Why I Run

I was reading a magazine in the park on Sunday, and there were some articles written by different women entitled "Why I Run." Each of them had different reasons for running, but all of them agreed that running made them a better person. While reading these, I was inspired to write my own piece called, "Why I Run," and I am "publishing" it here.

I believe in the runner's high, and I believe that those who are passionate about running are the ones who experience it to the fullest degree possible. To me, the runner's high is a sensational reaction to a great run! It's an exhilarating feeling of satisfaction and achievement. It's like being on top of the world, and truthfully... there's nothing else quite like it!
- Sasha Azevedo

Some people run for exercise, to lose weight and be healthy, but they hate every single step. Some people run to escape: from themselves, from their families, from crappy circumstances. Some people run because they love feeling the wind on their face and the burn in their legs after the first 4 or 5 miles.

When I try to think about why I run, I have a hard time coming up with a solid answer. I started running for exercise. It started as a casual thing. I exercised (and still do) primarily to prevent heart disease. My father died of heart disease, which means it runs in my family, and it is the number one killer for women. It is also completely preventable. I may not be able to prevent cancer, but I decided early on that I most certainly would not die of heart disease.

So I exercised, went to the gym, ran 2 or 3 or 4 miles outside, but I needed some motivation - a goal that I could work towards. When a friend started talking about running a race, I let myself get roped into running a 1/2 marathon. I figured that was the farthest distance I would ever want to run, and all I wanted to do was to finish it. I did all of my training by myself, and I did finish it, in 27 degree weather, in a respectable 2 hours 27 minutes. In my first race, I had a respectable pace of about 11:19 per mile. I was proud of myself, but I also was really sick and tired of running. So, I stopped running for a few months, starting up again to run the Broad St Run last May. Everyone told me how much fun it was to run it, so I signed up. This time, I ran some of my runs with my sister, and I didn't hate it all quite so much. I enjoyed the feeling running gave me, the sense of accomplishment I had when I was done running. I liked running races and having a goal to work for. I liked running, but I still did not love it.

I ran casually on the treadmill and outside during the winter, not really enjoying it because treadmills are miserable and so is freezing cold weather. Then, in January, I joined a running MeetUp group. I started running more than ever- about 20 miles a week. I loved running with others, found myself running farther and faster, and loved getting up (even on the weekends!) to go for the runs. I love running. Something clicked in the past few months, and now I honestly love running. So much so that I am probably going to train for the Philadelphia Marathon in November. A marathon! I never thought that I would run a marathon, that I would want to run one.

But as it turns out, I love the way I feel, how it makes me look, how much healthier my heart and cholesterol is (!), the high that I can get when I get that extra burst of energy in the middle of the run, when I feel as if I could run to China and back, and I love the calm and clarity I get when I'm done. I feel accomplished, and I love that you can always push to run farther or faster - it is (almost) impossible to reach a point where you can't keep improving. I don't run to escape myself or my life. I am very satisfied with both. I run to gain clarity, to be healthy, to push myself. It's becoming one of my passions. Running makes me a better person: physically, emotionally, and mentally.

That's why I run.