Why I Run

This is a post I've been composing in my head for a while. Now comes the task of putting it on paper. This all started when I met my new sister-in-law, Cecilia. We were in Italy for the wedding and had just run the Boston Marathon a few weeks before. One of the first questions she asked me was why in the world I would run a marathon. I really laughed when I saw this You Tube video because it reminds me so much of the conversations I've had with Cecilia about running.

So this is for all of you out there like Cecilia who relate to the girl in the video. If you are a runner you really don't need to read this post because you already understand but for those of you who don't I'll try to explain the madness. Here are some of the reasons I run.

I run for my health. I list this first not because it is the most important - just to get it out of the way. One day I was at Beus Pond doing a speed workout and there was a guy walking his dog. He asked me if I was competitive or if I was just doing it for my health. I laughed and said, "both." It's like being able to give up cookies and ice cream to be healthier. But I don't. They just taste too good. The same goes for running. I enjoy the health benefits of running but if that were the only reason to run I probably wouldn't. Having said that, I do love that I will most likely live a longer, healthier life because of what I do!

I'm not coordinated enough to do anything else! That was a joke I had with my high school cross country coach. I told him if I was good enough to play another sport I wouldn't be a runner and there was some truth to that. For some reason running has always just come naturally to me while nothing else has. I remember in 6th grade when we started running the mile. I was amazed when I beat everyone in the class, even the boys.

I'm competitive. It doesn't matter if it's Candy Land, UNO, Foosball, tests when I was in school, or running. I love to win. Hopefully, that doesn't come off sounding too cocky. I know I'm not the best at anything. I'm certainly not the best runner around. That's just my personality and what drives me to be better. I'll never qualify for the Olympic Trials or anything like that but I am good enough to win some local races and to me that's a lot of fun. I hate to finish behind people I know I can beat. It's rare for me to leave a race without at least an age group prize but even at the races when I know I won't win anything my competitiveness pushes me to be the best I can be. For instance, last year when I ran the Boston Marathon I knew I wasn't coming home with anything other than a finisher's medal. I still wanted to run the best I could. I hired a coach and trained harder than I ever had for a marathon. I ran a fantastic race and loved every minute of it. I loved the crowds and the exciting atmosphere. I loved having so many runners around me to keep me going when I was tired. I even took three minutes off my PR. No one does that at Boston. The course is way too hard! Later that day in the hotel room I looked up results on the internet and found out I had placed 188th! That may not sound impressive if you don't know about the Boston Marathon. Boston is one of the world's most prestigious marathons with some of the world's best marathon runners. There were over 11,000 women in the race and most of the non-elite runners like me had to get there by running a qualifying time so it is competitive even at the recreational level. A top 200 finish was better than I ever would have dreamed.

I run to make friends. A lot of my running is done alone because it's hard to work out my schedule to fit with others as well as find runners the same pace as me. Whenever I get a chance though I love to meet up with friends for a run. Some of my best friends over the years have been friends that I made while running. Jason and I even met when we were running cross country at SUU. Some of my friends are also my fiercest competitors. A lot of my friends weren't my friends at all when we first met because we were always racing against each other. Once we started training together we became really good friends and found we could help each other out a lot by pushing each other through hard workouts. It's hard not to be friends with someone after doing 3 hour marathon training runs with them week after week! I have made friends with all kinds of different people that otherwise I wouldn't have ever met!

I enjoy running. I'm always surprised when people tell me how much they hate running and what can they do to enjoy it. I really don't have an answer because that has never been a problem for me. Sure there are mornings I don't want to get out the door (especially this time of year when it is cold and dark) but I always feel better when I am done and I almost always enjoy my run once I'm warmed up. Sometimes I enjoy just going for a relaxing run with friends and sometimes it is a lot of fun to run hard and push myself to improve. That's really what it all comes down to. I love to run!