When it comes to preparing for race day, few people have as much insight as Dawn Nunes. An accomplished ultra runner, Dawn has tackled some of the most challenging events in the world, including the 90 km Comrades Marathon and the grueling 100-mile Ultra Trail Cape Town. With a wealth of experience in road and trail running, she knows what it takes to train effectively, race strategically, and finish strong.
Beyond her racing accolades, Dawn is also a sport physiotherapist with a Master’s degree in the field. Her expertise enables her to support runners at every stage of their journey, from recovering from injuries to optimising performance. She’s passionate about helping runners of all abilities reach their full potential and has developed holistic assessments to refine form, strength, and endurance.
In this blog, Dawn breaks down how to prepare for your next race with tips on training, gear, and race-day strategies. Whether you're navigating technical trails or gearing up for a road marathon, her advice will leave you feeling confident and ready to tackle the course.
Learn all about your race for best preparation
You’ve entered the race.
Now what?
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Firstly, the distance.
This will help guide your training so that you can be specific with mileage leading up to the big day.
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Terrain.
There are trail races that are runnable with little elevation (climbing) or there are mountain marathons which have huge boulders that – surprisingly – form part of your “path” that you have to climb over. Training for your race on similar terrain will help your body, and mind, get used to it.
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Time of year – weather expectations.
What is the most likely type of weather that you will experience during your race? Try to train in the expected weather conditions. When training in hot weather, make sure you have the correct gear to keep you cool and protect you from sunburn. Light coloured gear is an excellent start. If it is going to be icy cold and windy, layer up and make sure that you have some good quality waterproof gear to keep you dry. Simulating your race day as much as possible will place you in a good position to be best prepared for the unexpected.
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Location of your race whether it is local, remote or overseas.
This adds a layer of organisation knowing where you will sleep, how you will get to your race and check if it is a looped or point to point course where you may need to get dropped off at one end versus starting and finishing at the same spot.
How best to train for your race
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Practice on the terrain – if you can – or similar type trails. Match the elevation - how much climbing you will need to do. If it is at altitude consider training high up, mountain versus a normal jeep track will test your body differently.
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Buy good quality kit and test it out. Nothing new on race day so that you know your gear fits well, does not cause chafe and looks great too (bright colours for bonus points!).
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Find a friend to train with you or better yet, enter the same race. This is great to keep the motivation for training, makes it more fun, and you have someone you are accountable to and can laugh with when it gets hard.
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Consistency is key – always. Regular training runs, regularly strength training and slowly increase your mileage and elevation. Be consistent in all of it. You will then be less likely to get injured.
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Nutrition – practice your fuelling – what you eat and drink. You need food to fuel your body to perform well. This takes practice. Eat regularly, set an alarm on your watch for every 30 minutes and take something on board.
Best of all, have fun!
You signed up for this – enjoy the journey and celebrate race day and that finish line – you deserve it!
