1) The document provides mental strategies and techniques for runners to use in training and during races, including visualization, mental rehearsal, positive self-talk, mindfulness, relaxation, and goal setting. 2) It discusses how meditation can help runners by keeping their mind focused on their breathing to block out distracting or negative thoughts. Mindfulness teaches runners to focus on running in the present moment. 3) Several experts recommend simulating difficult race conditions in training to prepare mentally and practicing being uncomfortable to learn your limits and build mental toughness.

2. MARATH
ON
2

3. Getting ready for a trail race? Try
this for your training:
• Seclude yourself in a remote cave for 3
years
• Spend most of your time practicing
breathing exercises and chanting Buddhist
mantras
• Practice leaping upward from a cross-legged
sitting position without using your hands.
Repeat ad infinitum
• Return to the world three years later, light as
a feather, in a heightened state of
consciousness
• Run vast distances. Win races. (Known side
effect: By this point in your training, the act
of winning will have become meaningless to
you).
Lung-Gom-Pa
Runners 3

4. “Eyes focused about 100 feet ahead while moving
in a steady rhythm, keeping the head level, the
shoulders relaxed, the back straight, and the nose
aligned with the navel.”
~The Marathon Monks of Mount Hiei
4

5. • The Incas had a type of postal system where relay messengers ran across
rope bridges to deliver communications to the next team.
• Messengers lived in pairs, with one person sleeping and the other on alert for
messages
Messengers of Machu
Picchu
5

6. Mental Strategies
(“the right stuff”)
1. Visualization
2. Mental Rehearsal
3. Positive Statements
4. Mindfulness
5. Relaxation Techniques
6. Goal Setting
6

7. 1. Visualization
• Visualize yourself
performing successfully
• Focus on process,
not outcome
7

8. 2. Mental Rehearsal
Create a mental video
– Use imagery before and during the race.
– For example:
• Imagine yourself at difficult points in the race, feeling
calm, focused, and energetic
• Plan for, and during the race use, specific images
(visual, phrases, words) at particular cue spots
-Kate Hays
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9. 3. Positive Statements
• Stay focused by picking an inspiring word/phrase
– “Run Free” – Ryan Hall
• Make it personal
– “Why not me?”, “I am doing the best I can”
• Instructional Self-Talk
– “Keep your knees bent”
• Positive statements can control panic
– Positive thoughts replace negative thoughts
9

10. 4. Mindfulness
As you become more
mindful, you’ll become
much more connected to
your running, body, mind,
and environment.
10

11. 5. Relaxation
Techniques• Relaxation training – use before and during
the race to control tension
• Meditation
• Deep breaths
• Mental-body scan
• Pre-performance rituals
11

12. 6. Goal setting
• Specific
• Attainable –
know the race course
• Reasonable (time
frame)
• Clear
• Measurable
12

13. Jon Kabat-Zinn
• Becoming aware of the messages that
encourage you to quit or slow down can help
you work through them
• "If you accept these thoughts as the truth, they
have an influence over you” (I’m tired, I’m
losing)
• "If you just see them as thoughts, they are like
little bubbles in a stream. They come and they
go--and they burst. They won't have influence
over your performance."
13

14. Jon Kabat-
Zinn• "When mindfulness is applied to sports, it
brings the mind and the body into a kind of
unity."
• "Running is breath by breath, footfall by
footfall, moment by moment,"
• "It has its own calming and
clarifying meditative elements
built right into it.”
14

15. Mindfulness for
Runners
• “Run the mile you’re in”
• Mindfulness is the reminder that you are in control of your
thoughts and your body.
• It’s the conscious choice not to ruminate or suffer mentally,
but to let go of the things that don’t matter and to stay in the
present moment, mentally.
15

16. Sakyong Mipham
Rinpoche• Spiritual leader of the Shambhala Buddhist lineage, who trains for the New
York City Marathon
• “Meditation can make you better runner”
• "If the mind is centered on breathing, the mind becomes stronger and more
focused”
• Wrote the book Running with the Mind of Meditation
16

17. “Meditation and breathing exercises can also
enhance your endurance, by giving you tools
to remain attentive even when your body is
aching or your mind is agitated.”
The Athlete’s Guide to Recovery by Sage Rountree
17

