Run with brains

These days it’s rare for us to give one thing our complete focus. While we’re on the phone we’re also quickly checking our inbox or tidying our desk. But generally speaking, our mind can only give one sensory stimulus its complete attention.

Observe the detail

You can tap into this during a competition. Get engrossed in your surroundings and focus on the individual details at the edge of the path so you’re not even aware of the impending fatigue. Pay particular attention to the noises around you and observe the colours. Or direct your concentration inwards and play with your senses: take your awareness to your heartbeat or count your breaths.

Accept that it is what it is

A lot of factors that determine the outcome of a competition depend directly on the sportsperson. You can have covered enough kilometres in training, tested your diet and broken in your shoes. But you can’t change the weather, no matter how much the rain annoys you or how much you worry about losing strength because of the cold. Thinking like this just uses up unnecessary energy and makes you lose motivation. Instead, it helps to accept what we can’t control and only use our energy for things that have a positive effect on our running.

Use your imagination

Close your eyes for a moment and imagine you’re cutting a lemon and biting into it enthusiastically. You’ll probably sense an unpleasant feeling spreading in your mouth and in fact your whole body. You can use the same imagination and memory technique for positive experiences, especially in emergencies. When you feel low, think of another situation when you felt strong and assertive. Imagining important people and friends were standing at the side of the track and cheering you on, can also spur you on. Paint further scenes in your head with as much detail as possible, including colours and sounds.

Push back decisions

Let me set the scene. Your legs are heavy, the runners are stretching out in the distance so that you feel all alone out there. And let me guess. You’ve got a twinge in your calf as well? That little sceptical voice in your head is getting louder and louder, asking why you should even bother when you’re not even halfway there yet. Sound familiar? It’s important to hold fire on making decisions like that. Instead, reassess the situation at your next refreshment point or the next kilometre sign. That way you won’t make a hasty decision you’ll regret a few minutes later. It also lets you split up the remaining distance into manageable chunks. So just think from one refreshment point to the next or from kilometre sign to kilometre sign. The good news is this also works when you’re jogging in woods or on a track. Instead of a refreshment point, just think at the next turn or the next intermediate sprint.

Train your mind in advance

Hardly anyone would consider doing a marathon without having done any running practice. The same goes for training your mental state before a competition. There are loads of books and CDs on mental skills training in sport. Try out a few of the techniques while you’re training or on a rest day. See what you respond best to. But don’t overdo the mental skills training. The same things apply in running as in other sports, namely that your health comes first. Having a strong mind also means knowing what your limits are and respecting them.

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