The Truth About Running in a Race – The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Ah, race season!  Nothing quite compares to the euphoric feeling you get when crossing that finish line, particularly when you’ve been training for months. 

Running in races, from 5ks and mud runs to marathons and triathlons, provides huge health benefits and an incredible feeling of accomplishment when finished.  

Many races provide an opportunity to raise money for charities and organizations you believe in while also allowing you to get involved in your community and meet new people.  

You can find a ton of local races at Eventbrite and RunningintheUSA.

Eventbrite even allows you or your organization to create your own events and sell tickets. What a great way to get involved in your community and take your love of racing to a whole new level!  I’ve often thought it would be an exciting challenge to plan a running event and donate the proceeds to a local cause. 

Of course, anyone who’s participated in a race knows it’s not all sunshine and rainbows.  Here I share the good, the bad and the ugly of racing.  

I always like to end on a positive note so let’s go ahead and get the bad and ugly out of the way.

The Bad

There is no way around it; training for any running event is difficult.  It requires dedication to get out there and hit the pavement day after day as you prepare for your big event.  If we're all truly honest here, some days you simply won't feel like going on that training run.

Running in a race is difficult especially those that cover longer distances.  Running a full marathon is a true mental battle, particularly at mile 18.  That is always when I hit the infamous brick wall and my body screams at me to stop torturing it.

I can literally hear my legs sending messages to my brain, “Take a seat on that curb there, guzzle down that mini cup of water those nice volunteers are thrusting in your face and don’t you dare move for at least 24 hours.”

It is true test of mental fortitude to continue pumping those arms and keep your legs plodding along. I can’t think of a single race in which I didn’t at some point find myself thinking, “Why on earth did I do this… again?” 

Of course there are countless reasons throngs of people continue to run in races, but when your body is aching and sore it’s often difficult to keep those cheerier “Wow, this is so good for me and I am such a badass” thoughts in mind.

Another struggle I always find myself dealing with is nerves.  I know the nervous, jittery, butterflies in the stomach feeling actually helps get the body ready and pumped for a race, but I still hate the constant feeling of nervous tension which often begins as early as the night before an event. 

Yet, those nerves quickly disappear once you get started and quickly morph into a sheer adrenaline rush!

The Ugly

Now let’s talk about some of the things during a race that aren’t just bad, they’re plain ugly. 

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the bloody nipples I got from my sports bra chaffing during my first marathon (this was when I was a newbie and before I knew about the glorious benefits of Body Glide). 

I must also mention the blisters that will most certainly develop during any endurance event, no matter how many preventative measures you take.  That pinky toe blister will leave you limping across the finish line and for the entire week after, but hey you still made it!

Oh, and that mud run?  You will most certainly be cleaning the mud from places the sun don't shine for days!

Then there are the times you get peed on. 

Yes, this actually happened to me. 

I was in high school and was running in our Cross Country State Championships.  The girl in front of me must have had a serious case of nerves (see above in “the Bad”) and must’ve missed the opportunity to relieve herself before the gun fired. 

As soon as we left the starting line, I felt something warm hit me.  Ah, yes now that’s a wake up call. Warm urine was seeping through my very thin green jersey to cover my stomach, arms and legs.

What can you do?  You just have to keep moving, right? 

That’s exactly what she did after peeing her pants and that’s precisely what I did after having pee whip back onto my upper extremities right at the start of a 3.1 mile run. 

That’s got to give me some type of tough girl points, right? 

Side Note:  I changed shirts very quickly at the end of that race.

So, after all the bloody nipples, blisters and urine attacks, you might be wondering why on earth a person would even want to run in a race.

Let’s get to the good stuff, shall we?

The Good

You can’t deny the health benefits of training for a race.  I know that I am never as dedicated to my workouts as I am when I have an event coming up.  It keeps you accountable and makes you push harder because you know you have a deadline looming.  That dedication ultimately helps you progress toward your larger health goals.



Training for a race is also a great way to meet new people.  The Internet is full of training groups and many races will offer their own. Participating in one of these groups gets you moving and interacting with new people whom you have an immediate connection with. Double win!

My first marathon was the Inaugural Blue Ridge Mountain Marathon in Virginia, which would later be ranked as America’s Toughest Road Marathon (of course that would be the first marathon I would pick).  Needless to say, this marathon included running up and down several mountains. 

Many think that running up a mountain sounds awful.  Well let me tell you it’s actually the running down the mountain that is far worse. 

I trained for this marathon in the relatively flat landscape of Raleigh, NC.  I of course incorporated hills into my training but nothing could’ve prepared me for the run down that first mountain. 

I remember coming up the crest of that first mountain, feeling winded, but strong.  Halfway down the mountain my tune changed.  Each step jarred my knees and though I knew my pace was great as I was using the momentum gained from sheer gravity, I was already feeling a great deal of pain. 

The grimace on my face was apparent and the grunts I emitted were verbal cues for all of my fellow marathoners.  They all gave words of encouragement and friendly smiles, but one grey haired Herculean woman stepped up and came to my rescue. 

She was wearing a purple tank top that showed off her tanned rippling biceps and I immediately thought of her as my knight in shining armor.  She made a grab for my arm and said I needed to run in zigzags down the mountain.  The Herculean Bicep Woman showed me what she meant and we ran down the remainder of that mountain weaving back and forth, exchanging smiles and supportive grunts. 

She didn’t just save my knees on that first ever marathon, she showed me that in races, you are never alone.  You are a part of a community of people that support you.  It truly doesn’t matter if you are the fastest or slowest person on that course.  It’s the fact that you are out there running that makes you worthy. 

You are a part of this community because you are trying.

There are other "good" aspects of participating in these events aside from fellow runners. The feeling you get when you run through one of the clusters of spectators and they start cheering for you is indescribable.  It’s even better if you have your name written on your race bib, shirt or somewhere else on your body.  When someone hollers and cheers for you by name you get another very unique adrenaline rush.

Of course, you can’t forget the feeling of crossing that finish line or the feeling of complete and utter relief when you finally sit for the first time after finishing the race.  The volunteers at these events are a constant reminder of how supportive and friendly people can be. 

Finally, how can you forget the after-party that typically accompanies these events?  That cold crisp beer is greatly deserved and those carbs are a life saver!

Though participating in a race has its share of “bad and ugly” the “good” far outweighs any negatives.

So what race are you going to sign up for next?

Better yet, what type of racing event will you create for your local community?  Share in the comments so we can follow along on your journey too!

xo
Crissy

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