Modern Athlete Magazine January 2026 | Page 24

MENTAL RESET

1. Find your flow zone

Kirsten explains that the secret to a successful reset is getting the challenge level right. If you set a goal that is way too high, you’ ll end up anxious. If it’ s too low, you’ ll get bored. She points to the thinking of Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, AKA the Father of Flow.

The goal is to be in flow.“ The real art of goal setting... is setting it correctly that it’ s a bit of a challenge but you feel that you’ ve got the skills to meet it,” says Kirsten.

Instead of looking at a massive year-long target, ask yourself: What is a challenge I can set for this month that I actually have the skills to achieve?

2. Ditch the once-a-year reset

Success isn’ t a one-time decision you make on January 1 st. It’ s a weekly and monthly practice. Kirsten recommends keeping a training diary or some form of tracking to help you see patterns in your performance and mood.

“ When you notice those patterns over time, then you can correct them,” she notes. This constant, honest evaluation, checking in on what worked and what didn’ t, is far more effective than a New Year, New Me grand gesture.

Also, be kind to yourself. Remember to breathe and be present in the moment.

3. Master the art of recovery

One of the biggest pieces of advice Kirsten offers is to rethink what resilience means. It isn’ t just about grinding through the pain. It’ s about the cycle of effort and rest.

“ Resilience is not just keeping going, it’ s working hard but then having that period of rest,” she explains. Crucially, you need to find what actually recharges you. Lying on the couch while your mind is still racing about work isn’ t mental rest. You need to identify activities, whether it’ s social time, a hobby, or true downtime, that allow your brain to reset along with your body.

4. Use the margin of error strategy

When resolutions go off track, people often spiral because they feel they’ ve failed. Kirsten’ s advice is to build a“ margin of error” into your expectations from the start.

“ You have to go in expecting you’ re going to miss a few, but you’ re going to get lots in,” she says. If you miss a session because you’ re tired or busy, don’ t freak out. Just don’ t let it become a streak. A practical rule she suggests is:“ I can miss one or two, but I can’ t miss three in a row”

5. Watch your red flags

Kirsten advises being brutally honest with yourself to know when to push and when to step back. If you find yourself avoiding training for four or five days straight, that’ s a red flag.

Similarly, if your training starts to feel like suffering rather than a challenge you’ re capable of meeting, or if you finish a session wondering why you even bothered, it’ s time to stop and reset. Pushing through that feeling usually does more harm than good.

6. Lean on your crew

Nobody wins alone. The best athletes in the world are the first to admit they can’ t do it on their own.

“ We know it buffers stress, it helps create resilience, but it’ s not just social support, it’ s actually using your social support that’ s important,” says Kirsten.

Whether it’ s a running pod to keep you motivated or just friends to vent to, tuck into that community when things get tough. It makes the whole process a lot more fun.

The Final Word: Small kindnesses over grand gestures

Kirsten’ s advice for any athlete is to stop looking for the one big thing that will change everything. As she puts it:“ I remember watching a movie once and the lady said to her husband:‘ I don’ t want grand gestures, I want small kindnesses’. And I love that … It’ s actually small daily acts rather than one big act at the beginning of the year.”

So focus on the small, daily wins, and the big results will take care of themselves.

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