My next marathon is less than a week away and I have been thinking race strategy. Some may be thinking I should have had my race strategy figured out by now, but to be honest I usually don’t go into a race with a plan of any sort. I know the time I want to run or beat, but I don’t figure out what my pace should be per mile or my time for certain splits in the race. I just go out and run.
In the recent year I have taken a different approach to running. I no longer go into my races without a plan, but my plan is probably considered a little unconventional for most. I don’t calculate splits of any sort. I strongly believe we should all run the race we are in.
Everyone has different goals for their races, different distances, different paces, etc. It’s important we all run the race we are in, trying not to compare to what others are running, where others are running, and what distances others are running. Our lives are ever changing, thus our race is too. Sometimes I get stuck in what others running. Looking at their training plans, comparing it to mine and thinking I may not be doing enough or doing too much. It’s hard to not play the comparison game, and when we do we lose sight of our race.
The race of life is very much the same as our actual races. We all run a different race in life, and that’s okay. We should all be running our own race that is set before us, being careful to stop comparing to others or caring what others races are like. We run with perseverance, our race. No one can do it for us. It was marked for us, however hard or easy it may seem. It’s just as important as any other’s race as well.
For me I have changed how I go into a race. I know need a plan, mostly for encouragement purposes. Before my races, no matter the distance, I seek God’s guidance and wisdom. I ask Him what my “race strategy should be.” To be honest, sometimes I don’t like His plan, and I am scared to take the risk in trying what He suggests, and I always regret not listening or at least trying. For some this may seem crazy that I would ask Him for his advice, but I find that His wisdom is far better than my own.
Yes, it is my own race but we can’t do it on our own. We need His guidance. “Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us….” I take this to mean that race was already marked out for us, we had been given a guide and the hard part is staying on course, meeting those paces and time goals, finishing the distance completely. This is why I pray for a race strategy and wait to listen for His answer.
Believe me there are times I argue with God or ask Him again for His plan, when I don’t agree with the race strategy or think He’s being a little to optimistic about what I can do. I did this in my recent marathon. Sure I ran a PR, but I didn’t believe I could do what He said I could. I regret not at least trying. He said it would be hard and I would want to give up. This time I am willing to take the risk. I really have nothing to lose.
It doesn’t make the race any easier having a plan or His guidance, but it does give me assurance I can achieve so much more if I have endurance and work for it. We run with endurance, encouraged by His promises. My race is my own, marked out for me. My race strategy is different from everyone else, but I have assurance and peace before my races when I pray for His wisdom.
I feel unsure at times I can run another marathon, so asking for guidance helps. I will be honest and say I don’t always agree with what He has to say and I question whether I heard him correctly, hoping I had when His race strategy seems to far fetched. This time around I hope to take the plunge, take the risk and go for it. You never know what you can do unless you actually try. I say GO FOR IT!!
Until Next Time Be Whole and Be Fit
How do you gear up for a race? Do you go in with a race strategy / plan? Do you have your paces written out?
I love this.