Staying calm and relaxed

Dundalk

Ive the Dublin Marathon coming up and it will be my third one. Training is going well but my problem is race day itself! I'm fine when im out on my own during training, I relax and enjoy the run. However on race day with so much other people around I tend to get a bit jittery and I start worrying too much about my time and where I should be at certain points at the race. This leads me to quickening up my pace or else not been strong enough mentally coming to the end of the marathon.

My question is - Can any if you 'switch off' during a race and just go into auto pilot. Or can any of you run the race like it is just another practice run?

Krusty_Clown

Sounds like you need a little more race practice. Do you do any tune-up races?

RoyMcC

Krusty is correct as usual. Nerves and stuff are fine and to be expected, but not to the point where your race is affected. Familiarisation will help.

hardCopy

Try to get in with a pace group, I found it a great help, even though I did eventually lose them. Having somebody at your own pace to chat to and motivate each other is great.

ultraman1

Dundalk wrote: »

My question is - Can any if you 'switch off' during a race and just go into auto pilot. Or can any of you run the race like it is just another practice run?

run with the pacers,if u find yourself going too fast or slow,u can switch off and let them worry about the time....providing u start with them

metamagical

And to add to the already-given advice, don't fear or try to block out nerves: if you're able to use them positively, they enable you to run faster and further than you would in any practice run. Accept that you'll feel jittery, but harness that to give you added focus on your time, not to distract you from it

Dundalk

Thanks for the replies, I think ill try sticking with the pacers, Im looking to do under 3.30. My plan was to go out on my own infront of the pacers at my own pace and if they catch up with me then try and stick with them.

My fear of running the whole race with the pacers is that I will have to stop in the last few miles and that will be that!!

Running Fool

Dundalk wrote: »

Thanks for the replies, I think ill try sticking with the pacers, Im looking to do under 3.30. My plan was to go out on my own infront of the pacers at my own pace and if they catch up with me then try and stick with them.

My fear of running the whole race with the pacers is that I will have to stop in the last few miles and that will be that!!

It is an interesting point though - how do most people work out their marathon pace?

I know there's the McMilllan calculators etc but some say they aren't that exact.

Krusty_Clown

Running Fool wrote: »

It is an interesting point though - how do most people work out their marathon pace?

I know there's the McMilllan calculators etc but some say they aren't that exact.

There are really only a couple of options:
1) Race at other distances and extrapolate (Macmillan, Daniels vdot, rules of thumb).
2) Aim for a specific target, calculate the required pace, perform marathon training runs at that pace and see how comfortable it feels.

Don't really know of any other methods. MacMillan and vdot have always been close enough for me that the difference is negligible. Obviously they are not very accurate for wide ranges of distances (e.g. 400m -> marathon), but for say 1/2 marathon to marathon they come pretty close.

One important point that most people seem to miss/ignore when using these online resources, is that the race time you submit and the race time you interpret are only relevant if you actually specifically train for that event. So if you enter a recent 5k time, it should be because you specifically trained for that 5k event. If it gives you an extrapolated marathon time, then that is what the algorithm calculates your equivalent performance if you train for that marathon.

Dundalk

Regarding my race strategy do yous think its a good idea to go out at a pace I'm happy with and let the pacers catch up with me?

grimbergen

Dundalk wrote: »

Regarding my race strategy do yous think its a good idea to go out at a pace I'm happy with and let the pacers catch up with me?

I'd say that comes down to personal choice - would you find it motivating to stay ahead of a group of pacers and could you handle them catching you. In the recent Dublin half I was undecided on pace so I started and stayed ahead of a group of pacers and found it useful as a motivational tool. On the other hand in a marathon I did 2 years ago, I tried the same and got caught and passed after 22 miles and it was just a killer

mr.wiggle

Dundalk wrote: »

Regarding my race strategy do yous think its a good idea to go out at a pace I'm happy with and let the pacers catch up with me?

Maybe run with the pace group for the first few miles to settle your nerves and if feelin good, up the pace to your target pace. You wont have lost too much time but will have gained confidence in yourself to push on?

