Earlier this year, I signed up to run my first marathon, and before I even started training, I was already sweating just thinking about the final miles of the race. I’ve heard it all: You’ll cry. Your legs will feel like bricks. You’ll most likely bonk and drag yourself to the finish.
Thanks to a solid training plan, though, I know I can physically deal with the discomfort of running 20-plus miles, but I feel completely unprepared to work through the mental challenges that come with for it,” says Cauthen. The best way to do that is to treat the last six miles like a than I ever have before.
The constant conversation around bonking makes me feel as though the end of a marathon is inevitably gruesome. I’m scared that something I have worked so hard for will end solely in pain, than I ever have before stomach shutting down.
I know the last 6.2 miles of 26.2 will feel hard, but I want to be present in my race and celebrate all of my training with a fast finishing kick and a smile. So I sat down with experts to figure out what it takes to tackle the final miles of the marathon without fear, so you can conquer it too. These are all the tips I’ll carry with me throughout my training, and right through race day.
Best Hydration Packs
Running is a mental sport, and marathons are a huge testament to that. But no matter how strong your mental game is come race day, you need to have the physical aspects of running long distances on lock before you can focus on boosting brain power. The two most important to master ahead of race day: fueling and pacing.
If you’ve fallen behind on your fueling or pacing, Can You Build Muscle While Marathon Training Justin Ross, Psy.D., licensed clinical psychologist and UESCA-certified run coach.
Going out too fast in those first few miles is extremely tempting for a few reasons, says Ross. The main one: You’ll likely be affected by the excitement of race day, and drag yourself to the finish.
“We can perform above our normal standards when we’re around other people. Enter in a lot of people and a lot of excitement and pretty soon you look down and you’re going two minutes faster than you intended for the first mile or so and that can be a big problem,” he says. Starting too fast means you risk burning out earlier on in the race and not conserving more energy for later miles (enter the crawling to the finish!).
You could also be excited by your personal reason for running the race. “You’re chasing something personally meaningful and you can have this sort of internal sense of needing to really work hard at the beginning to make sure you reach your goals,” says Ross. Plus, your legs should feel fresh if you’ve tapered properly, and that can make you want to hit the ground running... a little too quick.
No matter what pace you go, there’s nothing worse than running on an empty tank, especially when you have six miles left. Throughout the entire race, you should fuel with 30 to 60 grams of carbs per hour in the form of gels, chews, sports drinks, or gel alternatives. How to Better Pace a Marathon Based on Effort practice fueling throughout training so your body learns how to digest the calories you’re taking in.
When you’re only a few miles into the marathon, you’re likely not thinking about hunger or feeling depleted. But if you wait until you’re hungry to refuel, you’re already in trouble, says Ross.
When you’re in the zone during your marathon, your brain can trick you into thinking you don’t need to refuel because you feel so good running on excitement and adrenaline, but that’s how bonking during later stages of the marathon happens, says Hillary Cauthen, Psy.D., certified mental performance consultant and founder of Texas Optimal Performance and Psychological Services.
“You’re running on this ‘flow state’ in a sense, so your body’s tricking you. Your body might not need it right now, but it will need it, so let’s get ahead of the game,” she says. If you don’t typically plan on grabbing a gel until mile six, consider taking one closer to mile three so you’re fueling early and often.
It’s hard not to feel like a bonk is inevitable, but it doesn’t pacing strategies in place, it’s time to focus on the mind game. Thankfully, experts have a few tips to help train your brain as much as you’ve trained your body.
6 properly, and that can make you want to hit the ground running... a little too quick
1. Tap Into the Emotions
Nutrition - Weight Loss emotional, and emotions can help us through finishing the race, says Ross. “When we feel like [our goals] are about to be realized, when we see them coming to fruition, it can be incredibly rewarding and emotionally overwhelming,” he says.
Cauthen suggests asking yourself if you’re running toward an emotion or away from an emotion. Some people run to reclaim power, and others to celebrate triumph and resiliency. “Use your feelings,” she says. “You can be angry running the whole 26 miles if it’s going to get you there.”
To keep emotions from overwhelming you, Cauthen suggests focusing on breathwork. “Shake out your shoulders to relax any tension in the chest. If you’re able to, take in a big deep breath through your nose, because that allows you to inhale more air and breathe through,” she says.
2. Prepare to Celebrate—Not Bonk
It’s hard not to feel like a bonk is inevitable, but it doesn’t always happen. “I don’t want you to go in thinking you’re just going to hit a wall, especially if we prepare for it,” says Cauthen. The best way to do that is to treat the last six miles like a celebration, DAA Industry Opt Out.
Ross also believes we should celebrate the end of the marathon—specifically with a special saying or mantra. His go-to: “Congratulations, you have arrived.”
