Things don’t always go to plan. There are so many reasons why we might not meet our own expectations in a race. Factors both within our control, and out of our control. If you race enough races, there’s the chance that before too long you may find yourself disappointed in your result for some reason or another. The trick is to know how to deal with these feelings and always, always learn from the experience. You never fail if you learn something for next time.

Some things you can do when your results don’t meet your expectations;

– Make sure you don’t place all your feelings of success on a goal time. There are other ways to be successful – make a list of all the things you actually did well, it’s not always about “time” and “pace”. Did you get your fueling right? Did you come home stronger than you started? What did you do well?

– Decide on a few key lessons you learnt – what can you take away from this race? What will you do differently next time. It’s worth noting.

– Talk with someone who understands – not everyone “gets it”. Talk to another runner or someone about how you are feeling and all the factors that played in to your race.

– Be grateful – we are privileged to run races, lucky to run – so the outcome is less important than the experience.

– Look ahead – take what you have learnt from this experience and use it in the future. Running is a journey and one setback does not mean the end of your improvements.

Kate is an experience runner and racer with amazing marathon and half marathon PBs. Kate also is RMA’s resident coach and you can find her at www.coachkate.com.au