UNE PhD student and performance psychologist, Marni Hietbrink, has spent her career helping athletes, corporate leaders, musicians, and medical professionals unlock their mental potential, and through this, she’s seen first-hand why mental preparation is just as important as physical training.
"One of the biggest mental barriers is your own chatter,” Marni explains.
“Thoughts like ‘I can't keep this pace’ or ‘I'm too tired’ can derail even well-trained runners.”
The key? Plan for them before race day.
Expect the barriers
Most runners nail their physical training but overlook mental preparation. Marni recommends identifying unhelpful thoughts and uncomfortable sensations (lactic buildup, dry mouth, pain) before you start.
"If you've honestly looked at your thought tendencies when things get tough, you'll better respond to them when they happen," she says.
“It just becomes a bit of a ‘Oh, there's that thought, I knew that would come up. That thought can be here, but it's not getting in the way of me achieving this goal’ kind of a moment.”
Managing pre-race anxiety
Anxiety doesn’t always have to be the enemy; it can actually be helpful in the right doses.
“The trick is finding the sweet spot,” she says. “If you're constantly needing the toilet, feeling sick, or experiencing racing thoughts, you're too anxious. If you're yawning and unmotivated, you need more activation.
Some strategies Marni recommends include:
- Reframe your thinking. Have you ever noticed that anxiety and excitement feel very similar in your body? Use this physiological similarity to trick your brain. Say to yourself, “I am excited! I am ready! My body is primed!”. We need this certain level of activation in our body to be physically and mentally ready.
- Have a pre-performance routine that starts 24 hours before race start time. Follow the same routine each time you race to create certainty for your brain and limit anxiety. Following the same routine also helps ensure you are on time, well hydrated, well rested, and don't forget anything.
- Control the controllables. Not everything is in your control, but when you have planned for the things that are in your control, you will feel less anxious. Plan ahead of time where you will park, timing, enough food packed, enough back up clothes/equipment/gel packs/snacks, and plan for the weather conditions.
- Don’t underestimate the warmup. Get your body warm to increase activation. Some people need more physical warm up, some need less. Everyone needs to do something to warm up to prevent injury.
- Curate a playlist. Music can be super helpful in increasing or decreasing anxiety. Find a playlist that makes you feel relaxed to decrease anxiety, or makes you want to tap your toe to increase anxiety.
- Don’t forget to breathe. Breathing is a proven way of engaging our para sympathetic nervous system (rest and digest) and allows us to calm our body and access our logical thoughts. Breathing long, deep breaths through the nose for a count of 3 or 4, and out through the mouth for a count of 5 or 6, is most effective.
Break it into chapters to conquer boredom
Boredom amplifies quitting thoughts, so creating mental focus by dividing your run into sections can be a useful strategy.
“For one 2km stretch, concentrate on foot placement and cadence. The next, shift to gratitude for your body's capacity. Then move to breath work and letting go. This prevents your mind from spiralling while keeping engagement high.”
Quickfire tips for a first-timer
For those who have signed up to a race for the first time, here are Marni’s top things to remember:
- Plan for the event. Do a drive of the course if you can. Familiarise yourself with the course, parking, finish etc.
- Start slower than you think.
- Don’t compare your pace to others early on but if you start and there is someone who seems to be at a similar pace, you can use them to keep pace.
- Expect a mental dip around the midpoint. This is where you will need to dig deep with your thoughts. Practice the mini challenges at this point, try to move focus from internal (thoughts), to external.
- Have a plan for the final 2km.
- Smile when it gets hard — it actually helps regulate tension by activating parts of the brain that release serotonin which will help you feel better.
- Focus on finishing strong, not fast. It helps to adjust your idea of how you imagine yourself finishing the race. Imagery is a powerful tool and if you can imagine yourself finishing strong rather than fast, you will keep that imagery for the race and it will help you regulate thoughts and pace.
- Ask your friends and family for support! Knowing people will be there at certain points of the course to cheer you on makes all the difference!
And remember, your first race is all about celebrating the fact that you had the courage to sign up, and the determination to finish. You have nothing to prove, and everything to gain... but be prepared, this could be the start of a lifelong passion!
Find out more about the Armidale Running Festival here
