First up, I’m not going to tell you what to do, but have a look at the pros and cons of going solo as well as teaming up with your mates
Solitary running can be just as rewarding as heading out with some friends, and many of us need a bit of a mix of the two, depending on many factors, from mood to training plans, other commitments, whatever. Getting away from everyone and everything may be just what we need one day, and the very next day we’ll really value human connection. Maybe we should just go with the flow…
Let’s start off looking at the great reasons we should run alone:
- Freedom – running alone means we stick you our own agenda. We can go where we like, when we like, and don’t have to answer to anyone. There are no restrictions. We just lace up and go. Perhaps we might even leave our watches behind and run “naked”
- No pressure – being alone means we aren’t answerable to anyone but ourselves. We don’t have to be at a specific meeting point and a specific time. We don’t worry if someone else will actually turn up. It’s all on us. Running alone makes it so much easier to “make it up as we go along”, just running for its own sake and enjoying it for what it is. I find this one of the most liberating things about running on my own. It’s easier to get into that state of flow when it’s just you and your own thoughts – and that comes from there being no pressure, no expectations
- You choose – Running solo means you always get to choose where to go, when to go, how far to go, how fast or slow to go. You choose your breaks and walks and food stops. You can stop and chat to whoever you like as you run along, You can stop and take in the views if you like, and nobody will ask you to get on with the running.
- Escape – Getting away from it all is ace. We all need a break now and then, cutting our ties with the world for a while at least. Running gives us the opportunity to create a sense of real isolation for us all. We become totally cut off from civilisation, from humanity, and that’s something I believe we all need from time to time. Yes, we are social animals, but we occasionally need our own space
This may be so, but running solo can also be pretty horrible:
- There is no accountability – whether it goes to plan or not, it’s down to you. You can easily throw in the towel half way through and nobody would know. You may kick yourself for it, but I can guarantee you’d have carried on if you been with someone else. If it all goes wrong you can also delete it and it won’t even be on Strava (your friends will be none the wiser). Running solo means you can hide a lot, but that also drives up internal pressures
- Loneliness – especially when running for over an hour, loneliness can set in. I know I start getting a bit grumpy after about 90 minutes, and really d crave a chat. Although solitude and isolation can feel great, being stuck miles away from base (home, camp, whatever it may be) with nobody to talk to (and maybe have a shoulder to cry on) can feel pretty crap. We all need a little gee-ing up every now and then
Moving on to running with our friends (or clubmates etc), there are some great reasons we should do this as often as we can, but also a few problems with this approach as well. Let’s dive right in!
First up, what’s so good about running with friends?
- I’d say the first benefit is having Company – especially on longer runs, being alone can be a bit rubbish, and having a one or even a few of your mates alongside you can take all the pain away (well, a lot of it anyway).
- Commitment – I know that every Sunday morning I will be meeting at the same spot, come rain or shine, at 8am. I know my friends will be there too. We will not let each other down as we have made a commitment to one another. That alone makes sure we get out there for our weekly long runs. There’s really no getting out of such a commitment, and it’s certainly not a chore.
- Running with buddies opens up Different Routes – we all live in different parts of town, and the surrounding villages. We share planning the running routes, and having a few of us in the group means we have a huge variety of routes to choose from.
- Running regularly in a small group means we really Support One Another – when injury or illness strike, we step up and help. As well as that, having a group of running friends means that we’ll run with one another outside of the regular Sunday long run when someone has a specific event to train for – providing support and encouragement
But then again, it’s not all perfect if you run with a group of friends:
We all run at Different Speeds. What may be a very gentle run for one person may be pushing it quite hard for someone else. When getting a group together like this do make sure you are all happy running at the same pace, sticking together, whatever pace that might be. Sometimes a particular member of the group will want to run faster, or slower, than usual. One of the problems with groups of friends is that this doesn’t always work, and they generally progress at the speed of the slowest person, whoever that might be on the day.
Further, group runs will Limit the Distance you go. Unless you all just go out for a social run with no events in mind, where you’ll have no problem with this, friendship groups often have people training for different events. The long Sunday run may be 7 miles in one person’s plan, but 18 in another’s. These don’t mix so well. What we often do is run a figure of 8 or have the “long runners” run to the start and back home after, joining for the shorter middle section so everyone gets what they need. It may not be ideal, but it works well enough.
All in all, there are many good reasons to run alone or with someone else. Personally, I’m not keen on going off running alone but when I need to, I just “suck it up” and get out there