I have learned a lot on that front from my competitions, and in retrospect the failures in particular have been very important. But I don’t do regular and methodical mental training in the classic sense. However, preparing for a competition is a regular part of my repertoire. For instance, during the final week before an important competition, I try to steer clear as best I can of other obligations. I use that time to focus on the run as much as possible. I do my best to mentally place myself in the phases that will be very difficult and to imagine what the pain in those phases of the race will feel like. That helps me to stay calm and patient during the race when these situations occur, because I mentally prepared for them.
Every person experiences crises. But why is it that some athletes stumble in times of crisis, while others navigate relatively quickly and confidently through difficult times and even emerge stronger? How can we promote mental resilience in order to cope better with crises and stressful situations in the future?
A magic word that has been quite en vogue for some years now is resilience. Resilience, or psychological resilience, is generally understood as the ability to cope with crises and to use them for personal and social development (Schumacher et al., 2005). It is regarded as a central success factor on the path to mental health and performance, particularly in sport (Hosseini & Besharat, 2010). There is a lot of advice on how to deal with crises. The crux: What is perceived as a crisis for some does not necessarily have to be a crisis for others. We all tick differently, have different goals, expectations, needs, and a different experience background.
A workshop I held with a national team makes this very clear. When asked how best to deal with crises in competition, instead of prescribing the desired “miracle pill,” I first asked the athletes present what a crisis actually is for them; exactly how they or others recognize that they are in a crisis; how they experience a crisis; what emotions, feelings, thoughts are buzzing along with it. At first the athletes were irritated because I didn’t give a generally valid answer, but instead invited people to self-reflect. It quickly became apparent, and not surprisingly, that the ways of seeing and experiencing things were different. They also differed regarding previous strategies for action in the supposed case of crisis. And against this background, new solutions and strategies are likely to yield different results and must be tried and individually adjusted.
After a stimulating, though brief, discussion I recommended that the athletes ideally acquire the appropriate psychological tools in advance and deal with potential crisis situations, or rather, challenges. You have already heard some relevant catchwords in this book, and they were also used in the workshop: process goals, mental contrasts, resources, etc. Those who are then mentally strengthened and prepared for tricky situations will most likely handle them better.
A study I conducted on the relationship between mental resistance and the use of mental strategies in endurance sports reinforces this view (Ufer, 2018). It was found that using seven mental strategies is positively related to mental resistance (see TOPS, chapter 3.7). However, it is surprising that the use of relaxation in the athletes interviewed is not related to resilience. This may be because the benefits of relaxation in general have thus far been underestimated and not as targeted.
Overall, we can say that the more often these strategies are used, the more resilient the athletes are. They seem to get through difficult times better and recover faster from stress. Thus, it’s best that mental and sport psychological training start before the crisis.
Figure 13 Connection between psychological strategies and resiliance
Using the psychological strategies mentioned seems to be a promising start for the targeted promotion of general stress resistance or resilience. However, don’t forget that environment, such as family, friends, team, trainer, caregiver, etc., can also have a decisive influence on an athlete’s psychological resistance.
What is the best strategy for dealing with injuries? Not to get any, of course. But what if it happens anyway? Then you have to use your brain to make the healing process the best it can be and accelerate it. At first glance that might sound banal, and many would probably agree. But what does it look like in practice?
Running is healthy. That’s what everyone says. And it’s true if it is done with good judgment. Nevertheless, each year approximately 30-60% of runners complain about some unfortunate injury (Keller, 2009). And that in spite of the fact that running is neither a risky nor a contact sport as is the case with many combat and game sports. Yet barely a minute goes by without someone in some forum asking for advice. Sports injuries (i.e., physical trauma) that result in temporary or permanent physical impairments or a hiatus from athletic activity seem to be the order of the day. What are the causes?
Of course we initially get the obvious answers to that question, for instance, stress and strain from rolling the ankle or a poor running technique, overloading or overtraining, fatigue, and (rarely) collisions. What causes stress and strain or overtraining? It doesn’t come from nowhere.
A number of studies show that in addition to the above reasons, psychological factors have a massive impact on the probability of injury occurrence and the duration and quality of rehabilitation after injuries.
Figure 14 Stress and sports injuries (Weinberg & Gould 2015).
Stress plays a key role in the occurrence of injuries. Many studies confirm that athletes who experience general or situational stress also have more injuries than less stressed athletes (Johnson, 2007; Williams & Andersen, 1998).
Stress only occurs whenever we perceive a situation as threatening, thus it depends on our individual perception and personality. A mountain run can trigger stress in some, pleasure in others. Some panic just thinking about hitting the wall and have a stress reaction, while others could not care less. Some are able to calm themselves when they get overly anxious, while others are plunged into a negative cycle and nearly drive themselves crazy. That is why the results from Smith and colleagues (1990) are no surprise. They found that the less developed an athlete’s mental coping strategies are, the higher the overall risk of injury.
Additional research results show that athletes engaging in sports with a very high injury risk had significantly fewer injuries after psychological training (e.g., progressive muscle relaxation, self-talk, visualizations) than the comparison group that did not receive such training (Johnson et al.; Madisson & Prapavessis, 2005).
But why does stress result in increased injuries? Attentiveness is interrupted. There are more distractions and our peripheral cognitive ability narrows. During critical moments, we may see important things or obstacles at the edge of our field of vision too late or not at all. Our reaction ability is also lessened. Simultaneously, our muscle tension increases. This stress state disrupts fine coordination and flexibility. There is probably no further need to explain what might happen. Surely you can find a few nice, injury-laden examples.
This means people who have less stress in their lives and athletic endeavors overall (e.g., competition, imminent failure) get injured less often.
