Beginning of January. Beginning of a year. Crap, beginning of a decade this time around. I’ve never been one for reflecting on my year. More power to you if that’s your jam. It just doesn’t knock the mud off my running shoes if you know what I mean. My reflection happens every three to five months. The time after a peak race, where I begin to eye the next event or pencil in the next training cycle. I know I am not alone in not taking the recovery time before looking ahead the next event. Though age has helped me improve this part of my running world.
We’ve all got our own style. How we approach cooking, or loading the dishwasher, or the clothes we wear, or of course the type of running we prefer. Track intervals, tempo runs, long runs, VO2 max efforts, hybrid, short races, medium races, long a** races, just going for a run. . .
But the commonality among all of this is the fact that we are simply running. Yes, the spread of gimmicks surrounding races to attract more participants has been huge the last decade. Races are as much about the pre and post race festivities, the swag you get as “proof” of accomplishment. There is a huge side argument regarding the presence and prevalence of social media, but that is for another day. If these add-ons bring more people to achieving improved fitness then that is great. But the running itself will never be replaced. It is impossible to replicate the feeling of racing though.
Whatever that means for you.
It is one of the reasons I love cross country and trail running so much. You just go race. Let go of the paces, just go out and run as hard as you can. Which is weird for me because I think I am better at training than racing. But here I am. Where will you find yourself on the next start line?
The original thread in this was going to be some (what I thought) biting commentary on the spread of social media. How it affects us and the ways it targets people to make them feel left out and buy into whatever is being sold. Make you feel like a brand and all that.
But nuts to that. I simply want to share this video with as method of inspiration. I am not really jealous of anyone or their life. I am incredibly lucky with the place I am in right now. It is busy, and maybe not the way I drew it up. But as I look around and see the support and opportunities that I have. . . Man, hard to beat that.
I do however, take inspiration in the way(s) people live their lives. Makes me examine how and what I am doing. In that I encourage you to consider what positive presence are you bringing to this world. Challenge yourself to improve, or help someone else. Whatever. But live true to you, whatever that means.
The origin story. A great foil for a movie plot. Especially one that wasn’t expected to that great. Tell how the hero or villain came to be AND make some money??!! Count me in. Each runner has an way that they came to be a runner too. This might be one of my favorite topics of conversation on the long run or around the pre-race dinner table. How did you figure out that this silly, simple pursuit was something you were interested in?
I didn’t run in college. Well, I didn’t run for a college. With above average prep results I could have gone and ran after high school. But I found myself at a Division I school where I was NOT going to be able to compete. A variety of factors led to this. Financial considerations, future lifestyle, major, comfort on campus, connections, and frankly talent. But I have been running competitively for a long time.
Looking back at results, most of my PRs came in 2008. Five years out from college, no kids, running with two guys who were way faster than me. I set bests in the 5k, 10k, half marathon, and full marathon. But one of the elements of my running that I am most proud of is my consistently in my running the better part of the last two decades. Running times that a younger version of myself would be proud of. With a bit of perspective now (maybe more than a bit, though I hate to admit it), I’ve been trying to figure out why this is.
You can see me over there on the right side of the pic, white shorts. Hanging on for dear life, 150m into the race.
While it is possible that my times weren’t that great to begin with, that can’t be the whole reason. I’ve been running these times for years. A leading factor has been my willingness to do a whole variety of racing. You will find me on the roads, on the track, cross country, and even trail running. Distances from 1 to 50 miles. I have challenged myself with variety. Just like in the movie Dodgeball, I’ve got to keep the body guessing. Put whatever cliché you want to in there. Variety is the spice of life. Whatever. But one of the most important factors of competitive distance running is not getting in a rut.
