Photo courtesy of Essence Communication // Jean-Pierre Lautrédoux
Can you explain what exactly mental toughness means to a runner?
Running is not easy, but it's a very accessible sport to everyone. All you need is a pair of shoes. However, as the body gets tired, we are bound to encounter some difficulties. More oxygen is needed for our muscles to continue working and sometimes our brain is torn between giving up and continuing. It becomes physically difficult, but this is where mental strength helps you. It won't make your race easy, but it helps you to fight against yourself. Our brain drives our body!

Many casual runners put a lot of effort into the physical aspect of running. Building stamina, muscles, eating healthy, but few put a lot of training into the mental strength needed for endurance running. How important would you say it is to prepare mentally as well?
Mental preparations will help you focus better during your race. When you are mentally prepared, you pace yourself better from the start and once you hit the wall, you are able to handle it, you won't give up.
I always prepare myself mentally. When I was as young as 14-15, I didn't know what mental preparation was. I was doing it without knowing. A few days before the race, I remember listening to music and imagining finishing first at the race. And it happened just like I imagined it; I won 99% of my races when I was young.
The first time I heard about "Mental preparation", it was from my brother who was my coach at that time. I was a junior runner (cat.18-19 years old) when he asked me to mentally prepare myself to win the French Cross Country Championships. This was 3 months before the race. And on the race day, I was so focussed, I easily won.

Would I need to be mentally prepared for a 5km run as much as a full 42km marathon? Or is it equally important?
You can prepare yourself mentally for any distance, but of course 5km and 42km run are different animals. A marathon is a long journey that really tests your physical and mental limit. I remember feeling like crying every time I cross the line because my nerves would relax. A sense of satisfaction is achieved when you cross the line. Regardless of you doing good or not, you are happy because you did it. Even if you didn't beat your targeted time, the fact remains that you finished the marathon. You didn't give up.

So how do we prepare mentally for a long distance run? Is there a routine to build every day? Meditation? How do we become prepared mentally to face the challenges of long distance running?
At first, set a goal with 3 different times:
  1. The expected running time.
  2. The targeted running time, but keep it real as it should be achievable.
  3. The safe running time in case you don't feel as good as expected.
Write down your goals and post them somewhere where you can see them few times a day! By putting them on paper, they will always be at the back of your mind, keeping you focused. Be positive and start preparing yourself. Take some time to mentally prepare yourself few times a week for the race. It only takes 15 minutes to do it.
For me, I prefer to lie down and imagine race day stage by stage, beginning from when I get up in the morning, till I cross the finish line.
You start the race. Ensure that you calculate what your intermediate time should be before the race. At the first kilometre, you can see yourself at the right pace when you reach 5km. For reference, you may write them somewhere and check if you are on the right pace. This will help you remain focused and recognise which base you are running.
For those who are taking part in this year's Standard Chartered KL Marathon, imagine you are at Dataran Merdeka, stretching and warming up. You are at the starting line, excited to run, you chose to do it, nobody has forced you, you've trained for it. You are not stressed, but focused. This doesn't mean you can't laugh or talk with your friends. But if you do this mental preparation, you will realise that your mind is subconsciously focused during the race.

Personally, the beginning stages of a run are the hardest part. It's not that I am physically unable to run, but my mind starts to question things and slowly I start asking myself things like "Do I really need to do this today?" What tips would you have to help someone like me through the early stages of a run?
You must change the way you see a race. You chose to run and nobody has forced you. Be happy to run and enjoy the atmosphere of other runners sharing the same passion. Laugh with your friends. This also happens to me when I need to wake up very early, thinking what I'm doing there? "I am better off in bed." But after a few minutes, I'm fine. If it's a short race, run a few minutes to warm up/ wake up your body, and then do some stretching. If you run a marathon, just stick to stretching.

In mental toughness, are things like shoes and clothes important? How important is it to be comfortable?
It's important to dress comfortably, especially when it comes to the right shoes. We all have our favourite clothes and feel happy when wearing them. Runners spend a lot of money to buy them.
However, it won't make a difference mentally during the race. Wearing your favourite shorts won't make you run faster nor longer.

On casual runs, music helps me to keep going. But running in an official marathon doesn't allow me to take my music with me. Is there something I can do to help me keep my mind off the long journey ahead and keep running?
You can focus on the km mark... If not, check your watch and if you know yourself well enough, you can estimate how far you are from the finish line. For the Standard Chartered KL Marathon, there will be a km mark for each km, but checking the mark every 5km should be sufficient. Also, you can target following other runners. This method can be applied during the KL Marathon as the event attracts loyal runners every year. You could target beating or following them.

How and where do you draw inspiration from to keep on running when you start to face mental fatigue?
It depends of your personality and motivation. A few weeks ago, I won Bomba run. I was far from being in shape, but mentally I was ready.
Mentally, I was prepared and imagined myself being a warrior in the last part of the race. Because of that, I won. I was running to win and became very motivating. We all have our own challenges. Set a target at each race and try to achieve it.

Are there any mental exercises or techniques that you practice after a run?
When it's finished, I only say "Thank You!" Later at night, I like to relive the race in my mind, especially if it was a good one.

As the Standard Chartered KL Marathon is in a month's time, what can be done to ensure one's mental preparation is ready?
Just do the mental preparation as explained above. One month is enough to get ready. Only during the race you will see (or not) that you did a good job. But automatically your subconscious mind will remember all the hard work that you've done.

As Standard Chartered are organizing running clinics and training circuits as a means of preparation for the KL marathon, how do you think this contributes mentally as well as physically?
These running clinics are very good and helpful. It subconsciously prepares you mentally and physically for the race. Professional advice and tips are shared during these meetings. Also, Mark Williams has prepared a very interesting and helpful booklet for runners who are preparing themselves for the much anticipated Standard Chartered KL Marathon.

This year's Standard Chartered KL Marathon is attracting around 20,000 runners worldwide. How much of a difference do you think mental preparation plays as participants would be competing with top athletes from around the world?
There are two types of runners; elite and other runners. As usual, the African runners will be running in front. Elite runners will be competing with each other, but 98% of runners are competing against themselves.
Some compete to achieve a new personal record; others just want to finish the race. The most important thing when participating in a big event like the Standard Chartered KL Marathon is to have fun. We all have a different target. And that's why so many people are happy to run.

Source: MSN Sports