I know, I’m a cliche of myself sometimes with all the running journal posts, but I’m a true believer in spending some time pondering life and how I feel about the things going on in it.
I joke about it, but it’s true – I often don’t know what I think about something until I’ve spent some time journaling about it.
And since running is such a big part of my life, running – my experiences with it, my feelings about it, and my ruminations about the highs and lows of running and training – don’t escape my journaling gaze.
Keeping a Running Journal
Choose a prompt, pick up a pen and a journal (or a notebook, or a piece of paper – whatever you have), maybe a tasty beverage of your choice, and write stream of consciousness for 10 or 15 minutes.
Actually write in a journal (handwriting is best, but digital will do), don’t just consider the prompt in your head. When you begin writing, you’ll always have a few ideas you wouldn’t have had if you’d only considered the prompt mentally. It’s just the odd voodoo of journaling.
Don’t think too much about what you’re writing or worry about (or try to correct) grammar or spelling errors. Don’t judge your writing (or judge yourself for what you are writing). Just write.
13 Journal Prompts for Half Marathon Training
- Why is finishing a half marathon important to you?
- Write about your half marathon race day as if you’ve already experienced it, for example, “I just crossed the finish line of my half marathon…” What emotions do you feel? What parts of race day are most vivid to you as you visualize the day?
- Consider a terrible training run you’ve had. What did you learn from that run that you wouldn’t have otherwise learned? What is (at least one) positive take-away from this terrible run?
- What are your favorite running and racing memories? What are your most vivid running and racing memories? What running stories do you tell over and over?
- How does your body feel after a run? What emotions do you feel after a run?
- What advice or pep talk would you like to give yourself? Write the words you need to hear.
- What have you learned from running and half marathon training that you’ve used (or that you can use) in other parts of your life?
- What part(s) of running or racing do you wish you were better at? How can you work to get better?
- What expectations and demands do you place on yourself relating to your health and fitness? Are those expectations fair and realistic given your physical limitations and life’s other demands?
- Who are your running friends and role models? What have you learned from them? How have they impacted your running?
- Describe your perfect run. What’s the weather like? Who are you with (if anyone)? Is it a short run or a long run?
- Write about your most frequent reasons for procrastination or common excuses for not running or eating right. What can you do to overcome those excuses?
- I am grateful for my body because…
