Good morning! Happy Sunday!
Right now, I’m on my way to Cape Cod for the Falmouth Road Race. Boy, do I hope I’m ready!
I’ve been running pretty consistently since my not-so-great performance at the ZOOMA 10K, but I haven’t run more than 6 miles at once and, well, Falmouth is 7 miles. However, I remember at the beginning of June, I was struggling with running 3 or 4 miles without dying and stopping a million times to walk, and I know I’ve come a long way since then. I’m actually feeling pretty confident about tackling 7 miles today. I don’t think I will break my previous PR at this race, but I know I’ll finish. And I’d be pretty pumped if I run the whole thing without dying/stopping. I just need to stay consistent and not freak out/get discouraged when I hit all the hills in the beginning (and, of course, at the very end).
Yesterday afternoon, I laid out all of my gear in preparation for race day. In case you’re interested, here’s the rundown:
- Lululemon TaTa Tamer
- Chevron Shock JUNK band
- New Balance Ananda Racerback
- Timex GPS Watch
- Spibelt
- Bib
- Socks
- Reebok One Cushion sneakers
- Reebok CrossFit Board Shorts
When I was laying out all of my running gear yesterday, I started thinking about what else I could do to ensure that I had a good race. Obviously, it was too late to squeeze in anymore training, so I started thinking about the mental aspect of training, which is something I admittedly know nothing about. Before a race, I’m typically chatting with friends, waiting in long porta-potty lines, and making jokes to Theodora about how she needs to tell me stories during the race because I didn’t train well and will probably die on the course. Basically, my head is never in the right place, so I started to think about what I could do right before the race to mentally prepare myself. Here’s what I came up with:
Focus on myself. I’ve blogged about this before, but, in the past, I’ve allowed myself to get too caught up in what other people are doing when it comes to running and racing. Instead of worrying about everyone else, I’m going to take a few minutes to focus on how I feel and my goals for the race.
Don’t allow myself to give into self-doubt. I always seem to go into panic mode at the start of a race, usually in the first mile or so. I see other runners cruising by me, so I start to doubt myself and my abilities. Instead of letting this happen and psyching myself out, I’m going to remind myself of how hard I’ve worked in recent weeks and that I will finish the race.
Remember my pacing strategy. My pacing strategy is simple for this race: start out slow, stay consistent, and try for negative splits toward the end. I don’t have any specific times in mind. I just want to run a good race and have fun. The Falmouth Road Race is a party, and I want to enjoy every second of it.
Soak it all in. Ok, this will probably come off as cheesy, so let me explain myself first. As you probably know, I’ve been flaring for a year now. There have been times when I’ve been “healthy” (thanks to Prednisone) and times when I haven’t been so well””like right now. I’ve been in a really bad flare (for me) since before I left for California for the CrossFit Games, which obviously sucks, but I know I’m not as sick as some people with IBD. I fully understand this and realize how lucky I am, and it truly breaks my heart to hear stories about people who suffer so much. I hate this disease and wish no one had it. I’m rambling, but what I’m trying to say is I will definitely take some time before (and during) the race today to soak it all in and appreciate the fact that I am healthy enough to run 7 miles. (Of course, I’ll be praying for no emergency bathroom stops on the race course!)
Load my Timex GPS Watch. Seriously. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve forgotten to load my watch and then struggle to get it going for the first 1/2 mile of a race. It’s happened way too many times!
So, those are the things I’m going to do right before the race today. I hope they help me run the best race that I can. I’ll be sure to tell you guys all about it tomorrow. Wish me luck!
Questions of the Day
What do you do right before a race?
What’s your best piece of advice for race day?