Six things to do when nerves take over

Let's talk about what's actually happening when nerves spike.

Your amygdala — the brain's threat detector, and honestly kind of a drama queen — takes over. And your frontal cortex, the part responsible for clear thinking, good decisions, and everything you've spent months training, goes temporarily offline. You haven't forgotten how to handle. You've just temporarily lost access to it.

Which is incredibly inconvenient when you're standing at the line.

Everything on this list is designed to get your thinking brain back in the game. None of it is magic. None of it requires you to suddenly feel calm or confident or zen. It just requires you to do the thing — and trust that your brain will follow.

1. Wiggle your toes

Yes, really. This is an interrupt and a grounding tool in one. When you're spiraling, you're almost entirely in your head — and wiggling your toes physically yanks your attention back into your body and into the present moment. It sounds ridiculous. It works anyway. Notice how it immediately shifts your focus from what might happen to what is actually happening right now. That shift is the whole point.

2. Ask yourself where you got your shoes

Different tool, different job. This one is about getting your thinking brain to actually do something — anything. Remembering where you bought your shoes requires just enough mental effort to redirect blood flow back to your frontal cortex without overwhelming you. It's not about the shoes. It's about waking the thinking part of your brain back up with a task it can handle. Any easy memory retrieval question works. This one just tends to make people laugh, which is honestly a bonus.

3. Name what you're actually feeling

Before you can manage a feeling you have to identify it accurately. And here's the thing — nerves and excitement feel almost identical in your body. Elevated heart rate, heightened awareness, energy you don't quite know what to do with. What separates them isn't the sensation. It's the label. So before you decide you're nervous, ask: is this actually nerves, or is this just my body showing up for something that matters? The label changes everything about what happens next.

4. Breathe out first

Everyone says breathe. But the part that actually works is the exhale. A long, slow breath out activates the parasympathetic nervous system — the one responsible for telling your threat response to stand down. Not a big dramatic breath in. A long breath out. Exhale slowly, completely, until your lungs are empty. Then let the inhale come on its own. That's the one that actually moves the needle. Physiologically, the exhale is doing the work.

5. Name one process goal

Most nerves are outcome nerves. The Q, the score, what people will think if it goes sideways. And here's the problem with all of those: none of them are in your control at the line. So give your nervous system something it can actually work with. One process goal. Not five — one. What is the single thing in your control for this run? Your timing on the first cue, staying connected through the opening, one specific thing you're going to do. Put your attention there. Your nervous system will follow.

6. Find your dog

Last because it's the most important. Not metaphorically — literally. Get your hands on your dog. Make eye contact. Take a breath together. Your dog is not thinking about the last run or the next title or the judge or anyone watching. They are completely, entirely here. Right now. In this moment with you. Let them pull you in. The partnership you've built is real and it's right in front of you — and coming back to it is the fastest route back to why you showed up today.

When nerves spike, you haven't lost your training. You've just temporarily lost access to it.

 These six things are how you get it back.