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Tri-Umphs (Triathlons & Duathlons)
Race Mindset: Preparing for a Peak Race
By Margie Shapiro
September/October 2010
For the Washington Running Report
Many runners and triathletes design a race calendar periodized in a way to build fitness and experience with lower-priority or shorter races, later culminating in the most important race of the year: an "A-Priority" or "Peak" race. They follow a regimented training plan to prepare the body to peak appropriately. However, how many of us have been following a season plan for psychological preparation? If you haven't, consider these tips to get you started on mental prep:
Clear your mind (and your calendar) in the weeks preceding your big race.
In the weeks preceding a race, bank up some emotional energy, clearing space in your mind to be filled with the motivation and confidence necessary to execute effectively. Try to tie up loose ends in life, beginning a few weeks ahead, so that as your body goes into a taper and you seek rest to hone your sharpness, your mind can also recharge.
I like to make lists of everything I need to get off my plate pre-race. In therapeutic acts of purging, I cross tasks off the list as I complete them, and I feel lighter with each stroke of the pen.
Determine what gets you "up" for a race.
Most likely you set your goals for the peak race a while back, and perhaps they have been evolving as your fitness and preparation have progressed. Now is the time to remind yourself of the reasons you set those goals. What motivates you? What made you want to do this race? Why have you put in so much time and effort preparing? Remind yourself of your reasons and use them as motivation in your final peak workouts.
Visualize yourself on race day. Take yourself through the sensory cues that will get your adrenaline pumping. For me, a whiff of the wetsuit as I pull it out of its bag reminds me of competition. I get a surge of race-morning energy just imagining the race announcer's voice describing the scenes at the start.
Filling your mind with sensory perceptions, you will be able to pinpoint which ideas get you excited to race. Spend a few minutes each day evoking that excitement so that by the big day, you are "foaming at the mouth," as my high school coach used to say.
Use training as proof of preparedness.
One major purpose of training is to take the body through specific tasks purposefully and repetitively, proving that your body is capable of the work under a multitude of circumstances. If your training has gone well, you should have plenty of data showing you are ready to go. Trust it. (If you don't, then reconfigure your goal!)
Recount great workouts in your mind, including specific details like breathing patterns in the pool or cadence on the bike or feeling light on your feet on the run-you have observed them over and over again. All you need to do is repeat them on race day. Remind yourself that you have already proven you know how to do it-the race is just an opportunity to reinforce what you already know.
Consider the race a privilege, not a chore.
For many goal-oriented triathletes and runners, spending so many months with such a singular focus can become intimidating, particularly if racing is a rarity or if the goal race is extra long. Just thinking about the big day can send a tremor of fear up the spine-I hope I can prove all this hard work was worthwhile! Instead of worrying about your goal, try thinking about the process of the race. The experience alone is a privilege and having a body that is capable of taking you there is an even greater one.
Margie Shapiro is co-owner of Potomac River Running stores where she coaches runners and triathletes through =PR= Training Programs. A professional triathlete, she is currently on the USA Triathlon Project 2012 Team. Margie qualified for the elite World Championship Ironman 70.3 during her debut race at that distance, at the Ironman Singapore 70.3 this past March