Your Race is Over…Now What?
Did you just run a race? Did it feel euphoric? It could have been a marathon, a half marathon, or a 5k and it was the climax of your training! It was the moment you had circled on your calendar and the moment that kept you motivated to get in those hard training runs and workouts that you didn’t want to do sometimes. You have dedicated a significant part of your life to this race and now that the milestone has passed, you are left wondering.. now what?
In this episode we will be talking about how to stay motivated after you’ve completed your goal race! We will discuss strategies we can use to continue our healthy habit and move forward in becoming a lifelong injury free runner and preventing the post-race blues.
In this episode, I will share 10 tips to get back the motivation to just keep running even after your big goal race has been completed!
I also share my post race weekend reflection about how I ran my fastest half marathon in 5 years (and 15 tries) and the wins of many of our Healthy Runner coaching athletes whether they ran Hartford, Chicago, or Boston!
Listen to the Podcast Episode during your next run!
Watch the video from our Facebook Live by clicking the video below!
What an Amazing Day… !
I was on cloud 9 driving home even though my body was exhausted physically, mentally, and emotionally after being at Bushnell park from 6am- 3pm.
I had that feeling of exhaustion after putting out a hard effort race and then stood on my feet for another 5 1/2 hours because I was not going to miss cheering on my teammates
I was proud of my own running accomplishment after investing in a run coach myself this training block (thank you coach Lu), completing hard speed workouts and challenging long runs I have never done before which led to me to running my fastest half marathon (1:44:00, 7:56) in 5 years after 15 other half marathon attempts during this time
Are you wondering how I was able to do this?
o Not just one training cycle but the year and half I kept up strength training and running during the pandemic
o Become a smarter runner through talking to experts on this podcast , educating myself on training becoming a run coach, and then actually investing in a run coach myself and putting my money where my mouth was because even though I know what I would program for my athletes it is always good to have an objective person looking from the outside that can push you and keep you accountable. I am a big proponent of coaching whether it is business or run coaching
o Difference in how I fuel…not running fasted anymore (dates with ucan almond butter before my runs and workouts)
o Taking a better pre workout supplement that is back by real 100% science (listen to episode 92 to learn all about amino acids and their effects for runners and how you can stay focused, get stronger, and improve your endurance. Actually super pumped about the new partnership our Healthy Runner community has with the amino co. If you want to learn more about and shop my favorite Amino Acid Supplements ► aminoco.com/healthyrunner Enter code
‘HEALTHYRUNNER’ to Save 30% + FREE amino eBook! Click HERE to be directed to the discount page!
Honestly, as a run coach and the creator of our Healthy Runner community, seeing these amazing athletes do hard things and meet their goals was so much more rewarding to me
My wife Deb ran her first half marathon by herself and got a PR by 6 min!
Annie and Amber ran their first marathon (and crushed it!)
Crystal and Latisha got half marathon PR’s by 12 and 10min!
Katie got her first sub 2 hour half marathon
Jenn ran her first marathon in 5 years!
LaToya ran her first marathon in 11 years and got a PR!
Chris got an amazing half marathon time
Francisco ran a smart race holding back until the right time and patted me on the back while he passed me with a mile and half to go to finish strong getting a 1:43 time! So proud of this guy!
These accomplishments was not the result of one good race, luck, or even one training cycle.
There were a few who just joined us for our first team based marathon training that began this summer, some have been with us for 3 consecutive training cycles getting faster with each one and some have have literally been working on this for almost 2 years now when the pandemic first struck and LaToya, Lu, and Crystal were on zoom with me working out in my living room learning the strategies of strength training for running because my gym was closed.
When I reflect back, I thank COVID for that (certainly not ♂️ for taking my mom away from me) but if it were not for that moment and me sharing my workouts that was perfecting for run specific strength for years then I would have never met these amazing individuals. I wouldn’t have been able to see the growth in their running and watch them become the true pioneers of our Healthy Runner community (and now coaches).
Special shout out to coach Cat for taking pics, holding bags, and rooting on all our athletes
Then I had athletes running the Chicago Marathon (on hot and humid conditions who crushed their goals) shout out to Kirstin and Andrea. Connor crushed a very hard and technical trail marathon with some crazy elevation changes. 898 feet of elevation at mile 20!
