MarathonMennone's Race Day Tips

On a recent long run, I was thinking about how many races I've done in the past 4 years.  I'm on to marathon #8, but I've also done several half marathons, 10 milers, 5 milers, 10ks, and 5ks.  Sometimes race prep has been as easy as walking 3 blocks to the start from my apartment and sometimes it has involved a plane ride, a taxi ride, a hotel room, and dinner in a strange place.  So I can confidently say that I have come up with strategies that help me through each race.  Maybe these seem obvious, or maybe they will be the ah-ha! moment that someone needs to propel them through a race.

So without further ado....MARATHON MENNONE'S RACE DAY TIPS!

1. Poop before you leave the house.  I know this might seem a bit dramatic, especially since this is my number 1 tip.  Do.not.forget.this.one.  Whether you're staying at home or spending the night in a hotel, spend enough time at home to get in a good poop.  You do NOT want to run a race clenching your butt and hoping for a miracle. And no matter how small your race is, there will be lines at the porta potties.  And even if you are the first person to use it, porta potties stink.  You just can't avoid it.  POOP and POOP OFTEN before you leave your house.
2. Eat enough.  Eat a big meal the night before (this facilitates number 1) and make sure to eat enough on the morning of the race.  Nerves will kick in and you will NOT want to eat, so it's important to be mindful of how much you're eating.  I usually eat a bagel or a cliff bar, and then munch a banana on my way to the race course (for a long race).  And coffee.  Always coffee (see tip #1).
3. Get everything together the night before a race.  This one seems obvious, but panic sets in quickly when you're less than 2 hours away from running 26.2 miles.  I'm not super meticulous about this, but I always have my clothes (usually with the bib already pinned to the shirt), shoes, and GU piled up the night before.
4. Take extra GU.  Or whatever it is you use for energy, take more than you think you need.  I've dropped GU, had it explode while running, and given it to fellow runners.  I've also been handed GU at an aid station, only to realize that I hate the flavor.  I'd rather finish a race with an extra packet than not have enough.
5. Have fun!  The first marathon I did, I think I looked straight ahead the whole time.  I was terrified to look at spectators.  I'm not sure why.  It can be very intimidating - surely they're clapping for someone else.  I thought they must be judging me for going slowly.  But after a few, I realized that people will cheer for ANYONE, especially the people who say thank you or high five them back.
6. Don't take food from strangers.  There will be people handing out food, beer, snacks, GU on the course.  Bless them.  I both love them and don't.  I am personally paranoid about what people might do to food.  However, I am always happy to get a tissue or a popsicle stick of vaseline.  This will be your call, but ultimately, I've made the "better safe than sorry" choice for this one.
7. Take a buddy.  My race buddy is usually my mom or my boyfriend.  I almost never check a bag on race day.  To be honest, the last thing I want to do after I run 26.2 miles is wait in line to get my flip flops or my cell phone.  This usually means that I have to beg to use a stranger's cell phone at the finish line area to find my family, but trust me, it's worth it.  And my buddy always waits with me at the start, allowing me to wear a coat if it's cold, keeping water close by, and keeping me calm.  Which leads me to...
8. Don't drink the kool-aid.  There will be people all around at the start line and probably half of them are really ready for the race.  People will say really stupid stuff like, "it's going to be so hot today!  They said we could drop out if we wanted to!"  "I did a 20 mile training run last week, I am SO ready to kick this race's butt!"  "Yeah, I'm planning on doing this one in under 3 hours."  Or, my personal favorite, people love to ask "have you SEEN the elevation charts on the hills???  They are going to be killer!!"  (My response to anyone mentioning or asking hills is always, ALWAYS: "Nah, I heard they're really small," even if I have not even looked at the race course.  Why get upset or stressed?  You still have to run them).  Don't let these people get in your head.  You don't care how many miles they ran to train.  Who cares if they think it will be hot?  This is your race, not theirs.
9. Have a mantra.  It should be short enough that you can remember it and enough meaning to kepe you going when things really start to hurt.  My mantra right now is "what distinguishes marathoners is their willingness and capacity for pain."  I even got it on a t-shirt for the Marine Corps (haha I am a dork).  But in the middle of a run, it's usually shortened to: "willingness and capacity for pain."  It keeps me focused on what makes me different from the rest of the world and why it's worth it to be hurting so much at the moment.
10. Put your name somewhere.  On a t-shirt, on your bib, write it on your arm.  People WILL cheer for you, especially if they can figure out your name.   If you forget to do this,  hopefully you have a common name like Sarah.  I've found other runners named Sarah with t-shirts in the past and I just run near them and pretend that everyone magically knows my name :)
11. Take some Advil before the race starts.  Everything you read says "don't take painkillers while you train."  I totally agree.  But on race day, I'm taking 2-3 Advil before the race even starts.  And then at least 2-3 when it's over!!
12. Use KT tape.  I have been incredibly lucky this race season (commence knocking on wood until Marine Corps Marathon is over...) and haven't had any serious injuries or pain.  But on race day, I'm going to put some KT tape on my knee and my achilles.  Even if you haven't been hurting all season, if you have anything that might flare up, take precautions.  You'll be going faster on race day (trust me, adrenaline will kick in!) and something will start to hurt.
13. If this is your first race, stop and drink your water at the water stations.  At least slow to a walk.  You cannot drink from a paper cup and run without coughing, spitting, or choking.  It will go up your nose or down your shirt.  It will be more stressful to go through a water station like this than it is to walk for 15 seconds to drink the water and move on. 
14. Don't be afraid to use the medical tents on the course.  I have a very slow marathon time from 2011, but I finished the race because I stopped and had them tie up my knee at mile 13.  Did I have an old injury?  Nope. It just was causing me major pain that day.  I used to think that those tents were for emergencies only and if you stopped, they would make you leave the course.  Not true!  The people were really nice, supportive and helpful!
15. Plan what you'll eat later in the day.  You won't want to cook and ordering a pizza might seem like a good idea, but you probably won't be able to eat as much as you think.  Have a lot of healthy snacks at home so that you can relax, unwind, and recharge easily!!
16. Enjoy the glory!  Wear your medal WHEREVER YOU GO on race day!!!  YOU DESERVE IT!