Pushing your limits in order to progress is a regular part of training. It can be quite unpleasant and really tough, and it has to be to set the necessary load stimulus. But it is something entirely different when we regularly ignore or downplay signs of stress and overtraining in the spirit of “more is better.” Sports physicians think that many runners return to running too much, too fast, too often, and too hard after injuries, and caution that injuries due to overload are on the rise. Why is that?
“No pain, no gain.” “Go hard or go home.” All of these sayings speak to a certain performance culture. Suffering through pain and downplaying injuries is hip because “only the hardened get into the garden.” But let’s not forget that everything in life comes at a price. The price for embracing this macho culture where it seems sexy to endure or understate pain and where all too often short-term gain is placed ahead of long-term health is a significantly increased risk of injury (Heil & Podlok, 2012).
Growing social media networking and activity may also fuel this trend. It is very fast. Nearly every second, new status updates and videos of heroic highlights appear that quickly relativize one’s own achievements and performance, at least in those with a slightly less robust sense of self-worth, and may induce some athletes to go too fast too far in order to garner recognition and be “on the inside.”
It is not uncommon for runners and athletes who overdid it to limp around on crutches a few years later, or take an hour to get out of bed, or no longer run due to other health problems.
A cynic may draw parallels here to everyday working life and the growing burnout phenomenon. Ultimately everyone must decide for themselves how they want to live, how far they want to go, and what priorities they wish to set in life. We are in charge and can control the likelihood and frequency of injuries by managing our stress and strain. In chapter 6.7 I presented helpful instruments for the intelligent control of recovery and stress; these have been tried and tested in practice. It’s good to remember them from time to time—or to actually use them—as the following example nicely shows.
The U.S. sport psychologist Keith Bell (1980) worked on this topic with a well-known swim team. Since athletes frequently suffered from symptoms of overloading, a program was created whose primary goal was to help athletes recognize the fine difference between functional but possibly extremely unpleasant training stimulus, and signs of pain from overloading. Moreover, and that was probably the hardest part, they worked on acquiring a different attitude or mindset. With the first signs of overloading, athletes were supposed to, in good conscience and after consulting with their coach, immediately reduce their training load. Of course that is not an easy exercise and requires a sensitive balancing act as well as increasing body awareness. But the one-year project paid off. During the process, the team changed its original slogan of “No pain, no gain” to “Train hard and smart.” The result was that the athletes stayed healthy and performed better. Nice slogan, right?
You tried to avoid it, but unfortunately it happened anyway. The injury took place. Now what? How do we react? Usually pretty emotionally. Often the psychological consequences of an injury are more severe than the physical impairments. According to Hardy and Crace (1990), we can differentiate five different emotional stages or reactions, particularly after severe injuries:
Denial: “It’s not that bad.”
Frustration: “Darn, why me?” or “My stupid knee!”
Bargaining: “Okay, when this is over, it will never happen to me again” or “It’ll get better fast.”
Depression: “Poor me, I won’t be able to run for a while!”
Acceptance: “It can’t be changed. I’m injured, but life goes on.”
Of course not all athletes progress through all five of these steps in succession. Instead we can jump back and forth between the different patterns, but there is consensus that a positive effect on the healing process generally only takes place after the appropriate level of acceptance.
Many athletes and runners see their body as something that simply needs to function and as merely a means to an end (e.g., performance increases, increased sense of self-worth), and they often exploit their body accordingly. They get angry and frustrated with their body when it doesn’t perform the way they want. Often self-talk ensues along the lines of “That stupid Achilles tendon” or “My knee is acting up.” Those are the typical dysfunctional patterns that Ievlana and Orlick (1991) encountered during a study in athletes whose injuries take a particularly long time to heal. By generating frustration and stress, they not only hinder the healing process, but can also facilitate additional injuries. Since our attitude towards our body is critical to the healing process, Meiss (2009) suggests the following strategy to examine one’s relationship with their own body.
EXERCISE: EXAMINING OUR ATTITUDE TOWARDS OUR BODY
Imagine your body as an independent person, a good partner that you must treat with care, maybe even a child or a good friend you’re concerned about. Surprise yourself with the mental image that is conjured up. What does that partner look like? How does he affect you? What kind of relationship do you have with him? Now put yourself in his place and look at yourself from his perspective. What does he think of you? How is he doing? How does he feel? What does he want or expect of you?
When injuries occur more frequently, it could also be helpful to examine your personal approach to your sport as well as your inner attitudes.
When runners get injuries, it is usually to the lower extremities. So let’s look at a study that examined the rehabilitation process or the course of recovery for athletes with injuries to those areas. Ievlana and Orlick (1991) compared two extreme groups of athletes with similar knee and ankle injuries. Group 1 consisted of athletes that were able to recover from their injuries in less than five weeks. Group 2 consisted of athletes whose recovery process was very slow at more than 16 weeks. What was the reason for this enormous difference in spite of identical or similar injuries? What did the athletes in Group 1 do differently than those in Group 2? What do you think?
Here is the answer. The faster recovering group used significantly more mental strategies, such as setting specific goals and using positive self-talk, visualizations, and relaxation techniques.
Larson and colleagues (1996) conducted a similar study. They asked hundreds of coaches how their athletes that handle injuries very well differed from those that did so less well. Here, too, it became evident that primarily mental factors make the difference: a more positive attitude towards life in general, but also towards the body and the injury, more motivation, and more goal orientation.