So proud of Cheryl and Tania for finishing Chicago and our very own coach Whitney for completing her Virtual Boston Marathon and our coach Lu for not only finishing his first Boston Marathon today BUT…getting a sub 3 hour finish and a marathon PR at the same time!..tune in for Coach Lu’s Boston Marathon experience Thursday October 21st at 7:30pm within the Healthy Runner FB group to talk about what he learned from the 125th running of the Boston Marathon! This will also be on a future podcast episode! Find out more here: https://fb.me/e/Y3NNpEiD
Now let’s talk about…
Post Race Let Down… It’s NORMAL.
When you run a race, and then you finish, you feel like you can do anything! You have just done some AMAZING! You have a high and then the letdown happens. That’s okay. It is completely normal and I promise you that you’re not the only one who has felt that way. Are you wondering how do we get over this though and prevent yourself from getting post race blues? Look into the following tips to help you recover, stay positive and get ready to get back out there.
- Get comfortable with not being motivated to run right after your race. Mind and body needs a break!
- Take time to celebrate your victory! Look at pictures, check out posts from others who did the race, think about the amazing accomplishment you just completed! Sometimes we want to jump into the next goal, next race, and how we can improve but I tell my athletes to stop and smell the roses. Bask in the glory for a little bit. (Talk about my fastest half in 5 years and 15 tries!) I did speed workouts I have never done before, longer tempo runs, long runs with some spice as coach Lu calls it running MP and Tempo pace in a long run…these are not for beginners but as you progress in your running fitness these harder things are something to celebrate because you put the work in! It is not only about the race but the training you committed to (getting up at 4am or 5am or getting in that run after a long day at work)
- Take time to Reflect! Think about how you felt during the race and reflect back on what worked and what didn’t work. That is the only way we improve in the future (I write all my race times, weather, how I felt and what to do differently in the notes section on my mac and iphone) and refer back to previous races.
- Take time to recover and not jump back in especially if you didn’t hit your goal time! Be sure to check out tips for post race recovery in episode 38!
- Remember your Why. Remind yourself why you are doing this? Health? Weight management, increased Cholesterol, mental health, to be the best version you are as a parent, spouse, employee, leader in your organization or an entrepreneur for your business?
- Set a new goal… Right now in the Northeast it is common for my athletes to go from Marathon and half marathon races to running a fast 5k during turkey trot season or a holiday 5k in December. Set your sights on a different goal then the one you have been chasing for the past 3, 4, or 6 months or like our runners in our Team Healthy Runner Coaching program the past 9 months!
- Spice up your runs! Do something Different!!! Go for a run with a friend: Whether that is asking a friend if they want to go for a run so you can catch up on what’s going on with their life, kids, or just having someone to relate or vent too 😉 Go for scenic run, switch up your normal route, try running the trails for autumn especially if you get good foliage near you! Do a race for run either for charity or one of the fun runs/ color runs/ Disney runs/ costume runs!
- Spice up your training! Do something different whether that is finally dedicating time to master strength training for running! Starting yoga, maybe it is taking up spinning to work on your CV endurance during the winter?
- Be kind to yourself! Everyone gets back on the horse and the motivation to train again at different rates. You may be recovering well and like going for a run 2 days after your race, it may be 3,4,5 days. If you mind and body are not ready yet that is o.k. The break will be a good thing for your long term health. But if that is turning into a week or 2 then implement the strategies I already talked about above to get back on the horse because you don’t want to take more than a week or 2 off without losing running fitness and the longer you go without running your habit may fall off as well.
- While therapy can be scary to think about, it’s one of the best options to really talk about how you’re feeling and develop the coping mechanisms you need to overcome any post-race depression you may be experiencing! Finding a therapist that you trust and can work with to push you to mentally recover is important! I’ve been doing this and it’s helped me more and more.
Mentioned in the episode this week…
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Sponsored by …
This episode is sponsored by UCAN nutrition which is powered by superstarch and it delivers that steady long lasting energy without the spike and then the crash. With those long hot summer runs happening, try the best summer product, UCAN Hydrate to get those electrolytes that you need to stay hydrated!
Since you are a part of our Healthy Runner community, you will get 20% of all of your orders at ucan.co. Just use the code HEALTHYRUNNER during checkout when placing your order. Go ahead and give UCAN a try. Trust me… you won’t regret it!
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You can listen to all the information in this episode on the Healthy Runner Podcast…available wherever you get your podcasts!
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Thank you (running friends) for taking the time to read and I hope you enjoy the podcast episode!
Warmest regards,
– Duane
Duane Scotti, PT, PhD, DPT
Physical Therapist For Runners
Board Certified, OCS
(203) 376-6514
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At the end of the program, I completed a 10K trail race feeling strong and pain free.
I highly recommend Duane Scotti and the Healthy Runner training programs.