Bruce Dias 
There is no greater physical or mental test than a triathlon. As such a massive challenge that you will be training for for many months, it is understandable and perfectly natural to feel some anxiety on race day. This post will suggest a few strategies that will help you reduce stress and feel psychologically prepared for the race. Let’s get started.
Visualization Techniques
You will often hear that positive visualization is a technique used by professional athletes to reduce anxiety before a big event. Create mental imagery of successful race scenarios in your head, including each transition and leg of the race. This will help to build confidence in your mind, which will reduce stress and help you feel prepared and familiar with what is about to come.
Positive Self-Talk
Similarly, positive self-talk can make all the difference to your mindset on race day. Develop a positive mantra for the day that will give you something to focus on and prevent negative thoughts from entering your mind.
Positive self-talk can be particularly helpful during the triathlon when negative thoughts will inevitably creep in, telling you to stop.
Mindfulness Practices
It is hard when you have such a huge challenge in front of you, but being mindful and focusing on the present can help reduce stress. This is why it is a good idea to meditate and use breathing awareness to manage anxiety and stay in the present. Again, this can be useful during the triathlon as well as before setting off.
Race-Specific Mental Strategies
There are often specific anxieties about each stage of the race, so developing race-specific strategies that work for you could help. If you are worried about open water swimming, for example, then positive visualization should help. Many struggle with maintaining focus during the cycling stage, so breaking it down into smaller manageable parts will help. Fatigue in the final leg of the running stage is a common issue, which is where positive self-talk will be key.
Pre-Race Preparation
Many professional athletes have a pre-race routine that they use to mentally prepare themselves for the race.
You want to find something that works for you, but should involve managing your expectations, setting goals, and techniques to calm nerves.
During the Race
During the race itself, you want to maintain a positive mindset and avoid thinking too much about what comes next. Unexpected challenges and setbacks are common with triathlons, so you need to be prepared for these and not let them stop you from staying positive.
A triathlon is as much of a mental challenge as a physical one. This is why you must know how to mentally prepare for a triathlon and overcome anxiety on race day. The advice in this post should help and give you confidence from start to finish.