Stress doesn’t just play a key role in injury prevention, but also in healing after an injury. Heart rate, blood pressure, and overall energy demand are higher when stressed. Muscle tension, too, which can result in increased pain and decreased blood supply to the injured area. Stress causes an increase in the release of catecholamines and glucocorticoids. This prevents our immune cells from reaching the injured areas to remove damaged tissue. Moreover, in addition to interfering with healthy sleep, stress seems to impede the production of growth hormones that are critical to the building of new, healthy tissue (Perna et al., 2003). Frustration and other stresses slow down and impede the healing process.
We have already thoroughly addressed the use and effects of movement visualizations. If you skipped over that chapter and landed here, or wish to briefly refresh your memory on that topic with regard to rehabilitation processes, I recommend the content of this passage.
What happens when we no longer use well-trained muscles? They atrophy. And when we have a cast on a leg after an operation or a leg brace or crutches that greatly restrict our movement and weight-bearing ability temporarily, the lack of stimuli—or rather lack of use—causes our muscles to sometimes atrophy extremely quickly. A formerly shapely thigh is now as thin as a rake. With mental training, we can prevent—or at least mitigate—this process. We visualize ourselves completing certain athletic movements without actually doing them.
By intensely visualizing ourselves running or cycling, we activate the exact same areas of the brain as the actual movement. The execution of real movements may be inhibited, but the excitation spreads to the muscles involved in the actual movement and can be measured there in the muscle tone. Experts refer to neuronal canalization. This means that, by merely imagining movements, we enervate the same muscles as the actual movement. The more intense the visualization, the more intense the canalization. While they are weaker overall than if we were actually jogging on the beach or cycling across the Alps, these impulses are nevertheless sufficient to significantly reduce muscular atrophy during phases of restricted movement. And this also decreases our muscular imbalances as well as the amount of time needed to rebuild later.
Sports injuries quickly result in impaired inter- and intramuscular fine coordination. Top athletes notice this within a day or two, even after just slight injuries. Longer absences result in intensive rehabilitation. Fine coordination must be relearned together with systematic muscle building. The aforementioned mechanism is effective here, too. The use of mental training sequences makes it possible to relearn and establish movement patterns and routines significantly faster. Studies have repeatedly verified the positive effects of mental training on movement coordination (Roland & Zilles, 1996)
And ultimately the use of movement visualizations known to have a positive emotional effect also makes psychological sense and can benefit physical therapy and rehabilitation. Vividly reliving past successful runs or anticipating a particularly nice future run or event generates positive emotions and a more confident basic mood. Brain research tells us that positive feelings are, in a way, lubricants for learning. Let’s also make use of this for rehabilitation after sports injuries.
In summary: Muscular atrophy and the length of time needed for laborious rebuilding can be reduced with mental training in the form of intensive movement visualization.
Furthermore, we already mentioned that intense mental imagery can also influence supposed autonomic bodily processes. You may be familiar with this old trick: When your hands are cold, vividly imagine more blood flowing to your hands. Also imagine a warm color, like a dark orange, flowing through your hands. Some people also imagine what their hands would feel like if they held them over a pleasantly warm fire. Try it some time. And if it doesn’t work right away and your hands don’t get warmer, you already know that practice makes perfect!
One thing’s for sure: Focusing attention on a specific body region, in this case the hands, can bring about desired physiological changes in precisely that area. Freedivers and fakirs, that are able to shift large amounts of blood to the desired areas via intense focus or mediation, have reported the same. It can be assumed that every person possesses the ability to bolster healing processes via intense mental imagery and focus (Schmid, 2010).
If our performance doesn’t consist of running as fast, as far, or as enjoyably as possible, but rather to recover as quickly and as smoothly as possible, the optimal interplay between body and mind is of critical importance. Body-focused measures as well as physiotherapy should be supplemented with mental strategies to facilitate the perfect healing success. This would take a person’s totality into consideration and can have a huge positive effect on recovery. The following suggestions are based on empirical studies and working with injured athletes. They have a positive effect on post-injury rehabilitation.
Appreciating one’s own body: Someone who treats his body generously and appreciatively, and speaks to it or the affected body regions in a positive manner, does well by himself. The opposite (i.e., confrontation and conflict) leads to frustration, stress, and unhelpful emotions.
Goal management: Specific goals help us increase our motivation and commitment. What would be a realistic date to start competing again? How many times a week should I do rehabilitation exercises? What are my specific goals for each week? Do I have a tendency to do more than is sensible on a day when I feel a little better? If so, it is all the more important to follow a consistent schedule to avoid the risk of torpedoing the recovery by overloading.
Positive self-talk: Instead of “Shoot, it takes so long,” “Darn tendon,” or “I’m just not getting back in shape,” it would be better to say, “My body is taking the time it needs,” “Be patient; it is time well spent because you will come out of this phase reinvigorated,” “Whatever happens, and whatever I feel, I am getting better each day,” or “My injury is mine, right now it is a part of me. By taking good care of it I am also taking good care of myself and will recover (more) quickly.”
Relaxation techniques: Injuries initially result in frustration and anger. But the ingredients for recovery are relaxation, rest, and hope. So use the described techniques to reduce stress and frustration and to generate positive emotions. The effects are varied and lead to relief from pain and muscle tension as well as improved circulation and additional positive hormonal changes.
Visualization: Regular movement visualizations help us work on our fitness and coordination. As a result, we experience less deterioration and increase our net training time in spite of our limited mobility. Moreover, we are able to certifiably intensify our physical healing processes through intense visualizations (Schmid, 2010). Regularly shift your focused attention to the injured or ill parts of the body. Talk to your body out loud or in your mind. Imagine healing taking place before your mind’s eye. Imagine metabolic processes being stimulated (or suppressed), and what that feels like and how it affects the relevant part of the body. Imagine healing colors flowing through the affected parts of the body. Vividly remembering past runs that went perfectly also helps to keep your movement memory fresh. Imagining that you have overcome the injury and your form is even better than before can be incredibly motivating.
