How to Prepare for the Big Race Without Losing Your Mind

The last few weeks before the marathon are a special hell. Constant training has been your top priority for several months. Now, all of a sudden, your runs are getting shorter. Some of them drop out of your calendar altogether. This is new territory, both mentally and physically, and it’s perfectly normal to be nervous.

This period is called the cone and is a standard part of any marathon, half marathon, or triathlon workout. (Other sports have their own version of this; weightlifters can talk about their “offload”.) All you really have to do is stick to the plan and wait for the day of competition, but this is easier said than done.

Understand why you are narrowing

Each workout has two main consequences: you get stronger, but you also (slightly) damage your body, and you need time to recover. Both take time – from days to weeks. When you’re in the middle of a workout, that’s okay: you won’t see results from today’s workout for a couple more weeks, but today you see that hard work last month has paid off.

However, as race day approaches, you will want to resolve all issues. You want to recover from workouts you’ve already done without adding unnecessary stress. There is no point in doing more challenging workouts if you don’t see results by the end of the race day. So, three weeks before the marathon, your workout is successfully completed. (Or, as the old trainers say: hay in the barn.)

You will be jogging less over the past few weeks. Not zero because you’re really going crazy, but instead of 20 mile long runs on the weekends, you can do 12, then 8, and then 4. It’s okay to maintain the same intensity as before, but you aim for that. to do a lot less.

Expect your thoughts to go all over the place, but stay positive.

“The goal is to come to race day with fresh legs, full of energy and excitement,”sports psychologist Andy Lane told Lifehacker. I interviewed him while preparing for my race and I was so … excited ? What’s this? I questioned every detail of my race plan, regretted all the workouts I missed, and read too much in every number in my running app.

It helps you understand why your thoughts are going awry. “Let’s say you ran a light jog,” says Lane, “and it’s going to be difficult.” Well, training can be hard sometimes! Even when the cone is in full swing, you will get better and be able to run well, but that does not mean that it will always feel great. You just need to trust the plan and stick to it.

Express negative thoughts openly so you can forget about them.

Instead of indulging your regrets and disappointments, write them down or discuss them with friends. On a Facebook working group he participates in: “People will start saying, ‘I caught a cold this week.’ I don’t think I can do it. ” … and then, within about ten minutes, 400 other people will say, “I also caught a cold.” It helps to see that other people have similar doubts, but chances are that most of them will start and finish just fine. You don’t even need to post online, just read what other runners have to say.

Plan everything in your mind

While following your training plan, do not forget about mental preparation. Take a break from the present and work on a race day checklist: when will you wake up? What will you eat? What will you wear? Three weeks before starting work, it’s not too early to start putting together a checklist and tidying up supplies. (By the start of my taper, I already had two Clif bars and an extra pack of my favorite coffee in a paper bag in the kitchen that said “BETH’S RACE DAY FOOD DO NOT EAT”)

And think about 30 minutes before the start. Lane advises figuring out how you would like to prepare and warm up: maybe you are jogging, or you are stretching, or doing some exercise or meditation. Start adding this warm-up to your light runs now that those runs are shorter. Then on the day of the competition, you will be able to complete your normal daily routine.

Plan the route of the race in your mind. Of course, you can just follow the backsight points in front of you, but it helps you know where certain landmarks are, which parts of the track are difficult and which are the most interesting. Lane suggests looking for race track preview videos on Youtube. At least try some of your light runs in new locations: “Running in new locations is a skill worth getting to grips with.”

Set the target time range

It’s easy to get attached to a specific time on the watch. For example, I was tempted by the possibility of a two-hour half marathon. And if the weather was perfect, and if I did everything right, and if I maybe trained a little more, maybe this could happen. But on Lane’s advice, I approached the race with range in mind: anything less than 2:11:00 will be PR, and somewhere between 2:00:00 and 2:10:00 I’ll be in awe.

Because, in truth, your completion time depends on many things that are beyond your control. Even what you can control, you cannot always predict. (Lane also notes that the slower you are, the more opportunities. Elite runners can predict their time to the nearest minute or two; you or I may have a half-hour question mark.) After all, you’re kind. you just need to run on the sensations.

Make a special order at the restaurant

The day before a race can be chaotic, especially if you are traveling. Many runners love to dine in a restaurant before a race, so Lane suggests thinking about food that can be ordered anywhere and making it the same. (Fish and baked potatoes, he suggests.) That way, you don’t risk trying a new dish you might not like, but you can still enjoy the walk.

Expect surprises

While you must stick to your plan, nothing in life is ever completely predictable. Expect something to go wrong and get ready for it. I wanted to start the race with the group at 2:05, but could not find them – so I lined up just behind the 2:00 group and ran by touch. (I finished in 2:08:28 and felt great, thanks in part to setting a target range rather than a target time .) As race day gets closer, Lane says, think about why you wanted to race first. place. You were thrilled when you signed up for it, so express your feelings now and be in awe of race day.

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