How to Manage Pre-Race Jitters

Roberto Mandje, NYRR’s Senior Advisor of Engagement and Coaching, offers training advice and tips for runners of all fitness levels. He spoke with NYRR's Copywriter, Stephanie Loleng, for insight based on her experience running 10 marathons. 

Roberto Mandje:

As you look forward to running the TCS New York City Marathon, you may be feeling a little underprepared, nervous, anxious, or uncertain, and that’s perfectly normal, especially if it’s your first marathon.

Seasoned marathoners still gets nervous, but they employ different tools and tricks to overcome those pre-race jitters. Take it from my friend, colleague, and multi-marathon finisher, Stephanie Loleng.

Stephanie Loleng: My Berlin Marathon Experience

On September 29, I toed the line along with more than 54,000 runners at the 50th edition of the Berlin Marathon. The weather that morning was perfect for running and I was thrilled to be a part of the golden anniversary, but in the weeks leading up to the race I’d felt anxious about how I would do.

My 14-week training cycle started off fine. I coached NYRR Group Training during the week and led a few weekend long runs with Team for Kids as well as doing my own workouts using the NYRR x Runna app. The app made it easy for me to log my weekly workouts so that I could track and view my progress. But in August I contracted COVID, which derailed my training for two weeks. During that time, I completed only a few runs and even found it hard to run my “normal” easy pace. It was frustrating both physically and emotionally. I worried that the fitness I'd gained over the summer was all for nothing.

When September arrived, I was able to complete a 20-mile training run four weeks before race day. It was such a struggle pushing through those miles, but completing that run gave me the confidence I needed to know I could take on Berlin. The following week, I did 17 miles at a “decent” pace, which gave me even more confidence.

That’s the thing about long blocks of training. Even if you are derailed for a couple of weeks, you can still get back into your training cycle. All those miles you put into training are like making deposits into your fitness bank.

Even though I felt physically prepared to toe the line in Berlin, I was anxious about how I’d feel going farther than 18 or 20 miles. Would my lungs hold out? Did I have enough fitness in my legs to make it the entire way?

I set aside my fears and anxiety and flew to Berlin a week before the marathon knowing that I would give it my all. It helps that this was my 10th marathon, and I’d felt these feelings before. This may sound cliché but a lot of times it is mind over matter when it comes to running marathons.

On race morning, I walked up to my corral feeling relaxed and excited for the 26.2 miles ahead of me even though I had so much doubt leading up to the race. An overwhelming sense of comfort came over me knowing that my body felt ready to take on yet another marathon.

What also helped was that I had an A, B, and C goal for the race. After dealing with COVID, I adjusted my goals and instead of my A goal I set my sights on my B goal and accomplished it! Having a few goals will help keep your expectations realistic and reachable and so mentally you can be prepared for whatever race day throws at you.

Roberto Mandje:

I couldn’t have framed it better myself—a fellow citizen marathoner’s experience and journey.

There are a few key takeaways, from a coaching perspective.

• Remember to have FUN. Race day should be the culmination and celebration of all the training and your journey to getting here. Celebrate it, celebrate yourself.
• Focus on what you can control, and don’t worry about what’s out of your hands. Steph couldn’t control getting ill and missing some training, but she could shift her A, B, and C goals. This allowed her to reframe her race and set herself up for success.
• There’s rarely such a thing as an ideal build-up. The longer your training cycle—within reason—the better equipped you’ll be to handle a potential set back, without losing significant fitness. This was also evident in Steph’s ability to bounce back once she got over her illness.

So, trust your training, focus on what you can control, and remember to enjoy the destination as much as the process. You can find more advice for race week and race day here. Best of luck out there!