Running, life and resilience - you can always do more but sometimes it’s about getting over the next hill
This was supposed to be a race report on the Great West Run. It isn’t.
The Great West Run: More ups and downs than a Trump tariff.
And, much like The Donald’s economic policy, mainly painful ups.
But this article isn’t about US politics. It’s not even really about the Great West Run, an event Michelle and I took on last weekend.
It’s about, as the lyrical genius that is Ronan Keating once said, how life is a rollercoaster - packed full of the same metaphorical and constant hills that filled the Great West Run.
I could be glib here and talk about how the resilience I have gained by completing (a couple of) ultra marathons helped me to conquer the ups and downs of Exeter - for those who don’t know the Great West Run is a half-marathon through the town.
And that’s not entirely untrue. Doing hard things helps you to take on the next set of hard things, whether that’s the latest hill, race or life event that comes your way.
But it’s not that simple either.
Sometimes I think we’re sold resilience and development as if it is a linear path. In fact, it is more like those hills.
And it doesn’t just magically arrive by simply completing another race.
You need to work on things. Inside and outside of running.
What do I mean by that? That however resilient and strong running alone might make you, you’ll be better if you also:
🏋️ Lift weights
🍱 Eat properly
💤 Get the right amount of sleep
🧘 Stretch properly or do yoga or Pilates
And probably 1,001 other things, from using a foam roller to creating structured training plans, whether with or without the help of a coach.
All the conversations I have on Running Tales tell me these things will help me, they will make me a better runner.
Do I find the time and motivation to do them? Honestly, no. Would I have struggled less with those Great West hills if I did? Almost certainly, yes.
And it’s the same in life.
Things can be tough, but I know I’d be better if I finally embraced the wellbeing practices I keep putting off or only do sporadically:
📕 Lifelong learning
🗣️ Therapy
💆 Massage
🧘♂️ Meditation
Did I mention strength training, better sleep practices, stretching and improved nutrition.
In some ways, it is worse to know what to do and still not act on it.
The means for self-improvement and better running are there, why not grab them?
It’s true, but I’m also here to say that you can only do what you can do. Those hills - the metaphorical ones - I keep mentioning also mean the mortgage has to be paid off, a day’s work completed, the housework done, or the car taken to the garage.
It’s OK to know there is more to do. But it’s also important to celebrate what you are achieving and how you got there.
I ran one hour 41 at the Great West Run. Nothing spectacular but not bad for a 47-year-old who has neglected his strength training, doesn’t sleep properly, has osteoarthritis but still avoids oily fish, and sits on the sofa on Sunday evenings rather than heading to the Hot Yoga class he’s been planning to visit for a year.
Development isn’t linear. Life and race courses are hilly. There is always more that can be done.
But perhaps what you’ve achieved today is enough.
For now at least.
For anyone expecting a race report, the Great West Run isn’t the most exciting half-marathon you’ll ever find. More shops than scenery and starting pens crammed with runners who should be further back in the field - Lord, give me the confidence of a two hour half-marathoner in the 1.45 pen! In all, it’s a perfectly acceptable road/city half-marathon but nothing to be wowed by. Also, did I mention it’s quite hilly.
Parkrun Tales:
Followers on Instagram and Facebook may have noticed we’ve started to put together running stories and reviews from the parkruns we go to each week.
Yes, it’s as original idea as a James Corden joke but we thought you might want to, ahem, know what’s occurin’.
Here’s our latest missive from Braunstone parkrun…
Parkrun Tales #3
📍 Where: Braunstone parkrun, Leicester
📅 When: May 31, 2025
📏 Distance: Still 5k!
The first thing to mention about Braunstone parkrun is, er, the last thing about Braunstone parkrun.
The course was designed by a sadist. This is a fact. Go there and you will find out but let me warn you…
Now, don’t be fooled by the beautiful park, the lovely lake, the enticing shades of green.
Please don’t let the general flat nature of the course deceive you. Don’t be wooed or wowed by how very runnable parts of it are.
Be warned… There be hills!
Undulations within a parkrun aren’t exactly without precedent but what makes Braunstone particularly evil is where they are.
Or specifically where one of them is; ie.. right at the end. An uphill, grassy sprint just as you’re properly gassed.
Thank you Braunstone parkrun, thanks a bunch!
But seriously, this is a really good parkrun route. Tough enough to be challenging, flat enough to allow you to go for it, and with all the picturesque details you’d want from a typical English park.
Loses marks for a lack of a cafe (there is a mobile van that provides some really good coffee or a leisure centre, which I wouldn’t bother with), but Braunstone is well worth a visit.
Just remember those hiking boots and walking poles for the last 50m.