With many of you racing this fall, I thought it fitting to blog about race strategy including PEAKING for performance. One sentence: Be a puppy. Ok ok keep reading, there’s more.
Three Race Pacing Strategies
Best Marathon performances are either even or negative split
Negative split
Patience, patience , attack
Fast, faster, fastest.
Even split
Click click click click
Positive split -
Go out hard and hang on for dear life
-can be good for teaching how to get out hard and settle in to teach race strategy.
My favorite for half and full marathons is the negative split. I am confident in my race plan in going out conservatively but powerfully and steadily and as the miles click I get stronger and faster- always picking off dozens of runners who went out too fast and as the race progresses I get stronger. In a 5k, I just sprint the whole time lol! Not always recommended- there may be consequences to this one- good or terrible! Ha!
Peaking
A carefully planned training schedule starts with recovery from a previous peak racing season followed by base building, speedwork of gradually increasing intensity (including tune up races, and finally a tapering as you head into your peak racing season. Depending upon your unique physiology, a peak is usually held between 2-4 weeks. I have found my peak is between 2-3 weeks before a half or full marathon. After recovery well from a peak, you are then able to work at a higher level in each stage or block as the next peak period approaches.
Each stage of your training towards peaking is a building block that must be strong and sturdy to support the next block or stage of training.
Step by step to a Peak Race: Each block of your plan should focus on distinct development:
First Block: building your mileage to the desired volume that fits your current load capacity to the number you would like to eventually sustain. If you have found that 60 miles per week works well in balancing your lifestyle and wellness, you may start at 30 and build gradually in the base building phase. During this phase, we incorporate hill strides, accelerations, and repetitions or speed in small amounts to a.) practice great form b.) to develop turnover of the legs, and c.) as a gradual segue to longer interval training as the training towards peak performances progresses. The base phase can last 4 or more weeks depending upon the athlete's long term goals.
Mid Block: The shorter reps will transfer into longer hills, fartleks, track intervals, tempo or LT work, and race pacing work to build anaerobic and fuel processing systems to handle faster paces for a longer period of time. During this phase, I like for my athletes to incorporate a few tune-ups races over various distances shorter than their goal race as a supplement to our training, but mainly to get the athlete’s body and mind accustomed to racing. Tune up races show you the real progress (or not!) you are making so you can go back to the plan and make changes that work for your unique needs towards your goal. I recommend 2-4 tune up races within this block. I always liked to do a 5k, 10, and then race a half marathon 2-3 weeks before my big race. This does not work well for all, but it did for me. I would also like to say it allows you to begin to visualize your goal or peak race so you can mentally prepare and calm your nerves surrounding your most important race- which should be a fun experience- not a stressful one. I like to get to my peak race with the mentality that I am going to “play” on my playground. That’s how solid I feel because I visualize my race and nerves prior to the weekend by incorporating visualization in every hard workout that I execute. If I am running a long run with pace work, I imagine that I am in a group of badass women clicking fast miles off together, and then when coach throws in a FASTER interval to complete the session, I imagine I am strong and will hang on so I can finish at my best effort and hopefully a new PR and a win. Not backing down from my competition or from my inner thoughts that this is “too hard” in practice gives me a mental edge on race day. This Block lasts 4 plus weeks- for me it took years to figure out that 12 weeks here is perfect. This is too long for some and too short for others. Your current fitness, experience, and level are all factors that your coach will surely take into consideration. Even my amazing coach and I working in tandem have both over or under reached, but that is part of the process of dialing what works well for you right now which may be different for you 5 years ago or 5 years from now, so this is a fluid but often progressive learning process. I find that when I recover well after a race, then build through the process outlined here in this blog, race, then recover, then on the next build, coach and I are able to work together to adjust and “dial in”. Many people just stop running completely or don’t reflect with the coach to communicate then both modify to get closer to your unique pathway to progress and success. If you can zoom out and look at the big picture, one race is not the end. This is a process. If the one race is your end goal then wonderful and congratulations for doing something hard that requires discipline and strength and move on, but if you are chasing a goal that is much larger- it takes time, patience, recovery, reflection, hard hard work at the right times and sometimes losing and learning. It is so easy for everyone to notice the wins, but we all know every runner from elite to newbie will have some crappy days, some ok days, and some amazing days. Better to just embrace this now and stop trying to control when and where and allow for honesty in the process. Work hard on days you can and recover on days you should. Show up. To all of it ;)
The peaking stage requires a reduction in mileage. Some runners do not like this! They want to keep hitting those numbers! But it is very important to begin to rest the legs and let them heal and sharpen. All that work needs time to absorb. This does not mean stopping your routine and running: no! Still show up to the schedule your body is used to, just run less miles. The workouts will also reduce in volume but the intensity will remain. This is called sharpening. Without a correct taper, you risk showing up to your race flat. There is such a thing as over rest just like over training. Long runs will come down, shorter faster reps for some programs or pace work and strategy for others. This is the best time to start preparing for race day: get all your clothes, socks, bra, shoes, headphones - whatever and try them out in training! This is an obvious nonnegotiable. Seriously, socks - I have worn some stupid stuff at races and pain for it after! Don’t do this, try your gear on during training first! Don’t forget to visualize and BELIEVE in yourself. The best runners I know never stop believing they can be better.
