From the Rafa Nadal Foundation Centre in Valencia, an experience has been developed that goes far beyond sport: a process of support, decision-making, and personal growth through a shared challenge.
Within the framework of the En Marcha programme, the team set a specific goal that served as a guiding thread for several months: preparing to take part in a 5-kilometre race in Valencia.
A goal that mobilises the group
The initiative began in February, at a time when the group was going through a period of lower attendance, influenced by the cold weather and the variety of personal circumstances among participants. In this context, the educational team proposed a challenge that could act as a motivating factor, but also as a space for autonomy: a shared goal that allowed each person to decide their level of involvement, pace, and way of engaging in the process.
The objective was defined as participation in the VIII Carrera Marta FernĆ”ndez de Castro, part of the Caixa Popular popular race circuit, scheduled for May 24. The choice was not random: an accessible race was selected, close to the neighbourhood and with enough preparation time, taking into account both weather conditions and the groupās reality.
A process with diverse responses
From the beginning, the challenge generated different reactions. Some participants experienced it as a motivating and achievable opportunity, while others showed resistance or uncertainty. This diversity became a central part of the process: the project was not understood as an imposition, but as a space where each participant could position themselves differently in relation to the same challenge.
Daily work was not easy. The first weeks were marked by cold weather, difficulty maintaining consistency in evening sessions, and the presence of limiting thoughts, both individual and collective. However, the programmeās approach allowed these difficulties to become educational material.
Throughout the months, the group experienced very different journeys. Some participants began training independently from the start; others dropped out and returned later; some joined motivated by the challenge; and others trained but ultimately did not register for the race.
There were also participants who strengthened their preparation by combining regular sessions with complementary activities, such as occasional CrossFit sessions. This diversity was not seen as a problem, but as a real reflection of individual processes within a collective context.
Body and emotional awareness in training
On this journey, the educational team at the Centro FundaciĆ³n Rafa Nadal de Valencia incorporated a key dimension: active awareness of the body and emotional state during physical activity.
During training sessions, simple but meaningful questions were used: how each person felt physically, their energy level on a subjective scale, what thoughts appeared during effort, and whether these thoughts helped or hindered progress. Participants were also encouraged to ask for help within the group, whether to slow down, stop, or adjust intensity.
This approach was combined with structured technical training. Sessions were organised into running intervals at different intensities (R1 to R5), aiming for each participant to identify their own sustainable pace, especially around R3, understood as a steady and conscious effort zone.
The goal was not competition between individuals, but learning self-regulation and recognising personal progress.
During one collective reflection session, an important request emerged: to alternate race-specific training with more varied, standard sessions. This marked a turning point, as it showed that the group was beginning to take a more active role in shaping its own process within the En Marcha programme at the Rafa Nadal Foundation Centre in Valencia.
The race as a celebration of the process
Finally, after months of preparation, race day arrived. Participation in the event was not only the achievement of a sporting goal, but the celebration of a shared process.
Beyond time or performance, the value lay in the journey: in intermittent consistency, moments of doubt, respected individual decisions, and collective learning built session by session.