CANMORE – Maya MacIsaac-Jones was honest with herself in the offseason and taking a tough look at her skiing career might prove to have been the spark of success she needed.
After not being re-nominated to the national senior team last spring, the cross-country skier took some time to “think things over and putting things out there.”
The result of the self-analysis was a refocused and motivated MacIsaac-Jones, who put in the work in the offseason, which paid off in dividends at Nordiq Thunder last week.
In the tune-up races at the Canmore Nordic Centre on Nov. 13-14, MacIsaac-Jones won the women’s knockout format sprint races and followed it up the next day with a sixth place in the distance event.
Got a good taste of the pain cave this week here in Canmore. Stoked to be feeling fast in these tuneup races.. now a little more training, a little more rest, and then I’ll be ready for the real stuff to start👊 @AlbertaWorldCup @BanffAirporter pic.twitter.com/pgkoToQNri
— Maya MacIsaac-Jones (@_MayaMJ) November 16, 2019
Nordiq Thunder, which sees Canada’s top skiers, biathletes and para-Nordic athletes compete is a good series of races to get pre-season jitters out of the way, said MacIsaac-Jones and gives an opportunity for her jumpstart her renewed focus.
“This year, I’m definitely more results focused,” MacIsaac-Jones said. “I have some result goals I have set and I believe I’m capable of. I want to be competitive on world cup and going in international races, I want to be in the fight with the best in the world.”
The 24-year-old started her offseason training fired up, after reflecting on everything and her biggest change came to her mental approach to training.
She worked thoroughly on where her fitness levels were, specifically running and cardio in and around Canmore for the upcoming season. In previous years, injuries have stifled MacIsaac-Jones’ running routines.
“I ran as much I wanted in training. Fitness was a big thing I wanted to work on,” she said.
Her mentality is for consistency this season, which is ingrained where the athlete’s goals lie with some key world cup she’s aiming to qualify for.
The 2019-20 season officially begins Nov. 29 in Ruka, Finland.
Just another day at the office 💁♀️ #BestJobEver pic.twitter.com/us8RNmfL6t
— Maya MacIsaac-Jones (@_MayaMJ) November 20, 2019
