Group running is not for everyone

Community is a large part of running for most. And by that I don’t mean the community that you live in. I mean the running community. The people who own the running stores, the other runners, spouses of the runners.

These people make up the running community. And the importance of these people can not be understated. Running is not an easy thing to do. As much as you might love it that is not enough. Support, encouragement, and people to keep you accountable are so very important.

But not everyone is a people person. I for one have issues with people, I do okay with persons, but people means masking which can be tiring. So the question is how do you stay connected to a community when you have issues being with people. Of course social media these days makes interaction so much easier, adults are very accepting of online connections since most adults have very little time for actual in person social interaction. But some in person interaction is required. Thankfully most running communities have multiple social or group runs. Which are great times to keep in touch with everyone, there is always time before the run to talk and interact with pe

ople. And once the run starts it is perfectly acceptable to run pop in your earbuds and run solo. So engage that community slowly and one person at a time. Go into the running store and just talk to the people who work there. Meet some other runners for smaller group or one on one runs. Go out and grab a coffee / beer /soda with one of them. Even if you have trouble with people, there is always a way to connect.