overcoming negative thoughts during a race

We've all had negative thoughts creep into our heads at some time. That's not unusual. Your strongest weapon in any situation is your mind. Oddly enough, no matter how you think of yourself - a competitor or a quitter - that's who you'll be. You've not quit a race yet, so it's apparent to me you are a competitor. Now you have to make sure your training is sufficient to push yourself  toward race-day type conditions. In a race it's easy to get caught up in the excitement. You might swim, bike or run faster than you're used to ... and perhaps run your tank to near empty. That's when the nagging questions will begin. If you've trained properly, included brick workouts, and experienced threshold-type pain, it won't be a new, confidence-robbing experience for you in a race. You'll have the mental strength to carry you across the line, in spite of how your legs or lungs might feel. Keep working at it, keep racing, and before you know it, your self-doubt will disappear. Good luck!

This is such an excellent question and something I'm going to work diligently on this season!

I've trained my butt off but neglected to train my mind. (gonna check out the site you mention)

I spiraled into the abyss of depression during my Chicago Marathon (see my race report) and dropped from about 7:45min/mile splits down to 9:30min/mile split in like 5 miles. Crazy man... I was SSSOOOOO feeling sorry for myself at that point.

I totally realized I needed to work on my mental game not because I was in the abyss because it was such a nice and warm place to be when I was there....but once I saw my friend pass me and I caught up with here, all my remaining splits for the race were like 8:30min/mile. So it was obvious I was mentally "challenged" and could have run much faster than the 9:30min/mile I was doing just 1 mile before.

I read an article that had an excellent idea, which I will employ at my IM race next year. A girl who was racing IM Moo stuck little "motivation" notes in her special needs bags so halfway through the bike she got these "special notes" and halfway through the run (where I think I'd probabaly need it most) she got these "special notes."

Don't know what they said and that's something I'll work on too, but she said they made her smile and gave her a mental boost...because by the time the depression abyss comes....it's all mental anyway right?

OK, I'm gonna go out on a limb here and admit what I do in these cases, which I'm sure we all have secretly done.

When I start feeling bad or want to drop out I start imagining I'm on TV and the camera is with me, either because I'm in the lead or trying to catch the leader. I even imagine the commentator saying something like "this age grouper had overcome a difficult situation and you can see the determination and pain in his face." Sometimes I just inject myself into some triathlon coverage I recently saw and just role play in my head that I'm that guy and I'm doing and going through what he did. I stay in that role and before I know it I've passed that point that I needed to pass in order to be sure to finish and not blow up.

C'mon now, we've all done it, right?

Another thing I do if I'm not feeling too bad but need a little pick-up, is thinking about the end of the race and how good I feel when I'm walking around the first few minutes afterwards. I really feel like I accomplished something during this time and thinking about it motivates me to make it to the end.

Hope this helps

This is similar to my techniques.  I've never wanted to quit during a race (I've only done 2) but I've sure wanted to quit a few long workouts. 

I remind myself how lousy I've felt on the few occasions when I did abandon a workout halfway through, or even just didn't work as hard as I wanted to. I HATE feeling like that!  And I remind myself how great it feels to know that I stuck it out when I didn't want to.

In the unlikely event that doesn't work, I bribe myself with promises of chocolate if I finish.  (Ususally after I've worked that hard I don't want to ruin it with excess calories anyway, but it's a great motivator to finish the workout )

Negative thoughts have killed me more than once in races. The only negative thought that always has made me have a bad race is when I say to myself, "This is stupid." I then I think of the time and years I have wasted trying to be an athlete and my race is done but the truth is I love being an athlete. I love being fit and I love racing. I think I only have negative thoughts when I know deep down that I am not going to do well anyway. Being prepared and knowing you are prepared gets you into the right frame of mind. Shaky training and problems in training lead to negative thoughts. Being strongphysically leads to being strong mentally.

my worse part of a race is the day before! the nerves, the negative thoughts, the doubts...

in an effort to find a solution, i found the book, "Running Within", by jerry lynch. he discusses negative thinking, why it happens, how to change it. he applies the methodology to racing in general with particular association to running. but he covers training, pre-race, racing, and post racing. he discusses how the mind works and how you can control your thinking. it has done wonders for me already. i did a 10K race about a month ago and put a little mantra on a piece of paper and stuck it in my pocket. all it said was "soft is strong". it was a charm.

I haven't had any negative thoughts during any of my races, but (and it is a huge but) I've only done Sprints, and I've only had one season. I'm mostly concentrating on finishing whatever leg I'm on.

Do you have negative thoughts because you aren't doing as well as you would like, or did you go out too hard? Just curious.

And hee on the camera on you trick. I've been known to do that on the swim, except I pretend that people are thinking what great form I have, and smooth is fast. I'm neither, but play acting never hurt anybody.

