All the excuses for not running 10 miles

My intentions are always so good.

I signed up for the Walt Disney World Marathon 2021 back when I thought COVID19 was “starting to simmer down” (how young and naive I was).

I’m coming of an injury, so my summer was this whole “will I or won’t I” start training back and forth (I know, feels very sitcom-y, minus the whole interesting love story part). Come September 8 and no cancellation…I had my “oh shoot…I better actually start doing this” moment.

Look at me! Look at me! I’m going to train for a marathon that I probably won’t run!

K.

Things started off pretty smoothly…I was rocking those midweek runs, bragging about those long runs on the socials…

The September 22. Boom. Marathon Weekend cancelled (okay, shifted to virtual).

No problem, I knew I probably wouldn’t race this. I will totally keep training because that’s the kind of B-A I am.

If only that were true…

Instead, my accountability thread became a voyeuristic look at the death of my willpower.

Here are some of the excused I’ve concocted over the last couple of weeks:

• “My calves are SOoOOOo tight, I’m going to do yoga and stretch instead” (Narrator: she would instead binge watch CW shows)
  

• “It took me 30 minutes to find a spot for my car. How will I ever get that 30 minutes back to run” (Narrator: she would not because she could not sacrifice 30 minutes of 5 hours watching CW shows. Also, this happened twice)
  

• “I’ll do a spin class instead, because #crosstraining” (Narrator: LOL. Did not happen)
  

• “I don’t know when my signature-required FedEx package is being delivered” (Narrator: this strangely stopped her from two days of runs, despite there being a clear delivery date with the tracking information)
  

• “My dog smeared poop all over his butt, I need to give him a bath” (Editor note: okay, to be fair I *did* run after giving him the bath, but missed my session with my running club)

Not having an actual in-person race to look forward to (plus a diet comprised primarily of mozzarella sticks) has really put a damper on my desire to run. I know it was only a faint hope…but isn’t even the glimmer of hope so powerful these days?

So as an excellent excuse maker, what am I doing to, ya know…do it?

• I’m readjusting my goal. Marathon training is hard on your body. And I know realistically I’m not going to run 26.2 miles around my neighborhood for funsies anytime soon. For my short-term plan, I’m shifting my focus to running the half marathon distance Halloween weekend (the weekend it fell on my training plan). My new “long-term plan” is to shift into more of a maintenance mode. I’ve gotta do some research, but ideally want to keep my long runs around 7 miles, so I can switch into half marathon mode easily when a last minute race pops up (if we ever get races back…)
  

• I’m giving this run purpose. My running friends will tell you that I am extreeeeemely into medals (I think it’s why I’ve stuck to running. You don’t have to win–or even do well–to get a medal? Love it! How millennial of me!). I have enlisted my mother to make me a surprise “virtual race prize pack.” This will give me something to earn. I also decided to run in honor of the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg and attempt to raise money for the ACLU. The fact that RBG was more dedicated to her workout routine in her 80s than I am in my 30s is not lost on me. I’m inspired by this woman, and running in honor of her (decked fully out in RBG gear, btw) is keeping me going.

• I’m accepting that I may never be motivated, but I can be dedicated. Someone said this in one of the RunDisney communities I frequent. Ooof did that hit me hard (What? Can’t use lack of motivation as an excuse?). I have to remind myself every time I don’t want to get up off the couch that it really doesn’t matter if I feel motivated…I committed to a training plan and I can be dedicated to that pursuit. Does that work every time? Absolutely not. Has it gotten my butt out the door? More than a few times.

I may have allll the excuses but I don’t have all the answers. I’m just a girl trying to occasionally put one foot in front of the other (sometimes for a really long time).

What’s been your best/worst excuse for skipping a run? And how do you convince yourself to get out the door or on that tread when you really, really, really don’t want to?