Pre-Race Routine and Songs : thescruffypirate.org

Pre-Race Routine and Songs

Well, as you might all have guessed by now, I'm obsessed with running over here.

Seriously, it is taking over my life. I can't stay up late because it means my body won't be able to recover from today's run properly. I can't eat lots of junk food because I want to convert all these soft parts to hard lean running parts. I can't just go around willy nilly doing whatever I want because I can't injure myself and make it so I can't run (well, run and backpack for that last one). My vacations are planned around potential races.

And honestly? This might be the best I've ever felt. Well, that is hard to say, since when you are young you just feel great all the time. But I'm pretty fit these days. And only getting better!

Now, considering my stance on running and racing as recently as 2005, this is quite the flip! But I'm starting to agree with Christopher McDougal that we evolved to be runners.

Anyway, the point of this post is that I'm developing a race routine. Just like you are always supposed to do the same thing before you shoot free throws, I want to develop a routine for running. To get me physically and mentally prepared to race.

Now, I know a lot of my friends are racers or used to be racers, so I'm interested in what everyone's pre-race routines are. No detail is too small! When does the routine start? The day before? The week before? Do you eat something special the night before? What time do you go to bed? Do you have a morning eating and hydrating strategy? How much do you warm up? What do you do to warm up? Do you wear specific things? Tell me everything!

And in particular, I'd like to know if people have some favorite songs for getting psyched up to race. I'm going to make a race-morning-playlist. Any suggestions?

20 January 2012 06:41am UTC • 117 views • 6 comments

Tagged with running, race, racing, songs, routine

6 comments

Peon Peetie

20 January 2012 05:05pm UTC

i don't really have any race routines, mostly because the majority of any races i've been in have been on top of a bicycle. but i do have some pretty solid running routines, and as i've been running about 50-60 miles per week, the importance of said routines has become more evident.

(note: i've actually been planning a post of my own on this!)

a big part of my routine is music. i use music to adjust my mind and body to what it should be to run best. for example, if i'm very tired or have a headache, i listen to something that is exciting but not overwhelming. then, using siri, after i get into my run i can pump up the jams a bit more. likewise, if i'm too excited about something, i listen to something that can calm me down just a bit (and then i use siri to get me right where i need to).

i've found my best running music is exciting music that is not noisy. the best examples i can come up with, right now at least, are:

1. chris thile's various groups (nickel creek, punch brothers (!), or just chris thile). very happy upbeat music that doesn't take your attention away from what you're doing.
2. nada surf. same, it's upbeat but not overwhelming.
3. my last few best runs have all been while listening to the tallest man on earth, a bob dylan style guy who is very upbeat and interesting to listen to, but again, never overwhelming.
4. fiona apple. not sure why, but i really dig fiona apple. namely when the pawn hits...
5. smashing pumpkins. YES. i need to be in a good groove before i start this, but when i am, i run faster and farther without even realizing it. (i'm very upset that iTunes cloud won't let me listen to cherub rock though. this may be reason enough to cancel my service.)
6. i have a playlist called "epic playlist" with stuff like final countdown (gob) or right now (van halen).
7. mj.

there is one problem with each of the above, though. they are all about 40 minutes long. and as i've been running more, upwards of 50 minutes, i end up with 10 minutes of silence. and at that point in my run, i'm so focused (or exhausted) that i can't decide what to listen to. this is becoming a big problem for me, so i'm thinking of making more playlists.

an example of a run that is affected by this is here: http://runkeeper.com/user/thelowlypeon/activity/65555920

you can see how my speed decreased right with about a mile to go.

i've also found that pre-run routes are very important to me. i live in a fairly urban area, but just north of me is a little suburb of crazy rich oil tycoons, which makes for a perfect running neighborhood. i have various loops of different sizes, and i can pick and choose based on my level of energy. this allows me to:
1. do some math work, which is a perfect mental activity for me while running, and
2. better estimate where i am in my run, while still having different paths.

