Most runners go into a race hoping to set a PR (or personal record). However, there are many other race goals that you can focus on, especially if you race often or are not in peak racing shape. Focusing on other types of race goals can be great for working on other skills like pacing, fueling, or just enjoying the race environment!
Race Goals That Are Not Focused On Setting a PR
Negative Splits
Try to run the second half of your race faster than the first half, or try to speed up just a little bit each mile. This will prevent you from going out too fast and ensure that you will be able to finish your race strong.
Even pacing
You can also try to run consistent splits. Don’t try to run the exact same pace for each mile, but give yourself a range of about 30 seconds and try to stay within that range throughout the race.
Keeping your heart race in a certain range
Rather than focusing on your pace, you could instead focus on your heart rate. It’s best to do this with a chest strap as those will give you a more accurate reading in the moment. Try not to look at your watch constantly. You may be able to set your watch to alert you if you go out of your goal heart rate zone.
Positive Self-Talk
You can use a race to work on your mental strength. Practice using a mantra or using positive self-talk throughout the race. Positive thinking can lead to a more enjoyable race experience.
Staying with a Pacing Group
If there are pacing groups, you could make it your goal to stay with a certain group throughout the race. Or if you are running with friends, you could aim to stick with them as an alternative.
Fueling Effectively
Another goal you could consider is to work on your fueling. Make it your goal to take fuel and water at certain intervals throughout the race. This is a great way to master your fueling, so that it will be easier during future races.
Use Race Goals to Work on Your Weakness
If you are running a race but not aiming for a PR, it can be a great time to work on your weaknesses. What are things that have held you back in a race before? Maybe it’s going out too fast, or getting off pace when you go up hills, or having stomach trouble because of your fueling. If you choose something you want to work on, your goal can be to successfully improve in that area during your race!
You may also like: Running Goals To Keep You Focused Without A Race
Racing doesn’t always have to be about PRs. If you race often, there’s just no way to improve during every single race. But we can still use races as a way to improve as runners. By working on some of these other race goals, we may even be more likely to run a PR in the future!
What race goals have you set that are not related to a PR?
Are there any weaknesses that you’ve worked on during a race?
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These are great ones, Lisa.
I especially like the one with negative splits, I should try that at the next race.
The one goal that I was pursuing during my last race was just finishing. Another that I tried once was being a good pacemaker for a friend who was running a course for the first time. That one turned out to be great fun!
Those are great ideas! I could see how finishing is a great goal for a distance you’ve never done before!
These are great! Something I used to do that really bothered me was let people race ahead of me in the home stretch and not try to catch them. I started working on being more aggressive with a finishing kick and it worked!
Oh that’s awesome! It can be so helpful to identify little things we can work on.
Great post.
I really have PR as a goal anymore.
More likely it’s to negative split, finish string and enjoy the experience.
Yes, enjoying the experience is what really matters!
** really was supposed to be rarely. Lol
I’ve got a race on Saturday and my goal is even pacing and trying not to get caught up in the crowd. We’ll see how it goes. There’s no chance of a PR, lol, or AG placement, as this race always brings out the speedsters. So I’m just going to enjoy it.
It can be tough to make placing a goal since you just never know who will show up. Good luck this weekend!
This is a great post, Lisa. I think far too many people treat each and every race as a do-or-die endeavor, and wind up frustrated when something goes awry. It seems like I’m always trying to improve my fueling strategy (because I have been in limbo with finding one that works for me). Now, I’m trying to find that perfect balance between pushing myself enough, but not too much, as I increase my distance and speed coming back from the stress fracture. PR’s are definitely not on my radar LOL
It really is such a balance! But there are many things we can work on to improve as runners outside of our finishing times.
yes to all of this! One of the things I have been working on the last few months is even pacing. I rarely have negative splits on race days. I have a tendency to start too fast. Hopefully, by the time I actually have a real race, I will more practice at this
That’s a great goal! I’ve had plenty of races where i went out too fast and then crashed and burned.
This is great Lisa. I think too many people think or use races to PR/PB. But I prefer having just a few “goal races” and most other races are training runs where I get to “experiment” with fuelling or pacing or just enjoying the event without the pressure of chasing a specific time!
That’s a great strategy! Especially if you race frequently, there’s no way that every race can be a PR!
These are all great ideas! Not every race will be a PR, and if you are hoping they will be you’re in for a lot of disappointments. Especially if you’re coming back from injury or just haven’t been doing speedwork for whatever reason, it would be nice to have something else to focus on.
Exactly! Its just unrealistic to expect to PR all the time.
I really struggle with fueling. I know when and what to do but sometimes my stomach is not on the same page.
It can be tough! Maybe mastering your fueling would be a good race (or training) goal for you.
I never really thought about this, but you raise some excellent points. I don’t always go for a PR, so it’s nice to have other things to shoot for.
I think sometimes we can get into the mindset of either trying to PR or not really setting any goals. It can be nice to work towards other things!
These are all great suggestions, Lisa! I think mental self talk is one I work on in every race (or if I could actually remember racing, LOL!) — or even just sometimes on a difficult run.
Even if I’ve trained towards a PR, I know that they are never a certainty no matter how well you train, so I always have some other goals — usually to finish injury free!
That’s so true- so much can happen on race day! Staying injury free is a great goal!
I’ve found practicing negative splits in any race helps with pacing in goal races. So much easier to stay in control when you have done it before.
Yes, exactly! I’ve had a few races where I went out to fast, and I’ve found it really helps to work on pacing in training runs and any races.