Invaluable Lessons I've Learnt Running

Invaluable Lessons I Learnt Running

As I narrowly avoided face-planting concrete the other morning on my run, a great lesson I wished someone had taught me, was not to attempt running and talking. But perhaps that was just pure clumsiness. 

Here's a few invaluable lessons I have learnt from running: 

• Just because it’s not easy, doesn’t mean you can’t do it. Getting to the end of your run can often feel like an impossible quest. But I suppose like childbirth, when push comes to shove, that baby’s got to come out of there somehow, and you’re only way home is getting up and over that hill. Running is almost never easy. It’s hard. It always will be. The only difference is that each time you set out, you realise that although it’s hard, you’re strong and more than capable.

• Fast runners, slow runners, there’s little difference. We’re all made of the same grit and determination that will get us through our runs, regardless of our times and distances.

• You can’t compare your mile to anyone else’s. We all thrive in different aspects of our lives. When my Brother began running again, I was really disheartened to see he could do what I found incredibly difficult, so easily. This type of discouragement is natural and we can all feel as though we aren’t good enough within certain aspects of our lives. You can use these feelings as a positive driving force to improve your own performance, but focus on doing your best not anyone else's. And at the end of the day, sure he can thrash me on a 5K run, but I’ll always make a better bowl of porridge than him.

• The climb is steep, but boy, the view is great. All your efforts are being noted. All the long runs, the hot runs, the hard runs, the fast runs and one day, you’re going to see the fruit of all your labour. 

• It’s easy to get caught up with the PBs. A lot of runners get really concerned with always going out there and running their fastest, which sometimes can take all the fun out of running. Don’t forget to sometimes go out running for the pure enjoyment of the sport - forget about PBs, just run. On Christmas morning, my Dad and I always open a pair of new running shoes and it’s become a sort of tradition that we break them in with a cheeky run before the festivities of the day begins. We don’t worry about how far we run, or how fast we run, we just have a great time. 

And possibly the most important lesson I've learnt running: the Rocky theme tune gets you up hills quicker. Fact.

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