I lost the spark between me and running

LostLove wrote:

I ran all throughout high school and am currently on a D3 team, but I just don't have the love, or the spark, for the sport anymore.... How did I get it back?

No one can make you love it brother...either you do or you don't. I lost the love for running by the time I was 30, only to get it back for brief stints since then (I'm now 45); I still run for fitness but only love a run maybe once per week max these days. For some people, things other than running become more important.

Keep running if you want, but perhaps tell yourself that your burning love for it is gone forever, and that's ok.

Look at this way. This is the last time in your life that you will be on a real team. No matter what you do after college, you won't really get a chance to be on a team.

I'm out of school 25 years now and still look back at my athletic experience in college as a challenging time that helped me later on in life. If I parse the years of college, it really was my senior year that I'm thinking about.

Stick with it. You'll never regret it. You can always go into triathlon after school ends. You'll crush them on the run portion.

go bang another sport

LostLove wrote:

I ran all throughout high school and am currently on a D3 team, but I just don't have the love, or the spark, for the sport anymore.... How did I get it back?

I was there twice, once right before my senior year of HS, and another my freshman year of college.

It sucks.

Personally, I got it back by stepping away for a few months. People kept asking me if I was going to return, but didn't push - just an interest.

I discovered what I loved in the first place (personal fulfillment), and set my own agenda after that - didn't do it to please anyone (which I had been doing - pleasing parents, coaches, girlfriends, etc). Learned to do it for myself, and had a much more fun time of it!

I'm actually in it right now for a third time - with real-life issues (now that I'm an old guy). It can be hard reconciling what you want to do, vs what you've been doing before.

Good luck.

LostLove wrote:

I ran all throughout high school and am currently on a D3 team, but I just don't have the love, or the spark, for the sport anymore.... How did I get it back?

Don't give up! Hang out with people who are enthusiastic about running. Look into training plans and read running articles. Find something about running that interests you and pursue it whether it is nutrition or training or following the elites online. If after a few months you feel the same way then it might be time to take a break.

Also, if you are a freshman in college, then the added stress of transitioning to college life might have something to do with it.

Get drunk

Bump I have been having the same problem for the past 10 months were i hate running. I am a senior in high school xc is almost over should i quit indoor and outdoor and do another sport or stick with it.

I found it helps to try new things. I'll listen to some new music or experiment with routes and all the sudden remember what I love about running.

sounds awesome wrote:

I found it helps to try new things. I'll listen to some new music or experiment with routes and all the sudden remember what I love about running.

good call. What worked for me was to try other things, especially things I am just average at - like joining a basketball league, or a bowling league. Being average stinks. Made the magic of running come back.

ukathleticscoach wrote:

Get drunk

This

Sometimes I like to wet myself in public. I pretend that it is an accident and that I'm trying as hard as I can to hold it and I act all embarrassed, but I'm really doing it on purpose just to get attention.

went through it senior year of high school. Parent's/coaches/friends influenced me to go back. Had a great year, school record, a few all states. Ran D1 for a year. Then just stopped. Wasn't something my heart was in, haven't ran a step in a year and honestly I don't see myself going back to it probably ever even just for enjoyment.

So point is, do it for you if you want to. I never really wanted to but did anyway and now it's something that I really don't like doing at all and can't ever see myself doing again.

Still a fan of the sport though don't get me wrong

Take a break if you want to. It's hard when you are in a competitive season and you lose heart. Then you have to soldier on at least until the end of the season. Don't be the selfish dick that quits halfway through the season. But try tossing your watch, going somewhere you've never been before (a new park with trails is great) and just going for an easy run. See if you enjoy that.

i didn't get hot for running until i was siiiiiiick of skateboarding. skating was everything to me for years. it never got in the way of life, but it was the one "sport" i had a spark for. i always ran but it was an afterthought not my focus.

a while back i decided to train for a 1/2 marathon with some friends and i just lost the desire or interest for skating along the way. just kinda woke up one saturday and all i wanted to do was go run. didn't even think about skating.

people change and their passions often change with them. however, in your case i think you are just tired or maybe overtrained.

talk to your coach about it. maybe you can take a short break or back off your training for a while. when i was still dedicated to skating i would sometimes have to take a short break to remember why i cared about it.

anyway, i hope you can get it back or at least come to terms with losing it and find a new spark.

I used to skate too before running was my thing. Problem is, you can't just go run all day. I used to spend 6 or 8 hours a day at the skate park.

You ve got to keep it fresh.

I would definitely skip indoor and maybe take a full month.

If your not passionate you are going to suck anyway.

If you bike or swim or climb devote your non workout days to that.

Also you could take a year off and use the eligibility later.

i didn't grow up with any parks so i stayed in the streets even after parks were easy to find. we usually did the all day into the night skate sessions around town.

i'm toying with the idea of doing all day running outings like we always did with skating. maybe wake up and hit some trails, head back down town to run around some shaded neighborhoods and lakes, hit a pool and relax, end the day with a cruise through some outlying neighborhoods and hitting a bar. cab home. or head to another town and just see where we end up. it was always fun to be chilling after a session in some randumb town and chatting with the bums who lurked in the same back alleys we skated.

i have to get some good running partners for that, but i think it's be an awesome way to get a lot of miles in without having to worry about any kind of specific program once a week. just run like a kid.

Go trail running.

If there's no place close take a road trip to the nearest national park or state park.

Getting out in the woods is great for clearing the mind and giving you that sense of adventure that you lose from doing the same thing over and over. And when you're trail running you're thinking about where to put your feet, not your problems.

If you can swing it, buy some trail shoes - I like Saucony Peregrines. There's nothing like a pair of new shoes and a bit of shopping therapy always helps.