Laces of gratitude.
As we round the corner into November and the month where we focus on giving thanks*, we’re pulling out this beauty for revival. Because it’s as all true as it was over two years ago. *We try to give thanks 365 days, but some days are better than others.
1. Fresh shoes and a few miles can lift me up like nothing else.
2. Downhills. Love the real ones when I can just chill and cruise and head down. And I also appreciate the virtual downhill: single runs and longer spells when running just feels lighter and less onerous than I anticipated. I try to savor every gravity-gifted moment in each situation.
3. Endorphins. God bless every last one of them.
4. The deep, wide cardiovascular foundation that consistent running provides me; I may never be able to do 10 good burpees/push-ups/pull-ups in a row, but I can run 10 miles. And that’s enough for me.
5. Just this picture. Running brings such energy, strength, joy, laughter, life.
Air under both feet: just as any good running pic should show.
6. That running is the only time when I can fart and air snot with abandon. And nobody cares—or at least pretends not to.
7. Although the calendar designates the seasons, my running wardrobe defines them. The first day in a year that legitimately calls for long tights, capris, or shorts, I always feel fresh and new when I head out.
8. Running reflects so many life lessons—goal setting, hard work, dsicipline, patience, persistance, and other annoying phrases that pop up on generic conference rooms—that when speedbumps knock me down in other areas of my life, I take solace in the fact that running is pure and simple. I get out of running exactly what I put in, and nothing—not politics, nepotism, financial incentives, and other annoying practices that show up too often in the news—can ever change that.
9. The way running prioritizes the rest of my life. My mind and spirit demand that I run, so I have to tend the rest of the details—sleep, diet, overall self-care—that allow me to get out there mile after mile. And the repeated miles, put in often before the sun comes up, means that all the truly little things that are camoflagued as really big and important issues can’t rock my world as much. I’m too wiped to deal. Plus, by the time I lace up the next morning, they’re usually history.
Running: a bond that rivals Super Glue.
10. And this picture too. How running bonds women in mystifying, intimate ways. The friendships built over miles are some of the most beautiful I’ve had. And the most beautiful thing is, you meet another runner, you’ve met a sure friend.
Why are you thankful for running?
I am thankful for running because it saved me. Running allowed me to see who I am and constantly strive to be better. Running allowed me to start working with Girls on the Run and become the “tutu lady”. Running allows me to constantly inspire others to get up and move…speed does not matter. Forward is a pace.
Yes, so much! It does come in waves though. I feel so much better running and it keeps me sane. :)
So thankful for my running friends. They make it seem not crazy to get out of your warm bed when it’s 20 degrees outside to run five miles. They make me laugh and set the tone for the day. Running changed my life but finding the people I share it with, well, that makes it better every day.
I am so thankful for the sanity running brings me. I am so thankful I walked into that running store (Run Toda I Glen Ellyn) 3 1/2 years ago and found your book and this community! You guys are awesome! Happy Thanksgiving!
I am thankful for the mental strength it gives me. How a run can right all wrongs (or at least make them not seem quite so wrong). It’s pure and simple!
I am thankful for soooo many reasons. Running has given me so much: health, friendships, quiet time to myself, joy….and at a time when I had begun to feel my identity was only “mommy,” running gave me something else by which to identify myself. I’m grateful to be a mother runner!
I’m thankful for the quiet time! For that 1/2 hour to 1 1/2 hour when I can regroup and get everything mentally back in line. Or just veg out to a song, or listen to the birds and enjoy the sun. I’m thankful for the me times that running gives me!
I am thankful for the support and encouragement that comes from my group of running mommas. They are the best around!
I am thankful for you and Sarah – your books, your blog, your FB page (where I can ask anything and get answers or encouragement), your podcasts. I have never met you ladies and I don’t know if we’ll ever cross paths, but I do know you and you know me just like you know all of us Mother Runners. You have created a community for us to love one another as much as we love running. Thanks.
I am thankful that, although my sister and I are not close in any way, being runners bonds us in some way. At least we have that.
I am grateful to have found I am capable of running. I had always been convinced I couldn’t do it. 6 months ago I had never in my life run a mile. 2 weeks ago I ran a 10K, my longest run was 10.5 miles, and I’m using your 1/2 marathon – finish it plan to train for my first 1/2 in February. I’m grateful to have found out, finally at age 39, that I AM a runner! And I’m coaching girls on the run in hopes that my daughter won’t have to wait as long as I did to figure out what amazing things her body is capable of!
I’m grateful for the mental state I’m in during and after a run. I could have the worst day ever but I know going on a run will help get rid of stress, frustration, mommy guilt, and heart-ache, even if I just run a short mile. And I’m grateful for a husband who can sense when I’m about to snap and encourages me to go for a run even if it means dealing with the kids after working 10 hours.
In thankful for the confidence it gives me and the way it forced me to take charge of the rest of my life too. Rest, diet, excercise and calendar planning are all worked around my running! And last but not least the pride my family has in me. Even if I don’t believe I can they still do!
I’m thankful for so much with running, but more than anything for the simple health that allows me to run each day. I have two close friends who were diagnosed with chronic diseases in the past year, one with MS, and last month, in a conversation we had she stated, “I would love to run. I can’t even run from the kitchen table to the door right now.” Whenever I am lacking motivation, I remember her words, give thanks that I have the ability to run, and head right out the door.
I’m thankful that running is always there for me. Even when I am not motivated to run, running is always forgiving and takes me back when I am ready!
Details– watch Will Have An Essential role In Almost Any Site administration
I’m just thankful that I can still run – at least for now. Because #1 there are so many who can’t – so I’m lucky that I can, #2 I know that there will come a time when the doctor will tell me “No more running-bottom line” because my knees and hip and back just won’t let me – so for now I can and I’m appreciative for that – #3 It gives me a piece of mind that not a lot can do and for that I am thankful. Thanks for asking!
I’m grateful that running taught me I’m so much stronger, and tougher, than I gave myself credit for. I had always admired runners but never could get the habit down. Finally, a couple of years ago at age 32, I started running, completed several 5Ks, a 10K, and a half marathon (while pregnant!), and haven’t looked back. Running gives me sanity, a community of other runners, and the knowledge that I do have the discipline and mental toughness that I doubted previously.
Running is not a hobby or a habit. I am grateful it is part of my lifestyle that allows me to focus on health benefits that I’ve enjoyed for years. Movement is an amazing force and it’s running that gives me the most joy and gratitude. Your 10 bullet points could very well be mine.
It helps me to clear my head, get to pray for those I love, friendship and best of all at the end of the day “All is Good” because I got in a run (even if it was crappy(
Happy to still be able to run for over 30 years. Might be a tad slower but as long as I can run/jog all is right with my life even when my world is stressing me out!!!