Would I have signed up for a virtual race prior to the Covid-19 pandemic? In truth, probably not. Why? Mostly because it sounds lonely. Given that running is very much a solitary sport to begin with, (and that I primarily do my training solo) one of the best parts is getting to congregate with other like-minded people and release all of that competitive energy!
As I mentioned in this previous post about the ways that running during the pandemic has lifted my spirits, virtual racing, which I touched upon briefly, has lit a fire that I’m starting to get really into!
There’s something about the build-up to a big race that fires me up and propels me forward – it gives me a reason to get up (at the crack of dawn) every day, and put in the sweat and work.
Now that races are not currently happening, I’ve found that continuing to train for goals has helped to not only raise my spirits, but to keep me on my toes. Up to this point, I’ve completed one virtual race, and have two more on the calendar…
The first was the Take Your Kid to Run Day Virtual 5K, put on by the Miami Marathon. The premise of this race was to give your child/ren the opportunity to run the race, so I’m happy I got to share it with my son by doing it together! We had never run a race together up to that point, so it was a really fun opportunity and experience. With many thanks to our awesome running stroller from Thule, we finished in a time that surprised me! 30:55.
Next up is the We Run Miami ROYO 5K – which will be my first (virtual) solo attempt at the distance. My last solo 5K was back in January at the Doral 5K, where I ran the distance in about 29 minutes, so I’m really hoping I can beat that time this time around.
Finally, there’s a race I’ve dreamt of participating in for a few years, which is the Falmouth Road Race – an at-home edition this year. I entered the registration lottery to participate at 9am sharp on the opening day of registration, and am SO EXCITED to have gotten in! I’ll be running the 7 mile race between August 15-29 this summer, and am hoping to run it in around 1 hour. My best time for a 10K is 52 minutes – and technically this is a little longer at 7 miles, so let’s see how close I can get.
What’s even better is that in my eagerness to get into this race, I was among the first 5,000 people to register, which guaranteed me entry into the 2021 race – Falmouth, here I come!
In sum, while it’s been difficult for many of us (runners) to continue training with the same momentum we may have had before (leading up to races), I’m happy to have retained some semblance of that competitive spirit during this challenging time, and to still have exciting running goals on the horizon. Let’s do this!
How has your running cadence during the pandemic shifted, if at all, and how are you sustaining momentum?