After all these years do you regret devoting so much time and energy to running?

A little regret creeps into my mind occasionally for giving running as much priority as I have. The real and deeply subconscious reason is that I have never achieved any decent goals for it. Never won a race, didn't reach the skill level I'd worked for, etc. Thus the dream remains unfulfilled and every day that I run there's a foolish desire in the back of my mind to still do something special. However at least it did not interfere with achieving other aspects of my life. And that has allowed me to keep some sanity. The one great benefit of this illusion is my overall health is exceptionally good and all runners should be greatful for their health.

fromtheheart wrote:

A little regret creeps into my mind occasionally for giving running as much priority as I have. The real and deeply subconscious reason is that I have never achieved any decent goals for it. Never won a race, didn't reach the skill level I'd worked for, etc. Thus the dream remains unfulfilled and every day that I run there's a foolish desire in the back of my mind to still do something special. However at least it did not interfere with achieving other aspects of my life. And that has allowed me to keep some sanity. The one great benefit of this illusion is my overall health is exceptionally good and all runners should be greatful for their health.

Most people never even really try hard at something. We did and we can hold our heads high even if our dreams are unfulfilled. We went for it and there's honor in that.

I regret it after the first year of college tbh. I really enjoyed running in high school, started taking it serious very late. One of the best experiences of my life.

I enjoyed the friendship and being a part of a team, but most of that was in the first year.

The years after were a grind, working so hard and training so hard and I didn't get much out of it.

Looking back, I should've taken my major of computer science more seriously and strived to get a job at a FAANG out of school. That would've been way more beneficial for my life.

8370 hours of running so far. Two times around the globe. Took me almost 37 years to get there. Was it worth it?

Absolutely!

I ran too much in the past and caused myself long-term issues. I'm more sensible now but paying the price.

Definitely have these thoughts. I would say the biggest challenge with distance running is being so tired. But I would have to say no, I do not regret it. Running has given me so much mental toughness than the average Joe. And as a runner you feel like you have a superpower & people respect it.

But I do regret not trying to find a balance with friends, family & socialising earlier because when I really put in that work to have a better balance in my life overall, it paid dividends. I’ve missed a couple of runs because I knew I’d be too tired to catch up with a friend, but I’m ok with that. I think the key is knowing what the best decision is for you in your training block.

I left a full time job to do casual. So I have flexibility to have the best of both - still have a career , family, manage my life and training and compete.

I’ve learnt to set my year up so my races are really enjoyable and I let loose and celebrate after. I go hard in training for 5-7 weeks depending on the calendar, then it’s taper , race and fun time. Also don’t race on the track anymore much unless I need to get a qualifier. Road racing is much more enjoyable. This is how I’ve made it work.

Also, winning a race (especially a championship) and breaking the tape is by far one of the most exhilarating and joyful experiences I’ve ever had.

I suspect that what a lot of decent, and also better-than-decent runners don't realize is that running was never really an actual burden on anyone else. Let's benchmark this "decent" qualification at roughly D1 level 800m-10k. We can incorporate long distance and marathon folks-- generally an older, stable person's pursuit-- who took the disciplines seriously without slithering through mud or trying to "run" 9:30 pace for like two days to feel special. I'm talking about actual runners.

So much can be gleaned from the character and characteristics of the runners that I knew who were better than me. Good ones. And since I was better than most of you I have some perspective.

If you relate to any of the line of excuses borne of this OP or anyone relating to it, you're a jogger. Social running is pathetic. Talking about it IRL is worse. Not gonna read the thread, but OP started running late: "Talentless," grinding hundreds of slow, safe miles. I smell try-hard. It's noxious. Race t-shirt guy. Club guy. Why? Aside from this being Letsrun where almost all of you are this this exact loser no one keeps putting that much effort into running- and caring about it lol- at the expense of what really matters in life unless they're doing it for a narrow set of diminishing pay-offs while ignoring the mountain of insecurities that come from chasing them.

"No time for anything else."

"Could have done so much more."

Yeah your overwhelmed wife was probably irritated by your hobby-jogging escapist bullsht. She can read you better than anyone. No one in your office wanted to hear about the shin splints resulting from your 2-hour half marathon. They're fatties. You're fit. You let them know.

This is an easy sport. Unless you're soft. But if you didn't get a taste of invincibility in your teens, that ship has sailed.

A has-been alcoholic runner in his 30s who smokes a pack a day and is coming off of Friday-turned-Saturday's nose beers is gonna toe the line in front of you on Sunday morning. He woke up at 5:00am to take the dog for a walk and slug down Pedialyte. He watches Kenenisa Bekele WR and championship videos, skipping breakfast. Both of you show up to the race about an hour before gun time. He's jogging so slow at first. He changes shoes then he's sprinting five minutes before the gun. But you don't know sht about mechanics because form doesn't matter. You saw a cope thread on LetsRun about it. You were there on the line first but he's better so you'll take a step back after he's done with strides when he physically nudges you out of his way.

He wins in 16:05. You finish five minutes behind.

Pretty good effort though.

He's your age. His girlfriend is hotter than your wife and she thinks it's cool when he wins because last night he was charming to her coworkers. He turned it on because it mattered to her. There was plenty of time for "anything else."

No one knew he was a runner.

Sometimes. There are times in the past where I ran a huge amount but could have got similar or better results with smarter training. The thing I regret the most are the injuries and I'm still dealing with them now.

I think I let it get in my way of finishing my PhD. I needed to change topics also, maybe if more focused I would have seen that earlier.

I did much better than expected running marathons, since I was never better than 15th to 20th man in high school. When I got hurt I eventually raced on the bike where I was great on climbs and won a bunch of hill climbs, so that continued my diversion but at the same time I finally got a new thesis and finished it.

It got in the way of my studies also.

No I can't blame the running.

In fact right now I am only running 4-5 hours a week, the majority of which is done on Saturday and Sunday.

If I could go back in time I would have run with others instead of running on my own all the time (still do) and ran less during the lockdown and focused on other stuff.

I do not regret trying to run at a high level in high school, college, and a couple years post college. The “grind” was totally worth it, and I was pursuing dreams like anyone else in the sport. But, and I’ve posted this many times on here, I had a definitive plan in my head to quit by age 25 and focus on other pursuits. I was already in grad school, so it wasn’t hard, and I was getting really tired of two-a-days and 20-milers on the weekend at that point and just being skinny fat all the time. Once I got a particularly pernicious injury, that was it. I was done.

But the mind shift started before I entered post-collegiate competition. And I would recommend this to anyone here. Unless you have a “pro” contract or have made an Olympic team, there has to be a drop dead date some 2-3 years post college at the latest. Mid-20s is not too old to “get on with life.” Sure, you can still run and do local 5ks, I did, but I shifted my exercise focus to weight lifting and climbing to develop some muscle and strength. And I pursued the highest level of education I could with a new goal of getting a great job, finding a woman to marry, and starting a family.

Zero regrets. But don’t be the 28-year old moving to Flagstaff and still chasing the dream at the cost of everything else in your life. Don’t be that guy. Unless you absolutely know you don’t want marriage and a family and don’t really care about career.

So how did you place at the state meet?

Not at all. I am entering the 2nd of my life with great base metabalism, and I can move and do stuff.

My only regret is running too hard on some injuries when young and am glad they did not become a long-term problem - as my racing potential during peak years was limited. But, I was never going to be great, anyways. What I learned surpasses any lost chances, and made me a better coach.

The best thing I did is stop road training early enough, so that my knees are not worn down. Now, i can jog on trails, grass whenever I want to pain free.

Much respect. Your story on the surface level reminds me of Marty Hehir's.