I’ve heard this a lot over the years:

“If you’re not DNFing every once in a while, you’re not trying.”

But it isn’t true.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful to be that confident runner, standing at the starting line knowing you can finish?

Knowing you can handle all the climbs, problems, and lows ahead?

You can be.

I help my clients run races they’re proud of and discover they’re capable of more than they ever imagined. Usually, that’s in the form of a goal or “A” race, where they want to do everything possible to perform at their best.

However, believing that every race requires you to push yourself to complete and utter physical exhaustion isn’t necessary. In fact, this mindset can lead to burnout and rob you of your love for running.

Yes, there are A races where the goal is to run your absolute best or hit a PR. But there’s also value in giving yourself permission to run races for other reasons—whether it’s as training, to experiment with changes, or simply for the experience. Ad the popular blog post below recommends, don’t let the belief that you have to all-out race every race stop you from enjoying more of them.

A fabulous client going for his first 50 mile race messaged me he was thinking of changing his race goal.

Instead of finishing, he was thinking of going for a fast time.

I groaned. I’ve seen it a million times.

If you can’t decide which races to run, this post is for you.

I’m going to give you three simple questions to guide you.

But first…relax.

The first thing you need to do for success in ultras is simple…but a lot of runners skip it:

Define success - for yourself.

You have to know what you want to accomplish as an ultrarunner.

If you want to prevent burn out or keep the joy in your running, start doing this one simple thing:

Celebrate.

I know…it’s not as important as other things, you don’t have time, and you don’t see the benefit.

It’s always your day.

From where you’re sitting now - not in a race - this statement probably sounds nice, though nothing earth shattering.

But this one thought can change the outcome of your next race.

You poured your heart, soul and a lot of training into this race, your third try at 100 miles.

And DNF’d…again.

Confidence shot, you half-heartedly wonder “Should I try again?”

I ran Daytona 100 this weekend and was reminded of this post.

There seemed to be a high proportion of first time 100-mile runners at the racer and I can see why - it looks easy.

At least on paper.

People ask for my secrets and here’s one of the biggest:

You can do more with mind work than defend against negative thinking.

A lot more.

An accomplished ultrarunner told me she recently realized she had a terrible "elevator pitch" when she talked about her ultra running.

“How do I embrace and communicate who I am without downplaying what I've done or accommodating others’ responses?”

I’ve been there.

The biggest mindset factor behind your results?

Your self image.

Self image is “one's conception of oneself or of one's role” - how you see yourself.

If you’re a woman ultrarunner, you probably have this unhelpful belief in your way:

“Good training is enough.”

Prepare enough - and hard enough - and your race will work out right. All you have to do on race day is “execute” the right answers.

While running No Business 100 a few weeks ago, I overheard a pacer justifying to her runner why she wasn’t ready to run a 100.

She listed what sounded like excuses, judging from her insistence, and assured her runner she had a plan.

But when asked about her plan, she was vague. No timeline, no distances, no specific races. Not even, “I’m running a 50-miler next spring and looking for a 100k in the fall.”

If you’re a road or trail runner, you know this fear:

“Is this the day I find the dead body?”

I recently had that moment for real.

Do you go into a race worried you might not have what it takes to finish?

You might be surprised to hear I did - or almost did.

And you can turn it around like I did.

“How bad is this going to hurt?”

I hear this question from first-time 100-milers, veterans going into a big or new race, and runners coming back after a break.

And if we’re honest, it’s probably in the back of all of our minds before every race.

What you say about yourself directly affects your race results.

The words you use about yourself - in your head and talking with other people - paint a picture in your mind.

Positive or negative, say it enough and it becomes your self image - how you see yourself.

The first time I ran Umstead 100, I dropped.

I was still new to the distance. It would have been my sixth 100 and it also should have been an easy one: a flat-ish five or six loops on gravel road with fantastic aid, in gorgeous, springtime North Carolina.

I just didn’t want to do the last lap or two.