10 Reasons to Run!

Happy 4th of July everyone!

I was feeling all kinds of contemplative today and thought I would give you my top 10 reasons for running.

10. Stress Relief & Mood Boosting: Ever have a bad day and all you want to is veg out on the couch and be a self indulgent grump? Me too! That's one of the reasons why I like to lace up my shoes and hit the road. A quick 3 miler and I am usually in a much better mood because I have had time to de-stress. A wise woman once said: "Exercise releases endorphins, endorphins make people happy, happy people don't go around killing people!" - Elle Woods :-)

9. An Excuse to Wear A Costume: Who doesn't love tutus or other silly costumes? Have you seen my photos from the Halloween runs? I look ridiculous and I love it. Plus I love the added challenge of trying to beat heat stroke (reference the banana and the angry birds costume) when running.

8. Friendship & Camaraderie: Whether you are running with friends in a group or you are just meeting people on the course, you have a lot of great conversations. I don't think I have ever been to a race where I haven't met someone friendly on the course where I could strike up a conversation. Sometimes it commiserating, sometimes its a goofy conversation, and sometimes you are just providing support.

7. Boosting Your Wardrobe: Do you like tech tees? Do you have an affinity for all things running? If so, then running is a sport for you. Sign up for a race, get a shirt, then wear it proudly. You can get anything from a plain old cotton tee to a fancy state of the art Under Armour shirt depending on the races you choose. The nice part is that usually the cost of the t-shirt would be more than what you are paying to run the race.

6. Running This Town: If you are like me, then you probably like to travel and look for unique races out of town to run. I've run in Virginia, DC, New York, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey. I am always looking for the next race to run else where. What better way to see America then with your own two feet?

5. You Can Run For A Cause: I am a terrible fundraiser. I try, but I just don't know enough people to get enough money to ever run on a team like Team in Training, even though I think they are great. But, most of the races you sign up for will support a cause. You are not only doing good for yourself, but others as well.

4. Gaining Confidence: 3 years ago I would have never donned a pair of spandex pants. The idea of my booty in any type of compression wear seemed alarming. However, I have learned to not care about what I look like when I run. One of the biggest roadblocks I mentally had to running was having to run in front of other people. Now, who cares? At least I am moving and I own it! Plus, the more you run the better your butt will look ;-)

3. Working Towards A Goal: Best part about signing up for a race is that I now have a concrete motivating factor to work towards. I am a horse with a carrot and I know I need to push through because I have a goal I need to reach and that time is finite. Do you think I liked waking up at 5:30am in January and layering on tons of clothes to trot up and down hills for 5 to 6 hours at a time? No!!! But I did it because I had to be ready by March 17th for a marathon. You are more motivated to do something when you know you have to.

2. Running Doesn't Have to Be Just Running: So you find 5ks boring or you would never run a half marathon because 13.1 miles seems half crazy (see what I did there? :-D). But now there seems to be an entire new branch of running, the Color Run, Color Me Rad, Warrior Dash, Electric Run, Dirty Girl, Tough Mudder, FoamFest, and the list goes on and on and on... If you need something to mix it up then go for it. An obstacle course race not only breaks up the running, but it can help you train different muscles of your body in preparation for your race. Or maybe you just want someone to hit you with big puffballs of colored cornstarch, either way running doesn't have to be a chore it can be fun! Do what speaks to you!

1. The Bling: One of the really fun things for me is finishing and getting a medal. I have them proudly displayed in my office and I love looking at them. They remind me of my hard work and I can think about all of the challenges I faced getting through each race. But most importantly, the just look cool! Hey, I am girl I am supposed to like jewelry.

There you have it, my reasons for running! Until next time, happy running :-)