By Runner’s World AUSNZ

Three-time Olympian, current Australian marathon record holder and lululemon Ambassador Jess Stenson has learned that running at your best isn’t always about doing more. It’s about trusting the process, staying present and focusing on what matters most. Here’s what every runner can learn from her marathon mindset.

Jess Stenson knows what it takes to perform at the highest level. A three-time Olympian and the current Australian marathon record holder, she has built a career around performing over 42.195 kilometres.

But some of the biggest shifts in Jess’s running haven’t come from adding more. They’ve come from learning when to do less.

Before becoming a parent, Jess regularly ticked over 170 to 180 kilometres a week. Today, she trains with less volume and more intention – a shift that reflects the ‘less is more’ philosophy she now brings to performance.

As a lululemon Ambassador since 2023, Jess’s approach to running aligns naturally with the way lululemon thinks about movement: feeling your best, both mentally and physically, so you can perform at your best. For Jess, that means staying present, reducing distractions and putting energy into the things she can control.

While thousands of runners prepare to take on the Sydney Marathon this year, Jess is embracing a different season of her running journey as she prepares to welcome her third child. With plans to ease back into training later this year and build towards LA 2028, she remains firmly connected to the sport – and to what running gives her beyond racing and results.

Marathon Mindset

Ask Jess what running gives her beyond medals, records and finish times and her answer is much simpler. “It’s my medicine,” she says.

That relationship with running has evolved over time. Parenthood, in particular, challenged a long-held belief that more was always better. Time became tighter, training volume reduced and every session had to have a clearer purpose. “What I do is very intentional and specific,” she says.

For Jess, doing less hasn’t meant caring less about performance. It’s meant becoming more deliberate about where she puts her effort. Rather than chasing volume for the sake of it, she has learned to trust quality, consistency and the work already done. “You almost have to be brave to do less,” she says. “It’s so hard to remove yourself from that mentality that more is better.”

That same ability to strip things back is central to how Jess handles pressure. In 2020, while navigating the uncertainty of the pandemic, her father was diagnosed with cancer. Running became more than training; it gave her something consistent when so much around her felt uncertain. “I was getting so anxious, and it was something I couldn’t control. Running was that thing that I could have consistently.”

During that period, deep breathing became an important practice and gratitude journaling became a family ritual. Those tools reinforced a mental reset she still returns to when life or racing becomes overwhelming. “When things get tough, it’s like, hold on – what matters here?” It’s a question that helps bring her focus back to what she can control when pressure builds.

On race day, the same thinking becomes composure. “Marathon running is all about staying composed.”

Before major races, Jess often has a theme or mantra to return to when things get tough. Ahead of Valencia Marathon, it came from her son Billy singing I Believe I Can Fly after hearing it at school. “When the race got tough, I would sing that in my head and it took me back to family and grounded me.”

Staying efficient, remaining present and focufsing on what she can control are now central to Jess’s marathon mindset. Whether you’re chasing a record or your first finish line, the lesson is the same: fitness matters, but so does the ability to stay calm enough to use it.

Removing the Friction

Running is full of things we can measure – pace, kilometres, heart rate, splits – but the moments that feel best often happen when we stop noticing all of it.

Somewhere between the rhythm of your breathing and the cadence of your footsteps, the pressure, noise and expectations of everyday life begin to fall away. The body settles into rhythm, the mind quietens and you’re simply running.

For Jess, that ability to reduce the noise has become part of performing well. It might mean trusting the training rather than adding another session, returning to a mantra when a race gets hard, or focusing on family when outside pressure builds.

It also extends to the gear a runner chooses. By race day, there is already plenty competing for your attention – pace plans, fuelling, weather, nerves. What you’re wearing should be one less thing to think about.

That idea sits behind lululemon’s Fast & Free collection – the range Jess wears herself. The lightweight fabric is designed to feel barely there, bonded seams help reduce chafing, and the six-pocket design keeps gels, keys and other essentials secure without bouncing, so there’s one less thing to think about on the run.

The goal isn’t to make gear the focus of the run. It’s the opposite: to help you forget about it and stay present for longer.

That is also where Jess’s approach and lululemon’s philosophy align most naturally. The themes throughout her running journey are remarkably consistent – stay present, reduce distraction, trust what works and keep coming back to what matters most.

Run Your Race

For all Jess has achieved, she rarely talks about running as an individual pursuit. Her family, coach, running group and wider community appear again and again in the way she describes both success and motivation. “The people you bring with you,” she says. “You could have a good day or a bad day, but if you don’t have people to celebrate that with, then what is the point?”

That perspective has changed the way Jess sees both competition and what running can give back. Time away from the sport helped her rediscover the social connection, fulfilment and sense of self it provides. Becoming a parent made her more intentional. Family helped put external pressure into perspective.

Today, even with LA 2028 on the horizon, success isn’t simply another Olympic appearance or another fast time. Jess talks about bringing people along on the journey, empowering others to move and using her platform to positively impact more lives.

That is perhaps the most useful lesson for the rest of us. There will always be someone running more kilometres, chasing a faster time or following a different plan. The challenge is knowing what works for you – and having the confidence to run your own race. As Jess puts it, “I’d love my 12-year-old self to know to be excited about your potential rather than fearful about what could go wrong.”

It’s advice that’s just as relevant standing on a marathon start line as it is in everyday life. When the noise quietens and everything else begins to fall away, what remains is your reason for being there – and the opportunity to see what you’re capable of.

Jess’ Go-To Gear

• Fast & Free High-Rise Tight
• Comment from Jess: “Ideal for cooler temperatures.”

• Fast & Free Running Short
• Comment from Jess: Since having children, I love the feel of having extra support around my abdominal region. The pockets are very handy for gels / key etc.

• Fast & Free Running Bra
• Comment from Jess: I’m a big fan of the cut, the shelf bra for extra support & love this colour.

• Evolve Running Bra
• Comment from Jess: For times when I only require medium support. Breathable back design. Comfortable cut / fabric and no cutting in. Bright new colour!