Training advice from England Athletics: Issue 4. Race day final checks!

Here at Sports Tours International we are immensely proud to be the official active holiday partner for England Athletics.

In conjunction with England Athletics, we want to help you prepare for your next big race with a few extra training tips. Whilst there are hundreds of training plans and tips out there, we want to bring you the best, and as such, have enlisted the advice of England Athletics and their experienced coaching team.

Over the course of the past four weeks we’ve published articles as part of our new “Training advice from England Athletics” series, which aims to provide you with invaluable advice and training tips from Spencer Duval, who is the National Endurance Lead Coach for England Athletics.

You have spent weeks training for your “A” race and now the big day is finally here, so how do you make the most of it?

Issue 4: Race day final checks. Take it away Spencer.

Rest assured, we have everything sorted when it comes to numbers and race day info.

All you need to do is to keep those hydration levels high, make sure you have kit to change into after the race, oh, and get all your race day gear is ready to roll!

Check the weather, and be prepared for just about everything. Conditions overseas can change very quickly indeed, so light jackets and even gloves might be order of the day (even if you race is in July or August). Trust us, we’ve been there and got the wooly jumper to prove it!

As we’ve said all the way through this journey to the start line, everybody is different, but try not to panic about lack of sleep the night before. Runners are often too excited to sleep, but that’s nothing new so don’t worry about it. Just relax as much as you can. Keep your fuel levels high, but don’t think you have to jam down loads of carbs. Your usual total should be enough. Overloading is a popular myth that will leave you feeling full and slow on the line.

Most importantly; try to relax, and enjoy the moment!

You have done all of your training by now, so stick to your plan, and try not to panic and get carried away! Soak up the atmosphere; a lot of big races, especially the World Marathon Majors, have an incredible buzz about them, so take it all in. This is your moment!

To remove any last minute stress, it’s a good idea to make a checklist of the essentials for race day

We’re sure you’ve seen this a million times before but it’s worth repeating;

• Shoes
• Running clothes (weather appropriate)
• Watch
• Safety pins
• Race number
• Timing chip
• Race entry information (location, bib number pick-up, etc.)
• Identification (passport or driving licence)
• Money (notes)
• Mobile phone
• Drinks or food for during the race (or beforehand)
• Any prescription medication
• Raincoat, poncho or bin bag for staying warm and dry before the start
• Warm top and bottom for before and after the race
• Drinks and food for after the race
• Towel
• Bag for all your gear
• Music player and earphones (if you use them)

Have a great race, and thank you for reading. We hope you enjoyed our England Athletics Race Preparation Series!

 

 

You can find out more about training tips and running in England by visiting England Athletics

Keep up to date with the latest advice from England Athletics by following our blog, and keeping up to date with us on all of our social media platforms. You can see all the other blogs in this series by clicking here

 

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