Keep your brain engaged to make going the distance feel just a little bit easier.
By Ashley Mateo
Race day is just six weeks away – and how you handle your long runs between now and then can make all the difference. The long run is where your endurance is built, your mindset is tested, and your confidence is earned.
It’s not just about covering the distance – it’s about training your body and mind to go further, recover stronger, and arrive at the start line ready. Whether you’re building up to your longest effort yet or trying to make the most of each session, these six strategies will help you get the most out of every long run in the final stretch.
1. Create your own mantra
To stay loose and fast through those tough parts of a run – the moments when all you can think about is how much is left until it’s over – Brooks pro runner Des Linden uses the mantra, “Calm, calm, calm. Relax, relax, relax.” It cues a mental checklist for her to make sure she’s not tensing up, clenching her jaw, or carrying her shoulders up near her ears.
“I repeat that mantra to myself in a soothing pattern, checking in starting from my head and working down to my toes. It really brings you into the present and then you can get in a better head space from there,” she says.
Mantras are personal, though; don’t just repeat something to yourself because someone else said it to you. Find a phrase that really strikes a chord with you and your running journey.
2. Talk yourself up
Can’t wrap your head around a motivational mantra? Just cheer yourself on. Motivational self-talk was shown to boost athletic endurance in a scientific review of more than 100 sources published in the journal Sports Medicine. And research published in the Journal of Sport Behavior found that runners are much more likely to reach that “flow” state (AKA a runner’s high) when using motivational self-talk.
Here’s the key, though: Instead of telling yourself “I got this,” try “you got this.” According to a recent study published in the Journal of Sports Sciences, athletes who talked to themselves in the second person were faster and generated more power.
3. Set a moving target
Whether you’re running point-to-point, out-and-back, or a loop, chances are you can’t always see the finish line when you’re out training. But if you’ve ever told yourself you just have to make it to that tree or stoplight in the distance, you’re on to something.
Focusing your attention on a “finish line” can help you move faster and lower your rate of perceived exertion, a study published in the journal Motivation and Emotion found. It doesn’t matter if you don’t actually stop at that spot; breaking your distance down into smaller pieces tricks your mind into believing it doesn’t feel so hard to run for so long.
4. Be mindful and stay present
Lots of distractions come into play on a long run: what’s going on around you, what you’re going to eat when this is all done, ooh a puppy! Being more mindful (or present) can keep you dialed into your run and boost your endurance performance.
When people practiced mindfulness techniques in two 30-minute sessions per week (and, ideally, 15 to 30 minutes a day otherwise) for five weeks, they exhibited longer times to exhaustion in a recent study published in Neural Plasticity. The study’s authors hypothesised that the benefit may be related to improved breathing and posture—both of which would definitely make running feel easier.
5. Have a plan
Linden has been writing out physical race plans since college, to bring a level of accountability to her running. She says this can also be helpful for long runs because “when it comes time to bargain—which always happens when it gets hard—it’s not about ‘How do I feel? What decisions should I make?’ It’s like, ‘What’s the next thing on the plan?’” she says.
Is it helpful for you to speed up for a few minutes to mentally shake you out of the monotony of a steady-state pace? Or is it more helpful for you to do some side skips, high knees, and butt kicks to switch things up for your muscles? You don’t have to decide when it’s already written down in the plan. “That’s something that you have to practice, to understand what’s in your capacity and what’s out of it,” says Linden.
6. Act like you’re enjoying yourself
Running might feel hard sometimes, but hey, no one’s forcing you to do it, right? You probably run because you love it, so act like it! When you feel yourself starting to flag, paste a smile on your face.
Runners who smile use less oxygen, run more economically, and report a lower perceived rate of exertion compared to those who frown while pounding the pavement, a study published in Psychology of Sport and Exercise found. Bonus: The more you look like you’re actually enjoying yourself, the more you’re likely to inspire someone else you pass on the run. That kind of positive energy is definitely contagious – and makes for great race day photos!