Krusty_Clown

Dundalk wrote: »

Regarding my race strategy do yous think its a good idea to go out at a pace I'm happy with and let the pacers catch up with me?

If you are serious about your 3:30 goal, then it's a really bad idea. If you think about it logically, you are starting out at your goal pace then slowing until the pacers catch you. If you start in front of the pacers then you have to finish in front of the pacers, otherwise you will have lost time. You should really either run with the pacers or behind them (and potentially catch up with them).

TFBubendorfer

Dundalk wrote: »

Regarding my race strategy do yous think its a good idea to go out at a pace I'm happy with and let the pacers catch up with me?

Is it a good idea? In one word, no.
Start with the pacers and stick with the pacers.

ultraman1

Dundalk wrote: »

Regarding my race strategy do yous think its a good idea to go out at a pace I'm happy with and let the pacers catch up with me?

no,,,if the pacers catch up wit ya,that means your goin backwards,they'll just steamroll straight pass you...

rom

A goal should be 3:30
B goal something else etc etc

It has happened to me when I see the pacers drift away my heart sinks but you can still have B,C goals that you can still achieve. So that is how I am tackling Dublin this year with multiple goals so if I miss my top one when I keep going for the 2nd one etc. like the B goal could be 3:35 or 3:40 or something. Like race on Sunday A goal was 90 mins, B goal was to keep the pacers in site, C goal sub 95 mins etc. Was dying sick so missed A goal but only 2 1/2 mins behind where I did a similar race a few months ago and was over 8 mins a drift as the 90 mins eluded me and the head sank after the pacers passed me then.

RayCun

You have to walk a fine line though.

On the one hand, sometimes you'll reach a point during a race when your target is just not going to happen. At that point, it's good to be able to say "okay, but if I hold this pace to the end it'll still be a big PB" rather than letting your head drop completely and walking the rest of the way in.

But sometimes you need to HTFU. If your pace is too slow, speed up. If the pacers are getting away, catch them. If you have a B goal ready at the back of your mind, it makes it easier to give up instead of pushing on.

chinguetti

I never can understand why people run ahead of the pacers instead of with the pacers. The pacers can help you along the road while if you are ahead of them, you are worrying yourself about where the pacers are.

I've seen pacers disappear away from me and thats a cruncher but having the pacers pass you out must be a killer. I've paced a few halfs and have often passed people around 11 miles who blazed away from us at the start as we were going too slow for them in their heads. Pacers do alot of the small things for runners that people don't notice, esp in the first few miles of the race.

Stick with the pacers in Dublin, they know what they are doing.

thebouldwhacker

Dundalk wrote: »

Can any if you 'switch off' during a race and just go into auto pilot?

I'm not big into running doing only a handful of races a year but I do a lot of cycling. For me the key is breaking down the task into smaller sections. Have a chat with yourself about each section, as you progress from one to the next you will grow in confidence. Only think of the next section and don't try and jump ahead.

How do you eat an elephant?
One bite at a time......

TFBubendorfer

chinguetti wrote: »

I've seen pacers disappear away from me and thats a cruncher but having the pacers pass you out must be a killer.

Going by the amount of swearing you hear as a pacer in the final miles as you catch people by the bucketload, I'd say it's a bit of a bummer indeed.

sideswipe

RayCun wrote: »

You have to walk a fine line though.

On the one hand, sometimes you'll reach a point during a race when your target is just not going to happen. At that point, it's good to be able to say "okay, but if I hold this pace to the end it'll still be a big PB" rather than letting your head drop completely and walking the rest of the way in.

But sometimes you need to HTFU. If your pace is too slow, speed up. If the pacers are getting away, catch them. If you have a B goal ready at the back of your mind, it makes it easier to give up instead of pushing on.

+1.
This has happened to me in the past, having a b and c goal can be a slippery slop if your not mentally prepared.

Dundalk

Thanks for all the advice, lot to think about!