It’s so easy to fall into the comparison trap in running — especially when you’re training alongside other people or scrolling through apps like Strava. You see someone logging huge mileage, hitting fast paces, or smashing long runs every weekend, and suddenly you’re questioning whether you’re doing enough.
But here’s the truth: your training is only meant to match your plan — not someone else’s.
Everyone’s plan is different
Even if you’re training for the same race, you might be following completely different schedules. Some runners use a shorter, more focused plan. Others start months earlier with a longer build-up. Some are aiming for a PB, some are aiming to finish, and some are simply training to enjoy the day.
Mileage, pace, and intensity will look different depending on:
- experience level
- injury history
- lifestyle and time available
- recovery needs
- goals for the race
So comparing your week to someone else’s week is basically comparing two different recipes and wondering why they don’t taste the same.
Social running apps can mess with your head
Strava and similar apps can be motivating, but they can also quietly turn training into a competition — even when you didn’t mean it to.
If you’re following people you don’t know, there’s a good chance they’re on a totally different journey:
- training for a different distance
- running for performance
- coming back from injury
- running as stress relief
- building a base in the off-season
Their numbers don’t need to mean anything about your progress.
Running is inclusive… and personal
One of the best things about running is how open it is. Anyone can start, and everyone belongs. But at the same time, it’s a sport where people show up for very different reasons.
Some run for medals, some run for mental health, some run for routine, and some run because they want to prove something to themselves.
Your reasons are valid. Your pace is valid. Your plan is valid.
The goal is consistency, not comparison
At the end of the day, the runner who wins is the one who keeps showing up. Not the one who has the most impressive training log.
If you’re getting out the door, building fitness, and sticking to your plan — you’re doing exactly what you’re supposed to be doing.
And let’s be real… by the end of a marathon, no one is judging anyone’s weekly mileage anyway.
We’ll all be limping, starving, and struggling to sit on the loo 😁
