Build mental toughness with these panic-inducing songs for your running playlist

Not every runner chooses to complement their toughest training sessions with a soundtrack, but those who do run to music tend to select songs that lift their spirits—and possibly even their performance. There’s no doubt the right song can put a spring in a runner’s step as the legs tire in the darker moments of a long run, or make a scamper along a sun-dappled forest trail seem that much more serene.

But should music‘s role as a training tool be limited to making us feel better? I say no. Learning to cope with fatigue and exhaustion is important in other parts of training. Running on tired legs at the peak of marathon training feels pretty crummy at the time, but it can reap big rewards on race day. In the same way putting our legs through the wringer can build our physical resilience, perhaps panic-inducing tunes can fortify our mental resilience during training, giving us the confidence to know we can endure frantic doubts and crashing emotional lows on race day.

Consider adding these songs to your panicky running playlist to help you build mental resilience on training runs.

Tarred and Feathered by Cardiacs

This truly frantic piece of post-punk progressive rock unleashes the panic right out of the gates, keeping up its unrelenting tempo until the halfway point, then steadily growing slower and weaker. Great for simulating the mental distress of your GPS watch battery dying right at the start line or running the first half of your race way too fast, then ignominiously flaming out.

Snooze by Toots Thielemans

A classic by one of the titans of jazz harmonica, this song isn’t nearly as frantic, but it does a great job of inducing the dull, steady anguish that comes from fretting over non-running related matters during a race. Did I park the car in a tow-away zone? Did I remember to fill the cat’s food dish?

Sweet Caroline by Neil Diamond (Diagnostix Bootleg)

This remix of the soft-rock classic begins with the warmth of a welcomingly familiar voice—with only slight hints that something is askew—and lulls the listener into a false sense of security before going horribly, horribly wrong. Masterfully mimics the mental torture of being on pace to PB your favourite race course, then pulling your groin.

Gimme Summn by TNGHT

A great song for simulating the panic of simultaneously being lost on a race course and swallowing way too many energy gels. As a bonus, the video—by Canadian artist and animator Cole Kush—really drives home how depressingly fleeting life is, and that you should get your runs in while there’s still time.