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It's no secret that returning to running after an injury, pregnancy, or career change can feel vulnerable. Keira D’amato teaches us that the key to facing vulnerability is just owning it. Earlier this year, VIS sat down with the newly minted Half Marathon American Record holder to learn how athletes can make vulnerability their greatest strength. Dr. Cynthia Clarke, Certified Mental Performance Consultant, and VIS Expert, joins us to provide practical tips to tackling vulnerability during competition.

When asked what advice she would give to someone returning to running after a break from competing, D’Amato, Professional Runner for Nike, told us we are not at ground zero, like we may think. She encourages all women, “You’ve run before and you know what it takes and you know nothing happens overnight...Instead of looking at the top of the mountain (your goals), look right in front of you and focus on your first step.”

“...When you shift your focus from where you ultimately want to be, to making progress, it’s much easier to feel like you are winning. Celebrate progress and trust that your fitness will come back quicker this time because your body will remember the runner you used to be.”-Keira D’amato

Keira has practice taking her own advice, and celebrating progress. Between her collegiate career running for American University and becoming a professional athlete, Keira took time off from racing to become a wife, mother of two, and a realtor. When asked about having the courage to try again Keira said, “I sat on the sideline of running for 8 years wondering what could have been. Then I decided what was worse than failure is regret. So I decided not to wonder what could have been and just go do it and find out.”

1 Taking Off External Pressure | Competing Against Yourself

Keira D'Amato: Keira D'Amato encourages women to take risks, and believe in themselves. When asked where her strength comes from, D’Amato says, “My strength comes from not being afraid to fail… the only person that reallllyy cares when I fail is me. So I take the external pressure off and I’m doing this for me.” She knows that at the end of the day, she is laying it all on the line to chase down the mission of completing some “unfinished business”. She tells us, “Win, lose, or draw, I know I’m doing everything I can to see how fast I can be, so I’m at peace with whatever happens.”

Dr. Clarke: Dr. Clarke encourages women struggling with comparison to shift the focus to competing against themselves. Ask yourself, “What am I doing that is allowing me to bring my personal best to this event?” Have self efficacy: believe in your ability to bring your personal best. Affirm yourself: “I have practiced, and hit all my numbers during practice, so I am ready for this event.”

2 Facing Vulnerability | Staying Present

Keira D'amato: Keira D’amato got real with us when talking about getting back into racing after her break from running in college. When asked if returning to racing ever felt vulnerable D’Amato said, “Oh, definitely, I felt like an imposter for a while. I felt like I didn’t belong because I was a mom and a realtor. But then two pro runners, Molly Seidel and Emma Bates told me they felt like an imposter too… and I was like, dude, if they feel the same way everyone feels that way. That cracked me up.” Keira’s ability to shift her focus to believing in herself has allowed her to keep giving herself a shot at big goals. She says, “I think I’ve made my goals all about me, so I’ve lost that feeling a little. I guess that feeling goes away when you keep putting yourself out there…” Keira’s advice to women facing vulnerability, is to make it their strength: She says, “Everyone can be a runner. We all need to own it!”

Keira's ability to make her goals all about herself has proven to be successful in allowing her to chase down the Half Marathon American Record. Being fearless in the pursuit of her goals, Keria continues to find new levels of potential. Without both belief in herself, and the willingness to risk vulnerability, she may have never discovered her own capabilities. So far the sky’s the limit, because it's just Keria versus the clock.

Dr. Clarke: Often, athletes face vulnerability returning to sport because they are fearful of putting their best effort forth and risking reinjury. Dr. Clarke teaches athletes that recovery mode from an injury is a critical time to practice imagery and visualization. Clarke says the best thing an athlete can do is “be more present at practice during recovery.”

Dr. Clarke emphasized that this mental skill will help to reduce vulnerability if invested time in. Spending time on all of the sensory aspects of visualization from start to finish of a practice is key to causing our brain to make the connection that we completed the exercise successfully.

Clarke says our brain will think, “I did [the practice], I can do it, I will do it. Visualization is a practice, but when you do it, enhance, and practice, it will increase your confidence.”

3 Building Confidence & Consistency

Keira D'amato: When we asked Keira what helps her gain confidence in training, she said “My confidence comes in my consistency. Doing what I’m supposed to do every day. Knowing that feeling tired or lazy, or when it’s cold or too hot, that’s not going to stop me from getting what I need to get done. Plus, I’m making it fun, enjoying the ride… so really, when you are having fun and running is making you happy – how much does the outcome really matter?”

D’Amato knows how to be patient with herself while training for her next race. She says, “I honestly have always focused on the “next goal,” not my big goals….So I train hard and when I get to a race, I ask myself what shape am I in right now… and make that my goal for the race.”

Those races build a confident foundation for the future. She says, “If I could run this pace now, I bet I can run faster later.”

We haven’t seen the last of Keira D’amato this summer. Her confidence from strong training is just setting the tone for an exciting season of racing to come. Continue to follow Keira D’amato on her road to Budapest, Hungary as she will represent Team USA in the Marathon August 26th.

Dr. Clarke: For athletes looking to build confidence in training, Dr. Clake recommends journaling at the end of practice two things: what you did well, and direction for an area to improve on. She says, “Self reflect, and look at what you did well first”. The key is intentionality.

As Clarke says, you can journal something as simple as, “I showed up.”