Tuesday's Training Tip: Get over yourself

Runners come in all shapes, sizes, and abilities. 

So you think you want to be a runner?  Well, all runners know this little secret. You are going to have to get over yourself! Before you get offended, please read on …

I was once a non-runner. At the tender age of 47 (you read that right) I became a runner.  Runners run.  That’s all there is to it.  Non-runners who wish they were runners tend to come up with all kinds of excuses why they can’t, shouldn’t, or won’t run. I know.  I found several.

“I’m too old to start.”  Yep, I said that.

“I don’t like to run.”  I said that one a lot!

“It hurts to run.”  Uh-huh.

And then there is this one …

“I don’t want anybody to see me trying to run.”

Well, for those of you who are hanging onto this excuse, I have some news for you. NOBODY is looking at a runner and thinking this …

“Boy, that runner sure does look stupid.”

Nor this …

“That runner shouldn’t be running. She’s too big, old, fat, short, weak …”

In fact, those non-runners driving by in their cars with their car snacks by their side are most surely thinking something like this …

“I wish I were a runner. I wish I was strong enough, brave enough, in shape enough … to run.”

I know. I was once one of them.  And the runners that happen to be in a car while you are running are thinking …

“Look! There is a runner!  Maybe we could be running buddies!”

“I’m jealous. I wish I was running right now.”

“Wow. I hope I can still run when I’m as old as that guy!”

“I am so proud of that runner out there getting in shape!  Way to go, Runner!”

When I first began running my running buddy and I would search for the most hidden routes we could find to avoid being seen, but I got over that. I have learned that if I admire other runners when I am inside a car, then surely others are not judging me while I am on the run. 

It doesn’t matter if you have great running form or a cute outfit. The car riders cannot tell what your pace is and they don’t care.  They only know that you are out there putting one foot in front of the other.They respect that, especially if they, too, are a runner. So get over yourself and just run!

Tell me what is keeping you from switching from a non-runner to a runner?

Tune in every Tuesday for more training tips and visit my Training Tips page to find all the tips you may have missed or find them all in my book, Run at Any Age: A Beginners Guide for Adults. Available on Amazon and Kindle.

Happy Running!
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