Succeed in Ultra Running - 100% Mental Fortitude

For me the ultra runners mindset and the training of that mental edge are the most important aspects not only in our sport, but in life. In case of motivation, we can talk about the never giving up attitude, the doing of things that we don't like, the cold showers in the morning, the meditation and so on. But motivation is just a little part of drive. It is just a minuscule section of will. It can fade away, while the goals and objectives and obligations stay. I love motivation. However creating a habit of mental fortitude, imprinting the action of acting correctly when there is no motivation, controlling and using emotions to fuel and empower you, are all more crucial for the feeling of success. For the feeling of self satisfaction.

Training Mental Fortitude

The question is how to train mental fortitude. Also why to train it. There is the very first step. The most crucial step. The most important step. LOOKING FOR and FINDING YOUR PERSONAL WHY. If you do not have a major goal, a major life driving passion, a gigantesque plan, a vision or a dream, you must act and look for it.
I very often talked about this subject, that if you don't keep on studying with ongoing education, you simply don't enlarge your sight, to possibly find your passion. I believe that every human has the possibility and the right to become great at something. I mean exceptionally, elite and uniquely great, if not the greatest !

I recently have seen an old interview snippet with a man, looking like a leader of a sect or a new-come religion, from the 90's I guess. He says something like this: If you don't follow your passion, if you keep on raping your soul with the ignorance your personal calling, your bitterness will rotten your soul, eating it away slowly, making your life more and more difficult, boring and useless, till you die.
I also reread The Book of 5 Rings from Musashi. He says the same.
I listen often the podcast of Finding Mastery with Michael Gervais. He talks about the same all the time. I also am a big fan of Shaolins and their look at life, their beliefs and the way they act. They often have life long precise goals. 

When somebody did not find his or her passion and her vision, it can be felt. If he really concentrated on him just for a couple of hours, he would start asking questions of, what am I doing with my life, where am I going, why am I doing this ? Some people are lost, they don't know, that they should have a vision or passion, they don't know what questions should they ask, not even that they should even ask, or that there are questions ? On the contrary too, some are totally unaware of the work that universe set out to them, but still somehow, without their conscious effort, they are totally on the correct path. 

So yes, before training your mental edge, you have to understand that you need a personal call ! If you don't have one, you should set out a goal to find one ! It is this simple. It is very simple ! One must understand that it is simple ! Not simple to do it ! Simple to accept and understand it ! You either have a call, or you are looking for it ! No other options.  

Either have it, or looking for it !

The Drive

I don't really think, that I found my passion or that I gave 100% of myself to that passion yet. I am 40 years old. I still have time for sure, but I am not lazy about this.
I read a lot, including articles and books. I am not doom scrolling on social media, but I often go through video snippets for 5 or 10mintues. There are loads of crap, but I filter out stuff and I find gold very often. This is how I found Shi Heng Yi, David Goggins, Rhonda Patrick, Huberman, The Triathlon Hour and so on. Podcasts are one of the best sort of educations. I have the information and education to make good choices in life, to kind of shake me in the good direction, to know more on where I am going. 

What is my dream, what is my vision ? Well, if I closed my eyes and started imagining and dreaming, I can see 3 or 4 things. It has been like this since I have started running and mountain running.
All of my imaginary pictures are outdoors. All. I really mean that all of that are outdoors in nature. Not necessarily in mountains, but deep nature. I can see either personal journeys or family adventures. That is it. I don't see anything else. On foot. Hiking and traversing, camping, expedition and so on. I can see some mountain race preparation and race execution and also can see my family cheering me on the side. I also see, that I am cheering my wife or my future grew up daughter on the side. I don't have a clear vision or a sharp goal, or example that want to be the greatest ultra runner, want to build a legend or a legacy, a big company or have money.
I believe that this is true, as I often explain my type of coaching as it is driven towards longevity. Towards the capacity of being able to turn up and perform. Perform I don't mean racing. Perform I mean the act of moving. My daughter is 5 and I am 40. I want to be able to go out and have a super hike, when she is 55 and I am 90. I want to bring on my life on a way, that I am outdoors all the time, most of the time with the family. I like to cover distance, walk and do low level endurance, but simply arriving to a spot and camping is great for me too.
If I looked back on my life, till now, I can see clearly a couple of things. When went to vacations with my family to the mountains. When mountain climbing with friends or doing these long massive walks. I can see, the time we arrived to France and I was working as full time Cycling Guide, that was absolutely awesome. I was very tired, but I enjoyed every moment of the daily adventures. We climbed all the big cols, the Ironman route, followed the Tour de France itineraries with clients and it was epic as a way of daily living.
Then if I had to pin point one (or two) moment of having a sense of accomplishment, feeling something totally new. Like a pinnacle point in my life. A feeling that I never felt before. I have only two like that. First is when we finished a very difficult GR20 in Corsica with my wife. We carried over 20kg back packs with mountaineering equipment and heavy climbing boots. It was actually very dangerous in some parts and runners and climbers were getting rescued during the days of our traverse. We had blisters and backpack rashes. We were totally drained and exhausted. The adventure, together with our emotions and the bond that we created and strengthened with my wife, was something that I never had felt before. We tried to mimic this accumulated emotion later on and while we did some very great things together, nothing could surpass this emotion. I cannot simply say, that it was happiness, joy or something on this line. It was a brutally, inexplicably complex divine feeling. It was very difficult for both of us to return to daily life afterwards, as it did not provide any positive input anymore. Since then, we are looking for an out.
The second one is the birth of my daughter. I talked about this already. Until you had a child, there are a range of emotions, that did not develop in you yet. When she got into this world and we took care of here, it was just so great. She entered my visions and keep on being in them. I really hope and really will work on the realization of these visions. 

Translation

I hope you kind of understand, what I am saying here. I do not just tell a story and share my own journey and talk about my own emotions. These are the essence of being, that most people have in their life. They should cherish it and focus on it. They are most often the most simple things. Family, 1 or 2 best friends or company in hardship, a way of living, self, self philosophy and some others. 

If you wanted to be running great, you should only have a couple of these things becoming very important in your life, as everything else is. When the going gets "tuf", these can put fuel on your fire like nothing else.
The company you own, the Lambo that you drive, the nice clothes and nice house you own, the social media presence that you have, the mask that you put on to include yourself to an environment, the daily struggle at work, the long annoying commutes, the annoying neighbors, a new phone or any material, those are just the noise. The constant colorless static. 

If you wanted to bring out your best , simple things go a long way in life, that can impact your running presence. When questions rise up, you need answers, not excuses. Why am I here ? What I am doing ? Why did I sign up for this ? What am I looking for ? What am I craving ? Who I want to be an example ? Who I want to inspire ? Why them ? Why now ? 

Personally. I simply want to keep on exploring my inner self. I want to show a good example for my family. That in a complete mess of life, in the midst of a health crisis, in the midst of changing work and habits and not having enough money, in the middle of an being in school, in the midst of changing region and moving to a hidden treasure island, where peace will welcome us, I can still prepare for an ultra marathon. I already closed out the noise. I focus on the only things that matter. I don't waste time. I believe that everything is possible. I just go for it. My family goes after it .

This is just the beginning !!!