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Today's reading time is about: 7 - 9 minutes.

Right after we sent our last newsletter, the big news dropped: Boston announced the 2026 cutoff and started sending acceptance notices. My feeds have been filled with friends celebrating their confirmations. For those who don’t know, much of what I share in this space started years ago when I set a personal goal to run Boston. I’m trusting God that next September I’ll be writing to you with my own acceptance news. Until then, I keep learning, training, and sharing.

That brings us to today’s topic: resilience in endurance sports. How do we adapt physically and mentally to the constant stress of training? And more importantly, how can we train smarter to not just survive, but thrive?

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¿Hablas español o conoces a alguien que sí? Endurance Mindset en Español (waitlist): desde cero al maratón, con ciencia y estructura. Compártelo o regístrate y forma parte desde el comienzo. 🏃‍♂️📩 ​ ¡Registrarme!

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📚 Evidence from Sports Science.

1. Physiological Adaptations: Stress Makes Us Stronger (to a Point):

Research in European Journal of Applied Physiology shows that repeated training stress leads to critical adaptations such as improved mitochondrial density, increased capillarization, and enhanced oxygen utilization.¹ These changes are the foundation of endurance. But the same studies warn: without adequate recovery, stress stops building resilience and starts breaking us down. The takeaway is balance—progressive overload followed by rest is what creates lasting resilience.

2. Mental Resilience: Stress Inoculation Training:

Psychological studies highlight the concept of “stress inoculation,” where exposure to controlled stressors improves mental toughness.² In endurance sports, this looks like hard interval sessions, tough long runs, or simulated race conditions. Athletes who regularly practice these not only improve physical capacity but also their ability to stay composed under fatigue and pressure. Mental resilience isn’t born; it’s trained.

3. Integrating Mind and Body: The Recovery-Resilience Loop:

A review in Sports Medicine found that recovery behaviors (sleep, nutrition, mindfulness) directly influence resilience by regulating cortisol, supporting neuroplasticity, and sustaining motivation.³ In other words, your ability to bounce back mentally is linked to how well you care for your body. Athletes who align stress with quality recovery show stronger long-term consistency, fewer injuries, and better emotional balance.

🔥 This Week’s Practical Takeaway

Resilience is not about avoiding stress; it’s about managing it wisely. Here’s how to apply it this week:

• Plan Your Stress: Schedule one or two sessions that truly challenge you (tempo, hills, or intervals).
• Prioritize Recovery: Pair every stress session with deliberate recovery—8 hours of sleep, balanced meals, hydration, and a cooldown routine.
• Train Your Mind: Try mindfulness during recovery runs. Focus on breathing, posture, and presence rather than pace.
• Reflect Weekly: Note in your training log not only what you did, but how you felt mentally. Patterns here can show resilience gains as much as metrics.

Resilience grows in cycles: stress, adapt, recover, repeat.

Post of the week 2025 World Mountain Running Championships Up and Down Results: Nina Engelhard, Philemon Kiriago Victorious. Read article

💪 Weekly Challenge.

This week, choose one physical and one mental resilience practice to add to your routine. For example:

• Physical: hill repeats 🏔️ or interval ladders ⏱️.
• Mental: finish a run without music 🎧 or journal your training reflections 📓.

Try them, share your experience on social media, and tag us so we can follow your progress. Join the conversation on our WhatsApp Channel → Click to Join. Let’s grow stronger together.

What's Going On in the World of Running?

Boston Announces 2026 Cutoff, Sends Notice to Qualifiers

• Boston, MA — On September 23, 2025, the Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.) kicked off the next chapter in one of running’s most coveted entry processes: acceptance notifications for the 130th Boston Marathon, scheduled Monday, April 20, 2026. HopNews​
• This year’s twist? A 4 minute, 34 second “cutoff” buffer above the qualifying standards. That means many runners who met the general qualifying times still needed extra performance to secure their spot. Applications poured in — 33,249 in just registration week (Sept 8–12) — and by the announcement date, 24,362 runners were already being accepted (pending performance verification). HopNews​
• Email notices, both acceptances and rejections, began going out the same day and will continue over the coming days as verifications wrap up. HopNews
• Importantly, your cap or rejection isn't official until you see the confirmation email — and that’s when your credit card will finally be charged. Boston Athletic Association​

Recent Highlights & Results

• Life Time Chicago Half Marathon & 5K (Sept 28, 2025): Thousands ran across Chicago’s South Side in a sold-out event. The field included runners from all 50 U.S. states and 41 countries. It was a mix of competitive and community energy. Endurance Sport​
• World Mountain Running Championships — Up & Down Races: Big performances in the mountain distance scene:
  • Men’s Up & Down: Philemon Kiriago (Kenya) won with ~62:30. iRunFar​
  • Women’s Up & Down: Nina Engelhard (Germany) took the win in ~71:00. iRunFar​

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​¡Cuéntanos qué temas te interesan más en el enlace 'Preferencias' al final de este correo!

References

1. Holloszy, J. O., & Coyle, E. F. (1984). Adaptations of skeletal muscle to endurance exercise and their metabolic consequences. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 52(4), 245–256. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/6373687/​

2.Meichenbaum, D. (2007). Stress inoculation training: A preventative and treatment approach. In P. M. Lehrer, R. L. Woolfolk, & W. E. Sime (Eds.), Principles and Practice of Stress Management (3rd ed.). Guilford Press.

3. Kellmann, M., & Beckmann, J. (2018). Sport, recovery, and performance: Interdisciplinary insights. Sports Medicine, 48(1), 1–15. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29345524/​

Stress wisely, recover deeply, and resilience will follow.,

Coach Henri.
​Your Endurance Mindset Team

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