Slow and Steady Wins the Race

I am training to run a 5k in a couple of weeks. I have been talking with several friends about running with me. Some of them are regular runners, some are new runners and some are weekend warriors. As I talk with each of them about running I keep hearing the same response over and over, "you don't want to run with me, I am slow!".

I started running about 5 years ago and at the time, I hated every step of it. I started running as a way to drop a few pounds and battle some of the health issues that lurk in my family history. Since then, I have fallen in love with the sport and have now run 7 half marathons, a 20-miler and numerous 5ks. The one thing that has been consistent in almost all of my races is my slow, steady pace. Rarely do I ever run for time because I have found that it takes the fun out of the journey. I like to observe my surroundings, acquire energy from the other runners around me and fully enjoy the journey. After all, I PAID to run this race, so why have the experience be over as quickly as possible? Shouldn't I want it to last?

This got me thinking about the struggles we all go through when trying to lose weight or become more fit and how we get certain ideas in our heads about how quickly we should lose the weight. If we don't lose quickly enough, we sometimes fall off the wagon and go back to our old strategies and habits. Think about a race for a moment....think about it as an experience, not a dash to the finish line. (Now I know there are hard core runners out there who will read this post and simply roll their eyes at my way of thinking here.) However, I encourage you to look at your weight loss (Tweightloss!) program the same way. Surround yourself with friends who want to be on the path with you, slow down, find your groove and enjoy the journey! Slow and steady has always worked for me and I think you will find, it can work for you too!