Ep. #403: Your Running Style is Allowed to Change

Welcome to the Not Your Average Runner podcast. I’m Jill Angie, a certified running coach, and your running BFF here to help you start running. Feel confident and love the journey no matter your size. Now, if you’ve ever felt like you just weren’t meant to be a runner, think again. I believe that running is for all bodies, even yours.

This podcast is your warmup buddy, giving you tips, motivation, and the support you need to lace up and get moving. I’ve helped thousands of women become runners, and now I wanna help you. Let’s go.

Hey. Hey runners. Welcome back to the Not Your Average Runner show. Today we are talking about something that does not get said enough, and that is that your running style is allowed to change over time. And if you’ve ever looked back at how you used to run and maybe you went longer or faster or more often and you thought, uh, what happened to me?

What’s going wrong? Or you’ve had to change up your intervals ’cause your body just needs more walking now maybe you get injured a lot more and you’re not sure what the fuck is going on. Maybe you used to be super excited to train for races all the time, and now you’re just not that into it. And that is me for sure.

I always had a bunch of races on my calendar. Now it is the absolute last thing I wanna do. But here’s the thing, running is not a one size fits all sport. There is no one perfect training plan, no one perfect pair of running shoes, none of it. And it’s definitely not a one size fits you forever sport because what worked for you before is not going to work for you forever.

You are going to need to adapt. So. If your pace, your preferences, your routines, even your goals have changed, guess what? It’s not failure, it’s growth, it’s evolution, it’s life. Now, this episode is mostly intended for women who have been running for a while already, but if you are brand new to the sport, please listen up because one day.

You are gonna be that person who’s a more seasoned runner, and you are gonna need to hear this message. Okay, friends, let’s talk about what it means to evolve as a runner and why giving yourself permission to change is the key to staying in the game. Number one, seasons of life. Seasons of running, right?

Your running is going to evolve right alongside your life. There may be seasons where you are crushing training plans. You’re running four times a week and you’re feeling like a damn gazelle, and then something shifts. Maybe it’s your job, your body, your mental health, your family, who knows, and suddenly two short sessions a week feels like a lot.

And that’s okay. It’s not failure. It’s not losing progress. You are adapting. To life. Alright, there’s no perfect formula. Your running style is not a fixed identity. It is a flexible tool that should serve you in this season of your life that you’re in right now, not the one you left behind. And I know that can be a hard lesson to absorb because we tend to think, oh, if my running style is changing, it means I’m getting older and then we freak out because we’re getting older and we’re aging and oh my God, I’m gonna die.

Like, calm down. Just chill the F out. Let yourself run in a way that meets your body where it is right now. Don’t make it mean. Anything. Just, this is the body I have right now and here is how running is gonna work with this body. Alright? I promise you. You’re gonna feel a lot better about it. Now let go of the whole, I used to be trap again.

You might find yourself thinking, I used to be able to run five miles without stopping, or I used to be faster, or I used to run four days a week with no problem. And while those memories are valid. Right? Yes. You used to be able to do those things. Awesome. They’re not the gold standard for success. They are a chapter in your running story, and every chapter is different.

You are allowed to slow down. You are allowed to walk more. You are allowed to run shorter or less often, or not race at all. Your body and brain are not the same as they were five years ago and trying to force yourself. Back into a past version of your running life can suck the joy right out of it. So instead of chasing your old self, ask, what do I need now?

What kind of runner do I want to be to in this body? Number three, evolving. Does not mean you are starting over. And a lot of times we get it all twisted. We think, oh, because I’m changing, I’m back at square one. No, just because your running style changes doesn’t mean you are brand new at anything. You’re not a beginner.

You are a seasoned runner. With new and different priorities. Maybe now you are more focused on consistency than distance. Maybe you are trading speed goals for stress relief. Maybe you are experimenting with things like trails or uh, triathlons or something like that, or even run walk intervals for the first time.

You may have been somebody who always ran without stopping, and now you’re realizing. My body feels a lot better when I do run walk intervals, okay? That is not regression. It is evolution and it is honoring the body you have right now. ’cause this is the only body you have. So, wishing it were different, wishing it were younger, wishing it were faster is not gonna make your current experience any better.

It’s gonna make it suck. So changing your style is evolution, and it doesn’t erase what you’ve done before. You’re building on it. You’re changing and evolving and honoring the body you have right now. That is the best thing you can do for yourself in midlife. Now, identity your runner identity is not the same as having rules for how you do it.

You do not have to run a certain way to count. Air quotes. As a runner, you don’t need to hit a minimum mileage. You don’t need to do long runs. You don’t need to sign up for races or run at a specific pace. Right? You are still a runner, even if it looks different now than it did before, because being a runner isn’t about all of your data.

It’s about. Getting out there and running and how you relate to it, how you relate to running, how you experience it. Being a runner isn’t about what you do. I mean, yes, you are running and that’s the thing that you’re doing, but being a runner is really about how you relate to it. Okay? Being a runner is an identity, not a rule.

Book identities grow and shift and adapt over time. You’ve had many identities throughout your life. And that is a good thing. You are not meant to stay the same if you were the same person. Now as you were with you when you were 20, can you imagine what your life would be like? Okay. Imagine yourself with your 20-year-old brain trying to live your 57-year-old life.

Oh my God. No. You are not meant to stay the same. You are meant to evolve, and your identity as a runner can change. But as long as you are running, no matter what it looks like you are still a runner. Alright. What is the takeaway here from all of this? Your running is allowed to look different today than it did last year.

It’s allowed to look different next month, next decade, next Tuesday, okay. You do not have to justify that to anyone else. You do not have to say to people, well. I’m a runner, but I used to be a lot faster. Or I’m a runner. I do five Ks now, but I used to do marathons. You don’t have to justify that to anyone.

Including yourself. Including yourself, okay? Especially yourself. Running is here to support your life, not the other way around. And when you give yourself permission to adapt, you open the door to a lifetime of joyful judgment free movement. Now, if you are ready to embrace your running style exactly as it is right now, come join me and run your best life.

It is my running community for plus size midlife women who wanna run without shame, without rules, without pressure, and with a whole lot of support and joy. You can learn more at Run Your Best life.com, or of course, you can hit up the link in the show notes. Or you can go to run your best life.com. I’ll say it again.

But until next time, my friend, please run your way in the body you have right now for the life you’re living right now. Alright, I will talk to you next week, mwah.

Real quick before you go, I’ve got a fun challenge for you. Take my exerciser personality quiz to find out exactly what kind of exerciser you are and how to make running feel easier and more enjoyable.

Just head over to not your average runner.com/quiz to take it and get your results. That’s not your average runner.com/quiz.