One of the most frustrating things about running is the phenomenon of “choking” during a race or difficult workout. If your nervousness and anxiety about racing becomes overwhelming, there is simply no way that you will be able to run to your potential. How can you ensure that your mind is an asset, rather than a hinderance, to your running?
One way you can reduce the chances of “choking” is to follow the advice of a new series of studies that researched the best way to deal with test anxiety. These studies gave tests to groups of students.
Some students were told to simply do their best on the tests, and other students were told to spend 10 minutes before the test to write down the emotions they were feeling. Were they nervous about doing well? What subject matter of the test concerned them the most? What grade were they afraid of receiving? All of these unanswered questions were to be put down on a piece of paper.
The results of the studies were that students who wrote down their fears and anxieties before taking a test generally performed better than the students who did not write down their feelings. The studies’ authors concluded that concerns and worries that flood our mind before an important task can take up valuable mental resources that prevent us from performing our best.
By writing down your concerns about racing, test-taking, or any other potentially stressful activity, you help ensure that your mind focuses on achieving the best results for the task at hand instead of worrying about the task. Are you concerned about beating certain runners? Are you scared about not running a certain time? Are you worried about letting down your coach or family members? Once your concerns are on a piece of paper, there is no need to keep thinking about them. If you have problems with racing to the best of your ability, try this technique and see what happens!
