Know Thyself

by Richard Ferguson Ph D (Running Journal, Feb 2006)

As strange as it may sound, many runners don't understand themselves very well. In other words, they are not in touch with their body and mind as they run. Often you're told to concentrate, focus, relax, get psyched etc., during a race. But how many runners are actually aware of being focused, relaxed, or even anxious? In my many years of running, both from a personal and professional perspective, I have found that almost all runners can benefit from increasing their own self- awareness.

Being a good runner means having the ability to constantly adjust both during training and racing. How many times are things perfect in training and racing? Very seldom are you in an optimal performance zone. That means you learn to adjust when you don't feel well, the weather isn't great, or when you've had a poor night of sleep. However, in order to make any adjustment when training or racing, you must first be aware that an adjustment needs to be made.

What adjustments are we talking about here? Goal setting is one big area that often needs work. Do you have a goal in running? Do you have too many goals? Some runners really don't have any goals, while others set so many goals that they get bogged down and never reach any of them. Goal setting is critical for running performance because goal setting forces you to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of your past performances. Goals should be performance goals where you strive to reach personal improvement criteria, like miles run in training, days in the weight room, or times run in certain workouts or races. You should also set short-term goals for each day or week of training. These short-term goals will help you reach a long-term goal, such as a particular race months or years in the future. Any goal setting program means better self- awareness, because as a runner you must first set goals, then work to attain them, then evaluate your performance, and in the end, adjust your goals in an appropriate manner.

Running is a sport where there is a very fine line between running too hard and physically crashing, or not pushing hard enough, thereby limiting your best performance. Learning to monitor your body is critical for peak running performance. Always work on reading how your body feels at different paces and exertion levels. Research has shown that the best runners are the ones who are exceptionally in tune with the feedback their body gives them during running. Try not to block out signals your body is giving you. By monitoring muscle discomfort and breathing rate, you can learn to run just below the anaerobic threshold, which is critical for any long race such as a marathon. Cross the anaerobic threshold and lactic acid will begin to accumulate rapidly in your muscles and you will have no choice but to drastically slow the pace.

Another part of self-awareness is knowing where your optimal level of arousal lies. You know, the point at which you feel excited, yet not so nervous that it hurts your performance. Being able to maintain an optimal level of arousal, both before and during competition, is critical for optimal running performance. If you're too nervous before a race it means you waste valuable energy. Feeling flat and unenthused before a race may mean a very flat, unenthused race performance. Being able to energize yourself with self-talk or recognizing when you need to relax during a race is also critical for peak running performance.

If you can learn to recognize what makes you nervous or why you sometimes feel flat then you can develop ways to relax or pump yourself up. Becoming aware of why you have certain emotions can be an invaluable skill. By recognizing triggers for anxiety, or even boredom, you can work to avoid the triggers, or if they're unavoidable, learn to prepare to react to them more appropriately. Also, if you know when you feel too anxious, you can then use cognitive techniques to help get you back to an optimal level of arousal. Think back to how you felt emotionally before your best races. Try to identify just how you felt and then work to get yourself into that zone of emotional arousal before every race. By doing so you can get yourself into what famous sport psychologist Yuri Hanin has termed the "zone of optimal functioning."

How can you go about developing better self-awareness as a runner? Maybe the best way for any runner can be found in their running log. Many runners simply write down their miles or workouts in their log. Try to put a little more reflection into your log entries and note how you felt both mentally and physically in the workout or race. Was there anything that stressed you before or during? How well did you monitor your body feedback during the run? How well did you concentrate? Did any particular technique help you to relax or help to raise your level of emotional arousal? By answering such questions. you will begin to develop better self-awareness and see strengths, but also weaknesses that need to be corrected.

Once you are better able to identify your ideal level of arousal and concentration, you can then use some visual imagery to help you "practice" getting into that ideal performance state. Relive previous great races and the accompanying optimal arousal level, thought patterns, and concentration style. With imagery you can constantly work to achieve optimal performance states even when you're not actually training or racing.

By increasing self-awareness you will be better able to monitor physiological feedback from your body and thought processes from your mind. Both of these skills can be a valuable tool in preparing for races and in getting the most out of your potential during a race. Start getting to know the running you a little bit better.

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