Many runners feel a sense of embarrassment when other runners pass them on the track or the road. It's a completely normal feeling that even experienced runners can be forgiven for feeling, but it's not a necessary one.
Running is an extremely personal sport. It's only ever you against yourself. With the exception of the very best runners in the world, most of us are not going to be competing to win races. We must instead focus on personal improvement or simply finding joy from running if races are not your thing.
That means only ever focusing on yourself and your path. That should not change when someone who is also on their own journey runs past you.
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Beyond that, any good runner knows that slow running is how you move your fitness forward. Even the best runners spend 70-80% of their time running slowly. Now, their slow running is faster than that of you or I, but if the best runners in the world look at a slow runner and understand the importance of that running, who do we have to worry about?
If that's not enough, we must be careful not to assume that people have some expert knowledge of running. The vast majority of people cannot judge the pace of another runner by the naked eye, and they certainly don't know the type of session you are doing, nor the distance you are running.
There are so many varying factors that decide how fast someone is running on any given day, and it makes any kind of judgement completely pointless.
Are there people who think they are cool because they run a little faster than others? Do some people seem to enjoy taking over others? Yes.
But I'm here to tell you: Screw them! They are not important to you or your running experience. Focus on yourself, and take some joy in the fact that those are usually the types of people who are doing all the wrong things in their training. It is you who is more likely to be getting fitter.
Any runner who takes this sport seriously respects anyone else who has the will to get their shoes on, get out and put one foot in front of the other.
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