Setbacks: Sometimes it happens that rehab hits a plateau, or we experience the occasional setback. That’s when it is important to stick with it and keep our eyes on our goals and continue to pursue them. Positive goal visualizations, self-talk, and support from friends and family are helpful.
Thought control: Injury phases can be exhausting. Makes sense. And even with the best intentions, negative images and thoughts can sometimes crop up. It is human, but not helpful. We should acknowledge them and then insert a neat thought-stopping technique and refocus our attention on positive, constructive things. Due to two operations in 2015, I have personally had to rearrange or cancel not only athletic goals, but also many professional and private commitments on a very large scale. That can be pretty frustrating. But is frustration productive at that moment? Not usually. Accepting, rethinking, and rearranging are better for our emotional equilibrium and thus for healing.
Injury as an opportunity (part 1): When we are on a forced break for a while, we are able to enjoy other important things in life that otherwise might fall by the wayside. We can get reorganized and review our priorities. We have more time to learn new things, for instance about medicine, psychology, or other topics unrelated to running.
Smiling: Smiling has always been the best medicine. It has been known for ages and now has also been proven scientifically. Whenever we are in pleasant company, watch a fun comedy, or attend a party (Easy now!), positive feelings trigger the release of endorphins which reduce pain and muscle tension and counteract stress and its ramifications.
Relativization: We often take our sport and ourselves too seriously and as too important. A slightly more relaxed attitude and the realization that a sports injury isn’t a life-threatening crisis, but rather a temporary inconvenience from which we will most likely recover quickly and from which we may learn a few things, feels much better and makes it a lot easier to deal with. So let’s not get carried away, and let’s use the injury as a resource that helps us get a little smarter and learn more about ourselves.
Injury as an opportunity (part 2): Maybe you could also ask yourself why the injury happened now. What message might it hold? Is it a wake-up call? If so, what does it mean? If I am unable to immediately understand and relate to it, assuming the injury is an action from the depths of my subconscious and is actually well intended, what could that intention be?
EXERCISE: BASIC APPROACHES TO HEALING MENTAL IMAGERY
You can use the following imagery to support healing processes. You will most likely think of other images as soon as you get into the process and begin the visualization in a relaxed state.
Focus intensely on the location of your injury. Think about warmth or other pleasant relaxing feelings flooding the area.
Imagine more and more white blood cells traveling to the injured area.
Imagine injured tissue and other metabolic substances being removed, and muscles mending.
You might even envision a type of magician or healer pointing a magic wand at the injured area or touching it, causing healing energy to affect your body from the outside. You might imagine feeling a tingling sensation inside the injury.
Frequently retrieve the image of what it will be like when the injury is completely healed.
And remember: “Imagination is more important than knowledge, because knowledge is limited.” —A. Einstein
EXERCISE: HEALING MENTAL IMAGERY IN MORE DETAIL
I find a comfortable, relaxed position. My body relaxes. I take deep breaths. With each breath I take, I feel the energy streaming into my body. As I exhale, all of the tension leaves my body through my nose. I feel the soles of my feet relax. I let the relaxation travel from my feet to my ankles. I feel the relaxation spread from my calves and knees to my thighs. I allow the relaxation to gradually spread throughout my body until it reaches my fingertips and the top of my head. I feel pleasantly warm and soft. My eyelids are heavy. I again notice the relaxation flooding my entire body. I inhale, briefly hold my breath, and allow my muscles to relax even deeper as I slowly exhale my remaining tension. I enjoy the feeling of relaxation for a few moments. Now I shift my attention to my injury. I create a mental image of my injury. I focus intensely on the affected area. I can see the relaxation activate my immune system. Strength streams to my injury. Healthy tissue begins to grow. Dead and injured tissue is removed. Toxins, bacteria, and anything unhealthy is removed. My body is cleansed. Healing spreads like light inside the injury. It touches every nook and cranny and forces the pain to retreat. I exhale the pain and inflammation. I inhale health and tranquility. The injured area gets smaller. It is completely surrounded by relaxation. New, healthy cells form. My immune system gets stronger and stronger. My body works for me. It heals. I inhale and exhale. I am completely relaxed and think about the healing process taking place inside my body. I feel pleasantly warm and peaceful. I breathe. Now I decide if I want to slowly wake up or drift off to sleep… (Ullrich, 2013).
Ultimately we all wish to get back in shape as quickly as possible after a sports injury and get back on our feet. And it is nice when you are able to structure this process in the best possible way by using cutting-edge strategies. But even with all that motivation during rehab, the main premise is and remains this: Patience is a tiger’s sharpest tooth.
In late May 2015, I was at a sports clinic for outpatient surgery when right after the procedure, while making small talk, I learned from the nurse that the boyfriend of a runner who had won a 230 km race just a week ago was waiting two cubicles over for his surgery. I briefly thought out loud that it could be Kristina, who had just won the JUNUT ultra-marathon, when I heard a cheerful, “Hey, is that you, Michele? No, it couldn’t be. You’re here, too?” from next door. A crazy coincidence and a great source of material for this practical digression.
Of course, we can get lots of good and helpful tips from the Internet. And so I immediately began to search for suggestions for my upcoming rehab. As is so often the case, opinions vary widely and in the end things can get confusing pretty fast, because not all knee operations are created equal. One meniscus operation is not like another meniscus operation, and one meniscus suture is not like another meniscus suture. The devil is in the details and significantly impacts rehab requirements. While my running buddy, who was operated on by the same doctor at practically the same time, was able to resume normal loadbearing after just one week, I was faced with wearing a knee brace for six weeks, crutches, and decreased bending and loading, as well as several months of exercise hiatus and very gradual moderate build-up. Both of us were there for an outpatient knee, or Meniscus, repair, but the specific knee structure, the endogenous tissue, were completely different. And even with the same procedures, healing processes can vary greatly.
