1. Track your evidence

When doubt shows up mid-build, treat it as a signal to check your evidence — not as a verdict on your ability. I often point clients toward the kind of ‘evidence audits’ practised by Farren Morgan, British military trainer and founder of The Tactical Athlete. Once a week, make two lists in your training log: evidence that you’re on track (long-run progression, recovery trends, sessions that went better than expected), and evidence that adjustment is needed (missed sessions, under-fuelling, pace drift). Then commit to one controllable action for the next seven days. This objective approach creates informed tweaks rather than panic. As Morgan says: “Confidence follows evidence, and evidence comes from repeated execution.”

2. Plan your response to doubt in advance

Rather than trying to prevent doubt, develop a specific response you’ll deploy when it arrives. This might be a particular phrase, a breathing pattern, or a mental image. When doubt emerges, your pre-planned response activates automatically, interrupting the spiral of negative thoughts and shifting your brain from reactive to proactive. At Nos Curare, this is one of the first tools I introduce to clients — because preparation is everything.

3. Focus on what you can control

Pete Davey, CrossFit competitor and owner of CrossFit Scarborough, puts this plainly: “You can’t change what’s happened in your training so far, and it’s impossible to manufacture fitness that doesn’t exist. But you can control what happens next.” How you taper, how well you sleep, how consistently you fuel — these variables are still yours. Make a list of what sits within your control, commit to it, and release the rest.

4. Isolate the crux

Anne-Worley Moelter, CEO of Movement Gyms, spent three separate trips to Hueco Tanks unable to complete a boulder problem that wasn’t even her hardest grade. Rather than walking away, she broke it down — analysing every move, identifying exactly where she was failing, and training intentionally to recreate similar movement patterns. On her next visit, she sent it first go. The lesson is clear: don’t abandon the hard thing. Break it down, and attack it with intention.

5. Slow it down

ZONE3 athlete and British Ironman record holder Kieran Linders is a reminder that training blocks are about cumulative workload, not individual heroics. “A common mistake is going too fast or too long during recovery sessions because you feel good,” he says. “As a result, you end up too tired to hit the vital, more aggressive sessions.” Stick to the plan. Save maximum effort for race day.

6. Audit your environment

This is an area I see underestimated time and again. Too much noise, crowded spaces, bright lights, temperature changes, and unpredictable routines all increase cognitive load — meaning your brain has to work harder just to filter incoming information. When that load is high, you have less mental capacity to manage discomfort, which can make self-doubt feel louder and more convincing than it really is.

In environments you can’t control — a busy marathon start, a HYROX tournament floor — the focus shifts to how you react. Consistent routines around nutrition and sleep leave you with greater psychological capacity to cope. When your baseline stress is lower, fatigue reads as manageable rather than threatening.

7. Stay the course, even when it hurts

Ruben Belliard, HYROX specialist and founder of The Training Lab NYC, captures this with precision: “Two-thirds into a HYROX build is where most athletes start lying to themselves. The excitement is gone. The big jumps have slowed. Motivation was never the point. Discipline is.” If your training has been progressive and specific to race demands — strength endurance, pacing, fatigue management — it’s working. Trust it. Confidence is earned in the sessions you didn’t quit.

8. Count your wins

Brian Johns, head of coaching science at FORM and three-time Canadian Olympian, advocates for measuring progress beyond the obvious metrics. “Sometimes the best thing you can do for your training is just show up, again and again,” he says. You struggled but finished the workout — that’s mental improvement. You followed your nutrition plan instead of reaching for fast food — that’s lifestyle improvement. You stayed when you previously quit — that’s emotional improvement. All of it accumulates.

9. Be your own best friend, not just your own coach

When doubt arrives, the instinct is often to criticise yourself for struggling. From a psychological standpoint, this is one of the least effective responses available to you — self-criticism activates your stress response and amplifies the very feelings you’re trying to manage. Self-compassion does the opposite.

When you acknowledge difficulty with kindness rather than judgment, you activate your parasympathetic nervous system — your body’s natural calming system. This reduces stress hormones and helps your mind process discomfort more rationally. A simple reframe I recommend to clients: “This is hard, and that’s okay. I’m doing my best.”

10. Wave to fear and doubt as you pass them by

Gordon Clark, Los Angeles-based runner and veteran of ultra-endurance event The Speed Project, frames this beautifully: “Doubt is a deep-seated encoding. Translation: you’re doing it right.” When you’re training hard, you’re pushing against your limits and learning about yourself in ways that everyday life rarely demands. Fear and doubt aren’t enemies — they’re signals that you’re reaching toward something better. Learn to recognise them for what they are, and keep moving.