There’s never been a more exciting time to be a fan of distance running — records are falling with alarming regularity and athletes are using social media to express themselves off the track, road, and trail and engage with fellow runners, pro or otherwise. But, no offense to the men, there’s something within women’s running that makes it, well, more fun to follow: the overt camaraderie between competitors.

When Emma Bates, who was vying for the American World Record alongside Emily Sisson in Chicago this fall, recapped a moment in which she sidelined herself due to injury during the race, she actually called it empowering thanks to the mid-race encouragement from her fellow athletes. At the start of the USATF 5K Championships the weekend of the New York City Marathon, Keira D’Amato was photographed giving Weini Kelati a fist bump, proving that even at the gun, these athletes can still cheer each other on.

Shalane Flanagan On The Shared Experience of Running

“There’s a lot of sacrifices that go into getting to the start line, and I think everyone there really understands what the people around them had to go through to get there,” three-time Olympian and New York City Marathon Champion Shalane Flanagan said before the start of the 2023 New York City Marathon. “It’s a shared experience, and I do think women are more likely to acknowledge that verbally or visually.”

A rising tide lifts all boats, right? You could argue that the in-it-together mentality of female athletes has played a role in the number of distance running records that have fallen recently.

Times clocked in 2022 and 2023 make up four of the top five fastest times in the women’s marathon, and, in September, Tigst Assefa set a world record of 2:11:53 in Berlin, taking off more than two minutes from the previous record. It was a huge jump in women’s running times, and spurred speculation of even faster times on the horizon.

Back in 2019, Brigid Kosgei — who had just broken Paula Radcliffe’s 2:15:25 world record, which stood for 16 years, by running a 2:14:04 — said in a post-race press conference, “I think 2:10 is possible for a lady.”

“I don’t see why not,” agrees Flanagan. “Especially when there’s more than one knocking on the door — then there starts to be a trend of women who are hitting that same mark more and more.” Following Assefa’s world record, Hellen Obiri’s coach Dathan Ritzenhein said he believes Obiri could run 2:11 in a race like Berlin right now. Obiri won this year’s New York City Marathon in 2:27:23, and became the first woman to win the Boston and New York City Marathons in the same year since 1989.

RELATED: Mission Accomplished: Shalane Flanagan Finishes Sixth Marathon in Six Weeks

Athletes Working Together

Flanagan points to her own breakthrough experience as an example. In 2017, she became the first American woman to win the New York City Marathon in 40 years; six months later, Des Linden became the first American woman in 33 years to win the Boston Marathon. That race was a clear demonstration of how female athletes work together: The two could be seen in conversation on the course, and Des almost dropped out of the race before choosing to help the other runners (going so far as to wait for Flanagan during a bathroom break). Flanagan credits that teamwork to Linden’s eventual win.

But that sense of camaraderie and community benefits more than the pros. As the MasterCard Endurance ambassador for the New York Marathon, Flanagan hosted a virtual “Personal Best” pre-race coaching session for cardholders featuring mile-by-mile strategies, nutrition and fueling tips, and more; then she paced former Bachelor Matt James to a 40-minute personal best time on the course.

“I’m definitely a social runner,” says Flanagan. “I run better when I have people to run with. I’m more excited [to run] when I have people to run with. To me, a shared experience is so much better than a solo one.”

The Data

The proof: In January 2022, runners with grouped activities recorded 78 percent more active time than their solo counterparts, a year-end report from Strava determined. The fitness tracking app also found that runners covered more distance and stayed out longer when they worked out with another person or a group.

Flanagan prioritizes community building as a coach for the University of Oregon track & field and cross country programs, too. “Honestly, one of the biggest parts of my job is making sure that while everyone maximizes their individual talent, I’m still reminding them that we’re running for something bigger than ourselves,” she says. “It can be a little challenging with a variety of personalities, but prioritizing the collective whole elevates everyone’s shared experience.”

You don’t need to be a part of an official team to reap the rewards of the running community.

People who worked out with friends said they enjoyed the exercise more than those who worked out alone in a study from the University of Southern California, and those who exercised with someone they thought was better than them worked out up to 200 percent harder and longer than others, according to a 2012 study published in the Annals of Behavioral Medicine.

Find the people who not only make you feel good when running, but help you stay accountable and motivate you when things are hard. The unexpected payoff might be a breakthrough at your next race.