How do you classify a hobbyjogger?

Hobbyjogger: A twit who reads the Let's Run message board and uses the word "hobbyjogger" in posts to insult people.

Semantics. If you are not professional then it is a hobby. Speed doesn't matter and is a compensation tactic for people trying to boost their ego, cover insecurity, or justify the money and time spent pursuing their hobby.

I have no issue with folks enjoying their running on whatever level they see fit. I also cop to being an elitist prick about my "local greatness" as a much younger man. In retrospect, it was all arrogance and conceit. There are a lot of youngsters on this board and I will tell you that in 20-30 years, no one will care that you ran 14:XX in your youth or made All-America in college. When you reach middle age, being an outstanding mate, father, leader, etc. is far more important than some random athletic thing you did two decades ago or sacrificing life success to be the fastest old man in town.

I've seen quite a few failed marriages, broken families, and stunted careers due to an obsession with being "better" than "those slow, fat charity joggers and power walkers". For what? A 50 cent medal and another t-shirt? At the end of the day, if you are not making a living from your racing exploits, then you are pursuing a hobby. Neither you nor Mr. 10 Minute Pace will be remembered or celebrated in our sport's history books.

Hobby jogger is someone who runs for fun primarily and they don't care if they're good or not. Or might care about getting better too but not so much as just about having fun.

You are spending way too much time thinking about this. Suggest you go for a run. err, in your case a 10 min/mile jog.

I distinguish between a fitness runner and a hobby jogger. The hobby joggers goal is to experience the social aspect of running in mass participation events. Running as a fundraising experience or just the social brag of I ran in the Mainstreet Toddletrot is far different from using running as, or part of, a well defined fitness program. The line becomes easier to recognize and define as the number of useless gadgets, doodads, potions, elixirs and equipment a hobby jogger amasses to help them get through their run increases.

Hobby joggers are the economic fodder that fuels sponsorship of the elite end of a road race. Embrace and applaud them. Without them top runners would still be getting a couple of bucks hidden in the toes of the shoes offered as prizes to winners or pawning TVs awarded as prizes to help defer the cost of being a runner.

Big Red wrote:

Hobbyjogger: A twit who reads the Let's Run message board and uses the word "hobbyjogger" in posts to insult people.

+1

wineturtle wrote:

Hobby joggers are the economic fodder that fuels sponsorship of the elite end of a road race. Embrace and applaud them. Without them top runners would still be getting a couple of bucks hidden in the toes of the shoes offered as prizes to winners or pawning TVs awarded as prizes to help defer the cost of being a runner.

As a fitness runner I look down on the elite runners. These are either piss-poor people from the undeveloped countries trying to escape poverty(these I pity) or some fools making running their professional career.(these people's sanity I question) The best runners are usually(almost always?) the former.

I also look down on the idiotic hobby runners wasting their money on useless stuff.

The most advanced runner I would say is the social media professional runner who makes money being a runner in the social media.

Is letsrun the only place in the world where this topic even comes up? An here it appears weekly if not more. What's up with that. Sports like golf and skiing describe ability and progress 8 or 9 stage levels. At the other extreme you have letsrun (likely arch-conservatives) who have a zero sum philosophy, either you are elite/pro or you are a jogger. The crux of the issue is the word "hobby" that was interjected some 10 or 15 years back, and that just gives them more fodder to mess around with. Here's how it could be broke down. But in the end it doesn't matter much. Just run or shut up. ProsElitesSub elitesCompetitive runnersCasual runnersJoggersJog-walkersWalkers

iijji wrote:

The most advanced runner I would say is the social media professional runner who makes money being a runner in the social media.

This is the classic LR response. LOL

So good. So rude. So wrong.

Are HS runners chasing college scholarships hobbyjoggers?

I think you have to be one of the following to NOT be a hobbyjogger.

1. On a scholarship to run at a D1 school.

2. Sponsored pro athlete

3. Fast enough to win prize money

4. Fast enough for Olympic Qualifying times

So unless you can support yourself financially through running or are good enough to make a D1 or national team, then you too are a hobbyjogger. You may be really fast but it is a hobby that you are good at. So 99.9% of people on these boards are hobbyjoggers. Maybe you run a 15:00 or 16:00 5K which is awesome but you aren't making a living off of that.

Not Fast but Furious wrote:

I think you have to be one of the following to NOT be a hobbyjogger.

1. On a scholarship to run at a D1 school.

2. Sponsored pro athlete

3. Fast enough to win prize money

4. Fast enough for Olympic Qualifying times

So unless you can support yourself financially through running or are good enough to make a D1 or national team, then you too are a hobbyjogger. You may be really fast but it is a hobby that you are good at. So 99.9% of people on these boards are hobbyjoggers. Maybe you run a 15:00 or 16:00 5K which is awesome but you aren't making a living off of that.

The difference is not amateur vs. professional/scholarship level athletics. It's slow running or very slow walk-jogging vs. fast or very fast running.

iijji wrote:

What would you call this kind of runner:

-Primary reason for running is to stay in shape, look good and be healthy

-Wants maximal benefits from relatively small amount of training

-Planning to run till death

-Testosterone replacement therapy when older

-Experiments with PEDs for fun(in a healthy and safe way)

-Listen to music while running

-Most miles on a treadmill

-Goes to races only for the competitive aspect

-Wants a fast time

-Concentrates very much on nutrition

What? A hobby jogger on PED? So you are slower than me and faster than me at the same time? I'm confused...

If you run intervals by yourself at the local track in hopes of improving.

You are not a hobbyjogger no matter how slow you go.

It Egun wrote:

If you run intervals by yourself at the local track in hopes of improving.

You are not a hobbyjogger no matter how slow you go.

LOL. Exactly. And I've done this many many times. :)

Mixed messages in vernacular wrote:

But in the end it doesn't matter much. Just run or shut up.

Best answer yet

I felt pretty good about my... jog today until I read all this.

so many questions wrote:

Where does the moon go when it sinks under the ocean?

The other side of the earth?