Your Guide to Stress-Free Long Runs

The 16-mile mark hits differently. Your legs feel heavy, your breathing shifts, and suddenly your inner critic whispers, "You're not ready for this." Sound familiar?

You're experiencing long-run anxiety—and you're definitely not alone. This stress response affects endurance athletes at every level, from first-time marathoners questioning their abilities to seasoned athletes carrying the pressure of previous race expectations.

Long-run anxiety is the worry that builds up around your longest training sessions, often manifesting weeks before race day. I remember feeling this a number of years ago before my 20 mile runs. I knew I could do it, but I felt an overwhelming amount of energy quite literally draining from my body as I drove to my running group's meeting spot for the infamous 20 miler in the weeks leading up to the marathon. Understanding this phenomenon—and more importantly, learning to work with it rather than against it—can quite literally transform your training experience and racing outcomes. Speaking from personal and professional experience: It doesn't have to be so stressful.

What is Long-Run Anxiety?

Long-run anxiety is the stress and worry specifically linked to endurance training. It typically involves doubt, apprehension or reluctance, and physical symptoms that surface before or during your longest training runs prior to a big event.

This anxiety differs from general nervousness because it's performance-specific. Your brain recognizes the physical and mental demands ahead and activates your stress response system—even though you're "just" training.

Research in sport psychology shows that this response is completely normal. When we perceive a challenge (real or imagined), our sympathetic nervous system triggers the fight-or-flight response. The key to dealing with it? Learning to accept this response rather than fighting it.

Who Experiences Long-Run Anxiety?

New Runners

First-time marathoners often feel overwhelmed by all of the unknowns. Questions flood their minds: "Can I actually run 20 miles?" "What if I hit the infamous wall?" "Am I really cut out for this distance?"

This uncertainty creates a perfect storm for anxiety. Without previous experience to draw upon, new runners lack the confidence that comes from having gone the distance before.

Seasoned Athletes

Experienced runners also face pressures. They often carry benchmarks from previous races, creating expectations to match or exceed past performances. As race day approaches, the comparison trap can become really difficult to escape.

The internal dialogue shifts from "Can I PR?" to "What if I'm not ready and I can't hit these splits?" This performance pressure can be just as challenging as first-timer uncertainty.

Perfectionists and High Achievers

Athletes with high personal standards often struggle the most with long-run anxiety. They tend to view these training runs as critical tests. If they "pass" the test by completing the long run as planned, it means they're ready for the race. If things don't go as planned, it means they're not ready. Let me be clear: the long run is not a test. It's simply part of the training process.

Perfectionists tend to catastrophize challenges, interpreting a difficult long run as evidence they're unprepared rather than understanding that generating fatigue is the actual purpose of the workout. The purpose of the 20 miler is to build up fatigue, recover from it, and bank that fitness for race day. Remember this!

Athletes with Generalized Anxiety

Research indicates that underlying anxiety traits frequently surface in performance-specific contexts. If you already manage anxiety in other life areas, you're statistically more likely to experience it during endurance training.

Those with Previous Negative Experiences

Athletes who've experienced bonking, hitting the wall, or other challenging long-run situations often develop anticipatory anxiety. Their brain remembers the discomfort and tries to protect them by creating worry ahead of time.

Recognizing the Symptoms of Long-Run Anxiety

Psychological Symptoms

Racing Thoughts: Your mind jumps from concern to concern—worries about pace, distance doubts, weather concerns, and equipment/gear/apparel questions all start competing with one another for attention.

Difficulty Concentrating: Simple training decisions become overwhelming. You might spend excessive time planning routes, obsessing over nutrition timing, or second-guessing gear choices.

Excessive Worry: Normal pre-run preparation turns into the infamous spiral that everything could (and will) go wrong.

Rumination: You replay past difficult runs or imagine future failures, getting stuck in negative thought loops that serve no productive purpose.

Physical Symptoms

Sleep Disruption: The night before long runs becomes restless. You might wake up multiple times checking the clock or struggle to fall asleep despite feeling tired.

Gastrointestinal Issues: Your usual pre-run breakfast is suddenly very unappetizing. You might experience nausea, need frequent bathroom breaks, or notice changes in appetite.

Physical Tension: Shoulders, neck, and jaw carry stress. You might notice clenched teeth or tight muscles even before beginning your warm-up.

Elevated Heart Rate: Your pulse quickens before physical exertion begins. This anticipatory response can make you feel shaky or breathless.

Shallow Breathing: Breathing patterns shift from deep, relaxed breaths to quick, shallow chest breathing—your body's preparation for perceived threat.

Managing Long-Run Anxiety: Practical Strategies

Reframe Your Perspective

The most important shift involves changing how you view long runs. Instead of seeing them as tests of race readiness, understand them as training tools designed to create specific adaptations.