When we search for tips and recipes we should always remember that every body and every procedure, but also every genesis, is very individual. Sensible suggestions should take this into account, but rarely do so in forums or on community sites, and can therefore do more harm than good.
Maybe you are one of those runners who run relatively far, often, and long. If that’s the case, people you know may have called you an exercise addict, more or less in jest. But maybe you are also part of a group of average runners, who previously have not stood out with their running performance, but who, by implementing the mental strategies in this book, have gotten such a motivational thrill and performance boost that you have trouble keeping your feet still and are drawn almost magically out onto the course. So at some point you may ask yourself (if the people around you don’t do so first) if you have become addicted to running.
Those who train very often and a lot compared to other athletes are quickly pigeonholed as exercise addicts. The media also frequently covers exercise addiction as a topic, often rather superficially. Many runners react to such coverage with a chuckle. Some, it seems, feel that they or their sport are being targeted and also react with less reflective comments. And while the topic of exercise addiction may not be one of the core topics of this book, I nevertheless find it important and beneficial to take a valid look at this issue. It will allow us to be better informed and able to participate in the next discussion about exercise addiction while also knowing whether or not this attribute applies to us. And we will be able to provide some guidance to others.
I had a long conversation with Melanie Schipfer, who did scientific research on the exercise addiction phenomenon as part of her dissertation, and in the process developed a diagnostic tool we would like to present for the purpose of self-testing, after this interview.
Melanie Schipfer: I started running in late 2008, and ran my first marathon in April 2009, more or less after training for a half marathon planned in mid-June of that year. Since then I cannot imagine my life without running. In 2010, I switched to triathlons, participated in every distance class, and ended the season with a long distance event (3.8 – 180 – 42.2 km) that wasn’t really planned. Ever since then I am in love with this distance. My biggest athletic accomplishments are:
winning first place as part of the German National long-distance team title in 2014 (Challenge Roth, Team Erdinger, alcohol-free, together with Julia Gayer and Daniela Sämmler) and
winning fourth place, AK Ostsee Man Glücksburg (2015).
Melanie Schipfer: Back in 2009, my father labeled me as an exercise addict. Of course that led me to do some self-reflection and soul searching. But whenever I was out with my club mates or training partners, it seemed to me that I was rather inexperienced and completely normal. In 2010, at the start of my Master’s program in applied psychology, I asked Dr. Oliver Stoll when someone can be considered an exercise addict. In a sense, the answer to my question was the starting signal for my subsequent doctoral thesis. It was: “I can’t answer that. Because according to ICD-10 and DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders), there is no such thing as exercise addiction.” And there I was. There are reports in the media all the time about alleged exercise addicts, but the diagnostic manuals DSM-IV and ICD-10 do not categorize exercise addiction. My curiosity was aroused.
What fascinates me about exercise addiction? Everything! But among other things, the conversations with endurance athletes I conducted as part of my dissertation, and the conversations and discussions with their family members. The realization of how important it is to also consider the position and perspective from which the athlete’s behavior with respect to exercise is viewed. Are you yourself a part of the scene and active? Or are you more of the opposite? At some point you ask yourself, “What is normal?” For some, it is normal to train ten hours a week in addition to juggling a job and family. Others cannot even fathom that and consider it anything but normal. Is an athlete who works towards an important personal goal with vigor, an edge, passion, determination, sacrifice, blood, sweat, and tears an exercise addict? If that is the case, does that mean all of our professional athletes and Olympic athletes are exercise addicts—or more accurately workaholics—or simply passionate athletes? What motivates the athlete? Do all those many hours of athletic activity help athletes to
complete the necessary training to achieve personal goals?
run away from, suppress, or compensate for a problem they don’t want to deal with?
have a reliable method (or even the only method) to achieve a sense of well-being or inner equilibrium?
Melanie Schipfer: Currently there still is no generally accepted definition of exercise addiction. The scientific community differentiates between primary and secondary exercise addiction. Primary exercise addiction occurs as an independent phenomenon, whereby the focus is strictly on athletic activity. The sport serves as an end in itself, and the addictive behavior is often linked to feelings of anxiety, depression, or even psychoses.
Tomlinson (2010) describes exercise addiction as a psychological dependency on activity that must be performed at least once a day. If the athletic activity cannot be performed, those affected suffer from anxiety and feelings of guilt. They engage in athletic activity in spite of injury or illness, and even manipulate social and family engagements to ensure their daily athletic activity. The sport can be practiced independently of others, is not competition oriented, and is easy to execute.
In my dissertation, I proceeded on the assumption that primary exercise addiction can be viewed as a behavior that provides a sense of control, and the restoration of mental equilibrium that is threatened by, for instance, the occurrence of a critical life event or problem. Those affected view the sport as the only effective means to compensate, as well as experience and restore well-being (by decreasing alternatives). Since the problem is not solved but suppressed, the cause becomes hidden. During exercise deprivation the hidden problem resurfaces and leads to a perceived loss of situational control and wellbeing. Withdrawal symptoms and psychological strain follow, which must be countered with more exercise.
Secondary exercise addiction is a behavior pattern found particularly in patients with eating disorders (Anorexia nervosa, Bulimia nervosa) with obsessive-compulsive and perfectionist tendencies. Among the most frequently stated reasons for exercising are calorie consumption and weight management, affecting figure and attractiveness, and regulating negative mood or negative body image, as well as anxiety and tension.
