Day #32: Why Do You Run?

I came across this super-inspiring video as I jumped from running site to site enjoying the rich distance running offerings online. This video makes us stop and consider what it is that drives us to run. We each have our own reasons and derive our special meaning from the sport. And this video finds common ground among us all. We long to be extraordinary.

In this video, I am especially touched by the triathlete women struggling (crawling!!) to finish their course. As many have reflected over the years, if you can’t run, walk; if you can’t walk, crawl; and if you can’t crawl, claw at the dirt… whatever it takes to get you across your finish line.

What is your great race, what is your finish line – and will you do whatever it takes to make it?

I bet you will!

~Coach Reed

Our thanks to Fancy Boy Productions for this great video!

Here are some great reflections on why we run. Be inspired, and then post your own reasons in the comments for this post.

“Struggling and suffering are the essence of a life worth living. If you’re not pushing yourself beyond the comfort zone, if you’re not demanding more from yourself – expanding and learning as you go – you’re choosing a numb existence. You’re denying yourself an extraordinary trip.”
~Dean Karnazes

“Running! If there’s any activity happier, more exhilarating, more nourishing to the imagination, I can’t think of what it might be. In running the mind flees with the body, the mysterious efflorescence of language seems to pulse in the brain, in rhythm with our feet and the swinging of our arms.”
~Joyce Carol Oates

“When people ask me why I run, I tell them, there’s not really a reason, it’s just the adrenalin when you start, and the feeling when you cross that finish line, and know that you are a winner no matter what place you got.”
~Courtney Parsons

“I run because it’s my passion, and not just a sport.  Every time I walk out the door, I know why I’m going where I’m going and I’m already focused on that special place where I find my peace and solitude.  Running, to me, is more than just a physical exercise… it’s a consistent reward for victory!”
~Sasha Azevedo

“I run because when I do there’s always the chance to be extraordinary.” ~Anonymous

“We run, not because we think it is doing us good, but because we enjoy it and cannot help ourselves…The more restricted our society and work become, the more necessary it will be to find some outlet for this craving for freedom. No one can say, ‘You must not run faster than this, or jump higher than that.’ The human spirit is indomitable.”
-Sir Roger Bannister, first runner to run a sub-4 minute mile

As a wrap-up to this post, check out this Running Times article which tackles the age-old question from a high-schooler’s perspective. And don’t forget to leave your own inspiring reasons for running in the comments!