ULTRA MIND

How we handle the mental pressure of training and competing in an event can determine our result and the outcome. Here's advice from two expert trail runners who know how to fight the mind game.

- MARK ETHERIDGE

Trail running – a sport that more often than not invokes the phrase ‘blood, sweat and tears’; and rightly so, given the extreme and unforgiving nature of it.

But what if it was also just as much about what's going on between the ears?

As the sport grows faster and faster globally, more and more trail runners, from beginners to winners, are realising just how important the mental aspect is.

Runner’s World tapped into the brains of Cape Town-based trail runners Nick Groll and Kerry-Ann Marshall - the former a clinical psychologist and trail runner, the latter a mom of two and an extremely talented multiple trail race-winner.

Groll runs a private practice in Tamboerskloof, working primarily with adults, some of whom are sporty types. He took up running in 2010, and has since enjoyed tackling distances from the standard 5km parkrun all the way up to 100-mile events, including RMB Ultra-trail Cape Town.

From the outset, he says, the word ‘why’ is a vitally important cog in the mental machinery of running:

“You have to know your ‘why’ - not just in a generic sense, but a ‘why’ that’s specific to the challenging aspects of what you're doing,” he explains.

“Why that specific race? Why does it matter? Why is it worth pushing for your particular goals? What’s going to help you through the toughest part of the race?”

He emphasises that your ‘why’ must be personal and real, not something generic or superficial.

Runners, Groll says, should reflect on what they need to achieve a particular goal - and what it would mean not to achieve it. It’s worth setting different goals at different levels for various situations.

“The toughest part of training — whether it’s a speed interval or for a long run - is how you keep yourself going, against natural instincts, for safety, security and comfort. Those instincts often steer you away from pain and growth.”