How to prepare your mind for your peak race
GUTS and WILLPOWER - “I'm going to do my best today, no matter what! Know that when the suffering comes, to embrace it, welcome it and stay calm - most of the time, it goes away and you feel great again - that's the secret. Do not judge your performance in the middle of it. Just notice the suffering, calm deep breaths, stay positive with your talk, and before you know it - you've produced a ton of dopamine in your brain to make you fly again- ha! So many runners get that suck feeling and just immediately go to “ugg oh poor me, this is not my day, or oh its all down here from this' ' NO!!!!! Suffering is a sign you are pushing yourself. Stay positive, steady, and calm. But, don't give in to it or pity. Pain is one thing but sorry folk - if you are going for a goal performance then its not going to feel like strolling in the park for the entire race. Yes, there should be some amazing miles but there will also be some depressing ones. Keep your positive self talk, mantras, and loved ones in mind to help you stay calm and carry on.
You must control your emotions
Be a puppy: If you let your fear or over excitement and adrenaline overtake you the morning of the race, you will lose so much energy that could be used towards the work of art that could be your goal race. Your body does not know the difference between emotional, mental, and physical stress. It only knows stress. So give yourself the best chance by controlling your emotions through deep breathing, not over thinking, stay confident in yourself, giggling a little, and enjoying the experience. I always feel that a grateful heart cannot fail. Even if my data doesn't show what I want, I can still experience a race with a full heart knowing that I get to run- not that I have to run. And, why would I want to destroy something that I love so much - take the over fear and over emotion and put them away on race morning. Just believe in YOU. Line up, and play like a puppy on that playground. Even puppies get their paws clipped- they still recover and play in the puddle immediately after. Be a puppy.
FEAR. Stare that elusive ghost in the face and you will fly! Are you afraid to succeed? I have worked with athletes who fear the pressure of having to maintain a certain standard or who have been so concerned with how others will judge them- their own moms, teammates, and community friends! When you put it this way, it does seem so ridiculous, but I can identify. . I can relate early in my career to this feeling as I didn't really like the attention from others; it wasn’t a feeling that “oh shoot, I just ran really fast, now I have to go through all that suffering again but even more!” I would say, “that performance was hard, but now my body has it in me and I will be stronger for it and can’t wait to level up!” Sometimes, I would not “level up” and this was an opportunity for me to not take it all too seriously - to stair fear in the face and say - well, look, I am still the same Jackie, with the same family who loves me, and anyone who is “disappointed” well, that’s theirs to figure out. Loss and Learn. Oh, and great! I got one of my “bad days” out of the way…the next one has a greater chance of being amazing! I mean, seriously, who thinks they should have ALL of the great days and performances - that’s not fair! Everyone has to fail. So, start getting comfortable with it. Just don’t give up. EVER. Never stop giving your effort for the intention of that day. And if the intention was to run a fast marathon, then go run the effort of a fast marathon - even if the numbers didn't come out the way your brain wanted. Boohoo. Get over it- ha! Onto the next adventure. The only time you can boo hoo is if you give up on yourself and believe in yourself. Then, sure, but I don’t recommend that! Lol. Embrace FEAR. Embrace suffering. Embrace success. Embrace failure. Embrace the journey not one result, EMBRACE YOU! You are not an imposter. You are real and a freakin badass for even imaging taking up this sport. IT'S HARD and SOOOOOOO rewarding. Always train to be the best YOU, you can be without anyone else's approval. BYYYYEEEE!
A note on Fear. It is not necessarily a bad thing. I do find Fear helpful but in controlled doses that do not catapult me into the realm of a discombobulated mess. When running toward the trials qualifier, the clock and competition were feared but in a way that motivated and were not paralyzing; if fear is immobilizing, leave it at home for now. Then practice inviting her in during workouts and tune up races before letting her out in a big race.
As the race draws near
Remind yourself that you have done all that you can to prepare yourself physically. During the taper, DO NOT try and squeeze a workout in to try and prove your fitness. It’s too late and this is mental. Listen to your coach as she has prescribed the correct amounts of intensity. That being said, if you are noticing you are overly tired, moody, stressed, communicate that with the coach. You may have overreached in training and this can be remedied with correct modifications and reflections for moving forward towards the next peak race.
Goals are Important. As the race approaches and anxiety rises, remind yourself that the most you can do is give your best effort. IF you do this, you will always win - no matter the place, number, or any ghostly judgment you have created by others (true or not).
PRE RACE STRATEGIES can make all the difference and prime you for race day!
Physical taper is the easing off of running after months of a build up. You will reap the most benefit from your training if you can truly accept and be content with what your training leading up to the taper and what you were able to achieve. (DO NOT FOCUS ON THE 1 or 2 workouts that did not happen or go well) Fitness happens over time, not from 1 or 2 efforts. Avoid the temptation to get in one last long run or hard workout- this will only take away from your race day performance. Do the last hard sessions when the coach has them planned unless otherwise discussed for special circumstances.
Check back for more! This topic is for sure not complete ;)
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