Mental Training for Ultrarunning - Paperback

by Addie J. Bracy (Author), Clare Gallagher (Foreword by)

It's no secret that if you plan to run in the toughest endurance races, you need to physically prepare for the extreme demands you will be subjecting your body to. But successful runners will be quick to note that physical preparation is only part of the equation. You need to be mentally strong to withstand, and overcome, the challenges of this grueling sport. That's where Mental Training for Ultrarunning comes in.

Sport psychology consultant Addie Bracy has coached and provided mental performance consulting to elite athletes in many sports, and she herself has been a competitive distance runner for more than two decades. In Mental Training for Ultrarunning, she combines her firsthand coaching and running experience, along with profiles of ultrarunners who've experienced the highs and lows of the sport, to explain what you need to know and practice in order to cross that finish line.

In this book, you will learn tools and techniques to help you prepare for and overcome some of the biggest mental and emotional challenges you may encounter in ultrarunning. You'll find more than 35 practical activities that will guide you in taking an introspective look at your own potential roadblocks so you can develop and strengthen the skills you need to run with confidence.

Whether you're training for your first ultra or looking to compete at a higher level, Mental Training for Ultrarunning will prepare you for the good, the bad, and the worst experiences you might encounter on the trail, road, or track. With expert guidance from athletes who have seen it all, you'll learn how to train your mind and anticipate all the variables that could keep you from achieving your ultimate running goals.

Author Biography

Addie Bracy holds a master's degree in sport and performance psychology from the University of Denver, where she was trained and mentored by some of the leading sport psychologists in the field. She has earned the Certified Mental Performance Consultant designation from the Association for Applied Sport Psychology. She has provided mental performance consulting to elite athletes in swimming, basketball, softball, track and field, and ultrarunning and has worked as an extern at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.

Bracy has been a competitive distance runner for two decades. She was team captain at the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill, and after college she qualified for the Olympic trials--twice in the marathon and once in the 10K. She has also been selected to compete for many world championships as part of USA national teams. She has represented Brooks Running and Salomon, and she currently represents Nike Trail. After transitioning to trail and mountain running, she quickly moved to ultradistance and has achieved podium finishes at some of the most competitive races in the country, such as the Lake Sonoma 50-mile run and The North Face 50-mile run. Her résumé also includes the following accomplishments:

• Three-time USATF Women's Mountain Runner of the Year (2016, 2017, 2018)
• Three-time USATF National Champion
• Ten-time selection to the USA national team
• Three-time Olympic trials qualifier
• World Mountain Running Championship Team Gold Medalist (2017)
• Leadville 100-mile event runner-up (2018)
• Ninth place in the Western States 100-mile event (2019)

Bracy has also been involved in coaching for the last decade. Immediately after graduating from college, she spent three years assisting with the women's distance program as a volunteer coach at UNC. She then moved to Boulder, Colorado, and cofounded Hudson Elite, a postcollegiate elite training group working with athletes of all ages and abilities, including several elite athletes and Olympic trials marathon qualifiers. She has coached at the high school level, including two years as a head cross country coach. She assisted world-renowned coach Brad Hudson as a coauthor for his book, Coach Hudson's Little Black Book, which Competitor Magazine named one of the Seven New Must-Read Running Books in 2016.