The primary hindrance for most runners to attain a certain goal in their running is their mental endurance. Sure, your cardio performance may be worthy of an elite, but it isn't complete without you actually trying to go the distance.
Running is a mindgame. That said, your mind is constantly sending thoughts of rest to your body, and gives you that feeling wherein you feel like it's better to stop running and walk for a moment and catch up. Most of the time these signals are excusable, except for those moments where your body really screams for rest, for example, after a long and intense sprint.
I've been experimenting on ways on how to deal with mental fatigue, as well as reading on books and magazines centered about it. You may be asking, what's the best way to deal with mental fatigue? Well, sorry to say there isn't really a "best" way to deal with this problem, however, there are numerous solutions that you can try. Like:
Listening to music
Music, as proven by experts, is capable of affecting the emotions and, more importantly for runners, the performance of the human body. Music has the capability to make people laugh, cry, dance, sleep and wake. As such, music is vital for any runner who's willing to go the distance, so long that you're not in a triathlon.
You do not have to go overboard and sell your other pair of shoes in order to get yourself a new iPod. There are many cheaper alternatives available, to be honest. You can buy cheaper, non-Apple mp3 players online or at your nearest electronics store. Some are known to go below the price of $100. Try to pick those centered towards battery life, instead of sound quality and storage size. A 8GB mp3 player that can endure a whole marathon's worth of playing time will be worth the hundred or less bucks you spent on it.
Also, if you have a modern phone that supports mp3 capabilities, you can use it as an alternative to mp3 players. It also saves you pocket space, as you do not have to carry both a phone and an mp3 player in case it is urgently needed for you to bring a phone with you.
Most importantly, if you're going to bring music to your runs, be sure that you bring upbeat songs, not your sentimental playlist. It is also helpful to find music that does not pause or stop at the end (a mix of songs to be precise), since studies have shown that our body has developed a strange behavior in which it follows the rhythm of songs. If the song stops, there's a strong tendency for your body to pause running also.
Get a mantra
A mantra is a sentence, phrase or perhaps just a word that people use to attain concentration. Religions use these to attain total concentration during worship. If you can make a simple mantra for you to mentally speak during your run, it would be very useful, especially during those moments wherein you feel like taking a break. Your manta could range from quotes like, "A speeding bullet may go really fast, but bullets don't go 42Ks", or a short one like, "I can do this all day." The latter is one of my favorites.
Relax
No, I didn't mean "relax" as in stop and smell the roses. I mean you have to stop tensing your body when you run. Stop worrying about an injury waiting to happen or you not beating your lap time. You'll have time to worry after the race, or when if you really have an injury during a run. Keeping a clean sense of mind and your body on a lively pace can easily keep you running. Additionally, observe proper posture while running (i.e. don't slouch or stare on the ground).
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