Nerves - Let's Get Them All Out!

Keels

The Official Keels of RunDisney
Joined
Feb 27, 2008
I'm pretty sure I'm the one that suffers from these the most - those dang pre-race nerves!

So, let's talk about them. Let's work them all out.

Me? I had my first really big "OMG - there's no way I can do this" freak out tonight about Dopey. I'm sure it's mostly related to the fact that we hit the road for Florida tomorrow morning, but it still felt huge.

Anyone else suffering from pre-race jitters?
 
I know you'll do fine!

I am a bit nervous about my first half as I have never run anything more than the 10K last year. I have done better with training for this race than I did with the 10K but I am still nervous with how I will do.

My nerves will probably only get worse the closer we get but thats normal. People get nervous for any sporting event or say performance that they have to do. I know I got nervous in many games throughout my high school football career.
 
I know you'll do fine!

I am a bit nervous about my first half as I have never run anything more than the 10K last year. I have done better with training for this race than I did with the 10K but I am still nervous with how I will do.

My nerves will probably only get worse the closer we get but thats normal. People get nervous for any sporting event or say performance that they have to do. I know I got nervous in many games throughout my high school football career.

A new distance is ALWAYS scary - at least to me!

You've done your training, so you're going to do great.

What helped me in my first Half was to think of it in segments - like, get to the first out-and-back, and then you get to a new part of the course. Then get to the 6-mile mark and then you have to get back "home" somehow - might as well run!

I like mental tricks to keep the mileage in perspective versus getting overwhelmed by the distance ahead of me.
 
I think we're all a little scared. For us normal people, any race is a little scary, even if it's a race that you've done 10 times before. But I think that the best thing you can do is train as best as you can, and then show up on race day(s) and see what happens. Do the best you can and just hope that life gets you the rest of the way. (Which isn't to say that you should just count on pixie dust - pixie dust only helps if you've done the training ... but even if you do the training, sometimes you need a little help from pixie dust)

My problem is that I know I can do the distance, because I've done it in training many times, but that just means that when something goes wrong at the race (which will inevitably happen because, well, life), I'm going to feel really crappy about it. I just wish I knew what was going to go wrong. There are so many options - I could get injured, I could get swept in a character line, there are a million options. At least if I had advance notice about what was going to go wrong, I could prepare for it.
 


A new distance is ALWAYS scary - at least to me!

You've done your training, so you're going to do great.

What helped me in my first Half was to think of it in segments - like, get to the first out-and-back, and then you get to a new part of the course. Then get to the 6-mile mark and then you have to get back "home" somehow - might as well run!

I like mental tricks to keep the mileage in perspective versus getting overwhelmed by the distance ahead of me.

First know that you can do this! Second I would encourage you to take your own advice. Don't focus on the whole challenge at once. You only have to run one race a day. Segment it out; first run a 5k, piece a cake. The next day you can knock out the 10k, you have gone further than that. Then the next day tackle the half, you have done the distance already. Then it is time for the marathon, but once you are out there it is just C.F.M. (continual forward motion) and you will get to the finisher. Then completing each of those segments makes you a Dopey Finisher! You can totally do this!
 
Maybe it's because I'm not tackling a new race or distance and I am not particularly concerned about my time, but I don't think the jitters will hit me until Marathon morning. I don't know that I'll ever get used to that distance so it will always be daunting.

I began running to try to improve my health and fitness; that is still my number one goal. Not finishing a race will not affect that goal. I'm pretty relaxed knowing I am going to give each race my best shot and if I don't finish I will just move on to the next one.

That said, in 47 years I want to be the old geezer with a barely passable knowledge of whatever it is that replaces the internet doing the equivalent of typing in ALL CAPS about my excitement in tackling my 50th consecutive Dopey. So, yeah, I kind of want to finish and there will always be nerves. It's healthy.
 


