Flying to the Finish Line
Thursday, August 27th, 2009I would like to begin this article by congratulating Cate for coming up with this month’s topic! Cate was looking for some guidance about pre-race tips, carbo-loading, sleep, pre hydration, etc., for her cycling and running events. In addition, she wanted to know how to handle “pushing through the wall” also known as “bonking avoidance”.
She explained that during a race and sometimes at work as a firefighter, “I felt so completely defeated by the sudden lack of motivation because I was physically and mentally drained”.
You have put in the training hours, done all of the necessary preparation, and the race/event you’ve been building for is here! The night before the race, your confidence begins to wane, you start second-guessing your training strategy, asking yourself if you rested enough… too much… are you really ready?
If you’ve followed your plan, you will most likely be ready to rock ‘n’ roll and soar to the finish line, victorious! No one single factor will ultimately determine the success of your performance or the level of confidence you have going into your event. So here are some tips to help you plan ahead, cover the bases and avoid typical pitfalls that can ruin a good race!
TAPER VS. TRAINING?
How do you score when it comes to backing off from your training program a few weeks prior to your event? For many athletes this is a difficult concept to embrace. However, a single 30-second treadmill sprint has been shown to decrease muscle glycogen content by as much as 32% (Maughan R. Preceed Nutr. Soc., 2002; 61:87-96). Unless you understand the importance and value of tapering, you will most likely toss it aside and try to get a “few more” training sessions in just to be sure you are ready. Don’t do it!
Key Tip: Allow your body to rest and rebuild. Allow your body to rest and rebuild. Allow your body to rest and rebuild. Got the idea? Your transition plan should take place over the final few weeks. Any last minute attempts to top off your training could jeopardize your optimal performance on race day.
Here is what you really want to do. Taper while you are training. In the last few weeks prior to your event, your taper plan should be very strategic and well thought out. You will want to reduce your training stresses but not so much that your body goes into “detraining” mode.
On the opposite end of the spectrum you want to avoid overtraining. The energy systems need to remain finely tuned for optimal performance so you still need to train, but your training should be less. This can be accomplished with short interval workouts maintaining intensity but shorten duration of workouts. Aerobic sessions can be mixed in with the above higher-intensity sessions or completed on another training day.
You should decrease your overall weekly mileage and time on the bike to allow your body to rest and recover. Depending on when you begin your taper, your training time could be reduced anywhere from 10 to 60 percent in weeks prior to your event.
PLAY HEAD GAMES
Your body can achieve what your mind can believe! You have got to train your brain while you are training your body. This is a sure-fire way to continue to ride hard when your body is beaten. At the point where you are feeling defeated and exhausted, you must be able to control your thoughts and keep them on the positive track in order to drive your body to the finish.
This is why it’s so critical to be mentally prepared ahead of time for what is to come. So, while you are tapering your training, you are increasing the amount of mental training that will carry you to the finish. Visualization is a critical exercise for success.
Ask any Olympic athlete about what they do to get in the zone before an event and they will most likely tell you that they play a film in their head seeing themselves “succeed and win”. Mentally, elite athletes go over the course, reviewing their strategy, their plan, and they SEE themselves strong, persevering, pushing through, with a relaxed, effortless motion….
Get the picture?
They are not focused on their competition, rather their own path to victory. Focus only on those things you are able to control and let go of everything else. This process takes practice, but once you have got it going you will find it incredibly valuable.
One thing you can do to train your brain is to write down a few active, positive key words that describe how you have felt when you had an awesome training session. Then recite these words with your eyes closed and visualize yourself on race day experiencing the same feelings. Some individuals also enjoy listening to meditative music during this exercise.
Having a visualization process will also help with pre-race anxiety and high emotions that you may have about the race. Calm the stressors in your daily routine and take comfort in this psychological and emotional lift to your race preparation.
Review the Race Course
With most of my running races and competitive cycling events I ride the course a week or so before the event. Some times you can’t do it that early because of location, but once you arrive to the event, go and check it out.
Even if you can only drive it by car, at least you will have a mental map of the race course. This tool will allow you to put the course into your visualization process, learning the turns, hills, terrain, faults of the course, etc. Now you can decide what you can control in your race and determine how you are going to do it. Sometimes you can view the course online as well, but there is nothing like the real thing!
–end part 1
