" In the present there is no pressure." --from Mind Gym by Gary Mack, p. 136

The way I approach racing has dramatically shifted in the past few months and it is an incredibly positive shift. I'm racing in the moment. For me, that means going into a race focus on effort instead of a goal time. I haven't really raced this way since my first year of running in 2003. That year, in preparation for running my first marathon I raced my first 5K and my first 10K. I had no expectations going into those races and those times stood for a while as my PR's, despite the fact that every year after I was aiming to beat those times and get faster. It seemed that the harder I strove for a time goal the more illusive it became.

Things are different now. I learned an incredibly valuable lesson from a disappointing performance at the CHaD Half Marathon last fall. Basically I learned that setting outcome based goals leads to anxiety and anxiety hinders performance. Sounds simple, but sometimes the simplest lessons are the hardest to learn. I also learned a lot from they way that I trained for CHaD: I set a time goal, used a pace calculator to determine my paces and ran those paces no matter what, even if the effort was far beyond what it should have been for a specific workout.

So when CHaD rolled around I overestimated my fitness and went out at an unsustainable pace. I worried about the other runners around me, about my place and didn't run feel...I ran by and for the CLOCK.

While I did make gains in fitness last summer and fall, my approach to racing and goal setting was all wrong. This year's racing season started with two snowshoe races. My first race was fresh, new and exciting. I had no expectations going into the race, only to run by feel and deep down, those internal whispers that you never really vocalize I thought I could be in the top three women. But I tucked that thought away, not denying or dismissing it, but rather focusing on the fact that I'd run by effort. That first race was like discovering running all over again. I ran in what felt like the most pure and fun way, simply to do my best and give it my all regardless of the time on the clock. I ended up running a great race and finished third.

Both this race and the second snowshoe race were an exercise in letting go of expectations, learning to run by feel and enjoy racing for what I love about it: a test of effort. I still had quiet "goals," they just weren't tied to the number on the clock.

I took this lesson into my first 5K in March. I had no expectations for the race. I ran without my Garmin (I typically do this for 5K's anyway) and I simply ran by feel. The effort on that day felt hard, but sustainable and I was able to focus on each mile as it came instead of checking my watch wondering if I was "on pace" to run a specific time. The race ended in a big PR and almost breaking the 20 minute mark. My attitude was the same for Eastern States 20 Miler: no time expectations, run by feel, run in the moment.

This "no pressure" attitude is leading to better performances and the same was true of my five mile race on Saturday. I went into the race on Saturday with loose goals: run at an effort that felt competitive and sustainable, run each mile as it came and run my race--don't get caught up by the people who go out fast. I start steady and finish fast, that's my race. Tucked in that secret "goal" place was the belief that if I ran strong I could come in the top 10 women.

I went out steady and in the first half mile there were probably 10-12 women in front of me. I focused on running in the moment and not letting my effort going beyond what felt sustainable. By mile two I'd passed all but three women in front of me. I kept focused on my effort and tapped the mile splits on my Timex watch, but didn't take time to look at them. My only thoughts on time and pace going into the race was when I told my husband I'd be around 35 minutes coming into the finish. I knew that I'd run slower that 5K pace, but I wasn't sure how much slower. I thought maybe, just maybe I was capable on running 33 but I wasn't hitching my wagon to that time goal. I stayed focused on effort. By mile three I'd passed all but one of the remaining women in front of me. And I found myself in second place crossing the finish line in 32:51.

Even though I've had desires for the outcome of each of these races, the outcome hasn't been my focus or my goal. Instead I've based my goals on effort and as a result I'm much more focused on the present. I can't control the clock. I can't control the outcome. I can only give my best effort in the moment and see where it takes me. As I look forward to the Sugarloaf Marathon in May, this will be my focus. It's true, the outcome is important to me, but I am not willing to let it dictate the way I approach the race.

Learn from the past.

Prepare for the future.

Perform in the present.

--from Mind Gym by Gary Mack, p. 138

How do you approach racing? Do you race with your Garmin? Would you ever race without it?

-Sarah

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