Embrace the High, Not the Fear

You feel defeated. A section or two ago, you were on top of the world—gliding along the trail, dancing over the rocks, running strong and fast. It was going to be *your* day, a peak race. You could feel it.

But now, you regret it —you’re in a deep low without the energy to pull yourself out.

Why did you believe the miles could all go that smoothly? Why did you think would could run the whole thing like that? Why did you delude yourself into thinking you deserved that kind of race?

You were sure it was going to be your best race ever—and now you’re paying for it.

Reality hits hard.

You should have been humble, slowed your pace, and respected the distance. Instead, you charged ahead with visions of a great race, and now you’re crashing with fatigue, doubt, and regret. You convinced yourself the high was a sign of success, and now you're stuck in the low, being punished for daring to believe you could sustain that high.

You shouldn’t have let yourself feel that strong. You knew there’d be consequences.

So you drop. You quit. It’s what you deserve.

You learned your lesson. Next time, you’ll stay cautious, mix in more walking, and avoid the highs to protect yourself from the lows. Giving up the highs is a fair price to avoid crashing.

But it doesn’t work that way.

Avoiding the highs only robs you of the joy. It strips the race of its color, turning it into a constant, gray grind. 

And the lows? They’re still going to happen.

The *real” problem isn’t allowing yourself to enjoy the highs. It’s believing the lows are punishment for enjoying those highs.

Lows aren’t punishment—they’re just part of the race. It’s a cycle: high, a stretch of average miles, low, and then back again.

The solution isn’t avoiding the highs or running in constant fear of the lows. It’s realizing that both the highs and lows are part of the experience. So why not embrace the highs when they come?

You don’t need to sprint recklessly through a high. Simply recognize it, and open up to it. Enjoy it. Feel the power, the energy, and the absolute certainty you can run forever.

Don’t fear the low that might come—relish the peak while you’re in it.

Sure, it might feel safer to cling to fear, thinking you’re protecting yourself. But that hesitation only holds you back. 

Thinking you’ll pay for that fun high is a mindset you can change. You can just as easily believe that enjoying the high is okay—that you won’t ‘pay’ for it later.

Enjoying the highs makes you feel alive. You didn’t train for months to play it safe and run in fear of a low. You trained to push your limits, to feel the highs, and to navigate the lows. The highs are the reward for your hard work, and the lows are simply part of the journey.

And the truth is, you don’t become a stronger runner by avoiding the peaks or fearing the valleys. You grow by embracing the full experience. Those moments of pure exhilaration are what make the grind worthwhile. They’re why you signed up for the race in the first place.

So, next time you’re riding that high, don’t hold back in fear. Lean into it. Feel your legs, heart, and breathing in perfect sync, the running effortless - as one client said, “like a Kenyan”.

And when the inevitable low comes, don’t see it as punishment. Accept it as part of the process, and push through. Because on the other side, another high is waiting.

That’s how you run your best race.