285 | Comparison...The Thief of Joy
Welcome,
Another busy weekend for me, and I find myself needing a weekend for my weekend on this Monday morning. Yesterday, I ran Wharf to Wharf to Santa Cruz, and it quickly became one of my favorite summer races. Okay, so the perfect weather—50s and misty rain—made for a perfect escape. I missed my goal of being in the top 100 females (104 by gun time), and the top 100 gun time get a nice zip-up. BUT, I ran my fastest 6 mile/10k in a couple of years, averaging a 6:46 pace. I felt like I could have kept going at that pace for a bit longer.
Anyway, this week, I want to talk about something I've been thinking about a lot: comparison. Maybe it's because I have a habit of comparing myself to myself, especially as I'm several minutes away from any PRs.
They say that “comparison is the thief of joy.”
Comparison to others...
Comparison to your past self...
Comparison to your present self...
Comparison to your future potential...
The comparison game is tough, and it’s something I’ve struggled with on and off with running lately. But I do think at some point, we all have struggled with comparing ourselves to others. I know I've struggled the most when I'm coming back from an injury or illness.
In the last couple of years, I’ve been comparing myself to my previous fitness levels. I distinctly remember a few years ago, I was training for 5ks and consistently ran 19:00-19:10. It felt like there were so many runners who could run sub-19...why couldn't I?
I didn’t run each 5k so closely on purpose; that was just my fitness level. Still, I remember getting frustrated, thinking I’d never break the 19-minute barrier (spoiler: I did). Running is a funny sport where satisfaction always seems just out of reach!
Now I find myself comparing my current self to that past self. The truth is, I’m not at that fitness level right now, and a 19:40 would be great for me. My fastest 5k since 2020 was somewhere in the 19:30s on the track. The January before COVID hit, I ran a 10k in 41:49. I thought my fitness was finally coming back. Then, a month or two later, I found myself with a calcaneus stress fracture. Nothing has really been the same since, and running just doesn't click like it once did. I've had a few injuries, a bunch of illnesses, and training/life hiccups.
As life changes, it’s important to realize that fitness changes too. In my twenties, I was probably in the best shape of my life, and I had a lot more time to work out. My overall fitness reflected that.
Now, my time is more limited. I don’t have children, but I also don’t have unlimited time to work out. I’m not on any teams, and I don’t have a lot of time to dedicate to workouts. I run in the morning and then go to work. Running in the Mojave Desert can be tough. I've blabbed on about the heat and wind, but it can be tough to start a run at 6 am when it's 70, and by 8 am, it's 80 or 90. It's rural. It's lonely. (Which could be positives for some LOL).
Anyway, this is more of a rambling newsletter to say it's normal to compare yourself to past fitness levels, and to others. But remember this: someone may be comparing themselves to you. You're doing a great job, whether you think so or not.
What is Keeping Me Entertained?
The Olympics of course
Meet 'Bob the Cap Catcher': Speedo-clad man saves the day at Olympic swimming event
Meet Nic Fink, the Olympic swimming medalist engineer Fink believes having a job, and balancing other interests with swimming, is a large part of the reason he was able to stand on the podium at this point in his career in a sport that often favors youth over experience." I definitely believe that, too.
ALI ON THE RUN SHOW EPISODE 705: EMMA COBURN ON LIFE LATELY