Hitting the wall, and then climbing over it

This is where running with an iPod comes in handy.. I can select an appropriate tune to lift me up. :)

Of course some races prohibit headphones, which sucks..

I always think about how little I have to run and I try to treat the distance like it's much smaller before I run it. Somehow, mentally, I tricked myself into thinking some strange things about the half marathon I ran a couple weeks ago. I got myself into thinking that the last 3.1 miles was the easiest because it was just a 5k distance, and I've done that so many times before. Plus I hate walking. I know it'll just take me longer to get done if I walk so I just refuse to do it. I also use mental tricks like "just let me get to that fire hydrant" "just let me get past this guy with his iPod". My other motivation in that half marathon was to make sure I didn't get passed by the marathon winnner(out and back), but I was lucky in that I think he finished 30 minutes after I finished so it wasn't too terrible. I think the harder wall comes in training than in racing. Because in training you don't feel as much regret about quitting as you would in a race.

I like to try and focus on one thing the whole time. In my best track race this year I kept the word "toughness" in my head and it helped me becasue I knew what it meant to me, and what it meant was you have to go faster, you have to prove you belong here and you have to help your team. I would suggest finding something like a word that you can associate with everything that drives you to run and focus on it while you're struggling.