Cold Weather, High Volume, And The Brutal Truth About Mental Resets
There is a moment every runner reaches when the training stops feeling epic and starts feeling empty. A moment where the mileage is high, the body is tired, the excitement is gone, and the mind feels like a completely drained battery. I reached that moment this past week. After stacking weeks of ninety and one hundred miles, getting sick, running in the cold, pushing when I should have rested, my entire system felt flat. Not physically injured. Just empty. Like my brain could not produce a spark.
Most runners hide these moments or pretend they do not exist. I do not.
This is what I do.
I talk about it.
I live through it.
I stare at it and deal with it head on.
Because when you are chasing insane goals like twelve ultras in a year, you do not get the luxury of feeling sorry for yourself. You do not get the luxury of letting emotions dictate your performance. You do not get the luxury of waiting for motivation to magically show up.
You have to cut emotions off and execute.
You have to treat the lows like weather.
You have to recognize them, stand in them, and move anyway.
You have to understand that feeling empty does not mean you are failing.
It means your nervous system is taxed from doing something very few people will ever do.
I am not chasing one marathon.
I am chasing twelve ultras in twelve months.
There is nothing sexy about that.
There is no glory in that.
It is not for applause.
It is not for content.
It is not for people to say I am dedicated.
I do it because it forces me to become the person I want to be.
It forces me to grow past comfort.
It forces me to face myself on the days I feel nothing.
Most runners never talk about the emotional crash that comes when you are truly pushing your limits. But if you want longevity in this sport, if you want to win the long game, if you want to be the type of runner who can wake up numb and still get it done, you need to understand this crash and you need to learn how to rewire your brain around it.
This is the truth I have learned.
This is what I do.
And this is what you can do too.
Understanding The Crash
Why You Feel Empty Even When Training Is Going Well
The biggest mistake runners make is believing the low means something is wrong with them. They think they lost their discipline. They think they lost momentum. They think they suddenly lack passion. But your passion did not disappear. Your identity did not disappear. Your fire did not disappear. What actually happened is much simpler and much more scientific.
Your central nervous system is overloaded.
Your body is not trying to sabotage you.
Your brain is not trying to weaken you.
Your system is trying to protect you from yourself.
When you run high mileage in cold temperatures, while sick, while stressed, while mentally pushing, your nervous system begins to downshift. It reduces motivation so you do not burn yourself out. It reduces emotional intensity to conserve energy. It slows your brain down to stop you from digging a deeper hole.
This is why the low feels emotional even though it is physical.
This is why you feel empty even though you still care.
This is why your mind feels gray.
This is why running feels harder.
This is why you feel like you do not give a fuck.
Your mind is not broken.
Your mind is protecting you.
But here is the good news.
Once you understand the mechanism behind the low, you stop letting the low scare you.
You stop letting emotions tell the story.
You stop letting thoughts control your actions.
You start acting from identity again.
High Achievers Always Crash Harder
It Means You Actually Care
If you ever feel like you get hit harder emotionally than other runners during winter training or high volume blocks, that is not a weakness. That is evidence that you are a high achiever.
The more invested you are, the harder the emotional swing.
The more you care, the deeper the valleys feel.
The bigger the training block, the bigger the hit.
The higher the goal, the heavier the emotional tax.
Think about relationships.
Breaking up after one month hurts.
Breaking up after two years hits differently. You feel it in your chest. You feel it in your identity. You feel it in your routines. You feel it in your future plans. It is not even about the person anymore. It is about the emotional weight you carried.
Ultras are the same thing.
Marathon training hurts.
Ultra training hits differently.
It hits deeper.
It hits parts of you regular running never touches.
So when you hit a low during ultra prep, do not confuse emotional heaviness with lack of discipline. You are simply invested. You are attached to the goal. Your nerves feel it because your soul feels it.
You are supposed to feel this.
You are supposed to hit lows.
This is the tax you pay for chasing something that changes your identity.
How To Rewire Your Brain When You Feel Dow
The Method I Use Every Time
When my mind shuts down, when the cold hits, when my CNS is fried, when I feel that empty sponge feeling, I do not sit around looking for motivation. I do not scroll for quotes. I do not wait for energy to come back.
I reset my mind manually.
