Pre-race brief : good to know

By Julien on November 9, 2011 in Blog, Training

We made a little round up on Facebook of your Pre-race tips to make the best preparation to be ready for your race and we share also few old school running tips.

Nutrition :

Don’t change too much your habits, but try to eat something healthy the day before.

Nice bowl of pasta the evening before, no alcohol, run a little less than normal the week before and if you’re doing the Cardiff run like me promise yourself a Krispy Creme when you finish! – Charlotte A.

Don’t drink pints and pints of water just before/after the race, sip little and often instead. – Sophie J.

Eat breakfast plenty early so that the food is digested before you start running (and you don’t need to eat a huge amount.. just go with what you’re used to), and smile -it’s contagious and really does make you enjoy it so much more – Lauren C.

Bananas are good too in your porridge! The potassium helps to reduce cramping.

Race Kit Packing

Always review your running kit two or three days before the race to have time to shop the missing item.

Don’t overcomplicate your race kit (you can check a previous article about the running kit you need )

Duck tape is great to avoid the “bloody nipples”

Take a little bit of water with you on the way to the run and keep hydrating yourself before the start,

A bit of lubricant also might help to avoid “chaffing” as well.

Pin your race number to your back so people will know who has overtaken them… - Khaddim S.

Don’t wear brand new running shoes and regardless of how tired you are – stretch afterwards! - Lochlan O

Before the start

Don’t wait to the last minute to go to the toilets. Smart move is to allow 5min in you schedule to take a break before arriving on the race field. There’s much better to do than queuing 2min before the start.

Stretch before and do a bit of warm up. – Sophie L.

Don’t wear too much, you will get too warm even if you are cold at the start.

[COLD] If you are afraid to be really cold, here’s a classic : Take a bin bag, make a hole for the head and the arms, and use it as a protection before the start. After you start, give it to a friend along the road.

[COLD] If you are afraid to have cold hands, wear some running gloves, and during the 15mn wait before the start, wear some old socks on your hands. After you start, give them to a friend along the road.

Have your own race plan

We had various race plan suggestions, pick the one you like :

Run, then don’t stop running. Also being well rested and prepared counts for a lot before raceday. – Grant M.

Sprint the first 3k crawl the rest – Simon T. (We can’t really vouch for this one but there is always few runners who does that!)

DON’T start to fast. It’s a classic mistake people make. you will be knackered by 3k otherwise. – Michael E.

Take the first half easy so you can enjoy the second half a bit more, make sure the mo is well groomed, - Philip K.

remember to chat with other runners and encourage anyone along who looks like they want to stop… – Philip K.

Run your own pace not that of those around you….it’s easy to out run yourself. If in doubt, wear casual clothes, so nobody knows when you’ve stopped running! - Barry M.

Dont do anything on race day you haven’t done before in training. Don’t change your patterns. – Sophie L.

remember this mantra , ‘you can do it’ and my best advice enjoy the race and your hard work you have put into it. Also register early so it does not stress you out waiting in the line and if you pass me say hello. – Morris A.