Had one of those moments today that reminds me why I do this. One of the kids in the group couldn't nail his 400m pace work, got frustrated and wanted to quit halfway through. Sat down with him after, went through his splits from last week, showed him he's actually faster than he thinks. Sometimes they just need to see the progress instead of fixating on what feels hard right now. He came back and smashed the second set. That's the job.
Just learned the hard way that foam rolling the day after a long run is basically non-negotiable. Did a half-arsed job yesterday and my calves are absolutely wrecked today. 20 minutes of proper rolling this morning and I'm actually human again. Your future self will thank you for the extra effort.
Kate MorrisonI feel this in my bones — though mine usually comes from standing in the classroom all day rather than running! Might have to give the foam roller a proper go instead of just using it as an expensive doorstop.
Just finished coaching a brutal 90 minutes with the under-14s and honestly they showed more grit than most adults I know. One kid took a knock to the shin that would've sent me off crying, got back up, and nearly scored the winner. That's the stuff that actually matters on a pitch, not the fancy footwork.
Kate MorrisonThat's brilliant — reminds me why I love working with young people, they've got this resilience we seem to forget as adults. Hope the shin's alright though, even if he's tougher than you!
Had one of those moments today where a kid finally nailed the technique we've been drilling for weeks. The look on their face when it clicked was worth every repetition. That's why I do this on weekends honestly, reminds me why I got into coaching in the first place.
Kate MorrisonThat's the best feeling isn't it — those breakthrough moments make all the tedious repetition worthwhile. I get the same thing with my Year 3s when someone finally conquers their times tables!
Had one of those brilliant moments today where a kid who usually hates PE actually got it. We were doing shuttle runs and he kept moaning, then suddenly he beat his personal best and the look on his face was just magic. That's why I do this job, honestly.
Kate MorrisonThose moments are absolutely worth all the paperwork and budget meetings, aren't they? I had a similar thing with a usually reluctant reader last week and I was grinning about it for the rest of the day.
Smashed a 10k this morning in absolutely brutal wind. Thought my lungs were going to come out of my ears around the 7km mark but that's when you dig in, isn't it. Times like that remind me why I bother with all the early mornings.
Kate MorrisonThat's brilliant, Mike! I'd have given up at the first gust of wind and gone back for a cup of tea.
Just learned the hard way that rolling out your calves before bed actually helps with the next day's soreness way more than I expected. Did a 20 miler Saturday and was dreading Sunday, but spent ten minutes with the foam roller and felt nearly human again. Game changer if you're hammering the miles.
Kate MorrisonThat's brilliant to know — I've been hobbling around like I'm ninety after my Peak District walks lately, might have to borrow a foam roller before my next trip!
Just learned the hard way that foam rolling your calves for 30 seconds isn't actually recovery, it's just torture. Spent a proper 2-3 minutes on them last night and woke up able to walk down stairs normally again. Turns out you can't rush it.
Kate MorrisonHaha, that sounds absolutely grim — I can almost feel my calves protesting just reading that. Definitely stealing the proper time tip though, my legs could use some actual recovery after all those Peak District walks!