I have a one word answer......Pain. Something that we all grow to form a love/hate relationship with.

When things get hard for me in a race (usually on the bike leg), I sing part of the I Am A Fighter song to myself over and over again. Sing it with me now:

Makes me that much stronger

Makes me work a little bit harder

Makes me that much wiser

Thanks for making me a fighter.

I am a fighter

I ain't gonna stop now

There is no turning back

I've had enough

Repeat as required.

Works for me. Now I think I need to go listen to the song.

In every race, you'll face periods when you feel bad--mentally or physically--and periods when you feel good. I think if you can keep yourself in a state of indecision during the bad times, and procrastinate about acting on your feelings, then they will pass. That's how I usually get through it, at least.

You could also revise your goals sometimes. For example, if during the swim you honestly feel like you're going to die, like I usually do, just decide that your goal is surviving, and not racing. So switch to an easy stroke and get through it, enjoying the scenery and knowing that the rest of the race is in an oxygen-rich environment.

In extreme cases I just count down the miles I have left. Usually I feel my worst near the end, so it makes sense to count down here. It's actually very mentally tasking, but it certainly gets you focused on what you're trying to do.

Those are just some thoughts. One more thing is to remember that if you do have to stop, it doesn't mean the race is over. This isn't a very pleasant anecdote, but there have been some times I couldn't catch up to people until after I had stopped at the side of the road and thrown up. Success depends on lots of factors, and if stopping lets you eliminate a factor holding you back, then it can actually give you a boost. Rock on.

-dave

thank you alllllll for the wonderful input ... as some of you have asked i feel like quiting because i am not feeling well phisically although i have been training hard a lot (love training, hate racing) ...

nevertheless i am always one of the last guys to finish my races around here ... bear in mind we only have something like 10-15 athletes where i live in brazil... i am positive i will do better next time (Olympic triathlon under 40º C in Brazil - December 19) and i will remember your counseling during my race...
i will get there - i am sure

if coming to brazil - send me an email
"keep wet and train smart"

artur :-)

The first thing I do, is recognize that there will be tough stretches during a race where things aren't going well, but you won't be the only one that is having them. During your training you can prepare for this by thinking about what strategies you can employ to get through these rough periods.

For me, most of my racing has been running related, with only a couple of spring tri's this past summer. Having run a bunch of marathons, I've many times gone through the rough periods and a couple of things have gotten me through. The first is that I know it's just a rough spot and it will end in a mile or two, and just to work through it. Distract your mind. (I sing songs, make up rhymes, do math in my head). The second thing I do, is instead of trying to wrap your brain around how much you have left, is to break it down into smaller segamnts. For me, during the last 10k of a marathon, each mile is it's only little race. I can easily run a mile, and that's all I think about.

I also do a lot of visualization leading up to a race, mostly laying in bed at night. Thinking about what could happen, and working your way through the problems. Remember mental strength is just as important as physical strength. You need to practice them both

Chris

Honestly, this is one of the reasons I do "crazy" things just to get the point we're discussing. The "quitting" point.

I want to see how I act when I'm at that point and how far I can push once at that point. How different "tactics" work once I'm at that "point".

The funny thing is that probably everyone on this site can relate to what I'm saying, but try to speak to a "normal" human being that doesn't live on the fringe of society like we do and they'll look at you with either a blank stare or a confused/concered look.

I've competed in a few adventure races (including two 24-hour adventure races...yes with no sleep) just to get my body/mind to the point that I wanted to quit and then take notice at what I do then. I remember during my second 24-hour adventure race my "quitting' point occurred at almost the same exact time....the 18 hour mark. I was quite surprised the 1st time I experienced this 18 hour "quitting" point but the 2nd 24-hour adventure race, when I hit this mental/physical "quitting" point I checked my watch and guess what hour it was? Yep, the 18th hour.

This is the reason I joined the Army as a Airborne Combat Engineer...because my recruiter told me it was pretty hard training and that I wanted to see if I would get to a "quitting" point and then push through it.

It's one of the reasons I started triathlon racing to see if I could reach a "quitting" point.

It's one of the reasons I ran my first marathon.

And it's one of the reasons I continue to push the envelope to experience another "quitting" point and then see what I do at it.

You guys know what I'm talking about....

That's why I really like this site. No blank stares and no concerned looks....(ok, figuratively speaking).

For me it is all the day before and right before the race. I can hardly sleep!

By the time I am actually doing it, all I can think of is "wow - look what the hell I am doing???!!! This is so cool! ohmygod" Even though it hurts.

But I have only done 2 sprints, one I just wanted to finish without puking and the other I just wanted to not walk on the run. I made both goals..... maybe on the Oly...

I like the "imagine there is a tv camera on you" theory.