and example of this: for many weeks, the return leg of my runs was always on a street called inwood. i decided to change it up once, and run one block south, parallel to inwood. and my runs were horrible! it was exactly the same distance, but i didn't recognize it, so i constantly expected the run to end soon. bad news.

i've also found, since getting a fitbit, one thing i didn't fully believe before: walking throughout the day is absolutely critical. my longest run in months was last saturday, after walking some 5 miles throughout the day. compare that with days where i sit at work, and my legs start to hurt after only three or four miles.

i've really been enjoying running! be my friend on runkeeper, everyone!

wow. long answer. sorry about that.
sebastian

20 January 2012 07:47pm UTC

I am very fickle about music but I do have two "go to" bands for running.

1. Girl Talk - I wouldn't really call this guy a band but its fantastic for running, if you have ever heard Girl Talk you know what I'm talking about.

2. LCD Soundsystem - "North American Scum" and "All my Friends" are two excellent first mile songs as they both start off slowly and build up a lot of energy before exploding.
Erik the Redish-orange

21 January 2012 05:48am UTC

I think getting ready to race is all about doing whatever one needs to do to feel good on the start line. When I say feel "good" what I'd like to feel is fast, fresh, and confident.

When I was racing more seriously, my pre-race routines were much more regimented than they are today. I'd have things just about timed to the minute.

Now that I race much more casually my pre-race routines are much more casual. However, they're still all about feeling good on the start line.

A few days before a race I try to establish my race plan. This will be more in depth the more I know about a race. But I always try to have a game plan for a race, whether it's how I want to feel, who I want to run with, how I want to run, what I want to focus on, or what place I want to be.

A couple of days before a race I like to do a short workout where I run some intervals at race pace with lots of rest. I want to be able to "feel" my pace heading into the race. This helps with the feeling confident part.

The day before a race I try to do some strides. This is the feeling fast part.

At least the 2 days leading up to the race are lower mileage, and structured so that they are not too taxing. This is the feeling fresh part.

The night before a race I like to eat a dinner that I know will not upset my stomach or sit heavy. Even though eating carbs the night before a morning race has virtually no energy value for the race, I got in the habit of eating carbs the night before a race, so that's still what I do. Pasta is most common. But I've gone with pancakes, rice, or potatoes.

I also like to be good and hydrated the night before a race. I like to alternate Gatorade and water because I like the way Gatorade tastes, but I once heard a story about bike racers getting tons of cavities from drinking Gatorade and having it pool in the pits of their teeth while they race. So, I try to rinse the Gatorade out of my mouth with water. I know it's a little (or a lot) silly, but it's what I do.

I almost never sleep well the night before a race. Experience has taught me that how well I sleep 2 nights before a race is more important than how I sleep the night before, though. On race day I'm running on nerves and adrenaline, so being well-rested leading up to race day seems to be more important than being well-rested on race day.

I like to eat at least half of a Cliff Bar an hour before my race. Again, it provides little to no energy while I am racing, but I don't like to feel hungry while racing.

I stop drinking an hour before the race. I'll take tiny sips to keep my mouth from drying out, but I'll have to pee (and poop) 5 or 6 times in the hour before a race anyway, so I try to stop drinking so I don't end up having to hold it during the race.

Speaking of peeing and pooping, in road races bathrooms almost always throw a wrench in my warm up. Standing in line for 10 minutes in not conducive to getting and staying warm. So, I try to go before I warm up and again after my initial warm up run. However, I almost always have to interrupt my routine to go to the bathroom. It's just the way it is.

I like to give myself at least a good 30 minutes to warm up. I almost always warm up with a couple of layers on, and with warmer clothes than the day requires. A relatively new part of my routine is that I don't warm up with my racing singlet on. I warm up with a long sleeve or short sleeve shirt on.

