Grandma’s Marathon Visualization

Visualization is POWERFUL!

Running Grandma’s marathon?

Envision yourself running the race in its entirety. Feel the butterflies in your stomach at the start. See the road, crowds, landmarks, and hills. Visualize yourself gliding effortlessly through the race but also see yourself encountering discomfort and pushing through. What does that feel like? How will you shift your thoughts and mindset?

Picture the time on the clock and you pushing pause and save on your watch. What does that feel like? What do you see? Feel the rush in your legs and body after crossing the finish line. Feel the medal being placed around your neck. How proud do you feel? Embrace the joy and the feeling of accomplishment of reaching your goal.

Watch the course video and envision yourself running it.

You can also get a virtual race course tour on Friday June 16^th at 10:30 and 2:30 in Paulucci Hall in the DECC (location of the expo).

If you have time, drive the course, especially the second half. Get familiar with the sights and the turns in the last 5K.

But also prepare for the worst.

Prepare for every situation.

What happens if race day is really hot? What if it’s a downpour and freezing rain? What if you get food poisoning the day prior? What will your attitude be like? How will you adjust your strategy? How will you shift your mindset around your goals?

Flexibility is important and mindset training helps with this. Each week during your training take a little bit of time and think “What may the conditions be like during my race? And am I ready it?”

What about during the race? What if you run into GI distress? Or you feel pain? Ask yourself “What can I do to get to the finish line?” Take a second to pause and evaluate how bad the situation is. If it’s not actually pain or an injury, replace the uncomfortable feeling in your legs by focusing on your arms or your running form – shift your focus.

Use visualization to help you on race day! Check out more race week tips here.