Melanie Schipfer: In national and international professional literature, specific numbers on the prevalence* of exercise addition are low. Publications list a primary exercise addiction morbidity rate in Germany of 3.5% to approximately 4.5% of polled athletes, while international studies show between 3% and 45.9% of polled athletes. In our sedentary society, we can assume the morbidity rate to be extremely low. By contrast, the prevalence* of secondary exercise addiction is estimated to be much higher than primary exercise addiction, since the frequency of excessive athletic activity among people with eating disorders lies between 40% and 70%.
I have no hard and fast answer as to the level of psychological strain in those affected. But it is difficult to achieve problem awareness without psychological strain. And without problem awareness, it is difficult to help those affected since people are generally only prepared to change their behavior when the amount of psychological strain has become unbearable. And let’s be honest: Why would we want to give up something that is good for us and that we have no problem with?
Melanie Schipfer: The following characteristics can be indicators of primary exercise addiction:
The athlete has no control over his or her behavior.
The affected individuals experience psychological strain caused by the latent problem as well as the exercise addiction.
The athlete experiences withdrawal symptoms (e.g., restlessness, aggressiveness, tension, irritability) on days without athletic activity.
The motivation to exercise is not the desire to improve performance, but the desire to satisfy the addiction.
Engaging in the sport primarily serves the compensation of one or more latent problems (e.g., the gaining of control or restoration of the mental equilibrium).
*Prevalence is the rate of people afflicted with a particular illness at a particular time or during a particular period of time (compared to the number of those examined).
The sport’s health benefits are irrelevant; those affected exercise even during illness, infections, and overloading.
Competitions tend to be meaningless to exercise addicts; upcoming competitions serve as a justification to exercise.
The indicators of secondary exercise addiction are similar to those of primary exercise addiction, but an eating disorder must chiefly be present.
Melanie Schipfer: To date, there are no guidelines for the treatment of exercise addiction. During my dissertation research, I came across few suggestions for the treatment of exercise addiction. A suggested first step was a reduction in the amount of exercise under a doctor’s supervision to allow the body to adapt. During the second step, the affected individual’s dysfunctional beliefs could be identified and alternatives created and cultivated via motivational interviewing or cognitive behavioral therapy. But as long as no research-based guidelines for the treatment of exercise addiction have been published, sports addiction will likely be treated in the same manner as other behavioral addictions.
EXERCISE: AM I AN EXERCISE ADDICT?
Please consider as exercise any regular activity you do to raise your heart rate, such as swimming, cycling, running, aerobics, free weight training, etc. There are no right or wrong answers in this questionnaire. Everyone will answer these questions differently, depending on the way it fits him or her personally. Please decide spontaneously on a scale from 1 (does not apply at all) to 7 (always applies) to what extent the following statements regarding your athletic activity apply to you over the past three months.
The questionnaire* to record the exercise habits of endurance athletes is a screening tool that allows athletes to be classified as exercise committed, exercise focused, and at risk of exercise addiction. The classification is based on guidelines that were developed with the help of approximately 2,000 endurance athletes. However, an informed diagnosis can only be made during a personal psychological consultation.
* The presented questionnaire is a translated but not yet final validated version of the original German version from Melanie Schipfer’s book on sports addiction in endurance sports (Schipfer, 2015).
1.Expectation of positive consequences: Scale value = (item value 1 + 3 + 4 + 13) / 4 Represents pleasant feelings and inner satisfaction after physical activity. The knowledge that positive consequences (e.g., well-being) occur during or after exercise is the stimulus to achieve these consequences again through athletic activity. Here exercise serves as a positive amplifier for the development, form, and preservation of well-being (i.e., expectation of positive consequences). When the affected person is unable to exercise, achieving a sense of well-being is denied. We can go on the assumption that exercise is generally associated with a pleasant feeling and inner satisfaction, a state that addicts as well as non-addicts experience.
2.Problems with social environment: Scale value = (item value 10 + 12 + 14) / 3 Shows a clash between exercise volume, job, family, and other social obligations. Constant exercise consumption can lead to neglect of the social environment and associated obligations. With its outside view of the athlete’s behavior, the social environment can be seen as both a supportive and a moderating supervisory body. If exercise is the cause of increasing conflict with the social environment, it can be expected that this characteristic is present to a greater degree in exercise addicts and those at risk of exercise addiction than unaffected athletes.
3.Health reasons: Scale value = (item no. 11 + 15 + 16) / 3
Represents the health-promoting aspect of exercise and sport. High values would speak against exercise addiction (or the risk of exercise addiction) and for commitment to exercise since the sport’s health-related aspect is a priority. For people with exercise addiction (or who are at risk of exercise addiction), health is not the primary motivation, rather they engage in the sport or exercise at the expense of their health. This dimension is therefore inverted to reflect the cumulative value of the overall score.
4.Withdrawal symptoms: Scale value = (item no. 2 + 5 + 6) / 3
Stands for occurring symptoms of exercise addiction and represent a key aspect in the diagnosis of exercise addiction. They are considered difficult to diagnose since exercise addicts generally barely accept or tolerate phases of no exercise. A high value in this subscale makes it possible to classify respondents as symptomatic but not addicted or at risk. To be able to call it exercise addiction, the values from Expectation of positive consequences, Problems with social environment, and Exercise as a compensation method must be included in the result analysis.
