Feeling Like Enough: The Jeffrey Cunningham Episode

I've known Jeff Cunningham for years. He's one of my favorite people to talk to because I never know if I'm about to get a coaching lesson, a life lesson, or a story involving Thanksgiving dinner and overcooked turkey. It's all in the podcast, trust me - there's a turkey and running analogy.

After years of saying, "We should work together someday," that day has finally arrived. Jeff is officially coaching me as I attempt what feels like a marathon comeback. And by comeback, I don't mean I took a season off. I took years off.

The kind of break where your old race times start to feel like they happened to someone else.

In this coversation, we're talking about confidence, perfectionism, women, comparison, Strava, guilt, negativity, and why runners are absolutely ridiculous humans.

Years ago, I protected my pace like it was a family heirloom. If my watch showed a number I didn't like, I felt personally attacked. Now? I'm running easy runs at paces that would've horrified 2019 Nicky.

Jeff's response? "Who's watching?" which is an annoying question because it's true.

Nobody cares.

Nobody is sitting around reviewing my Tuesday recovery run. Nobody is handing out awards for fastest easy pace. Yet somehow runners convince ourselves that every run needs to prove something.

Another thing we talked about was how differently women approach performance. Jeff coaches athletes at every level, and he sees it all the time. Women tend to focus on what they're doing wrong. Men tend to assume they'll figure it out. He's not wrong!

The best part of this comeback season isn't going to be chasing old race times. I'm not the same person I was when I ran them. Sure, I'd love to set a new PR. But instead of feeling like something I have to prove, it's become a vision that keeps me moving forward. It's a direction, not a demand.

Because who knows what this season will bring?

Maybe I'll find out I can run faster than I ever have. Or maybe I'll discover I'm a completely different kind of runner now. Maybe I'll have a race that surprises me. Maybe I'll meet people who change me. Whatever it is, I don't think the best part of this journey will show up in the results. I think it will be whatever I find out along the way.

We don't need to be perfect. We don't need every workout to feel amazing. We don't need every run to be fun. We just need to be consistently good.

That actually feels like enough to me...for once.

Guest info: @jdcunningham97 @cunninghamrunning @theconsistentlygoodpodcast