Setting a goal can have its downsides. And I don’t just mean having to put in hard work to make them happen. Sometimes there comes a point when you realise that you’re not going to make it and the temptation to give up on your target becomes overwhelming. So when I realised I wasn’t going to go sub-2 hours in my first half-marathon but still had two miles to go, I really wanted to sit down on the nearest curb and wait for the sweeper. But I didn’t. It was my first half-marathon and if I’d given up just because I wasn’t going to hit the time I wanted, I wouldn’t have completed a half-marathon at all. The next year I returned to the same race and ran a 1.56. This story: don’t give up. Just reassess your goal.
At the start of January I’d decided to run every day of the month as part of Janathon. By Day 7 I had found myself in the pub drinking Sambuca rather than running my minimum mile. I wouldn’t be running 31 days straight. But instead of sitting down on a curb (well I did actually but that was because of the Sambuca) I carried on running the next day. I’ve reassessed my goal. I’m running as many days as I can (20 miles a week) and on the days I don’t run I do core exercises, walk a mile to work and back instead of getting the bus.
So if you’ve already broken your New Year’s resolutions, don’t give up. Just reassess your goal and start over.
Janathon Day 14, 15, 16
Friday: ran 3 miles at lunchtime. Saturday: core exercises. Today I got lost on my run and ended up running 10 miles in 1:27.
very good advice… though maybe on your next run, you should take google maps out with you 🙂
Fabulous – 10 miles in 1.27 – you’d smash that half now!
Well done for not giving up and for doing Janathon your own way.
Excellent thinking … to reassess your goal rather than give up! You’ve worked hard to get to that race so why give up?!?
I always encourage fellow runners, and athletes, to have many goals for their races … not just their time goal. That way, even if they do not achieve their time goal, there are still things they can give themselves a pat on the back for having achieved!
Other goals might include such things as staying positive and confident throughout the event, banishing any negative thoughts saying this is hard or you can’t do it or even goals related to your training and preparation prior to the event.
Keep on going and well done on today’s run!
Absolutely. Great advice. I’ve always found it difficult to see past a goal I’ve missed and all too often that has meant stopping altogether. I think it takes courage to move the target and keep going, maybe even more than setting the goal in the first place. I’ll try to remember this in future. Thank you!