Not yet, I don't think it will hit until we're down there & getting our bibs & then the mornings of the races (then I'll probably feel sick with nerves). You'll do fine though, you've been training, just take each race at a time and as you said split the half and full into segments to get you through mentally. To get through the full this year with having the flu I had to just think about the mile I was in and not the big picture of 26.2, otherwise that was daunting (and it wasn't even my first full). And I'm counting on that Disney Magic & Pixie Dust again to help me through, it really does exist, oh and Tiger Balm!

YOU CAN DO IT!!!! Nerves will just help fuel you anyway to conquer Dopey!
 
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He he -- I have two cats that like to be fed during the night (they are old so I cut them lots of slack). ANYWAY... I fed them last night and sat on the couch pondering race/training details... took me a while to crawl back in bed. Nerves nerves nerves...
 
Nerves before races are nothing unusual. You'll probably go through lots of different emotions between now and race day. Nerves now will lead to excitement as you get on the plane or drive and make your way to Disney. You'll be even more excited at the expo with all its energy and the buzz of thousands of other runners around you. The nerves will pop up again the night before your big race (whichever distance that happens to be), and you most likely won't sleep well, so be sure to get a good night's sleep the previous night (Friday night for the marathoners, for example).

Race day is a roller coaster of emotions too. Excited and nervous on your way to the corral. Excited as you walk to the corrals, hear the announcers, and watch the fireworks of the corrals starting in front of you. Nervous as your corral is next to go. The three minutes before you get to go, you always find yourself wondering what you've gotten yourself into. And then the fireworks go off and you get swept away with the crowd and your nervousness disappears. You won't feel that again all day. Your body knows what to do once it starts moving. Your mind does too.

A new distance is ALWAYS scary - at least to me!

It's scary to everyone

What helped me in my first Half was to think of it in segments - like, get to the first out-and-back, and then you get to a new part of the course. Then get to the 6-mile mark and then you have to get back "home" somehow - might as well run!

I like mental tricks to keep the mileage in perspective versus getting overwhelmed by the distance ahead of me.

Disney is a really good marathon course for breaking into segments. Here's how I recommend looking at it:

Start to TTC
TTC to Magic Kingdom
Magic Kingdom
Exit Magic Kingdom to right turn towards Animal Kingdom
Quiet and calm until Animal Kingdom
Animal Kingdom
Exit Animal Kingdom to WWoS
WWoS
Exit WWoS to exit to World Drive
World Drive off-ramp
World Drive to DHS
DHS
Exit DHS to Boardwalk/BC/YC
Epcot
Choir
Finish line
Medals->pictures->snack box->check bag->beer->pictures (so have your Magic Band handy)

None of these segments are more than a few miles long, and as you cross each one off, you've got another one to look forward to.
 
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I'm very nervous! I started running last November and W&D was my big goal. As the registration opened for the full and training was going well I figured I could up my goal. I have done the miles and the training and know i can finish but the idea that I actually DECIDED to do this still freaks me out. We'll all do awesome though and then we can party afterwards.

Disney is a really good marathon course for breaking into segments. Here's how I recommend looking at it:

Start to TTC
TTC to Magic Kingdom
Magic Kingdom
Exit Magic Kingdom to right turn towards Animal Kingdom
Quiet and calm until Animal Kingdom
Animal Kingdom
Exit Animal Kingdom to WWoS
WWoS
Exit WWoS to exit to World Drive
World Drive off-ramp
World Drive to DHS
DHS
Exit DHS to Boardwalk/BC/YC
Epcot
Choir
Finish line
Medals->pictures->snack box->check bag->beer->pictures (so have your Magic Band handy)

None of these segments are more than a few miles long, and as you cross each one off, you've got another one to look forward to.

I love this! When I have to do long runs on the treadmill I break them into a few mile segments to make it easier and this is way more fun than that.
 
I get nervous about a lot of things... what if I oversleep? What if I miss the bus? What if I'm late to the corral? What if I can't find my way around? What if I fall? What if I run into someone else? Honestly, the more I read and research and try to be prepared, the more I stress so I should just stop doing all that and wing it!
 
What if I can't find my way around?

