We have the 28th April 2024 circled on our calendar. Not because everyone we know is going to run a PB (they might), not because it’s our home race but because we can’t wait to see everyone’s work and dedication pay off.
So for context the 28th of April is Plymouth half marathon weekend. A bit of a ceremony of what our city has to offer. With a great amount of the Acta family racing in either the 5k, 10k or half marathon races, we are buzzing for it.
We are currently 4 weeks into the 12 week programme that Motion training have put together for us. The programme is the perfect guide to any level of runner preparing for the races and we are hugely grateful for Ben and Amber at Motion for their time and effort for putting it together. Especially offering the plan to our runners for free and giving such insight and help to everyone.
I just want to go over a topic that I think is on everyone’s mind, whether they are an elite athlete or a brand new beginner. This may help or it may just reaffirm what you already knew but have a read if you are racing, or thinking about racing on the 28th April.
The emotions and feelings around training blocks and races.
To put yourself out there and book your place in a race is a huge hurdle to get over. Making that commitment to yourself and speaking it out loud can be quite a tough task especially for the first time.
It’s not uncommon that you may feel intimidated and overwhelmed by a long 16, 12 or 10 week programme but that’s a good thing to remember, you’re not the only one that feels that way.
So how do you get over these feelings of overwhelm and nerves?
Firstly, focus on one day at a time.
It’s so easy to get ahead of yourself and look at all those sessions over the coming months, this will do nothing but bring on the emotions of stress.
instead, just plan your week out by choosing when you are going to do each session then just focus on the day ahead.
Try not to overthink each session.
My best tip for this is to focus on the warm up, go through a set routine that will trigger the mind and get your mentally ready for the run ahead. Use the warm up as more than just a physical start but also a mental start.
There’s a saying that goes - ‘focus on the mile you’re in’. This relates to any run but also any training run. Focus on todays miles, not the rest of the week or the rest of the months miles.
Perspective
Try to focus on the fact you are fit and healthy and that you get to go out there and run. If we constantly think about ‘having’ to go for a run or making it a chore, you’ll go into it with a negative outlook. Focus on the privilege of going for a run and all the benefits you have the ability to eat from running. A positive outlook will give you a lot more energy and make you feel like you can work a lot harder.
Awareness
If you aren’t feeling your best and you’ve had a hard weeks training, it is okay to cut a session short or change a session to allow your body the time and rest to recover.
Obviously training for any running event is going to take hard work and maybe training when you aren’t feeling your best, however, you will learn about your body throughout the process which will allow you to make the best decisions about training.
Work hard but also work smart.
Race day
There are so many thoughts, feelings and emotions that surround a race.
The overall feeling should hopefully be excitement but nerves and butterflies are natural.
I can assure you that on the 28th April we will all be there for each other. That’s the most exciting thing for me, every single one of us will feel some form of nerves. That’s what makes us human but the fact we will all look after each other and be there to support each other is the biggest blessings we could ask for.
The race is somewhat the celebration of all of your training. The day you get to go and express yourself. The day you get to let it all out and prove to yourself that you can do it. Because you can.
So as we look forward to 28/4 I want to make sure everyone feels comfortable and gets anything off their chest they can. We are here for you, we know the process and we know how you feel. Reach out to us, ask us, listen to us, bounce ideas off of us. We want you to feel ready.
We know every single one of you can smash whichever distance you have chosen, we just want you to realise it and be in the best mental space possible to do it on the day.
We will host a shakeout run on Saturday 27th April to shakeout any nerves, get the body moving and ready to go and race on the Sunday.
We hope the shakeout is a get together the day before the race where everyone can kind of take a deep breathe together and get ready to celebrate on the Sunday.
Keep smashing training.
We are proud of you.
H