Why You Should NOT Race

Recently I told you why racing is so awesome. But in full disclosure, there are a few reasons why NOT to race.

1) If you're anything like me, you won't sleep the night before a race. You will be so nervous and excited that sleep will avoid you. I did quite a few half and full marathons last year and still felt this way the night before each race. As you're getting dressed for the race you will feel like you just downed 17 Benadryl.

2) You will feel inferior as you stand at the starting line. Every single person around you will look athletic enough to be on a Wheaties box. You will worry whether or not you have trained adequately to finish the race.
(Disclaimer: the moment the race starts, all these fears go out the window and your mind becomes focused on the task at hand: putting one foot in front of the other.)

3) After the race you will feel kind of sore. But I have bad news Pedro: it's nothing compared to how sore you will feel tomorrow. You will walk like you don't have knees. You will feel more affection toward ice packs and Tylenol than you feel toward your children. You will feel like a chicken pecked every square inch of your legs.


But I promise you that all these things pale in comparison to the enormous sense of accomplishment you will feel.

"Racing teaches us to challenge ourselves. It teaches us to push beyond where we thought we could go. It helps us to find out what we are made of. This is what we do. This is what it's all about."
PattiSue Plumer, U.S. Olympian