Use aTraining Schedule &, or Negative Split for 10km or, upcoming event (even in Fancy Dress)

Even if you've not trained enough?

Introduction

It is that time of year when here in the UK and Europe, many people are running or cycling to either raise money for a worthwhile cause, or challenge themselves to see what they are capable of.

Whatever your reason for running or cycling in an Event, be it a Marathon, a Half Marathon, a 10km race or Bike ride between London and Brighton. It is certainly an exciting undertaking. There is the impetus that the looming deadline of a date in the diary gives a training schedule. This can both be motivational but sometimes also a little pressurising. The tension between the two is inevitable, and not necessarily a bad thing with the slight proviso the rest of your life is flexible enough to allow for the commitment. Thus allowing you to engage with the challenge in the way you’ve intended to. This is where many of us, might fall into that difficult situation of realising fairly close to the time of the event, that you have not quite trained enough and might be looking for a strategy to help out. This is where the Training Schedule and Negative Split amongst other ideas may be important.

How this can happen?

Well you are not a professional Athlete, so it is always going to be a trade off to train and that is understandable. However you may envy the focus a real professional; or amateur athlete can give to the goal of completing an event.

I don’t want to sound discouraging at all, but if you’re honest, it might be a lack of purpose, maybe a friend signed you up and your heart wasn’t in it?

If this is you, take heart, your friend almost certainly had your best interests alongside possibly also those of the charity in mind, and wanted you to join in and benefit from all the feel-good that this participation brings.

The second reason you may not have trained sufficiently is that it might be a new or relatively new activity you are taking part in, and perhaps you didn’t seek any support from a qualified coach (use a training plan*) or advice from a more seasoned veteran. Or maybe, frustratingly if this is you; (but happens all too often); you picked up an injury that set you back?

However most commonly of all, other commitments became a greater source of pressure that you had to attend to.

You’ve probably heard yourself using the so often heard excuse of “I just didn’t have the time” and realised that was not the original intent.

The real Why?

In most cases, those of us who enter events, quite like the positive aspects of the little bit of pressure that competition exposes us to. There is a beautiful simplicity to the hope and challenge that arises on signing up, and added to this truth the taking part immediately creates a sense of direction for your Fitness goals which also helps to influence your other choices in relation to overall wellbeing. All really super positive stuff!

However…This is about, what to do, should you feel under-trained?

Whether you are running a Marathon in a giant fancy dress costume to raise money as a friend of mine, @JamalBenmiloud will be doing in early September for Pancreatic Cancer;

or running a 10km race or cycling as part of a group in the London to Brighton as a number of friends from @Herefordrowingclub are doing,

also to raise money, although definitely also to get Fit and have fun!.

We all get the pre-race or pre-event jitters to a degree. It is totally normal and not anything to be ashamed about. However in my experience of amateur competition, planning your training; sticking to that plan and then executing it can really help manage any nerves. It never completely eliminates them of course, but part of what you may think are nerves, may in fact be excitement! Extraordinary though that might sound to some of you, the tantalising prospect at the start line of an event, or even prior to starting the training for the event, is based on an anticipation of the feelings of success you will enjoy on completing the challenge. Whatever level you are engaging with the event at, it is incredibly and undeniably exciting. Added to which, since Covid made us all a little less likely to go to physical events, there is the social buzz that comes from the numbers of people being together in REAL life! Not that I want to detract from the online Sports events space, this is also increasingly exciting. However undeniably the two differ slightly in terms of the atmosphere and getting to a big event with crowds and maybe friends and supporters too, there is a kind of sporty festival atmosphere that really creates a buzz.

Anyway back to the main topic here;

How do I know if I’ve not trained enough?

So firstly you WILL likely be more nervous.

Secondly you will not have run or cycled the distance or even close to it.

However, it is worth noting, if it is a Marathon or Half Marathon or Cycle ride of over 50km this is probably ok. The reason being the benefits of training for an event are usually gained from strategies that do not involve totally exhausting yourself; and in fact this longer endurance approach may even be counter productive.**

So, back to the not having built up the miles*, this of course depends on the event, and it is also to do with the overall timeframe you have been in training for the event. If you have used a plan, you will know with accuracy what the deficit is in terms of readiness. If you haven’t the uncertainty may be further unsettling.

