Mental Toughness (Read 1114 times)

I'm a sophomore girl in high school and for track I am running the 2 mile. I run about 30mpw, some easy with speed workouts/hills. My best time so far is 14:30, but I know that I can do better - I'm not as tired as I should be at the end. I run better at practice than in meets, so I think my problem is with mental toughness. Is there anything that you tell yourself when your racing that helps you run faster?

I've never really had any sort of 'mantra' that I've used for racing. When I ran track I just knew that my teammates were going to give their best in their races and that they were counting on me to do the same. What I've found works the best is if you can race against someone that's just a little faster than you are and focus on beating them. It will be easier to do this if that person is a teammate so you know how her times compare to yours, but there are ways to identify competitors that would fit the bill. You could always ask your coach to identify a target for you. He or she can use previous race results for the other team to identify likely targets, or even ask the other coach what he/she expects her girls to do in that day's race. Another approach that comes to mind is to see where everyone is after about two laps into your race. At that point focus on working your way past the runner in front of you, and on preventing anyone behind you from passing you. If you do get passed, stay with the passer. Also, don't 'sweat' the situation too much. As you gain more race experience you'll learn what works for you and what doesn't. Even Olympians learn something new about themselves during their Olympic races. Sometimes they learn what works, sometimes it's what doesn't.

Congratulations on your dedication to training. With 30 mpw I'm sure you can get big improvements in your two mile time. What pace do you run in training? What is your best 800m or mile time? The key to running your best in a race is running even splits, or as close as possible. This is the most efficient way to run. The first few laps should feel easy (most of the runners go out much too hard, only to slow later) and progressively you will expend more effort with each lap. Running track you can just focus on your splits that you accomplish in training and ignoring everything else. Write them on your hand if necessary. If you are unsure of running even pace over a whole lap, have a friend/parent stand half way around the track so you can get your splits every 200m and know how you are doing against your goal pace. For a two mile run this would give you an update every 16th of the race and make sure you run evenly.

I think your problem is that you race your workouts and having nothing to give when it comes time to race. Mantras are not a magic bullet. The point of them is to help you focus on the task at hand, to induce a calm, relaxed state. You do not get to that point by just repeating some words to yourself. You get to that point through practicing relaxation and meditation. And all of that is completely meaningless if you're not training properly in the first place.

jdoyle: your problem could be that you are trying too hard. You may be, in a way, too mentally tough. The best runners run relaxed. So, listen to your coaches for sure, but try to let the race come to you. You've got the whole spring season ahead of you, and if you keep at it your times are gonna drop, and you'll fly. Run confident and relaxed. Good luck!

Corny race thoughts that have worked for me at one time or another... When in the middle of the race and it starts to get tough, pick out a competitor and say to yourself, "I am stronger than you. I am just getting warmed up." Do not waste energy by looking at them while you leave them in your dust... Visualize yourself running relaxed. Shoulders down. Smooth stride. Smile.

I think your problem is that you race your workouts and having nothing to give when it comes time to race. Mantras are not a magic bullet. The point of them is to help you focus on the task at hand, to induce a calm, relaxed state. You do not get to that point by just repeating some words to yourself. You get to that point through practicing relaxation and meditation. And all of that is completely meaningless if you're not training properly in the first place.

With you on this one Scout, my friend around the corner has a running gait thats just so smooth he seems to float, he was a really good runner years ago, he's a lot younger than me, if I meet him when we are out running I struggle to keep up, yet he hasn't beaten me in a race for at least three years and we race quite often. The penny still hasn't dropped with him and I don't think I dare try to say anything.

As a sub 10 two miler (don't actually have the PR...yet) I know a lot about the event. Your problem might be as simple as just needing to relax. Don't overstress the race. Just do whatever you gotta do and know that if you do that you have nothing to worry about. Another problem could be that you just aren't pushing a fast enough pace. It can be really hard to increase your pace during the race, but if you start stronger and push yourself a little more, you will see huge improvements. Then on the last lap try to pick up your pace one last time and kick the last 100m with everything you got left in the tank. If that still doesn't work, then you may need to do more longer intervals. If you are able to recover very quickly after the race, you have the aerobic capacity to be a lot better, but don't have your legs moving fast enough yet. Leg speed certainly can be improved by doing a lot of 10 second hill sprints, but strong interval workouts of 1k with very little recovery can teach the body to be more mentally tough. The key to these intervals is to make sure you don't have enough time to fully recover so the body learns how to keep running fast when tired. You don't have to do these intervals ridiculously fast, but you just have to be consistent with your pace. I believe any one of those tips I mentioned should get you well on your way to being a better runner. From learning more about running and learning more about my body I've been able to drop almost 3 minutes off my freshmen 2 mile time. Now I'm looking at a possible school record and a trip to nationals this June. I'm sure you can improve just as much as I have and could be a great runner with enough hard work and dedication. The sky's the limit! Reach for it!