Warming up is so important for a race. It prepares your muscles for the race by increasing the blood flow to the legs, and expanding the muscles. Warm muscles work much better than cold ones. Here are a few points about warming up.
The Warmup
- 1 hour Before the Race
- 30-40 minutes Before the Race
- 15-20 minutes Before the Race
- 5-15 minutes Before the Race
- 0-5 minutes Before the Race
- 0 minutes before the Race
Begin jogging about 50 minutes to an hour before the start of the race. Your warmup jog should be about 15 minutes to get your muscles
warm and ready to stretch. Make sure that you keep the pace light and try to avoid steep uphills.
After your warmup jog, do some light strides and begin stretching. Stretching lengthens the muscles and also
increases blood flow to the muscle being stretched. If you don't know how to stretch,
I suggest that you take a look at my stretching section.
Stretch for 15-20 minutes. Also, try to sip some water during this time to ensure that you are fully hydrated.
After stretching, do some more light strides and/or drills. Go to the bathroom one last time if you need to. This is also a good time to put on your spikes.
Make your way over to the start line. Do a few more strides. You should be mentally prepared to destroy the competition at this point.
Do one or two moderate to fast paced strides to get ready for a quick start. Make sure to take about a minute before the gun to collect your thoughts and breathe easy. Keep in mind all of the awesome training you have done. HAVE CONFIDENCE!
RUN FAST
About 2-4 hours before the race make sure to eat! Fasting too long can lead to fainting. Also, be sure that you don't eat later than an hour before a race, unless it's something very light. Eating too late my lead to gut aches. Some good things to eat before a race include:
- Bananas
- Power Bars
- Bagels
- Pretzels
- Raisins
- Oranges
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