Should I give up cross country?

Question

Okay. So. This year I made a vow that I'd get physically active. I'm a freshman and I decided to start cross country. I love the team and the other girls are all so nice, the only problem is, I run out of breath really easily. I just do what the captains say, like we started out with 2 miles, and I was already huffing and puffing and could not finish without slowing down for walks in between. The second day we did hill work and I was fine but the roots in the ground slowed me down! The girls all run in this little pack and I'm just straying behind. I'm only on my 2nd practice but I already feel like giving up because even all my friends on the guys team sound like they're doing better than me already - and they're just starting too! All the girls keep telling me that it'll get easier but I'm getting so embarrassed to run. I know the season doesn't officially start for two months but ...am I just expecting improvement too soon? Can..someone just make me feel better?

Answer 1

You need to keep going!  You WILL improve with hard work, motivation, and dedication. BELIEVE IN YOURSELF!  If you love the team, they will be there for you and help you stay strong!... It's not about being able to run as fast as everyone else, but about your own improvement. I struggled with the decision of whether to keep running or not when i was in middle school... and now i'm a junior in high school and i'm so glad that i kept trying.   My friends helped motivate me, and helped me gain confidence in myself.  I have a friend who may not be up there with the top runners, but she just has a passion for running and is very dedicated.  She works very hard, and her times improve season after season... To me, running isn't about being 'number one'.  I run for the love of the sport, the love i have for my team, that adrenaline rush when you're standing on the starting line , and my will to improve.  It's okay that you can't finish 2 miles yet.  You're only a freshman, and i believe that you can build up to it.  When i was a freshman, 2 miles felt like a marathon, but as the season went by,i just kept going and eventually until i could  go four miles!  Don't be emarrased to not be running with your friends.  I"m sure they are so proud of you for running and you will get closer and closer to them as you progress!  With hard work and help from your teammates, you'll be improving in no time!

Answer 2

I have to say congrats on going out for cross country, its one of the hardest sports! I kinda stumbled into it myself. My best friend asked me to do it with her freshman year (i didn't even know what it was). Anyways the first practices were so hard I could barely run 2 miles around a park ( we kept stopping and walking it was awful). But I loved the team and the people on it. I kept with it. Two years later I ended up placing sixth in the state meet and winning the second highest time on my schools record board (17:01 for a three-mile race)! I started off my freshman year running a 28 min three-mile and dropped to a 17 min three-mile. So what I am telling you is that you can do it even if you cant really see it now. It just takes a love for the sport and some confidence and maybe one day you'll be the fastest on your team...who knows??? =)

Answer 3

nah girl dont give it up, i know exactly how you feel, last year i randomly decided to join cross country and before that i didnt run for two years and i made it. i still remember my first practice and first race it was h**l! and i know what u mean about straying behind the pack, everyone on my team was super good cuz they were all in track or have done cross country. i remember wanting to give it up, but hey i saw it as a challenge and i took it. i adapted to the pain, it wasnt so bad after a few weeks, it still hurt but i over came, sports are all about overcoming the pain and letting it all out. trust me if i made it anyone can lol. in the end youll look back and say d**n i made it, its totally worth it. now hang in there, ill probably be feeling the same thing as u again i start practice tomorrow and the heats gonna suck. goodluck :)

Answer 4

...

You have the opportunity to make the most improvement over all the other members of the team!

Consider that the other team members have been training a bit more than two days.  You are only two days into training.  Through patience, staying with it, consistency, stick-to-it-tiveness, endurance, perseverance - getting out there every day, you stand to gain the most in stamina and speed.

And because you know what it's like to be a beginner, struggling, you will be able to empathize and encourage all the future beginning runners you meet!

Be patient.  It does take time.  Look to a point four or six weeks away - not today - when you WILL be able to stay up with your teammates.

Regards,

Phil

Answer 5

dont give up!, it will take a few weeks before you get in noticeably better shape...hang in there and do your best

Answer 6

You are me!

I started my sophomore year....I had no clue. I tryed to stay with the girls for the first day (four miles) and got lost, got followed by some mean dogs, and got back 30 minutes late....coach was angry, and nobody remember who i was. The next day I felt like every fiber in my body was hurting.

