5 Things You Must Get Right On Race Day
It doesn’t matter how hard you train, how consistent you are, or how perfectly your training plan goes, if you don’t prep all 5 of these things properly for race day, you are flushing all that hard work down the toilet!
They are easy to miss, but even easier to get right.
So get your notepad out, and thank me later.
1) Nutrition
Just because you saw a clip of an Olympic gold-medallist talking about how a peanut-butter-jelly sandwich was the key to their success, doesn’t mean you should!
Race day is not the day to start trying something new.
You could be risking some serious digestive pain if you do.
So, if you usually have a bacon and egg roll every morning before you run, then continue doing the same.
In saying that, if you integrate a new nutrition routine during your training prep, this is fine. You might find something that works better for you, like a gel or extra carbs.
But if you haven’t tried it before, don’t try it for the first time on race day!
2) Equipment
I get it, you’re excited to run and you want to look and feel good, but wearing a brand new pair of shoes and wearing a running vest for the first time is a big mistake.
Think blisters, bad chafing, and overloading on your achilles (especially with carbon plated runners).
Again, it’s better to get these things a few weeks before so you can wear them in, and endure the pain during your training, not on race day!
3) Rumination
Easier said than done, but you must avoid over-thinking your race strategy in the lead up to a race.
You can easily drain your energy before the race even starts if you can’t find a way to avoid ruminating on the potential problems. This is especially true in the days before, when you’ve tapered off training and have more down-time.
Best way to counter this is to find relaxing activities to focus on instead. Like a date with your partner, playing low-effort games, or just calling a friend.
Not to say you shouldn’t be thinking about race day, but if you do, it should be solution-oriented.
So if you’re worried about your pacing, instead of spiralling, reach out to a coach or a friend with experience to bounce ideas off. And if you think you may not have enough intra-race nutrition, just bring some extra.
Don’t overthink it, and focus on solutions to put yourself at ease leading into the race.
4) Organisation
I’ve learned the hard way not to trust yourself on race day when packing your things.
You think you’re sweet, then race day comes and a sudden combination of nerves and excitement hits you.
When this happens, all your mind is focused on is the run, so it’s easy to forget things if you haven’t packed them already.
So do it at least the day before, if not earlier.
Create a checklist, and tick everything off so on race day you can wake up, put your gear on, grab your bag, and go, without stressing about if you forgot something.
Bonus trick - give your checklist to someone that isn’t racing to double-check you got everything you need.
5) Race Plan
I’ll save the specifics for another article, but sticking to your race plan is a must.
Don’t be the person who says “f*** it” and sprints off the mark, only to die in the arse half way through the race.
Leave your ego at the door, and stick to the plan.
That means, if you’ve been targeting a 4:45/km pace all training prep, this is not the time to try for 4:00/km.
Whatever the plan is, keep it simple. If it’s your first race, don’t worry about being too specific with your target pace for each section of the race, or all the timings of your nutrition, just embrace the experience and focus on finishing strong.
You’ll find that after each race, you learn something new about yourself that you can build upon.
And that’s it. If you focus on getting these 5 things right for race day, the rest comes easy. You can walk up to the starting line with the confidence you need to perform at your best.
Happy racing!
Yours in running and life,
Daniel Lucchini