Finally you might be in an all-out state of utter dread. (Don’t worry you are not alone!) However;… that is a tough position to be in, and if you think that is you? There are two options, the first I only suggest as a matter of fact, but don’t like to encourage, is that you decide to duck out. Obviously, extenuating circumstances sometimes make this an unavoidable necessity.

However if it is dread and doubt alone, It is worth considering that this whole endeavour is voluntary. Nobody is paying you or making you do this, and the truth is, that this is a large part of the the reason why others will admire and applaud your efforts. So even if you don’t move fast, or even if you come last, it is worthy in the spirit of taking part and self improvement to have a go, despite your doubts.

So What is the solution? How can you make the last minute training count?

1. Don’t forget to Taper; If you are less than a week away from your event ‘catching up’ on training, is not going to work. Being fully rested prior to your event is key and maintenance and tapering (gradual decrease to complete rest just before the event) will be the goal as it will improve performance on the day.

2. Prioritise a feeling of calm and focus, so that you can both enjoy the event and do your best at the same time.

3. don’t forget to hydrate adequately before the event and carry water.

4. Consider your nutrition a priority and eat a decent* amount on the evening before the event. Avoiding Fatty foods the evening & morning before any event is also really important as it is hard to digest and heavy on the stomach a top insight I gained from getting it wrong and also reading various experts including, Bean, 2017***

5. The negative split strategy is something that I have always found a very helpful psychological prop. The idea being you aim to complete the first half slower and the second half at competition pace. This not only helps reduce the chance of overextending at the early stages, but also enables you to look at your current state of Fitness and assess what the desired pace should be to use this tactic. A Combination of wearing either an Apple Watch or other wearable and looking at your pace from your training will help you decide what your target pace will be in relation to your intended race time, and goes a long way in making you feel secure that you will be doing your best, not overstretching, and set for success.

6. Strava is another really useful tool and the App syncs with Apple Fitness but can also be used just on its own just by carrying your phone. Doing this over a training cycle there will be so much data that can be looked at in terms of pace, running style and performance in relation to the ground and elevation. If you haven’t used it yet, it may not be too late to take a look back at the data.

If you’d like to know more about how to plan (4-3 wk tip strategies available!), assess and build pace it does get a bit technical, so I’ve decided not to write about it here, but feel free to get in touch.

How to Avoid the under training trap again:

1. Use your Calendar: This might sound overly simplistic, but I insist ( politely) that all my Clients book in their exercise sessions as if they are fixed events so they get the training done, for the outcomes they deserve.

2. Get a training buddy or consider hiring a Personal Trainer or coach who can advise on timings (build a bespoke *training plan ) for the build up and strength and recovery alongside the endurance activity be it running or cycling.

3. Utilise Technology: There are so many options here, but the combination of the Apple watch and running metrics you can dig into on the health App, plus Strava is a fantastic resource for motivation through information. Even a setback can be used as a resource in this way as it provides a contrast between where you were, and where you are now.

4. Get your family, friends and colleagues to support and encourage you, no doubt they will want to and peer support is so powerful in relation to motivation and keeping your drive to train going. Your support network can help you a great deal on tired or difficult days, whether they are on or offline or both as is often the case with the use of Strava or similar.

5. Only say “yes” or book an event to take part in when you know that it isn’t too likely to conflict with other stuff in your life. Think complimentary to, rather than in competition with and before you know it, the events you book now could become a regular fixture.

6. Last but not least, it is so much more fun to feel relaxed and well prepared than anxious and uncertain.

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or maybe you want to know more about any of the content in this blog *Contact me directly @kate@wellness-inspired.com

References:

**** Huang, Sun, Jiang, 2022, Journal of Computers in Human Behaviour, Vol 129 “Core Social network size and physical activity participation for Fitness App users”

***Bean, Anita, 2017, The Complete Guide to Sports Nutrition, Chapter 15.

**Greenfield, Ben, 2014, Beyond Training, Mastering Endurance, health & life, Chapter 3, p 41-42.