Nick Symmonds: What it Takes to Crush Your Goals
For this episode, I spoke with two time Olympian, Nick Symmonds. Nick competed for the U.S. in the 2008 and 2012 Olympics. He focused on the 800 meters for the majority of his career, and now in retirement, has set a personal goal of beating 11 seconds in the 100 meters. He has also publicly expressed his desire to climb the seven summits, the tallest mountain on each continent. Nick stays busy hunting, fishing and running the company he co-founded, Run Gum. He also has a wildly-popular YouTube channel where he shares the wisdom he acquired over his 20 year running career.
Because it's clear that Nick has a heart for working with young runners and sharing the knowledge he's accumulated over his 20 year running career, I made sure to ask him several questions specific to high school running, and questions related to thriving, even if your dream school doesn't want you. I think there's a lot here, even if you don't aspire to be a competitive runner. And, I think this episode is especially important if you are a high school runner, a high school coach, or the parent of a high school runner.
We talked about:
- goal setting
- how Run Gum was created and how/when to use it
- choosing a college
- what if your dream school doesn't want you?
- how to train for both track and cross country
- periodization
- memorable coaches and what made them amazing
- can you start running too late to be great?
- the controversy surrounding athletes wearing their own sponsors' logos at high level events.
- what he thinks about the night before a big race
- how he learned to work on his mindset
- how he gets back on track when he's in a slump
- advice he would give to high school Nick
- why runners make good employees
- traits that all champions possess
- gratitude
Resources from this episode:
Nick's website
Nick's YouTube channel
Nick's Instagram
Run Gum
Nick's video on periodization (a must for any high school coach, parent or runner)
Nick's video on going from a D3 school to the Olympics
Nick's video on dealing with pre-race anxiety and nerves
Kim's Facebook
Kim's Instagram
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