I jog until I feel my legs start to sweat. Whether this takes 3 minutes or 13, I can feel when the beads of sweat start to form on my legs. That's when I know I am warm. At that point I do some stretching.

After some stretching I'll change into my racing shoes. I also wad up my race number, attach it to my singlet, take off my t-shirt, and put on the singlet. Then I do some sprint drills and strides and some more jogging. While doing those things I monitor my body and my shoes to see what needs adjusting. If something feels tight, I'll stretch it again. If my shoes aren't tied right I'll re-tie them. Then I'll do more jogging and strides. I'll repeat this until I'm confident I feel good. Before my last bit of jogging I'll take off the rest of my warm-up layers.

I like to blow out a hard, fast stride or 2 right before the race. By hard and fast I mean finding another gear that I wasn't sure I had. And when I say before the race I mean like 2-3 minutes before. This isn't always practical in road races, but it's what I'd like to do.

In road races I like to start about 100 people back in the pack. The idea is that I don't want to start too fast, and starting farther back helps me keep things under control. This has certainly backfired, though, as I have ended up too far back and behind people who were too slow, and been in a position where a half mile into the race I was too far back and too slow to have any shot at finishing where I wanted. More recently, when I have been more confident in my fitness, I have started farther up in the pack and have had the confidence that I wouldn't start at a stupid pace and that I wouldn't die from starting fast (just not stupid fast.)

As I look back on what I just wrote I'd say it looks pretty structured and regimented. But, trust me, it's nothing like it used to be.

My last comment is about music. I made a running CD once, but have never used music when running or racing. I'm a running purist, so I view music as a distraction from the inherent beauty of running. When I am racing I want to focus on racing, not on a beat or a song. When I am running I want to develop mental discipline, or be alone with my thoughts and nature. For me running is not something I have to be distracted in order to endure. It is something I love for its own sake.

Plus, I think listening to music on secluded trails makes one a target for theft and/or assault. I think it is a safety issue when running on roads with traffic. Basically I think it's an unnecessary risk, particularly for women. I would never encourage anyone to run with music. Not to say you are a bad person if you do. Just to say you should try running without it. Give it some time. I think you'll find you've been missing out on some pretty amazing stuff.
Erik the Redish-orange

21 January 2012 05:56am UTC

I just re-read the end of Benjamin's original post. I'm glad he did ask for "everything" because that's what he got. Except I didn't talk about pump up songs. So, here's my question: do you really have an issue with getting pumped up for a race? I find I need to calm down, if anything. And from the races we have run together I'd guess you're the same! So maybe you need calm down music as opposed to pump up music.
Dread Pirate Benjamin

21 January 2012 08:11am UTC

Erik, what you're saying is that staying up late watching a stupid tv show on Hulu might not be the best idea two days before a race?

Luckily I have an uncanny ability to sleep in! I'll see you all around noon tomorrow!

And I'll have a response for you other two, soon!
Dread Pirate Benjamin

23 January 2012 07:36am UTC

Erik, interesting observation about pump up songs. I listened to my race mix right before I went to sleep last night, you know, to help prepare my stone-cold determination for this mornings race and then couldn't fall asleep until 4am. So maybe I do need to find some songs to mellow me out...

In response to Peter and Sebastian, thanks for the running song suggestions! I'll have to check them out. Though, I think I tend to agree with Erik that I prefer not to listen to music while running (though probably a little less vehemently than he).

I have tried it in the past and enjoyed it. It is really spectacular when the music can match your running mood, and you just feel like you, the music and the world are in sync and you're flying across the ground. My favorite music was (and this is no joke Peter) Bruce Springsteen's greatest hits. The first few songs all have a fantastic beat to them.

But for me, half of the appeal of running is getting outside and I feel like I am separated from the outside world when I have headphones in and I am listing to music. It just isn't the same. I think if I were to run on a treadmill (just about the last thing on the planet that I would want to do) or in the middle of a busy downtown area like in New York or Chicago or Houston, I would be more open to music.