I'm Thinking about quiting

Yes must be tough for you and now that you are facing graduation and what would you next are many of the questions of this impending change and also your age. There is significant academic pressures, personal and of course the running (captain) that makes things very difficult for you. On one hand, I can say "yes quit and enjoy the rest of your senior year, you dont need this" but on the other hand, I am more inclined to say, don't quit, although it is a very difficult time, if you go through this in the long run it will make you a better and stronger person. You will learn from this experience because you are being tested and you might learn that you can handle it and "survive" "Tone it" down psychologically but adjusting your expectations of what you should accomplish and hang in there. That is what makes runners so great; is not their achievements but they NEVER GIVE UP! Behind every crisis there is always an opportunity.

You're a captain....suck it up.

0/10

No, it certainly isn't impossible to get your drive back.

The bottom line is that you need to find what makes you happy. I was a very serious runner through HS and into College then found myself walking on to a team that was over my head. As a result I stopped running seriously for about 10 years. Nearing 30 I got back into it and now I regret having missed out on possibly my best years. Once that time passes you can't get it back, so I do think you should consider that.

It sounds like you feel some responsibility to the team. Assuming you have a good coach, why not talk to him about the situation? Maybe try focusing on something completely different for the indoor season and see if that re-energizes you.

You only get to make these choices once so good luck!

If you quit, you may regret it. Running on a team in HS and college is a unique experience that you can only do when you are in HS and college.

But then again, I love running. I can't think of "enjoying" anything if I have chosen to not run. Really, if you stop running, there is not all that much out there. How exactly will you spend your time if you are not on your team? Is there something in particular that you want to do that you can't do if you are on the team?

Is it the pressure? Maybe just try to change your attitude. Instead of thinking of it as a grind, just imagine that you go to practice to hang out with your friends and enjoy the fresh air.

if you're the captain then stick with it.

once you get to college, take a break. you'll settle down and recuperate. eventually, and most likely, you'll WANT to start running again. a little hiatus can do wonders. just don't ditch your team when you are an integral part of it (whether you like it or not). in short, don't pull a LV.

Have you always hated running/training? Winter is the toughest time of year to run. You might take a week off to give yourself a break. When you start back up don't worry about putting in 60 mpw.

Make outdoor track your focus. Perform the captain role and be a good mentor to your younger teammates. Give a good effort when you race, but don't let that be your only focus. When the weather warms and you are hanging out at the track with your buddies after a hard workout, remember and treasure how that feels.

Enjoy the experience. Cut yourself some slack if you aren't the star runner you hoped to be.

I never ran on a team in school. However, I think you may regret walking away.

Have you talked to any people in your real life about this? You'll do well by yourself by to speak to your family, friends, and coach about how you feel and what you think.

They can give you valuable perspectives on life and you, as they see you.

Don't make big decisions in a vacuum.

That's the thing I have am not running in college and my main priority is academics right now so I don't know what to do. I might try to walk on a golf team or do club soccer in college and thats what i would practice if i quit. I just want to have fun wiht graduation, prom, parties, and sharing memories with my friends before we go our separate ways either to college, the military, or the work force and running with the team (which i dont hangout with outside of practice) prevents me from doing this.

AtACrossRoad wrote:

So it is my senior year in high school and i am thinking about calling it quits with the running. Since my indoor track of my junior year I have lost the will to compete or even run. However I am on varsity and 1 of the 2 captains. I am also doing 60 mpw so it is hard to even just get through it because i am doing a lot of work. So my question is, do i quit now and enjoy the rest of my senior year or do I continue even though I hate it and will probably not perform well the rest of the season. Is it true that once you lose the will to run its impossible to get back?

Believe me, you're going to look back at this period and realize they're ain't nothing else going on in HS that's important enough to drop running. Most of the HS kids are running around like morons smoking dope and dropping X. Complete waste of time and contributes to nothing except accelerating their exit from this earth. Stick with the running - finish up your senior year and you'll be stronger for it. Trust me young man, there are going to many periods in your life when things are going to get far more difficult than running 60mpw.

Here's how I see it. If you're coming onto Letsrun to ask if you should quit running, you are clearly going to get, at least in a majority, answers that tell you to keep running. Just quit competing for a while. Keep running some, but don't compete. You can enjoy senior year AND run. Trust me, I'm doing it now.

Since you've articulated your thoughts (and posted them here) it's too late. You've already quit on yourself. Buh bye.

AtACrossRoad wrote:

That's the thing I have am not running in college and my main priority is academics right now so I don't know what to do. I might try to walk on a golf team or do club soccer in college and thats what i would practice if i quit. I just want to have fun wiht graduation, prom, parties, and sharing memories with my friends before we go our separate ways either to college, the military, or the work force and running with the team (which i dont hangout with outside of practice) prevents me from doing this.

You've obviously already quit in your mind. I can tell you though, the extracuricular bullshit you mention isn't going to mean a damn thing to you in 10 or 20 yrs. The bond you've formed with your teammates will last a lifetime. All that other crap - complete waste of time. Forget about it.

I sometimes feel in a slump then i think about what i have done how much work ive put in and where i want to go. I suggest you reflect on running and think about the core reasons you started running. Also maybe a little inspiration is needed then i suggest a prefontaine movie or some inspirational running story.

stick with it at least until you're in college. great on your apps if you are captain of the team.

running is the easiest sport you could do, and you can hit on the women, so just go through the motions.

nahvbw wrote:

0/10

I think that you have to give him -1 for the tired tactic of including a misspelling just to pick up grammarian responses.

-1/10

An let that be a lesson to all trolls - no more including spelling and grammar errors to try to build up your response count.

That's understandable. At the same time, running is something that can be a big part of your future. From my experience, I went through sort of the same dilemma. I wasn't having a good competitive year in grade 12 (or 11 for that matter) and was really considering not running in university. Of course, I wanted time for all the debauchery associated with graduation because it only happens once and whatever the sticklers on here may say, it's lots of fun.

What I did is keep up racing and training, but let myself get engaged in all the partying and that other stuff. The minimal detriment it had to my running was worth it in the long term. That summer I really started enjoying running again and walked onto my university school team in fall. I've since been re-attracted to running (if you're in the right university system, it will reinvigorate you) and have had huge breakthroughs basically throughout my 2.5 years. So my advice is don't give up on running, but at the same time, let yourself be a kid. After all, runners are people that happen to work hard at running, not hard working runners that happen to be people.

Just my 2 cents.

Sounds like someone needs to watch Rocky 3.

Stop running so much mileage and start hammering 40 mpw.