I am a runner. With that said, I have long noticed that my runner Facebook friends are a unique brand of annoying. Not all of them – just the braggarts. These friends are always letting the world know when they ran, how far, and at what pace.
I’ve long wondered why other types of workout people don’t do this. Don’t get me wrong, I have other Facebook friends that annoyingly post about being at the gym or at yoga at 5:00 AM, but they don’t get into the specifics of the workout. They don’t take it that extra step that runners do and say, “I was at the gym at 5:00 AM. Benched 225 ten times then hit the triceps.” Or “I held upward facing dog for over an hour today.”
You see this with bumper stickers, too. You always see those stickers that say 26.2 or 13.1, but you never see bumper stickers that say “I bench 450” or “I squat the whole rack.”
So what I want to know is what is it about runners that make them more prone to share specifics? Am I the only one who finds this annoying? And if I were to market “I bench 450” or “I held downward facing dog for an hour” do you think they would sell?
Perhaps because competitive running is a less visible activity, as well as a solo sport? Workouts are a more social activity in the moment. But unless you have a running partner, you typically run alone. When you lift weights at a gym, everyone around you can clearly see what you’re lifting. Heavy lifters also end up with big bulky muscles. Although anyone can see a runner on the street, there’s no way to know if they’re on their first mile or their fifth. Runners also tend to be sleek, not bulky.
All you need to do is Google ‘response to Stafko runners rant’ or something similar to get a good idea of why people who run advertise it. Basically, they’re proud of themselves. Running is a great acheivement. I see people with stickers proclaiming the distance they cycled, the country they’re from, what/who their family is comprised of (I hate those stick family stickers!), etc. I have Facebook friends who post about their Crossfit workout, their promotion, and what their kid accomplished that day. They’re proud too.
I think you’re just noticing one thing in particular and are starting to get a bit of confirmation bias.
The long distance runners are often looking for a running partner. They want someone to go on their 10+ mile runs to keep them company. It could be that they are so visible with their sport because they are trying to connect with other runners. So by saying something like “Went on a 12 mile run at sunrise”, they are hoping that one of their runner friends will respond saying they also need to do a 12 mile run.
I use an app on my phone called RunKeeper to track of my walks. When I finish, I usually share the results of Facebook. I do it for a few reasons.
[ul]
[li]I like the app and feel like giving them a plug[/li][li]A few of my Facebook friends are trying to stay fit through walking and our posts encourage or remind the others[/li][li]Sometimes my friends will post something encouraging in response to my post[/li][li]If other people can post what they had for breakfast or what their cat just did, why not post about a walk?[/li][/ul]It has occurred to me that someone out there might be annoyed by these posts, but after brief but careful consideration I decided I didn’t care. I have some Facebook friends who run, none of whom post training runs. I have a few friends who cycle; most of them post about their rides.
Regarding the 26.2 and 13.1 stickers: most runners run a few miles at a time a few days a week. Many will reach a point where they want to take part in a group activity like a 5k or 10k race. A far smaller number will decide to do a half or a whole marathon, and finishing one of those races in however long a time is a pretty big deal. Sticker-worthy, IMHO.
I share info about my run on FB for the same reason I share info about my kid. And, for the same reason people share their Pinterest crap, or talk about Dr. Who, or post their artsy photographs.
It’s what I do, and a large part of who I am. In my small FB friend list, I have fitness enthusiasts and runners, and we like to share what we’re doing. We like to get motivation from each other when we’re going out for a long-ass early morning run to avoid the 100 degree heat. What’s more, I know that my posts have motivated other people to start or increase their physical activity.
I have one oval sticker, it’s not a distance but signifies the trail running group I run with a lot. I am going to put a distance sticker on, but I keep thinking I’m getting a new car soon so I’ve put it off.
Edit and BTW…you will have NO idea how much runners over-share until you start diggin in to ultra-running blogs.
You’re not the only one. I find it extremely tiresome. There’s a guy at work who will drop it into conversation at least once a day, to as many people as he can. No joke. The worst is when he tries to bring it up by saying his legs are sore. Dude, you have been running for well over a year, your legs are not sore from the twenty minutes you ran this morning. Shut up about it.
People are proud of it. I get that. I do. It’s just wearisome to listen to someone who’s never done a difficult thing in their life brag about how they ran* a 5K, or half-marathon, or whatever.
It’s grating to me personally for a lot of reasons. Mostly because I can’t stand people who need attention. Also because I’m a competitive prick and know I can outrun the majority of these people.
*You are not running anything at nine-plus minutes per mile.
Aha, I wondered what those stickers meant! I’m officially not bothered by them. Maybe I’ll even get one for my car. In my case though, it wouldn’t be bragging, just plain lying.
There is a difference in that most running races are a fixed distance, 5k, 5mi, 10k, 10mi, etc., whereas most cycling races/charity rides are just on a course. Most of the Metric centuries (100k) or centuries (100mi) that I’ve done haven’t been that exact distance, either being a little over or under.
Jersey plates? If so, that’s the GSP exit for Cape May.
LOL!