1 . Tempo (节奏) runs scare me. Those long and hard efforts always look impossible when I see them on paper.

I remember one 50-minute run_______. I saw it on my training plan and immediately created a laundry list of_________for why this was just not going to work, why I wasn’t fit enough, why I wouldn’t_______ — why I would fail.

Before I even laced up my shoes, I’d already _______ myself I couldn’t do this. Instead of using the warm-up to find my pace, _________for success, and get excited to make the best of it, I adopted a_________mind set (心态), revisited my list of excuses and_______ further into the bad-attitude trap. I quit the workout_________even before I started. After that, I shortened more workouts and my fitness moved backwards soon.

The _______, I realized, was that I treated my entire training plan like a tempo run — hard, fast and________. I felt that if I didn’t hit a workout early, I wouldn’t be able to________.

I realized I needed to treat my training like my favourite________: the long run. I love settling into a relaxed pace, enjoying the route and__________on only one goal — finishing. I love that I can have a bad mile in the middle and still end ________ .

Now, when I set a new goal and__________a new training plan, I have what I call “the long-run mindset”. I’m not ________for immediate results, as I have been in the past. I ________more about the big picture and my long-term goals as a________. Yes, there is still an important place for hard, fast tempo runs, but I have__________ my attitude, to think bigger than short-term ________ and instead work toward lifelong success.