The silver lining of distance running in 2020!
In my opinion, this year has turned out to be the shortest yet longest year for several different reasons. With there being no major events or team socials, it’s been easy to feel stuck in time. My last fond memory of normal life racing was our team trip to Phoenix last winter. Who knew then the world would see so many changes in such a short amount of time. I know many runners were disappointed in what they weren’t able to experience and achieve in 2020. Most runners who train consistently tend to have high expectations for themselves. 2020 proved to the running community that no matter what your goals are, things greater running than can absolutely have an effect on our sport and training. With that said, I was extremely impressed to see how distance runners pivoted their training and focus in 2020. Despite many normal things being taken away, runners found a way to not let distance be taken away too. This sport is special because it gives us purpose and meaning to our lives. As humans, we need exercise to live a long healthy life. We are extremely lucky to have found a sport that we enjoy that also makes us healthier physically and mentally. As we head into 2021, there is a lot of hope. I don’t want to be pessimistic but I also want to be realistic as a coach and a competitor that there are no guarantees for our future racing calendar. This difference this year is we are prepared to be ready for whatever is thrown our way. As you start to dream about your future fitness, I can guarantee that if you find ways to adapt and stay consistent, you will put yourself in a great position to keep improving your fitness while enjoying the sport. Despite all of the challenges of 2020, I am proud to say our team took a huge step forward. Over 85% of our team ran PRs in our Fall Virtual Racing Series. Our runners have been extremely engaged and we are continuing to show up! This is the time of the year where people start to feel motivated again. How can you not be fired up about turning the page to a new chapter? With that said, my best piece of advice to anyone gearing up for 2021 running is to focus less on time specific goals and to have more process oriented goals that will set you up to be a happier and healthier runner. If we have learned anything from 2020 it is that racing will never be guaranteed but the roads and trails can never be taken away from us. Happy New Year!