They say it's all mental...

The way you think affects the way you behave.

Simply put.

If you tend to have an optimistic mindset, you’ll likely see the glass half full and with plenty of opportunities for growth.

If you are someone with a pessimistic mindset, you’ll likely see the glass half empty and may miss those same opportunities.

No matter how optimistic you are, when it comes to race day, it’s hard to not let anxiety and stress drive you into a spiral.

Is it all mental? Absolutely not. Saying that discounts all the hard work you put into all of your training.

However when it comes to race day, it is important to realize that your mindset will play an impactful role in the outcomes of your race.

With that said, here are 3 tips to improving your mindset on race day:

1) Let weather be what it will be.

If you train and compete in an outdoor pool, you realize that weather plays a huge role in your performance.

Too hot? You worry about heat exhaustion, dehydration, and finding shade to conserve energy and stay cool.

Too cold? You worry about staying warm while sitting in damp clothes and a wet parka all day without stiffening up.

Hail? You better hope you have a least a team tent to sit under.

The thing is, you’re not the only one dealing with this problem. This means you are on the same playing field as everyone else around you.

Don’t stress over what you cannot control.

Prepare, adapt, and move forward.

2) You’re never going to swim the same race twice.

Sure, you might make finals at night. You’ll be swimming the same event twice, but you’re not swimming the same race twice. Different time of day, different weather conditions, different energy levels… It’s a different race because of those factors.

With that in mind, if you swam poorly in the morning but made it back to finals, make your finals swim count and swim your heart out.

3) Focus on your attitude.

Attitude is the one thing you will ever truly be able to control. This applies to situations outside of the sport. Life is full of obstacles and very rarely will the perfect scenario ever arise in your favor…

And that’s OK.

Let that be.

Focus on what you can control, and that’s your attitude.

If you had a terrible swim, shake it off, regroup, and refocus.

Allow that swim to be what it was and shift your mindset to prepare for your next race.

Are you someone who stresses about swimming on race day?

Do you have a hard time getting “out of your head” when you have a bad race?

You may be someone who will benefit from mindset coaching to optimize your performance!

As always, leave feedback by replying to this email. I love sharing the wealth of knowledge and I’m glad I get to share it with you!

Until next time,

Sandra

PS - You don’t have the same body as the person next to you. So why would you train and fuel the same way as them? Tailor your training and nutrition so it fits YOU instead of doing cookie-cutter programs that don’t work. Sign up for 1:1 coaching with me.

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