Success as a runner does not come easily. It requires hours upon hours of training. Some professional runners log as many as 150 miles a week. I don’t run nearly as much, the most I have ever ran over a weeks time was about sixty-five miles, but that still comes out to an average of more than nine miles a day. I have completed workouts that made me fall to my knees in agony. Sometimes I feel like I literally cannot take another step. Runners often have to make sacrifices when it comes to social life. Going out late on a Friday night with friends is not an option when there is a race, long run, or track workout at 8 a.m. Saturday morning. I don’t have the option of procrastinating on my work until 12 a.m. like other college students, as sleep is a luxury I cannot afford to give up.

Training, sleep, and discipline are  the  more obvious factors that can affect a distance runner’s success, but running is also a very mental sport. It doesn’t matter how many miles you have put in or how fast you run intervals during your track workout if you experience a mental breakdown during competition.

Nerves have been something I have struggled with for my entire running career. In fact, I do not think there is a single runner out there who does not get nervous for important races. However, a good runner will not let their nerves get the best of them. Nervous excitement can actually be a good thing because it gets your adrenaline pumping, but being too nervous can prevent a runner from competing to their best ability.

Controlling my nerves has been especially important to my personal success as a distance runner. I have a disorder called Vocal Cord Dysfunction, which is similar to asthma. During periods of intense activity, sometimes my vocal cords slam shut instead of opening up when I am breathing in, making it extremely difficult to breathe. Stress greatly contributes to Vocal Cord Dysfunction, so if I get too worked up about a workout or race I will not be able to perform to my ability level. It is a terrible feeling to have to drop out of a race or workout because I simply cannot breathe.

Over time, I have become better at managing my stress levels. I have found that I usually perform better if I stay calm before a race and listen to music. If I sit on the bus and nervously think about the race, it is almost a guarantee that I will have trouble breathing. Every runner has different routines that they follow before races to help them relax. Some people follow routines before races religiously. There is not a one-size fits all framework for what a runner does before a race, so each athlete should see what works best for them to help them calm down. For example, I have had some teammates who would always wear the same sports bra, underwear, or socks for each meet because they thought it was lucky. Some would always do their hair the same way. Due to nervousness, a lot of runners go to the bathroom three or four times in the hours leading up to the race. My teammate Sarah would always visualize the race in her head because it helped her feel more comfortable. On the other hand, I have known other runners who try not to think about the race at all prior to its start. Most runners take ice baths the evening before important races. There is conflicting research on whether ice baths actually improve performance, but sticking to a routine that you believe helps you run well will help you stay calm. I have even had teammates who always eat the same meals on the three or four days leading up to meets. Many of my teammates read the same inspirational bible verses before each competition. 

Professional coaches and researchers have done studies on the effects of nerves on race performance. They have discovered the best ways to help people relax and run to their best ability. One of my favorite running books is a classic training book called Lore of Running, by Dr. Tim Noakes. Throughout the extensive 900+ page book he gives training advice to help runners succeed. One chapter in particular focuses on the mental aspect of running. I have read this chapter countless times, and I often read it before big races. Noakes emphasizes the importance of mental training during the precompetition phase of running. He says that it is important for runners to set goals for themselves. Their goals should be attainable and not too lofty, but they should also push limits. Having a clear cut goal will help runners push themselves, even when they fear that they are not capable of doing so. 

Noakes says that research has shown that the same mental processes occur in the brain while visualizing the completion of an activity that occur when the activity is actually performed. For this reason, he writes that it is important to visualize your races before hand.

Dr. Noakes also writes about focusing solely on the aspects of a race that you can control. Doing this, I believe, has definitely helped me improve as a runner. During my junior year we were at a track invitational and clouds were hanging ominously over the stadium. As soon as the gun went off for the 4x8 relay I was competing in, the rain started pouring down, the wind was whipping around violently, and lightning lit up the sky. I stood on the starting line, waiting for my teammate to hand me the baton for my leg of the relay. As I started to run, the rain streaming down my face made it feel like my contacts were falling out. I couldn’t see more than a foot in front of my face, and the wind was pushing against me. Under such circumstances, it would have been easy to justify a poor performance, but I focused on the factors that I could control and was able to run a personal record. I could not control the weather, but I could focus on my form and racing tactics to help me to a solid performance.

The mental aspect of running is definitely hard to master, but being mentally and emotionally calm leading up to and during races can dramatically improve performance. As a runner, I have learned different ways to improve my emotions, but it is still a learning process. Each runner needs to try different techniques for calming their nerves and see what works best for them, as everyone is unique. Best of luck to all my fellow runners and remember, stay clam!

Sources used in this entry:

Noakes, Tim M.D. Lore of Running. 1985. Human Kinetics: Champaign, IL.

Also, thanks go out to my teammates for offering their input on pre-race habits.