Forums >General Running>Does your family support your running?
Umm... yes and no. My wife is supportive of my running until it comes time for me to run. Sound weird? Case in point. My first marathon was the Disney Marathon in 2003. I had not even considered doing a marathon as it was my first year running, but my wife found a brochure from the American Stroke Association that basically said if you run the marathon (and of course raise money) you get a free trip to Disney. She was all for the free trip and watching me in the marathon, but any time I had to do a long run I got crap. Same thing now, she is for my running but doesnt want anything long or anything that would interfere with her sleeping in on Saturdays. But on the other side of this coin, she does like to actually come see me race. Her and the kids cheer me on and are always there for the finish (well, except last sunday, but it was Palm Sunday). It is just the actual training to get me there that she seems to dislike.
Michelle
Hi Michelle, I have a similar problem, and got a few good advices from the colleagues: http://www.runningahead.com/forums/topic/cd3190cb2a9f435fb982b470e2680861 Slightly I'm getting, not really support, but at least some kind of understanding from my wife, that I'm in for the long run. However, whenever she hears some kind of comment about the risks of running, she supports those comments unconditionally, not much I can do about it I guess. Well, at least when I'm running I'm alone, so I can fully enjoy it
It may not be about you running faster than him. He could be jealous over the time you spend away from the house. Or that you're making new friends while you run. Or that you've got an activity that is yours and yours alone. Unless there is a real, concrete reason that he thinks you're hurting yourself (like a prior injury), I think it's safe to say he's jealous.
I invite him along for all of my runs, with friends or when I go alone. The other day I called to ask if I could run with him after work and he told me no. He said "I'm not feeding your addiction". So, I went home and made dinner while he went out and ran. Once dinner was on the table I headed out and got my run in and had to quit when it got too dark.
Amy
The Greatest of All Time
E-mail: eric.fuller.mail@gmail.com -----------------------------
Your toughness is made up of equal parts persistence and experience. You don't so much outrun your opponents as outlast and outsmart them, and the toughest opponent of all is the one inside your head." - Joe Henderson
#2867
Run to Win25 Marathons, 17 Ultras, 16 States (Full List)
I've got a fever...
Commenting on other peoples' relationships is second only to commenting on their parenting in terms of getting yourself in trouble, so I'm treading very carefully here ...
On your deathbed, you won't wish that you'd spent more time at the office. But you will wish that you'd spent more time running. Because if you had, you wouldn't be on your deathbed.
Are you afraid to have that kind of open, vulnerable, discussion with him? Well, that points to another problem there. Hope this helps.
MTA: This is not about running. It's about how he is insulting you and hurting your feelings. The discussion really needs to be about how you feel, not how far or fast or how much or how often you run.
You're not likely to all-the-sudden turn him into your running cheerleader, so at the very least, if you don't have his support, you should stop having the insults. It's obvious that running means a lot to you; you should let him know that his support and encouragement would mean a lot, and if he just can't do that, he should at the very least stop being hurtful about it. MTA: This is not about running. It's about how he is insulting you and hurting your feelings. The discussion really needs to be about how you feel, not how far or fast or how much or how often you run.
One day at a time