What Is Running To You?

Too often we put running inside of a box. 

We define it solely as a form of healthy living or fitness.
We talk about running as though it's only purpose is to train our bodies.
If you listen closely, we speak of it as a form of pain that is to be endured.
A negative that will somehow, through endurance, transition into a positive.

As Christopher McDougall puts it - 
"Everything I’d been taught about running was wrong. We treat running in the modern world the same way we treat childbirth—it’s going to hurt, and requires special exercises and equipment, and the best you can hope for is to get it over with quickly with minimal damage."

And while there are days that your runs will indeed come with doses of pain, it's important to remind ourselves that more than anything else, running is about freedom. 

Indeed, running is the human body's most raw form of freedom.

It's why I love the above video from Altra featuring Mariane Uehara. Yes, it's an ad for the Altra One² Performance Running Shoe. But as I watched it again today, it was a stirring reminder that running doesn't conform to any limits or definitions. Running isn't even about what we may be capable of as individuals.

No... running is much more.
It allows us to push our own boundaries.
It allows us the opportunity to be present with ourselves.
It challenges and changes our comfort zones, and allows us to reach deep within ourselves to find moments of courage and bravery that we may not have known existed.

So tomorrow, when you lace up your shoes and head out the door, think less about your destination and pace. Think less about the calories being burned and the problems you're attempting to outrun. 

Instead, just run. Embrace the moment. Embrace the space you are in. 
Run and enjoy the moments of freedom that follow.