‘You can always achieve what you set your mind to,’ ‘it is all in the mind’, ‘It is just a mental thing.’ Are these statements familiar to you? They are the kind of statements that you will find in the Canadian sporting and gaming worlds. However, the big question is, all these statements true? 

Why would athletes train for endless hours before a big race if that was the case? They could as well tell their mind, ‘I will win this race’ and then boom, they win. Mind training is what allows people to focus when it comes to sports and other competitive events. 

We linked up with a sports trainer Kevin Cochran (read his portfolio), who shared some insights on mental endurance training and how much of running is mental. The following are some of the tips on how to train the mind as a runner:

Prepare mentally 

You have to be in the right state of mind if you want to become victorious. You must ensure that you feel like a winner before you become one. It takes the coordination of all the body parts before you hit your goals. For instance, it may not make sense when you tell your mind that your legs are ready for the win while the same brain feels that the lungs cannot endure. 

Ensure that all your body parts are in agreement before you hit the road. Your body must also be ready for different scenarios and respond accordingly. For instance, your heart rate and breathing should increase automatically when you detect a hill. On the other hand, the two are bound to decrease when you are in a flat area. 

Create a routine 

Imagine a situation whereby we could achieve everything we want in a day or less. For instance, you want to shed that extra fat and that you need to train in the gym for a day, and you are fit. Or you want to add some muscles and several weight lifts are enough. Life could be very easy. However, it is the opposite, as consistency is the key to achieving most things in this life. 

The runners mindset is no different from a Canadian gambling mind game. Successful gamblers create routines and set the mind right to win at the fastest withdrawal online casino Canada. The routine is what instructs the gambler to slow down or even up the stakes, depending on the outcome. Such a person can even tell a bad day from the look of things.

The two should also differentiate between routines and superstitions. A routine should be something that prepares your body for the task at hand. On the other hand, superstition is a belief of what should happen. How you fuel your body, the warm-up routines, and the visualization methods are examples of routines. 

Practice 

The successful athletes that you see up there have sacrificed a lot. The frequency of your practice sessions is the first consideration before you get out there. You can decide to have at least four sessions in a week as a start. 

The duration of your sessions also matters. You can start with 20 minutes’ sessions and then increase as your body picks up. It would help if you also worked on specific areas that will improve your racing sessions. For instance, exercises that will open up your lungs come in handy to ensure that you do not get out of breath while on the racing track.

Create a mantra 

Humans are emotional beings. What you say to yourself before you get on that racing track can determine how you will fare. You can have an encouraging quote, song, or even a chant before you get on the racing track. 

Turn weaknesses into strengths 

A typical human being has weaknesses and strengths. There are areas that you enjoy running on while others seem like a strain. You can turn that weakness into a strength to keep you going. For instance, if you dread running downhill, then telling yourself something like ‘the downhill thrill is all I need to make my lungs strong’ can work magic. 

It is quite evident that mental running strategies come in handy in a competition. Following the above makes it easy to condition the mind and overcome the obstacles associated with competitive events.