Nick Overduin, runner, with his daughter Seneca
Niki Fitzgerald knows that success or failure in her next marathon will come down to the ABCs. To win the mental side of running races, the 34-year-old psychologist from Toronto always sets three different goals, ranging from the best-case scenario, her A goal, through to an acceptable finish, or her C goal. By doing so, she always keeps her head in the game.
"If you're training for a race, or you're actually in the race, and you're really close to achieving your goals, you have to tell yourself: 'Okay, legs, just hang on; we're almost done,' " she says.
Setting the right goals for race day is an essential element of the mental side of running a half or full marathon. But it is certainly not the only one. While many runners, especially beginners, spend weeks if not months focusing on being physically prepared, many ignore the importance of dealing with the mental side of their training, from having reasonable goals to coping with race-day nerves and learning how to push themselves to the finish line. Yet it is crucial to have mental strategies in place for allthe challenges of a race, experts say.
"You get there and feel the jitters and all sorts of things can happen," says Laura Farres, a mental performance consultant with the Canadian Sport Psychology Association and founder of Mind in Motion Consulting Inc. in Vancouver. "You have to be prepared for potentially any challenges that might occur."
That is why setting the right goals is so important. A runner who enters a marathon planning to finish in four hours but is far behind that pace at the halfway mark can begin to feel despondent and lose focus, says Dr. Farres, who holds a PhD in education.
Jess Dagg, a 28-year-old registered nurse in Vancouver who has run nine marathons, prefers to underestimate her abilities in a run to prevent that happening.
"There's no reason to put expectations on myself that I know I can't meet. I prefer to be a bit pessimistic so I don't get too disappointed," she says.
Rather than having just one goal, it is best to have three, says Mindy Solkin, a running coach and founder of The Running Center in New York.
"You want to have an acceptable goal, a challenging goal and a dream goal," she says. That way, if you find your dream goal is dashed, you still have something to push for.
Of course, there are many mental challenges beyond a runner's goals. Midway through a race, distractions of all sorts can rear their heads. Runners can find themselves obsessively focusing on the pain in their legs, or whether they ate enough for breakfast or what hills may lie around the corner.
For Dr. Fitzgerald, overcoming those distractions is a matter of paying attention to what's going on right now.
"When you really get to the hard parts of it, the thing I find most helpful is focusing on what's happening in the moment," she says. "Have I been hydrating enough? Do I need to take a gel? How's my form?"
Once issues like those have been resolved, it is often helpful to either tune out completely or focus on small details, Dr. Farres says.
It is an approach that has worked well for Ms. Dagg.
"I try not to think too much about what's left or what I've done," she says. "I usually check out the scenery, watch other people's footsteps in front of me, focus on my stride or my breathing. It also really helps to focus on when the next aid station is."
While it is up to runners to have a mental strategy in place before a race, some events have people on hand to help participants deal with psychological issues.
The GoodLife Fitness Toronto Marathon employs a "psyching team" of about 30 psychologists to help with everything from relaxation training to positive self-talk. Some team members even ride the course on bikes, approaching any runners they feel may need help.
"A lot of runners, they get there on race day, they've been training for 14 or 16 weeks, and they're very nervous," says Jay Glassman, race director of the GoodLife marathon. "With the intervention that the psyching team members make, and the visualization exercises they can take [runners]through, it's helped many of these people successfully complete their first marathon."
But with the right preparation, most runners can put their race-day nerves aside and focus on the event itself, Ms. Solkin says. Those who ignore the mental aspect of competing in an event do so at their peril, she adds.
Mr. Glassman says that having the right mental strategies can make the difference between finishing with a smile on your face and crossing the finish line feeling disappointed.It is the mental game that often decides an event, he says. "We call it mind over marathon."
Turn those nerves around
Even the best runners get butterflies. While your stomach may be in knots on the morning of an event, calming race-day nerves is easier than you might think.
Mindy Solkin, a running coach and founder of The Running Center in New York, suggests using your anxiety to your advantage. "Nervous energy is a good thing to have," she says. "But you have to rely on your training. You have to say to yourself, 'I did all of this in training.' "
Ms. Solkin recommends creating an "altar" at home where you keep all your gear, from bib number to shoes. That way, she says, you won't have to fumble around on race day worrying if you have everything you need. The less you have to worry about, the less anxious you will be.
l, And find comfort in routine, says Laura Farres, a mental performance consultant with the Canadian Sport Psychology Association. That could mean a short warm-up, a specific set of stretches or listening to music.
"It will help you feel comfortable and ready to go," she says. "It gives you a sense of control."
Perhaps most importantly, realize that everyone has those nerves, she adds. "Don't expect that you're not going to have them."
Dave McGinn