Greetings! Over the years I have participated in several
training groups for runners as a trainee and a mentor. Training groups are
great in concept. Training clinics allow for making friends, learning
strategies for running and recovery.
Also, such groups come with a set of incentives to complete required
training for big races, like fully participating because of the money spent to
join the team, and accountability and affirmation of the team encourages people to
attend the regular running sessions.
I have often used my experience from the training groups as
an example to discuss the concept of reference groups with my sociology classes.
The training group sometimes created issues as new or returning runners ran too
fast trying very hard to keep up with the pack. This often led to injury
physically or psychologically. A recent study of training groups found
that those who work too hard to support others hinder those individuals from
reaching their full potential. The group mentality held members back in
performance and overall fitness levels, particularly people trying to lose
weight. Those who treated the training group like a competition excelled in
performance and fitness. It’s a fine line between the start and finish line.
Train well. Run.
Tom
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