Running is Hard

What is feels like after a break

It has been a loooong time since either of us took a real break from trail running. You know how it goes — big race ends, another one pops up like a whack-a-mole with a race bib. So you “recover” (aka jog a little slower for three days), then boom — back at it. For years we’ve basically stayed in perpetual “race-ish” shape. Always close enough to fitness that we could jump into something, suffer responsibly, and call it a result.

But this year? Our brains, bodies, and one truly savage round of illness all formed a rebellion. A gentle whisper at first (“maybe chill?”) that quickly escalated into full-body megaphone “FOR THE LOVE OF QUADS PLEASE SIT DOWN.”

So we did something we’re historically terrible at: we actually rested. Like… real rest. Not the classic athlete “break” where you swear you’re off but somehow still squeeze in runs, spins, and “casual” vertical that would break 90% of the population. Nope. We committed. Couch time. House and ranch projects that had been ignored since 2019. Slow-paced shanters (slower than a walk, yes, we invented this) with Muffins. Dinners with friends. Letting our legs forget what intervals are. Basically, if it looked, smelled, or slightly resembled training, we avoided it.

And now? We feel SO unfit. Like baby deer learning to operate legs unfit. Easy loops have felt like altitude camp…but without the altitude or the camp. Strides look like we’re auditioning for a role as “confused jogger #2.” The hunger is there; the coordination… TBD.

But it’s honestly been kind of beautiful. It reminded us just how much of a privilege it is to feel fit — and how easy it is to forget that when you’ve been riding that consistency train for years. It also gave us deep respect for anyone starting (or re-starting) running. Guys… running is hard when you’re rusty. Like, REALLY hard. If you’re newer or coming back — we see you, and we get it. You’re not imagining it.

We’re grateful we hit pause. Trails don’t come with a natural off-season, and left to our own race-gremlin devices we probably would’ve just kept stringing bibs together forever. But to crave training, sometimes you have to remember what it’s like to… uh… have to stop on hills again. Humbling (painfully), but good.

So here we are, crawling our way into training for 2026 with full hearts, hungry legs, and optimism that fitness will show up again soon — preferably before we start doubting every life choice we’ve ever made. Consistency, we’re coming for you.

Bring on the rebuild. And the shin-splint-avoiding, ego-checking, muffin-powered miles!