Ignore False Goals

This past weekend I raced in the Northshore Classic Half Marathon in Highland Park.

I was really looking forward to this race because, as many of you know, I’m training to run a sub 1:30 half marathon. I’m not able to do that right now, but that’s my long term goal.

So my aim for this half marathon was to see where I was at physically. I guessed that I would be able to run the race with an average pace of 7:45 min/mile or less. That was my goal going into the race.

I’m proud to say that I achieved it. 7:41 min/mile was my average pace for my half marathon this past weekend.

But after the race, my Strava/watch time for the half marathon was 1:40:42 which got me thinking…

“Aw man! If I would’ve ran a little harder towards the end I bet I could’ve come in under 1:40!”

That, is a false goal
False goals are goals that your mind creates during races or after the fact that change the definition of success.
Before the race, I didn’t care about running under 1:40. It wasn’t part of my plan. It wasn’t what I trained for. It wasn’t the benchmark I was using to evaluate the day.

Yet somehow, within seconds of achieving my actual goal, my brain created a new one and gave me the feeling I had fallen short.

The goal I set out to achieve before the race was an average pace of 7:45 or less. That is what I had in mind the entire time.

It was only afterwards when I saw my Strava/watch half marathon time that I thought I could’ve gone sub 1:40.

The first one is a real goal which I achieved. The second one is a false goal that robs me of the joy of my accomplishment.

We all have mental battles when we’re going through our training and racing. Don’t be fooled by false goals. Know when you’re creating one and quickly rid it from your mind.

Set goals for your training, work towards achieving them, and enjoy the feeling of success once you hit them.

Your best is yet to come!

Dr. Michael

Valiant Physical Therapy
Evanston, Illinois
Physical therapy for Runners | Sports Rehab