5.Exercise as a compensation method: Scale value = (item no. 7 + 8 + 9) / 3
Stands for the use of exercise or sport to compensate for one or more latent problems (e.g., critical life events such as the loss of a family member, separation, unemployment, or serious illness) and to offset a concomitant psychological imbalance, thereby generating a subjectively perceived gain in control. If the affected person is unable to exercise or engage in the sport, they lack the critical means for compensation. This brings out the latent problem, followed by a subjectively perceived loss of control. The sport or exercise and the associated positive consequences (e.g., well-being) restore the subjective feeling of being in control and the mental equilibrium. This can lead to compulsive behavior with respect to sports. This dimension is one of the main criteria for exercise addiction. It was therefore double-weighted when the overall score was created.
6.Overall score:
Scale values: (Expectation of positive consequences + Problems with social environment + (8 - Health reasons) + Withdrawal symptoms + (Compensation method x 2))
Table 21 Classification of your results.
So, are you an exercise addict? Most likely not, and that’s good to know, right? In the future, when people make stupid exercise addict comments, you now can confidently reply, “Nope, I’m not! I tested negative! Everything is fine the way it is.” But maybe the test gave you food for thought. That would also be a valuable outcome. That means we have achieved your goal.
Disturbed Personalities: Are frequent and extreme runners actually crazy?
In the previous chapter, we demystified the subject of sports addiction some and certainly relativized the actual significance for many athletes. But there is another cliché that many passionate sportsmen and women, at least in German-speaking countries, are confronted with again and again: “Don’t you have to be a little crazy to do such things?” Crazy, crazy, somehow disturbed, at least unlike others. These are the pigeonholes into which many outside of extreme running place runners. Though the comments are not really meant to be mean, often they are perceived as disparaging, or at the very least, annoying. But what is it about these comments? Are runners who are on the move relatively often and for a long time, or who like to look for extreme adventures in unusual places, perhaps actually a little disturbed, or at least tick differently than the others?
Messed-Up Personalities?
What does crazy really mean? Our everyday understanding of crazy and disturbed always implies “being different from the others,” but otherwise remains rather vague, which is why we first want to take a look at science. According to DSM (diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, American Psychiatric Association, 2013), mental disorders are “a persistent pattern of inner experience and behavior that deviates markedly from the expectations of the socio-cultural environment.” The magic word here is “enduring.” We can (and should) all do something extraordinary from time to time. We speak of disturbances, however, only in deeper, inflexible patterns of thinking, feeling, and acting that affect life and cause suffering. However, one might wonder if the term disorder is even correct since 14% of the total population can be diagnosed with it, says British psychology professor Dutton in his book on psychopaths (Dutton, 2012). And look at what’s going on every day in politics, in the kitchens and offices of companies, in the stock exchange, in football stadiums… So it might make sense to talk only about personalities. This approach is confirmed by a study that shows that all personality disorders listed in the DSM can be mapped using the characteristics of five central personality traits, the “Big Five” (Saulsman & Page, 2004).
Personality Coordinates
The Big Five model is the most widely used model to describe human personality (McCrae & Costa, 1999). The model includes five relatively stable parameters, each with contrasting character traits, and it can be used to make very accurate predictions about health, performance, occupational preferences/strengths, and personal development (table 22).
Table 22 Big Five personality model
Big Five factors |
Weakly developed |
Strongly pronounced |
Open to experience |
Conservative, cautious, practical, adjusted, loves routine |
Innovative, curious, imaginative, independent, loves variety |
Conscientiousness |
Messy, careless, impulsive |
Organized, careful, self-disciplined |
Extroversion |
Cautious, serious, reserved |
Sociable, cordial, fun-loving |
Tolerability |
Unscrupulous, suspicious, uncooperative |
Compassionate, trusting, helpful |
Neuroticism |
Calm, secure, self-satisfied |
Vulnerable, anxious, worried, insecure, self-pitying |
Let’s get back to my initial question. There have already been several studies on the personality of long-distance runners. There were no significant differences between (ultra-) marathon runners and the normal population (Janouch, 2016, Stoll & Rolle, 1997). But does this also apply to the “even more extreme types” who cope with particularly long or difficult distances? They may not differ from the norm or the other runners. Doesn’t there have to be something to all the comments about the “crazy” and extreme athletes?
To find an answer, I compared the Big Five reference data of more than 1300 people (Rammstedt et al., 2013) with the survey results from hundreds of runners (Ufer, 2018). I then divided the runners into three groups, depending on their longest distance so far:
1.Up to 42 km: marathon or shorter
2.Up to 161 km/100 miles: ultramarathon
3.Over 161 km: Extreme ultramarathon
The last category is mainly about those I’ve interviewed within the context of technically and climatically difficult races, sometimes lasting several days, in the desert, the rainforest, or the Arctic Circle. Media representatives and marathon runners often describe these races as extreme due to their special length and complex challenges, such as extreme heat or cold, self-sufficiency, difficult route planning, challenging terrain, and so on. For simplicity’s sake, I followed this common perception and named the third category “extreme ultramarathon.” But now it’s getting exciting. What were my results?
Figure 15 Personality profiles of runners
If we analyze the personality profiles of the groups in more detail, the following becomes apparent:
The values for extreme ultramarathon runners are initially in the standard value range and show the same characteristic pattern as the reference group (i.e., the same ascent and descent). They are relatively close to the standard profile and are the only subgroup that does not deviate significantly from the reference values in any parameter. So we can give them the all-clear: Frequent and extreme runners are not crazy.
What surprised me, however, was this: Those who have run marathons and shorter distances so far differ significantly in four dimensions from the norm (except for openness). The differences in neuroticism are particularly noteworthy. According to their self-assessment, the emotional instability of those who have run marathons or less so far seems to be significantly higher, while the extroversion, conscientiousness, and tolerability seem to be lower than the norm. The latter could be of interest in the sense that high values for conscientiousness and tolerability are considered to promote performance.
