Lessons from Run Club

Last week was the first meeting of Run Club completely in the dark. Our group of four women ran along the Greenbelt, armored with headlamps and numbers. We came across a few other intrepid runners, but no other females braving the dark and the cold. My pace was pushed, but I welcome that. The only way I'll get faster is by going faster.

There were, however, a few other lessons that I'll need to take forward for next time.

1. Running has made my pants bigger. This may be due to a stretching factor, but no matter the reason, pants falling down is both inconvenient and cold. 
2. Keeping a cell phone in a lightweight jacket pocket causes the jacket to unzip itself. This also results in additional chill factor. 
3. For reasons unknown, my shirt slid up while my pants slid down, leaving a large slice of my tummy completely without protection from the cold. 
4. It's harder to listen to people talking when you're running as fast as you can to keep up with them. 
5. No one gets left behind at Run Club. 

The initial hesitance that I had with joining this running group was mostly due to speed. I can run comfortably around an 11 minute mile pace, and, after a warm up, I can get closer to those 10's. At my first two meetings, I was able to keep up with some of the faster runners and I felt good. The last time I found myself running with people who'd rather be doing 9's or 6's. I know that I held them back from doing their preferred pace, but no one complained about it. 

Sure, I'd like it if a few more people going my pace showed up, but I'm not worried about getting left behind or slowing other people down. The point of the run isn't to go fast or go crazy. It's to get out, even in this weather, even at this time of year, and move our bodies in good company. 

Long live Run Club.