Introduce a friend to running ....

I have a friend from work whom I encouraged to take up running.  I told her the benefits of running, offered my limited knowledge about shoes, gear and general tips.

All through her running she comes to work saying how cr@p she is.  Today we went for a run together.  Just under 6 miles, and she did that in a breeze at 9.40mm.  Now ive been off running for a couple of months due to itbs and this was only my second run outside (having been training very gently on a treadmill for the last couple of weeks).  Still thought heck,  Im the one thats still crap.

She ended the run, and made me a cup of tea, whilst she entered the Reading half, which im also entered into.

Im thrilled for her (really I am), and my common sense head says that if i run with her, I will improve and maybe speed up, just i now dread her beating me at Reading.  I know I sound like a spoilt child, and its all about  each of us reaching our own potential blah blah, and I hate myself for even having these thoughts.

I have done 3 half marathons,  and really wanted her to enjoy something that has given me so much self-confidence and pleasure.  Just wish now I hadnt mentioned Reading 

Off to beat myself with a stick for having such an ego .........

Hi hope

life ahh - your happy about it though - good on you -

It's hard not to get miffed about such things - one of the two newbies I've been 'coaching' recently has far better natural running style than I do and looks set to get a lot faster than me in the long run.  I am a little envious.

But hey ho, I'm chuffed that I've encouraged her to do something she really enjoys and I know from what she has said to me that she actually respects and admires me for having given her advice, shown her new routes and helped her plan her training (and believe me, I'm not the most experienced or 'good' runner, but I'm happy to let people learn from my experiences if they're useful!).  Your mate probably feels the same away about what you've helped her to achieve.

Don't beat yourself up about it!  We're all human and we all get envious.  It also peeves me somewhat, for example, that my little brother can walk into any old JJB sports shop, buy a set of cheap neutral trainers in the sales and be fine whereas I have to have my gait analysed for every single pair of new shoes I want to buy.  Life just ain't fair!

Don't hate yourself for having such thoughts, but don't waste too much time on them!   Continue with your training and you're likely to improve speed,  but don't overtrain and risk injury just for the sake of being fast enough to beat someone, and just enjoy what you're doing.

Good luck! 

I imagine I'm going to be beating myself up with the same stick come March when I do a 10k with a friend that I encouraged to start running.  I produced a training plan (taken from plans on here) for her and suggested she gets her gait analysed as she lands prominently on the outside of her foot.  She sends me text messages to let me know how she's getting on and already she runs faster than me on the treadmill.  I guess this running malarky comes easier for some people than others, at least we can sit here happy and contented that we are proud to be plodders and long may we plod on...

Good luck at Reading.

 Thanks for the replies.  I feel slightly less awful now!

I did go into work today with a big smile on my face and my friend was saying how keen she was to run on Sunday again.  She truely is a lovely person, and without wanting anyone to put their finger down their throat, I may just have found a running buddy to go to races with, hit the pub for lunch on the way home.  Even if that means she has to wait a little while at the finish line. 

 Hey if I drive - she'll have to wait.

Good luck with your 10K CazSoul, and Lady Pineapple I will try and emulate your generosity.

Plodding on toward Reading!

Hopetofinish -   been there, done that.  It's so tactless of them isn't it?  Take some pleasure that they wouldn't have got there without you.

I'm doing Reading too - see you in the Plodzone!

i won't be introducing no one to runnig

they ain't beating me  

Only kidding - honest

I got a mate of mine to do a local 10k race with me some years ago. He's a football referee and reckoned it would be good to race as he reckoned he would be faster.

The race starts and he goes ahead out of site. But just over 5k, I catch him. I was going to run beside him for a bit and chat, but he was struggling so much he was practically going backwards, so I just went past him.

I finished 6 minutes in front of him. He grumbles he's never going to do anything like that again.

Though he now wants to race me over 2.5k as thats the distance he runs for his yearly assessments. So perhaps I'll go for the double

Might be a bit of healthy rivalry, a little bit will motivate you both! Hope the preparations for Reading are going well.

 There's a couple of lads in my gym who entered the local 10k last year, they generally do 4 sesssions a week of cardio / weights but little or no running. Wasn't too happy when they both drifted past me and finished in 45 mins, & I came in a couple of minutes later. Had trained 5 runs per week solid too! On the other side of the coin, I have a friend who packs in the mileage, and regularly enters 1/2 marathons, but he's never been quick over anything - just got stacks of stamina. so I guess there will always be someone faster than us, and someone slower than us.