So heres what I did:

got Ibuprofen

Stuck with it

Stayed positive

listened to pump-it-up music before going with the team

drinking loads of water

eating really good food

Those first three weeks were so painful, and I was out of breath, red in the face, and was in blister h**l. Does this sound like you? However, after my first three weeks, I got better. I could stay up with the little pack of girlies, I had confidence, and I even was a runner up to the state team.

Do not get discouraged. You can only get better! Remember that, and repeat it every day. Unless you fall off a cliff you can only get better!

Stick with it. Running is so good for you. It is two years later, and I am captian of my team. I am not the fastest runner, and I'm not the smartest, but I stuck with it and I care. Just keep with it! Who cares what the other girls say? I didn't...they always graduate, and you only get faster and better. If you are too embarrased to run, go on a hike, bike, or swim by yourself, then come back, but call the coach and talk to him/her......they really understand. They aren't there to judge, they are only there to help. Tell them you are going to get some cross-training in and then come back in a week or two.

Please stay with it. I know you can do it! I did, and I must say, I am one of the laziest ppl around. If I can, anybody can, and you are in that group.

Answer 7

I know it may not seem like it, but you will get better with time. It sounds to me like you weren't very active before you started cross country, so it's going to take some time getting used to. You can't just expect to run a 5K with no problems when you start out. Those other girls have probably run this type of event before, so they're in better shape to run for long periods of time. Don't give up, practice makes perfect.

Answer 8

Don't give up!  I have two stories, both of which should show why you shouldn't give up.

The first is my own.  I started this year running about a 6:30 mile, which is respectable.  However, i wanted (and still want) to be a good runner, better than i am now.  I wanted to be able to run with my friends on the team.  However, they ran all of last year, and over the summer, whereas i had only run last winter.  I really ended up running with the freshmen for a long time.  It was frustrating, because i knew i was capable of better things, but just couldn't do it.  However, through hard work, and following the direction of the coach, i grew to be a stronger runner than I was before, and hope to keep in the same direction.

The next story is of a freshman on the team.  I'll refer to him as Hong, or Hongus, beacuse that is what i call him most of the time.  Hongus is a true freshman (unlike me, I'm a sophomore, but a freshman runner to myself, since this is my first year seriously running), in that he was never a runner.  He is a bit on the pudgy side.  Really nice kid, but a bit slow in school, as it turns out.  However, he joined with the intent of running.  When i took him out for his first run, he lagged behind.  We slowed down so he could stay with us, and we tried to encourage him.  One run, i remember, we were almost done, and he wanted to stop.  I told him he wasn't allowed to stop within sight of the finish line.  He kept going, and finished strong.

Hongus had trouble at first.  He couldn't run a single mile without stopping, and he couldn't run quickly either.  It was an accomplishment for him to hit the 8-minute mile.  However, I have more respect for Hongus as a runner than almost anyone else.  Why?  He was clearly not born to be a runner.  He had no prior experience, and very little apparent reason to run, like club credit.  Hong worked every inch to be where he is now.  He's now preparing for summer training, and is running a mile in the 7-minute range.  He, by the end of cross country season, went from being unable to run a single mile to finishing a 5k race without stopping.  He is truly the essence of the runner, from the determination to the honest and good-hearted spirit.

Hope these stories show you that you don't always need to be the fastest or the strongest, but as long as you put in the effort you will improve, and you will become stronger and better.  Good luck in the fall!

~Abab

(P.S. If you'd like any more help, be it with stories and inspiration, advice, opinions, drills, or anything at all, feel free to send me an email!  You can find it by going to my Y!A profile)

Answer 9

dont give up it takes a little practice

Answer 10

Never, ever, ever, give up.  Some people are just naturally better, and I'll tell you, there's nothing you can do about that.  If you really like running and want to improve, keep running!  Running is a tough sport, the toughest.  My own quote here:  "Running is the only sport you cannot make a video game out of.  It is the only sport that takes so much mental ability to not give up and to push yourself that to make it a video game would completely change the sport.  I believe any runner is good, asthma, slow, or not.  It takes guts to go out there and run even 2 miles, I know half the people I know couldn't do it for their life.  If you really dislike it, quit.  But just know how close you were to your goal when you gave up on it.  Good luck, and I'm sure you'll make the right decision of whatever you believe is best!