Where It All Began and Being Competitive

The Ninja Midnight 5k was when the idea of a blog about quirks was suggested. It is amazing how quickly a year can pass us by and what can all happen in just one year.  My friend Falon and I ran the Ninja Midnight 5k again this year, but we were without our dear friend Lisa.  Last year we were all fired up about planning our glow wear and how we were going to eat hashbrowns afterwards.  Before we knew it, the race was here and we didn't have our glow wear planned and Lisa was in Memphis.  Falon and I tried to recruit some new pals (you know who you are) but in the end, it was just her and I.  Next year people, next year! We talked, we ran, we ran and talked, we finished, we enjoyed, and we went home. Despite our fatigue and sinus problems, we were glad we did it!

 

 

So, a year can pass by quickly.  Tomorrow it will be one year since I ran the Dubuque Classic 5k and actually placed. I had a unintentional great running season last year. I have shared time and time again, that my first years of running were horrid.  I can't even call them years of running. They were purely years of whining with some movement slightly faster than a walk. Then I entered my first race and my goal was to make it to mile 2 and then walk.  Then the goal became to finish a 5k without walking at all.  After that the goal was to do slightly better than I had done the previous race.  Then last year I not only completed a half marathon, but I placed TWICE.  I placed first in my age group at the Dubuque Classic 5k and then I was the first female to finish during the Frosty Frenzy in West Branch.  Talk about a runner's high!  Last year was the perfect year for someone who is competitive. 

 

Unfortunately, being competitive can bite you in the ass at some point.  Well mine has been bitten, because I have spent this ENTIRE year of running being highly disappointed in myself.  I feel as if I need to be running as good,  if not BETTER than last year.  What this does is create a mental block, which does not end well.  Last year's time at the Dubuque Classic 5k:

 

30-34 Age Group

1. Amber Cook 24:41:50

 

I don't think I have broke 25 minutes in a 5k once this year and WHY does it matter?!?! My brain seems to think it matters and I continue to have to fight this horrible way of thinking and will have to get this straightened out by TOMORROW when I run this race again.

 

I also decided to review what my goal for 2012 was on Dailymile.  This is what I wrote:

Miles:

679 total / 303 in 2012

Goal:

To run a PR in a half marathon and to continue to find the joy in running and what it has to offer!

 

What I learned from this research is that NOWHERE did I write that I needed to be as good or better than last year. I did run a PR in a half marathon, but did not continue to find the joy in running and what it has to offer. I have struggled a lot this year with feeling unmotivated and injured and it is time to stop whining and just run, because I can. We all have good days and we all have bad days and that is OK!

 

Overall, being competitive IS a good thing.  It is what helps people become motivated and move forward. I have witnessed so many friends go from thinking, "running sucks" to "hey, I think I kind of like this and I feel better when I do it!" I love reading their progress and hearing their stories, especially what drives them to push harder. It is time for me to find the joy in running and what it has to offer...again.