18. George Mumford
• Sports psychologist, meditation instructor
• Teaches mindful techniques to the Chicago
Bulls
• Being more connected with your breath can
help prevent injuries: You learn to know
(better) “when you can push it and when
you need to back off.”
• A mindful state diminishes stress levels and increases
feelings of relaxation, so it can also enhance your
enjoyment of running.
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19. Mental Strategies
1. Adjust your thinking
2. Keep in mind, you have time to make up
for lost distance
(Part of letting go of mistakes)
3. Stay positive
– “It’s not what that gets you, it’s who you become”
~Diana Nyad (per Henry David Thoreau)
19

20. Mental Strategies
4. “Stay focused on you, and only you.”
~Kate Bevilaqua
5. Have mental songs
for all 3 sports
(example: Billy Joel)
20

21. Mental Strategies
6. Practice in all types of conditions: weather,
different roads, etc.
7. Use mental imagery to rehearse; i.e.
swimming techniques
8. Pace yourself; don’t go out too fast, run 2nd
half faster
21

22. Mental Strategies
9. Use positive self-talk & mantras:
– “Failure is not an option” ~Bob Damon
– “Find a way” ~Diana Nyad
10.Expect unexpected pain/fatigue – stiches,
cramps
– “I park my brain somewhere else” ~Bob Damon
– “You will learn the pain in practice, you will know it in
every race.” ~Joe Friel
22

23. Peak Performance -
FLOW• Intense focus of attention
• Effortlessness
• Total involvement
• Complete presence
• Harmony with the activity
• Control
• Time distortion
• Happiness
23

24. Pre-race Simulations
• Do your best to simulate particularly distressing
aspects of the upcoming race in your training
– Weather
– Pavements/Environments
• Like studying for a
big exam
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25. “Ten Count” & Other Tips
• Begin with 5 minutes of walking or jogging.
• Simply count ten inhalations and exhalations, and
then repeat.
• If a stray thought comes up, drop it like a hot
potato, then go right back into your count.
• Run in synch with your breathe
• Be aware of your stride
25

26. • Practice being a little uncomfortable (Be
hyper aware of where discomfort is taking
place. Breathe into this place.)
• Be present (without judgment, pay attention
to your body.)
• Be grateful: your body is allowing you to run

“Ten Count” & Other Tips
26

27. Drop Your Thoughts
By dropping your thoughts as you run,
You gain access to many of the great benefits of meditation.
Imagine greater patience, well-being,
A stronger sense of compassion and non-judgment.
MindfulRunning.org
27

28. “Mental toughness has been reported
to be the most important
psychological characteristic in
achieving performance excellence”
(Connaughton, Wadey, Hanton & Jones, 2008)
Mental Toughness
28

29. • Internal vs. External Focus
• Self-direction
• Avoid distraction
• Shrug off failures / Rebound from defeat
• Compartmentalization
• Never self-flagellate
• Relentless focus on long term goal achievement
• Carefully plan short term goals
Achieving Mental
Toughness
29

30. MENTAL TOUGHNESS ATTRIBUTES PSYCHOLOGICAL STRATEGIES
Insatiable desire to win Goal setting, self-talk, reflection
Bouncing back from setbacks Reflection, self-talk, social support
Under distress, push back
boundaries -pain
Simulation training, social support
Competition anxiety is expected,
coping is necessary
Mental & physical preparation,
social support
Thriving on pressure on
competition
Mental & physical preparation,
social support
Regaining psych. control -
uncontrollable events
Mental imagery, pre-performance
routine, process goals, social
support
Remaining fully focused in face of
distractions
Mental Imagery, pre-performance
routine, process goals
Not feeling adversely affected by
others' good/bad performance
Mental imagery, pre-performance
routine, process goals
Life's distractions/remain fully
focused
Mental imagery, pre-performance
routine, process goals, social
support, insatiable desire
30

31. “When you go for it 100%, when
you don’t have the fear, “What if I
fail”, that’s when you learn. That’s
when you’re really living.”
~Mark Allen
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32. “If you feel bad at 10 miles, you’re in trouble.
If you feel bad at 20 miles, you’re normal.
If you don’t feel bad at 26 miles, you’re abnormal.”
~Rob de Castella
“In running, it doesn’t matter whether you come in first, in the
middle of the pack, or last. You can say, “I’ve finished.” There
is a lot of satisfaction in that.”
~Fred Lebow
“It’s not 26.2 miles…It’s 10 water stops.
~Unknown
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33. Good Luck,
Runners!