Wednesday, November 12, 2014

Facing My Fear of Racing Alone

I've been running and participating in races for about 4 years and for the most part, I have always run with someone. It's mostly been my husband (bless him for being my constant motivator), but I've also run with friends and family.


I've been lucky to have a decent medal collection from all these races. 


So it may surprise you to know that of the races I've run, only one of them I've run by myself. I know it's irrational, but I get really nervous about racing by myself. 

I had to overcome my fear when I ran the Tinker Bell 10k. 
It was strange walking to the corrals by myself, but I met some awesome twitter friends in the corral and they helped to pass the time. Plus I was in Corral A for the first time ever and I was gawking and taking pictures of the "A" corral marker. ;) 

The run itself was great. I loved the freedom of being able to hop in a character photo line or just jump to the side to snap a picture. I could go as quickly or as slowly as I wanted without having to consider someone else's pace.

I got some great photos during the race.

And took my first ever photo with characters during a race! Pretty unique characters for a photo!

But... this was a 10k and I was pretty used to the mileage. I think that's part of what made me feel at ease with running alone. It was only an hour or so and I knew I could easily complete the distance.

 This time around, my solo running comes with a longer distance- the Avengers Half marathon.

I'm really nervous about this race, mostly because I am very under-trained for this race and it's been months since I ran double digit miles (not including Wine & Dine this past weekend). I worry that I won't finish the race or that I'll get swept. Maybe it's a lack of personal motivation to keep moving? Does anyone else get this? The companionship of a running buddy has always been great encouragement, but as nervous as I am, I'm looking forward to running this alone and overcoming my fear of racing alone.

Do you race alone? Have you run with other people? Which do you prefer?

2 comments:

  1. I've done both and have enjoyed both. I get nervous about running by myself in the beginning but I like the fact that it let's me go at my own pace! I think you will do fine this weekend. Stay positive and take walk breaks when you need to!

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    1. Thanks! Once I got going, I enjoyed running alone. I could stop for pictures whenever I wanted and could walk if I needed to, without having to alert a running buddy. But getting up and out the door was hard! It's a lot easier when someone else is up at the crack of dawn to get ready with you!

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