One of the questions that I get the most often is “why do you run?” or similar variations. And it has finally pushed me to actually think about that question. Why do I run?
Quick disclaimer: I am not claiming that this will work for others. Mental health and physical health are important, complex, and personal journeys. Please consult professionals.
TL;DR: I find running to be great for my mental health and for feeling a good sense of progress in life.
To be honest, it isn’t about my physical health - at least not mainly. This is obviously a nice side effect. I am not going to say no to a healthy heart and more muscle. Further, it isn’t about my physical look, although my younger self is probably quite happy about that.
I boil it down to two main things: head empty and progress.
Head Empty
I have not found anything in my life that comes even remotely close to the feeling that running gives my brain. During my worst days, my best way to deal with stuff is to just go running. Multiple times in my life deep stress has caused me to go out for a run. That in turn led me to train for a marathon. And that resulted in actually running that marathon.
When I get going on a run and get in a rhythm, I feel like I am able to just push everything out of my mind. It is comparable to a good meditation for me. After I get a couple of miles in, it is often just my breath and my footfalls. It is also a way to clear my mind to give something in particular devoted thought. Sometimes if I get frustrated at work or stuck on a problem, a good lunchtime run is a great way to work through stuff.
Progress
Just like most things in life, measuring progress feels really nice to me. One thing I remember my mom talking a lot about when I was a kid was to enjoy the progress that you have made. And that doing so makes the process of doing that much easier. With running, that comes naturally for me. It is easy for me to look at a run and compare it to yesterday’s and find progress - less walking, more miles, better pace, felt better, etc. Most of the time my closing thoughts of a run (and honestly most things in my life) are “be better tomorrow”.
Beyond this, paces and races are really easy to see progress with. I don’t race that often - about a marathon a year - but they are great markers for where I am at.
So with all of that said, running has been great for me. It isn’t for everyone. But if you find yourself with time and able enough to give it a try, I’d recommend. It does take a good amount of runs to get it going though. I would recommend something like a “couch to 5k” plan or similar. Give yourself structure and try to stick with it.
Happy running!