It's (almost) race day - how to get in a positive headspace

 The past 12+ months have caused a lot of uncertainty and instability, bringing on a lot of emotional distress. If you have had difficulty concentrating, experienced hopelessness or have felt anxious, nervous, frustrated or stressed out, you are not alone. And with an upcoming race on the schedule, you may find it difficult to get yourself into a place of positive thinking so that you can stay confident and focused under pressure. Instead, you may find yourself lacking self-belief due to irritational or distorted thinking. 

To feel more optimistic and empowered, here are a few tips to help you get in a positive headspace before your upcoming event: 

• Avoid energy suckers - it's not easy to deal with negative people who suck the energy from you and leave you feeling discouraged, upset and drained. Because you can't completely shut everyone out of your life (ex. acquaintances, family, co-workers), it's important to set boundaries and minimize contact in the days leading up to your race. If you are unable to get away from energy suckers, avoid participating in their negative conversation or try to divert the conversation completely. 
  
  
• Avoid social media - a lot of time and emotional energy is wasted on social media. Obtaining a sense of self by comparing yourself with others can increase depressive symptoms, negative body image and poor self-esteem. Because social media tends to prioritize the "highlight reel" of the lives of other people, it's easy to slip into a negative state of mind by comparing yourself with others. It takes great discipline to not let social media steal your time and energy. Don't let social media drain your valuable energy that can be used on race day. 
  
  
• Stay processed driven - many athletes view a race result as the primary indicator of whether or not you've had a successful race. Expending a lot of mental energy on an outcome will increase anxiety, nerves and pressure, because once you start thinking about results, you can't ever get your mind away from them. As a result, in order to deliver a certain result, you need to focus on that result. This outcome focus mindset puts all the energy into the end result but the paradox of outcome focus is that it can actually reduce your chance of having a great race. Why? Because you can never predict what will happen on race day. Ultimately, you are going to perform at your best when you focus on what you need to do to perform at your best. 
  
  
• Welcome your pre-race jitters - pre-race butterflies are a normal part of racing. They help you focus and perform better because it means you are excited  and amped-up to race. Embrace your pre-race jitters as this is your body's way of helping you feel prepared. Trust that once you get the race started, you will get into a state of flow, which allows you to stay calm, confident and focused. However, performance anxiety can make you physical sick to your stomach, worried, anxious, drained, exhausted and stressed - none of which will help you get into a good headspace before the race. Many times, pre-race anxiety or worry comes from a place of fear of failure. Worrying about what others may think, not meeting expectations, not feeling fully prepared, negative self-talk and focusing on an outcome or result will only put you into a negative state of mind before the race. Remind yourself that racing is fun and it's a celebration of training. 

If you are in need of help: The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline provides 24/7, free and confidential support for people in distress, prevention and crisis resources for you or your loved ones, and best practices for professionals. 1-800-273-8255

To my friend Laura

The world lost an amazing person on Tuesday. My amazing friend Laura finished her journey on Earth and is now in a more comfortable place, looking over all her friends and family members, including her husband, brothers and sisters, mom and dad and two young kids.

Laura lost her one-year battle with stage IV non-smoker lung cancer but you'd never know what she was battling as she always carried a beautiful smile, a positive attitude, helping heart and words of wisdom wherever she went.

Although I wasn't in a lot of contact with Laura since moving from Jacksonville to Greenville in May 2014, Laura was the type of friend who was always there - no matter how little we talked or saw each other, she was always there when I needed her or wanted to catch up. I am sure others can agree that Laura was a loyal friend to everyone she cared about.

When I moved to Jacksonville with Karel in 2008, I didn't know anyone in the area. Laura was my very first friend. We met (appropriately) at the YMCA pool and if I remember correctly, we were both wearing fruit/vegetable themed shirts.....and instant match. Laura was a RD and I was becoming a RD. Laura had a dog (Beethoven) that had a similar look and personality of Campy. We traded dog babysitting whenever needed and we loved talking food, triathlon and health. For my birthday one year, Laura made me Carrot Cake and every year thereafter she continued to make me carrot cake on my birthday. I still keep this tradition up today with store-bought carrot cake in her honor.  Although Laura had Lupus, it never affected our relationship. She was always energetic, active and courageous.I had the honor of coaching Laura to many finishing lines - including a half ironman distance triathlon! Last year, I featured Laura on my blog as a way to raise money for her cancer and to shine the spotlight on this amazing human being.

Although I try to keep this blog educational, inspirational and motivational, I wanted to take the time to shine the light on my amazing friend Laura. I find myself thinking of her a lot, every day since her passing and feeling lucky that I had the chance to call Laura my friend. On Laura's Facebook page, her background picture read: BE POSITIVE (featured above). This was Laura All. The. Time. I don't know how it happens but somehow I find myself gravitating toward energy givers and avoiding the energy suckers. While it doesn't always happen this way, Laura was one of those energy givers that you just wanted to be around All. The. Time.

Laura accomplished so much in her short life. She wrote a book, crossed many athletic finish lines, adopted two amazing kids, started her own business, volunteered, worked PRN as a clinical RD and was always pursuing the next challenge with grit, determination and a big smile.

Positivity is choosing to see the bright side of situations. Laura did a remarkable job at this, even during her fight with cancer. She believed in the power of a positive attitude and having hope that things will always get better. Laura always chose a positive, cheerful, can-do, confident attitude and I admired her so much.

To my friend Laura - thank you for being YOU. You will be missed deeply but your bright light will always shine over me, making me smile as I think of you.