To sum up: The longer or possibly more extreme the run, the closer the personality profile is to the norm (except in the case of tolerability, which is likely to have positive effects). On average, the run-of-the-mill and extreme runners seem to be just as crazy, or not crazy, as the rest of society. That’s good to know, isn’t it? Perhaps not something I would include in a scientific journal, but the conclusion I can draw here is: The available data could suggest that it would be crazy not to run much and extremely. The frequent runners among you should have enough fodder if someone wants to give you the “crazy” label again. And if you’re not a frequent or extreme runner yet, you might consider becoming one. There seem to be good reasons to. At least, it would almost be more “normal.”
Can the sunny side of life also be the dark side of life? This is where this book comes full circle. The description of mental training programs and strategies usually begins with the subject of goals. We like to say, “Nothing motivates more than success” or “Success is achieving your goals.” But what happens when the goals you achieved weren’t set by you or don’t meet your needs? Does that really motivate you? Does it make you happy?
Imagine you are able to participate in a personality training program at a well-known hotel, and the experienced trainer invites you and a few other guests to change clothes and meet on the running track of a neighboring athletic field in half an hour. Before you line up on the starting line, you are welcome to prepare for a few minutes, because after the starting signal you will have to run as good as you can a distance of 1200 m, or three laps. All participants are ready and the trainer holds up the starting gun. How do you prepare for the start? What is your stance?
The gun goes off and you take off. What would you be thinking at that moment? What would your movements look like or feel like? What would you do? Mentally place yourself briefly in that position. You would probably do the same thing as most other participants: step on the gas pedal and run the 1200 m as fast as possible, then, understandably, gasp for air at the finish line with more or less heavy legs. So far, so good!
This experiment is actually conducted as part of a personality training program, the focus of which is to reflect the ingrained ways of thinking, points of view, and behaviors, and the influence of the group on the individual. The following questions lead to contemplation after the conclusion of the experiment: What is actually good for me? How well do I pay attention to myself? What might have been good or better for me during the experiment? How do I generally do something good for myself?
And, to come straight to the point: Could the prompt to “run as well as possible” mean something completely differentthan reaching the finish line performance oriented and as fast as possible? Maybe it would have done your soul and your body good at that moment if you had run particularly slow and relaxed. Maybe you would have enjoyed having a pleasant conversation while running or maybe you would have enjoyed the fresh air, the scent of the flowers, or the view of the landscape, if the experiment had taken place on a balmy summer evening. Following the instruction may have been good, or maybe not.
What’s good for someone is ultimately very personal, and someone can be considered well off when they have a sense of what is good and feels right in a particular situation. In some situations, it could also be good to confidently emancipate oneself from requirements, demands, and expectations and just say “No.”
Why am I telling you this? It’s simple: It reminds me of a number of my running buddies, some of my coaching clients, and myself.
The experiment can reveal how we may lose touch with ourselves and our innermost needs and goals, and how we adopt points of view or goals that aren’t in line with our own, usually unconscious, motives. But when our very own goals are displaced by the goals of, for instance, the running group or society, it frequently leads to motivational and performance blocks.
The renowned personality psychologist Dr. Kuhl even points out that the discrepancy between conscious goals and unconscious needs can be a stressor that can lower life satisfaction and well-being, and is a proven significant risk factor for mental health and a trigger for depression and anxiety, as well as psychosomatic complaints such as head and stomachaches and increased risk of infection. Especially affected are so-called state-oriented people, meaning people who worry or who worry too much about past, present, and future things and have difficulty letting go of failures, while action-oriented people are able to focus their thoughts on executing an action and more easily block out failures. Research shows that state-oriented people are more likely to set goals or take on goals that are not in line with their needs.
For someone with a highly developed competitive streak, a strict, demanding running program with an appropriate competitive event calendar would be a great fit. But would it make sense for someone who is searching for a relaxing balance to a stressful job, or seeks a pleasant social life, to power through regular interval training and prepare for a 2:50 h marathon? I often encounter people who diverge from their goals more or less unnoticed and focus on the goals of others, as part of a gradual process. And thereby risk suffering the aforementioned consequences.
One simple question might help us examine the coherence of our goals: Does what I do really make me happy? If so, that’s great. If not, it is possible that we have passed up our needs. We can avoid doing so by also listening to our gut when we formulate or examine our goals. Our gut will give us reliable information about what is good for us, regardless of what our head tries to rationally ram down our throats. All we need then is the courage to follow it…
And that is precisely what happened to me in 2014, during the desert run in Namibia. At times I was faster than ever, and in spite of modest training even ran within touching distance of the subsequent winner after the first day, during the following 2 or 3 stages. The result? A fantastic time. Personal best! Awesome success! Still, despite being an extremely strong runner, I wasn’t happy. Anger and boredom arose. Any conversation within the lead group was limited to, “Which way?”, “Right!”, “Left!”. I wasn’t able to take as many photos as I would have liked, and I realized that it wasn’t my desire to run through Namibia really fast and be at the front. Spending relaxing time outdoors with like-minded people, enjoying nature, discovering new places, that’s where I MYSELF currently draw strength and joy. Admittedly, I didn’t run that fast completely voluntarily. Like many others, I had orientation problems on the first day. I simply did not see route markers on the trail, and on the second day I attached myself to the lead group for safety reasons because the participants running behind me were so much slower than I. At least that’s what I thought. Hindsight is 20/20. And so I slowed down towards the end. This experience was very timely for me, and while it was successful from an athletic point of view, it was primarily beneficial and subsequently helped me remember what is really important to me and good for me.
If you go your own way, no one can pass you.
—Marlon Brando
