Running journey

You put your shoes on and go outside to run. It’s the easiest workout possible. Everyone has done a run before. It’s simple, right?

I’m training for the Amsterdam marathon on October 19th. And I’m struggling.

1. I don’t run that fast. My goal is to finish within 4 hours. It seems to be an average time. I tend to compare myself to others, while I should be running my own race.
2. My calves have been tight this past week. I was upping my volume 10% each week. I did a ~20km run every weekend for the previous three weeks. Last week was my recovery week, but my calves didn’t recover. It’s the first time in my life where I do a calf stretch and it feels like the stretch is doing something. Much more than something.
3. There’s this lingering feeling that I will get an injury. I’m constantly trying to figure out if I can continue running or if I should take another rest day. My number one rule is that any race I do should be fun, and I don’t want to do any long-term damage.

So much for running being the easiest thing there is. Doesn’t mean I can’t still bike or swim. I remind myself that it’s about the journey, not the finish line.