So what comes next?
2 min read
Often I’ve run in goal races and spent the months prior motivated to train hard and achieve my personal goals. once you’ve run the race and the days and weeks afterwards thought so what comes next? Once a goal race is over a motivational vacuum can sometimes enter your mind and running can feel not as enjoyable as the purpose isn’t quite the same unless there is another goal ready to be achieved.
For me I find this happens more when I am successful at my goal race. I feel that it’s difficult to climb your own Mt Everest and reach the summit and then start again immediately afterwards and do it again. Recently I ran successfully at my big goal race for the year, I achieved my goal of a sub 3 hour marathon that I have been chasing for quite a while and still feel on a high because of this. I don’t have an immediate race to train for so I need to be mindful of this to stay motivated to run. Fortunately for me I have had a two week overseas holiday in Korea post marathon and the place where our apartment in Seoul is has some great trails and hills that I have been enjoying exploring without the pressure of a marathon preparation to worry about.
I believe the best way to overcome thoughts of a motivational let down is to enjoy the runs post goal race. Add some variety to your runs, for me running in another country has made it easy to add variety. Train at different paces, take on different terrains and places that you normally don’t run. Or take your shoes off and try barefoot running for a while.
Alternatively pick another goal race and start training for it. I haven’t committed to another goal race yet but I am hoping to do another marathon in either August or September and some possible shorter races in the meantime. I’ll spend a month or two enjoying my running before putting my head down and getting stuck into another goal race preparation.
Let me know if you’ve suffered a loss of motivation after a goal race and how you overcome it.
Post Seoul Marathon
Some great single trail in the Gwangmyeong region of Seoul.
Great post!
I had a goal of breaking 20 minutes in a 5K race. After I accomplished that, it became 19 minutes. Shortly after that, I stopped keeping track of distances and timing – my Garmin watch has been sitting on my dresser unused. I came to the realization that running for the pure joy of it – that’s all that really matters. It’s not like I’m going to the olympics or anything, lol ð
I love your passion Rich. I think I’m too competitive to do that, but there is a balance when I’m not training for a race to just run for the joy of running.
I typically have races lined up after my bigger races to make sure I stay on top of it, but I definitely understand the lack of motivation.