Here is the exact process.
Recognize That Your Thoughts Are Not True During A Low
When you are emotionally down, your mind becomes a storyteller. It tells you everything is wrong. It tells you you are slipping. It tells you you are done. It tells you you do not care anymore.
These thoughts are not truth.
They are symptoms.
When I feel that crash, I tell myself this immediately.
This is fatigue speaking, not me.
This is temporary.
This is a signal, not a conclusion.
Half of the emotional weight disappears in that moment.
Think About The Future Moment That Lights You Up
Humans need anticipation.
Runners especially.
When I feel flat, I pick one moment in the future that excites me. One moment I cannot wait for. One moment that makes the suffering worth it. It could be the finish line of an upcoming race. It could be a warm long run in Central Park. It could be the moment I look back at this training block and realize how tough I actually was.
Your brain needs a lighthouse.
Create one.
Look at it.
Let it pull you forward.
Accept That Lows Scale With The Size Of Your Goals
If you want to avoid emotional dips, stop choosing hard goals.
If you want to evolve, learn to survive them.
Twelve ultras in a year is not glamorous.
People romanticize it.
They love the idea of it.
They do not understand the reality of it.
It is cold mornings.
It is sore joints.
It is running when you are sick.
It is showing up when you feel emotionally empty.
It is missing the spark but choosing to go anyway.
It is executing without emotion.
This is not supposed to be easy.
That is why I do it.
Ease never changed me.
Discomfort always did.
Give Yourself A Small Minimum Instead Of Expecting Perfection
I do not tell myself I need a perfect session when I feel low.
I just tell myself to start.
This maintains identity and momentum.
If I cannot mentally handle a sixteen mile day, I run two.
If I cannot do a hard session, I do a shakeout.
If I cannot think clearly, I move slowly.
The mind responds to completion.
Even tiny completion.
Do something.
Anything.
You will feel the shift instantly.
Rebuild The Story You Tell Yourself
Everyone gets into running, a job, or even a massive goal because of a massive reason. Well…now its time to find every reason.
Identity beats emotion.
Every time.
When I dip, I remind myself who I am.
I am the person who runs in the cold.
I am the person who shows up when I am tired.
I am the person who does not need motivation.
I am the person who does not care about feelings.
I am the person who is doing twelve ultras because it builds a version of me no comfort ever could.
When you rewrite the story, your behavior follows.
When your behavior follows, your identity strengthens.
When your identity strengthens, lows no longer break you.
They shape you.
Purpose Turns The Lights Back On
When your purpose comes back, your energy returns.
Your excitement returns.
Your drive returns.
Your brain wakes up.
Purpose is not emotional.
Purpose is chosen.
Every time I lose momentum, I remind myself why I started.
I remind myself who I said I wanted to become.
I remind myself what I am working toward.
And the moment I reconnect with that purpose, the low starts fading away.
This is how you rewire your brain.
Not through hype.
Not through feelings.
Through identity.
Through truth.
Through action.
Cold Training And High Volume Do Not Make Weak Runners
They Make A New Breed Of Runner
Winter is where runners are built.
Not through perfect days.
Not through pretty routes.
Not through sunshine.
But through showing up when you feel nothing.
Through taking action when your emotions stay silent.
Through recognizing your lows and rising anyway.
You will not become elite when everything feels easy.
You become elite when running feels empty but you still go.
You become elite when you understand your patterns.
You become elite when you have a method for rewiring your thoughts.
You become elite when you train your brain as much as your legs.
This is what I do.
I do not wait for motivation.
I do not rely on how I feel.
I rely on identity.
I rely on purpose.
I rely on what I told myself I would become. Also, while others stop running, turn indoors, running outside will build your mental. Just know you’re doing better than the competition.
The next time the cold hits you, or the mileage stacks too high, or your brain feels like a dead battery, remind yourself that this is not failure.
This is the tax.
This is the valley.
This is the place where 99 percent of runners collapse.
You are not part of that ninety nine percent.
You are someone who learns the lows, rewires the lows, and rises out of them stronger.
Because running is not about perfect days.
Running is about who you become when nothing inside of you feels like running.
That is where champions are made.
That is where identity is forged.
That is where the next version of you waits.
And you are closer than you think.