TO RUN ALONE IS TO BE RELEASED FROM ANY OBLIGATION TO OTHERS
Tonky Talk
While surfing the internet this morning, I stumbled upon a blog-type thing on the merits of running in company vs running alone. It was enough to wake me from my web-induced stupor and attack this article. If you had to choose, which would it be ?
On a simple level, training with others speeds up the whole pre-run process. If it’s just me and my bad self, pre-run prevarication can eat up half an afternoon. The contemplation of the run, the staring out the window, the half-hearted stretching in front of the television. It’s like I’m teasing myself with the idea of the run, coquettishly holding it aloft as a possibility. Company, however, gives you an appointment and an obligation. Meet you at 10. Boom. We’re going for a run.
For me, in terms of training, as opposed to just running, company is essential. Any quality intervals demand it – ideally, with better runners so I can lock on to the back of them and try to hold on. The same goes for tempo runs; I can’t seem to do these alone. My mind wanders and they end up being a kind of drifty fartlek. With a group you can settle in the middle of the pack and zone out. Even steady-state runs with others end up being faster; a rhythm can impose itself, the pace gradually increasing. These are the great runs, when individuals surge as one, coming to a stop together and basking in a solid collective effort.
There’s also a difference between running in big groups and twos or threes. It’s a joy to trot through urban areas in a large group – it gives you that tribal buzz, weaving in and out of civilians with our skimpy shorts and high-pitched chatter. To run with just one or two is to get to know someone on a deeper level. Both have the advantage of distraction – the miles can fly by.
A few basic rules of running in company spring to mind. If you’ve arranged to run with someone, you are running with them. If they’re having a bad day, you support them. That’s the contract. Also, no sprinting off at the end. This seems to happen with inexperienced runners. I’m all for a tear-up at the finish if we agree on it, but to casually increase the pace without mentioning it and then try to drop me in the last 100 metres can make me question the point of the exercise. I thought we were in this together?
In terms of hygiene, I’m aware that running is a bodily business, sweaty, animalistic: it’s one of the reasons I love it. The odd coughing fit, snot rocket or fart may be unavoidable, but to maintain good relations, please direct these away from your running partner(s). (To be fair, runners who don’t follow this self- evident rule quickly become marginalised in the running community.)
Overall, though, there are many advantages to running with others. And yet, I would have to plump for running alone. I suppose it comes down to the utter freedom of it. To run alone is to be released from any obligation to others and all that entails. No social media, no pressure. It’s your run. You can do what you want. Sprint up a hill for no reason, jog back down and do it again. Stop at the top and stretch. Swear, laugh, skip. It’s just you and the moment.
It’s strange, just as much as I find it easier to run a bit faster in company, I find it easier to run a bit slower on my own. To run slowly with a mate can tire me out. It’s not quite my pace, I’m having to constantly adjust my stride rate. I guess, for me, running has always contained within it the element of escape. I go off into my own world, my own thoughts. It’s a parallel universe that refreshes me – like a therapy session but it’s free. The me that sets off is different to the me that returns. Ironically, it’s running alone that helps me deal with living in company.
Check out Paul and fellow comedian Rob Deering's running podcast, Running Commentary – available on itunes and Acast. @Runcompod
Indomitable mountain runner Jasmin Paris is the first woman to win the 268-mile Montane Spine Race outright, smashing the course record in the process. What’s even more remarkable is she did so while expressing milk for her baby daughter.
The January race, which runs from Edale in Derbyshire to Kirk Yetholm in the Scottish Borders, is one of the world’s toughest endurance events. As well as the terrain, runners must contend with high winds and foul weather: this year, there was a wind-chill factor of -20C. Yet nothing could deter Paris, who finished in a time of 83 hours, 12 minutes and 23 seconds, almost 15 hours ahead of the next runner.
Paris also holds the women’s records for the UK’S three premier 24-hour mountain running challenges: the Bob Graham Round (England), Ramsay Round (Scotland) and Paddy Buckley Round (Wales).
However, this is surely the greatest sporting achievement for Edinburghbased Paris, 35, who also works full-time as a vet. And her victory has captured the imagination of people far removed from the world of ultrarunning (singer Barbra Streisand described her as ‘a role model for anyone who believes in rising above the barriers’).
Since winning the race, Paris has been selected for the British team of 12 taking part in the Trail World Championships in June.
For more in Paris’ victory, check out the latest RW UK podcast on itunes