Confidence dip

Tis is the sort of thread that makes me worried about joining a running club as I do average about 8 min miles...  or about 50min 10K pace which for me is a decent effort.

I am not sure what others think but I would say find another club as their surely must be one with a greater range of runners so you could find one with a nice spread of paces so you could chose to go flat out or got at a comfortable pace or even at a slow pace and have a chat.

Sorry to be blunt but it sounds like a proper rubbish club.

8 min miles as a steady run? for real?

I train with runners capable of sub 3 marathons, and my tempo run pace is not much faster than 8 min miles. Fast runners dont need to run fast on every run and can and will drop to their recovery run pace to accompnay a slower runner going at "tempo" pace. A good club will pair up runners of similar capabilities to make sure no-one is ever left to straggle along on their own.

Do they do other sessions on other days? you may find other steady runners at the club have been put off by these quicker runs and do a different session on a different night. If not - pack it in - you may as well be running alone but not being made to feel bad about it.

BWT dont be put off - plucking up the courage to join a club was the best thing I've ever done running wise and has brought on my running, times and stamina no end... and it wasnt by slogging along alone at a pace I cant manage!

I must admit to being surprised that @ 8m/m you are stuck at the back running by yourself. Club I run with you'd be out at the front at that pace. We have runners of all abilities and everyone switches around during the runs so no one feels left out. With 4 leaders there is always someone to run with the slowest or weakest runner.

Kicked-it is right though, not everyone in our club goes out together. There is the oldmans group and the silly fast runners group as well as us middling runners.

Find a group who work the way you want.

I have to admit that I'm very selfish when I run. I do struggle when running slowly and keep bumping into the runner in front. I hope I'm not guilty of upsetting anyone.

Thanks for the encouragement guys... much needed.

Cougie- giving up running is not an options.  I was only thinking about giving up on this session... You might be right.  Maybe I should do my own thing for a few weeks and then try to go back.  I run to/ from work a couple of times a week (8miles one way) so I could do this instead and try to run some of it at a quicker, tempo pace.  Maybe in a few weeks when it's nice and sunny and we start running in parks it won't be so painful to be left behind... I think the A3 in complete darkness did something to my head yesterday...

BWT- I know I would probably be better off with a less competitive club but I've now trained with them for a few months, got through my first xc season and feel quite attached... They are a great bunch of people and it would feel like a betrayal if I just went somewhere else. I can't blame anyone for not sticking with me, I would not want to hold anyone back- it would be even worse than being left behind.  It's just a shame that there aren't more runners at my level

Kicked It- I know... they're just ridiculously fast... 8 min mile is my pace and I lose sight of everyone very quickly so they're all running much faster.  The only other session I can do with them is track as there are a few other runners like me or a lot slower but none of them even attempt the 'steady' run... for obvious reasons.  I can't do the long run with them either- I've tried once and they do just above 8min mile... I can't keep it up for 15-18 miles... so got left behind again and decided to draw the line there.  I want to be able to enjoy my long run and if I'm fighting for my life all they way and can't talk to anyone it's pointless...

Biker mouse- I can totally understand being selfish... That's why I say that I don't want anyone to be held up by me and miss out on their session... I would hate it.  And I know I'm quite selfish myself when it comes to running.  The thing is- since I joined them I've improved loads so all this chasing seems to be working but not sure if my morale can take it for much longer...

Maybe I should look into joining another club as well... it is allowed isn't it?  I would still compete for my first club but maybe could do a couple of sessions with runners at my own level.

Mon77,

Cant believe what I read about your running club . Running is always surely about enjoyment and I think it is always a question of balance and mixing things up. Sure,tempo runs and speedwork are important if you want to quicken up your times but these should only be a part of your training. It does sound to me that your current club isnt providing you with that balance. When I first joined my club it took me a year or so to realise that I make the club work for me,in other words,some weeks I train with the "easier" gruops and some weeks with the more "intermediate" groups. And, as ever, there are always a few people who seem intent on proving themselves. Avoid those .

I wish you well, stay strong and perhaps look at some other clubs!

Good luck and keep smilng!

J.C.

Mon -  Why dont you start an informal group in your club of people who want to train a bit more slowly on the steady run night? Grab the suitable peeps at the track session and see if any are interested

There's nothing worse than trying to keep up and pushing your session outside its usefullness. This is one of the reasons I would never train with a club myself! 

I don't understand....

I thought clubs were supposed to be about encouraging runners of all paces and standards?

It sounds to me as though they are a little up their own split shorts.

I think clubs vary a lot depending on your area and whether there's a bit of a clique in the club... I find it very sad that they all seem to run off and leave you behind - really not a good example to be setting.

Are there any other clubs in your area you could check out?

Don't let their arrogant eliteness get you down, we all have to start somewhere.

You could pop along to some parkruns and make friends to find some

(or there are loads of other clubs around, including the Nike Town free one and some other more relaxed groups)

D2D- I find it hard to criticise the club... it's hardly their fault that the majority of the runners are very fast... I've probably made a bit of a mistake thinking that I can fit in... There are other clubs around and I'll definitely have a look around.  No point being with the club if I'm always running on my own anyway... Is it ok to be with more than one?  I'm not sure how this works.

Curly- now that the xc season  is over I have a parkrun on my agenda