How to Recover from a Bad or Disappointing Race

We’ve all had them: the race we walk away from, disappointed with our performance, maybe the time on the race clock wasn’t what we were expecting, or a slough of other things that may have went wrong on race day.

I personally had two disappointing races already this year: the Heart Run 5K and the Cabin Fever Reliever 5K. While I want to wallow in my sorrows still two weeks after the race, I know that’s not going to help the situation. (Nor will signing up for a revenge race.) But I did comprise a list of things that can help you get over the bad race you just had because if you’re a runner for any length of time, you know they’re inevitable. (Heck, even the pros have them!)

There are a lot of reasons we may want to erase a race from our memory. Maybe that was not seeing the time we wanted on the clock, having to drop out of a race, developing an injury, GI distress, cramping, high heat, or a number of other reasons.

Whatever that reason was, here are 7 tips to help you process and recover from that race you are feeling bummed about:

1. First of all, allow yourself to feel the emotions you are feeling: disappointment, anger, frustration, embarrassment, whatever it may be. Only you know the whole story: what it took to get to this point, what inevitably went wrong, and what you are ultimately feeling, so feel what you need to feel and acknowledge that.
   
2. Confide in someone who knows you well and followed your training whether that was a significant other, coach, friend, running buddy, etc. If anything, this is what helps me process the situation the best. While I know myself really well, my husband and (former) coach also know me really well and often know exactly what I need to hear in the moment. After the first bad race I had, my husband told me to just keep chugging along. It wasn’t that I had done anything wrong in my training, I just had an off day.
   
3. If you can, figure out what may have gone wrong and form an action plan to help prevent it from happening in the future. There are always a variety of factors that contribute to any situation, so it might be hard to pinpoint the exact “problem,” but it’s always good to review the situation and try to learn from any mistakes you may have made.
   
4. I always encourage my athletes to set A, B, and C goals so that they can walk away from the day with some consolation about their performance. If you want to read more about setting A, B, and C goals, check out this post.
   
5. Try to find one or two highlights from the day: having the opportunity to run with others now post-Covid, being able-bodied and having the ability to run, or achieving your C goal. There is always a silver lining in every situation whether that was giving yourself a chance on the start line or even just finishing the race.
   
6. At the end of the day, remember there are ups and down with your running journey and it is rarely ever linear. While we would all love to run a PR after PR or always have an amazing race, that’s just not the reality. Plus, these “lows” make the “highs” even sweet. . . . .I know!
   
7. Remember, your fitness is still there and training was not wasted. Form a plan to recover, get back on track, and try again. Just because things didn’t come together on race day doesn’t mean you can’t get out there a try again. (But avoid signing up for a revenge race too soon. 😉 )

At the end of the day, we have a lot to be thankful for and just having the opportunity to race again is something I won’t take for granted. And if anything, you feeling the way you do about your race means you care and it means you are passionate about running. You worked hard for something that left you feeling short of attaining your goal, which is a very valid feeling. Luckily, there will be another opportunity down the road to test your fitness again, and hopefully you will give yourself another chance to nail it because when you do, it is the best feeling in the world!

What other tips would you add to this list? Leave a comment below.