Needing a No.2 toilet break on a run causing race day anxiety

Yeah, I understand that but those exercises, while primarily about urine worries, can help all the various bits down there, in both men and women.

Stick to events, in locations, parks etc. that have facilities.

Agree with the previously mention of resetting the timing of bowel movements. It can take a little time to rework the schedule but it will work wonders when done. As someone who does a lot of their running in the morning, I dread going out without having visited the porcelain throne. Food or water will usually get things moving. If I am stuck for time where I can't eat and water is not doing anything, I find that light activation exercises will assist (I do these anyway, this was a happy byproduct) in getting things moving. For race days, I will be up extra early to get food and water on board with 2+ hours to go before the event. This gives plenty of time for nature to work its magic.

Most of what we do for races is practised long before we cross the start line. This should be no different. Ask her to use the weekend runs as practice for this like she would for fuelling or what gear she will wear.

Can i ask does she monitor heart rate while running ? You are far more likely to need the loo urgently if pushing your body hard , as it can be a bit of a body reaction.

It would be interesting if she monitored heart rate and kept to a moderate intensity would she notice a reduced urge. As i have experience in this area myself and it does help.

As others have said , going before the run is the top tip really. But watching heart rate and intensity can be beneficial for training and keeping the urge under control.

Also, why not leave as long a gap as possible between last food consumed and the race. And no "loading" of any kind before the race. Just normal eating routine.

Lol, buying a camper van to tax, insure, test and maintain all to take a shìt the day you want to go for a run

Perhaps they do already. Not everyone is the same, not everything is fixable.

If you buy this toilet seat for your "family member" then she will get used to the sense and feel of outdoor crapping.

When race day comes around, and she needs to go urgently, she only needs to pop behind a bush and squat on the grass... and let it all out. It will seem just like sitting on her own organic meadow toilet seat at home.

Hope that helps.

This used be a problem for me too. I switched to coffee instead of tea in the mornings and I nearly always eat and move around before leaving doing household jobs or whatever and problem sorted. I could never just get out of bed and run unless I knew there was a loo en route. I’d probably go easy on fruit and switch to white bread / rice a few days before a big race though.

1. Fast well in advance of practice runs and use water/coffee to make sure nothing is there.
2. Once that is established for a few runs assess if energy levels are ok. If not either @) change pre race intake to be slow release b) Use energy mixtures eg Maurten c) move the last meal closer to run time.

Another Q might be how far into the run does this happen? Does she need to go just the once? Could she also try using a warmup to get things moving, use the loo and then ready to go? Have as many tools available as possible.

... And always have a buff with you. Fantastic multi purpose garments.

Personally, I can't eat three hours before any run. Observing that rule works normally during the day, assuming a morning toilet habit. For early races, you might just have to get up earlier and have a cup of coffee, whatever it takes to get things moving in enough time ....

I occasionally suffer from bouts of Ulcerative Colitis resulting in exactly this symptom (as well as cramping and general gastric discomfort there which I suspect your friend may also experience too) unfortunately. My consultant advised taking Immodium before races and long runs during a flare up and so far its worked pretty well, YMMV.

I'll add to this from experience. Spent a few months getting caught out something awful on evening runs. Hobbling home in pain from clenching and duck walking a hundred meters at a time. Very unpleasant. So much so I went to the GP for advice. He sent me for a camera inspection to make sure all was ok - which it was. The consultant fella said it was most likely related to the body clearing out unnecessary stuff during hard exercise. Something like blood supply being drawn away from the bowel during exercise leading to early clear out cause the body doesn't want to carry around the unprocessed stuff during hard exercise. He suggested immodium, but I haven't needed it. For a while I just did a local loop of a few km that brought me past the house twice and allowed a clear out before heading further afield. This worked well while I figured out a better plan. Being aware of whats going on with my toilet patterns has helped too. For long runs in the mountains though i would carry a little plastic trowel though, just in case.......

Another couple of things to consider. Reduce the amount of protein and harder to digest plant matter in your meals the day before a race. Those nutrients aren't going to help you running (except to the toilet). Also an alternative to eating on the day of a race, is rest. Glycogen stored in your muscles just stays there until it's used. So, if you aren't too active before a morning race, then maybe you don't need to eat (much) if the glycogen stores are still topped up from the night before.