Running Mantras & It's Race Week {Again}

Mantras

I wholeheartedly believe in positive self-talk and love repeating confidence inspiring and tough it up running mantras to myself! There are a couple I have kept on repeat for over a decade now –

1) Be strong. Be courageous.

2) Pain is weakness leaving the body.

And I’ve added some new ones—

1) You got this.

2) You’re stronger than you think.

Not all of these may resonate / i.e. work for you. I recommend trying different mantras and finding one that works best to motivate you! Keep them short and sweet and stick to a couple.

I’ve also recently been acknowledging the pain, the burning in my lungs and legs, the yearning to slow down or quit and facing the pain head on. Why be afraid of pain? The pain is temporary. Experiencing pain, embracing pain just increases tolerance. It may be a warning sign I’m pushing my body to a critical threshold but I’m not literally dying so it’s okay {right?}. What’s the worst than can happen? Often the pain begins somewhere in the middle of the workout and doesn’t get worse. Sometimes it’s only the last threshold mile or interval rep. On race day the pain is often more severe, as this is when I really push. But I’ve always enjoyed trying my best, putting my all into a race, not just half-assing it.

I race Grandma’s Half Marathon in Duluth, Minnesota in two days. I’m excited for another chance. O.NE was such a weird race with the wind, and a huge PR but I still think I can run faster. I think I can pace better and more neutral wind conditions will allow me to better do this. Hopefully the second half won’t be such a struggle!

I got into Minnesota late last night and went to the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden today. Highly Recommend!