A coach asks how to get her cross-country runners to take nutrition seriously. The answer: show them athletes who fuel well, try the 4-2-1-0 protocol before a race, and let them feel the results. Girls who see a 30-second time drop become believers.
I am a mom, but I'm also a high school cross-country coach for the women's team. And getting them to understand that food is fuel and they're not going to get abs by not eating. They're going to get abs by fueling more and doing strength training. I'm trying to help them understand how important this is for their training and how much stronger they can be. So how can I drive into these teenage girl brains? Um, and if you have a template for that.
Thank you for all your work. I love cross-country girls. They're so driven, so amazing. I had a girl who was about to commit to UCLA. I just, I asked her, I was like, just trust me this one time. This one race, do the 4-2-1-0 protocols, and she started to crush it. She took 30 seconds off of her time throughout that entire season, which is insane. And so my biggest piece of advice would be show them evidence of what female athletes are doing it already. Show them maybe role models that they have who are fueling their bodies and doing what you want them to be doing, and then ask them to buy into it for one or two races. Then they'll see the difference they feel in those races and how much better they are. With that fuel inside of them. And then there's no turning back after that. They know they're leaving potential and gains on the table if they're not fueling.