Long runs are not meant to be comfortable. They're supposed to generate fatigue. When you feel tired during mile 18, it means everything is going according to plan. That's the training effect working exactly as intended.

Breathing Techniques

When anxiety hits, remember that breathing is your most accessible tool for nervous system regulation. Try the 1:2 breathing pattern: inhale for one count, exhale for two counts. Gradually increase the counts (inhale for 2, exhale for 4; inhale for 3, exhale for 6) until you find your rhythm.

This technique works because extending your exhale activates your parasympathetic nervous system, naturally counteracting the fight-or-flight response.

Constructive Self-Talk

Replace catastrophic thoughts with realistic, supportive language. Instead of "I can't maintain this pace," try "I've trained for this—just one mile at a time."

Acknowledge difficulty without dramatizing it: "This is challenging and I'm handling it" works better than either "This is impossible" or forced positivity like "This feels great!"

Visualization and Mental Rehearsal

Spend time mentally rehearsing challenging portions of your long runs. Visualize pushing through difficult miles, managing fatigue, and completing your planned distance.

Use all five senses in your visualization. Imagine the feeling of your feet hitting the ground, the sound of your breathing, the taste of your sports drink. This comprehensive mental practice builds confidence and familiarity with challenging situations.

Mindfulness and Present-Moment Awareness

Anxiety thrives on future-focused worry. When your mind jumps to mile 20 while you're running mile 8, gently redirect attention to the present moment.

Focus on immediate sensations: your breathing rhythm, foot strike pattern, or the scenery around you. This present-moment awareness prevents anxiety from spiraling out of control.

Strategic Life Management

One final (very important) component that's often overlooked: your training doesn't exist in a vacuum. During peak volume weeks, something else in your life needs to give.

Examine your highest mileage weeks and identify what you can temporarily reduce or eliminate. Maybe that means ordering takeout instead of cooking elaborate meals, skipping non-essential social commitments, or asking for help with household tasks.

Your body and brain are managing increased physical stress—they need reduced stress elsewhere to maintain balance.

When to Seek Professional Support

Anxiety becomes problematic when it significantly interferes with training, racing, or daily life. Consider professional help if you experience:

• Persistent physical symptoms that disrupt sleep or daily functioning

• Avoidance behaviors like skipping planned long runs or avoiding races

• Intrusive thoughts about failure that you can't manage independently

• Anxiety spillover into non-running areas of life

• Loss of enjoyment in a sport you previously loved

When seeking support, look for mental health professionals with specific experience working with athletes. The USOPC mental health directory provides a vetted list of providers who understand the unique psychological demands of endurance sports.

Building Long-Term Resilience

Process-Focused Goals

Shift from outcome-focused goals ("I must run this pace") to process-focused ones ("I'll focus on consistent effort and proper fueling"). Process goals keep you grounded in controllable actions rather than uncertain results.

Gradual Exposure

Build confidence through progressive challenges. If 20-mile runs feel overwhelming, take on the 16-mile runs first. Success builds upon success, creating positive associations with longer distances.

Recovery Prioritization

Remember that adaptation happens during recovery, not during the run itself. Prioritizing sleep, nutrition, and rest between sessions reduces overall stress on your system and improves your capacity to handle training demands.

Community Support

Connect with other runners who understand these challenges. Sharing experiences normalizes anxiety and provides practical coping strategies from people who've navigated similar struggles.

The Path Forward

Long-run anxiety isn't a character flaw, nor is it a sign that you're not cut out for the long distances. It's simply your brain trying to protect you from perceived challenge. The goal isn't eliminating anxiety entirely but developing a healthier relationship with it.

When anxiety shows up during training, acknowledge it: "Ah, yes! Here's that familiar worry—right on schedule!" Thank your brain for trying to protect you, then redirect focus to your process goals and present-moment experience.

Remember that some of the most successful endurance athletes still experience long-run anxiety. The difference lies not in its absence but in their ability to work with it effectively.

Your long runs are preparing you for more than race day—they're teaching you to navigate discomfort, uncertainty, and challenge with resilience and grace. These are skills that extend far beyond running, enriching your capacity to handle whatever life presents.

Start with small changes. Pick one strategy that resonates with you and practice it during shorter runs first. As with physical training, mental skills develop through consistent, progressive practice.

Your relationship with long runs can transform from one of anxiety and avoidance to confidence and capability. The path requires patience and self-compassion, but the destination—stress-free long runs that you actually enjoy—is worth every step.

If you're struggling with performance anxiety or need support developing mental strategies for endurance training, our team at Skadi Sport Psychology specializes in helping athletes build resilience and confidence. Contact us to learn how we can support your training journey.