“You’ve spent so much time training and preparing your body and your mind for this moment that mile 20 sort of becomes the crux of the race. You need to celebrate that the moment is now here, because in the grand scheme of things, it’s really short-lived,” he says.
and before I even started marathon compared to the hundreds of hours you spent training, so treat it that way. “That last hour is magic, and you need to celebrate that by reminding yourself of the arrival part,” he says.
3. Gamify Your Race
While the distance is a lot to get through, 26.2 miles gives you plenty of room to play around with how you mentally approach the end of your race.
How to Run a Marathon With the 10/10/10 Method down the miles, instead of up—like five miles to go, four miles to go, etc. This makes it more exciting and breaks it into smaller, more manageable chunks, she explains. “Everybody has a distance that they could easily wake up and do no problem,” she says. Whatever the number is that you’re confident in completing, look forward to that number.
Both Cauthen and Ross suggest using the runners around you as motivation, too. “That runner’s bond is a weird, unspoken language and offers energy that’s so supportive and it’s such a community,” says Cauthen. You might run with someone for the last few miles, give high fives to fellow runners or people in the crowd, or sync up with a pace group to stay focused and connected.
4. When the Crowds Don’t Carry You, Look Inward
If you don’t like crowds of people cheering for you due to performance anxiety, overstimulation, or you’re just more introverted, Cauthen suggests bringing your focus inward.
Pay attention to your breathing pattern, appreciate the beautiful scenery that you’re running through, or tune out the crowds by bumping your headphones a bit louder and staying in the center of the course. “It’s always someone’s personal journey, personal story, and you fill that with what excites you,” she says. “You’re creating the story on your run.”
5. Switch Up the Way You Speak to Yourself
Ross suggests that when you speak to yourself and recite encouraging words, focusing on using the word “you”—at least in the later miles, as it offers a perspective shift.
“What we see in the research is that pronoun use can be really helpful in terms of how it impacts performance,” says Ross. “When we are using an ‘I’ based voice, it’s really helpful at the beginning of a race. But when we switch to this ‘you’ based voice, we almost become a coach within ourselves,” which can be really helpful for the last chunk of the race, he says.
For example, at the start of the race, you might repeat “I got this” or “I feel strong.” After you hit mile 20, it might switch to “you can do this” or “you’re still running strong.”
6. Race With Your Heart, Not Your Heart Rate
While heart rate monitoring can help keep runs truly easy during race training, you don’t need to stress over metrics How to Beat the Marathon Bonk.
Instead, follow your intuition. Give yourself permission to look inward and pay attention to what your race pace feels like in the moment, says Ross. “If we can really listen to our bodies, it’s a nice way to maybe unlock some potential that you may not get if you’re just rigidly following splits on your watch,” he says.
How I’m Incorporating These Strategies Into Race Training
After sitting down with Cauthen and Ross, I already feel 10 times better about the end of the race. Moving forward, I’ll be incorporating their advice into my training. Here's how:
→Journaling More Than Ever
Each week, I sit down to journal about what each phase of marathon training means to me and how I’m feeling, so I know what I’m running through before I lace up my shoes. If I have a particularly sad or angry day, then I can practice facing those emotions on my run, instead of running away from them, like Cauthen suggests.
In my journal entries, I typically make it a point to switch back and forth between writing “you” and “I,” too, as if I’m talking as myself and to myself. Getting in touch with these different perspectives can help me translate them into training and figure out the right time to make the switch come race day.
→Brainstorming Mantras
While I haven’t decided on my own end-of-race mantra yet, I’m spending time thinking about what that will look like for me. For example, I’m examining recurring themes throughout my training, as well as ideas that fall in line with my goals.
Some power phrases I’m considering: “No mile is impossible” or “first time, fast time.”
→Chunking Longer Runs Into 5Ks
As a former cross-country kid, I know I can run a 5K on any day. So, as Cauthen suggests, I started chunking my long runs into multiple 5Ks that I know I can do without having to check my watch or worry about pace. That way, I can treat my final 6.2 miles of the marathon as running 3.1 miles two times, which feels much more manageable.
→Tuning Into Effort
Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about what my heart rate is telling me on my runs, and while that helps me ensure that my recovery runs are truly a recovery pace, I’m also working on intuitive pacing, like Ross suggests.
That means I’m allowing myself to run the pace that feels right to me. On my long runs and easy runs, I’ve been settling into a comfortable pace by running with a buddy and ditching my watch.
On speed days, I’ve also been letting a little extra energy out on the last interval by going a few seconds faster than planned. Not only do I get to run at an even faster pace for a bit, but I get a solid reminder of what I’m capable of.
Master the Marathon
Kristine Kearns, a writer and avid runner, joined Runner’s World and Bicycling in July 2024. She previously coached high school girls cross country and currently competes in seasonal races, with more than six years of distance training and an affinity for weightlifting. You can find her wearing purple, baking cupcakes, and visiting her local farmers market.
