Running just to avoid losing strips you of enjoyment, the pleasure that you’ve trained long and hard for. Your mind will increasingly focus on how to avoid losing instead of how to win. On the flip side, if you look back and see no one, it might provide momentary comfort, but you’ll soon feel even more paranoid. Think about it: If you look back and see a runner closing in on you, your confidence will be shaken. What seems like a minor choice can actually have a huge impact on the rest of your race. So you look back-just to make sure you have enough distance on the chase pack, just to bolster your confidence. Your mind imagines your legs turning to jelly and all the runners passing you. You start contemplating a convenient collapse near a water station. They are no longer running to win: they’re running to avoid losing.īut we’ve all been there, right? The legs that propelled you through the first part of the race begin to tire. When a runner looks backwards, it is typically because they are afraid someone is catching up with them. Why? Because it signals a negative shift in the mindset of an athlete.

I’m nowhere near Olympic-caliber, but I’ve run enough races to know why, in 99 percent of racing situations, looking back is not a smart idea. Why did that quick glance over the shoulder matter? And why had she done it?įast forward 14 years. My young mind was thrilled by the enormity of such success, but I was also confused. Five thousand miles away, I was in awe of the scene. The American flag was draped over her shoulders and tears ran down her cheeks as she realized she’d just won an Olympic gold medal. I glanced at the screen as a distance runner crossed the finish line and into the threshold of athletic greatness. “She looked back,” my dad said, slowly shaking his head. Get access to everything we publish when you

Look over the shoulder meaning