This one I'm pretty sure you won't have to worry about. Unless you're in the lead (and those guys usually have an official escort anyway), there will be hundreds and thousands of people in front of you to show you the way. I suppose all 25,000 could get lost together, but then that would make it kind of fun and nothing to be nervous about. ;)
 
This will be my 5th goofy and I am still a bundle of nerves.

I'm running with a friend and it's his first marathon, so I get to worry about myself and him. My top 3 fears and how I address them.

1. Oversleeping. I carry 2 phones. I'll have multiple alarms set on both of them at 5 minute intervals, I'll also set the room alarm clock and I will call for a wake up call. (yes I will have 6 plus alarms, no it's not overkill and yes I will still be nervous about sleeping through them)
2. Transportation. We had issues with the bus, from POR one year. No I am perpetually afraid of getting stuck and missing the start. To remedy it we plan to be on the first bus if we are staying at a bus resort or an early monorail if we are on the monorail loop.
3. Stomach issues. Race's make me nervous enough that I will have to go to the bathroom a lot. I'll probably hit the bathroom 7-8 times on race morning before the race starts.
 
Nerves before races are nothing unusual. You'll probably go through lots of different emotions between now and race day. Nerves now will lead to excitement as you get on the plane or drive and make your way to Disney. You'll be even more excited at the expo with all its energy and the buzz of thousands of other runners around you. The nerves will pop up again the night before your big race (whichever distance that happens to be), and you most likely won't sleep well, so be sure to get a good night's sleep the previous night (Friday night for the marathoners, for example).

Race day is a roller coaster of emotions too. Excited and nervous on your way to the corral. Excited as you walk to the corrals, hear the announcers, and watch the fireworks of the corrals starting in front of you. Nervous as your corral is next to go. The three minutes before you get to go, you always find yourself wondering what you've gotten yourself into. And then the fireworks go off and you get swept away with the crowd and your nervousness disappears. You won't feel that again all day. Your body knows what to do once it starts moving. Your mind does too.



It's scary to everyone



Disney is a really good marathon course for breaking into segments. Here's how I recommend looking at it:

Start to TTC
TTC to Magic Kingdom
Magic Kingdom
Exit Magic Kingdom to right turn towards Animal Kingdom
Quiet and calm until Animal Kingdom
Animal Kingdom
Exit Animal Kingdom to WWoS
WWoS
Exit WWoS to exit to World Drive
World Drive off-ramp
World Drive to DHS
DHS
Exit DHS to Boardwalk/BC/YC
Epcot
Choir
Finish line
Medals->pictures->snack box->check bag->beer->pictures (so have your Magic Band handy)

None of these segments are more than a few miles long, and as you cross each one off, you've got another one to look forward to.

I do this when training in my neighborhood. I have different mileage loops and certain houses I have tagged as the different landmarks in Disney. Makes the training a little easier. Along with all of my Disney soundtracks.
 
Pre race nerves are not only perfectly normal, I think they are a little bit healthy. After all we all signed up for our various races because we wanted a challenge so there is no reason to think that it will be easy but what we must remember is that we are all prepared as best we can be and that no matter how we feel between now and race day (or days) once we cross that start line its all going to disappear and we can just enjoy the run. Personally I'm not really nervous yet, I am more so excited...excited to run, excited to be in Disney world, excited to be able to call myself a marathoner (something that I never thought possible when I started running)excited to hopefully meet some of you, etc. I think the excitement is outweighing the nerves right now but that might be a different story when we make our journey down to the World. I think this video has the perfect message (substitute whatever race/challenge you are running for marathon)
 
I definitely of nerves. First off I am doing the Dopey and this is my first full. This is not as bad since I did the last sim weekend run and I was fine. But I do break up the full marathon into 10k distances to work through them better. My biggest one is I am soooo nervous that I am going to oversleep/miss my alarm.
 
I am getting nervous. Mostly because it's my first half marathon, and my first Disney race. And while I will be 10K of my newest BFFs, I will be running alone.

Can someone break down the half marathon in chunks like the poster did with the marathon? That would be helpful for me.
 

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