Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Why Do I Run?
I think that's a good question, and one that often occurs to me as I'm getting ready for a big race.
Last Sunday I ran the Army Ten-Miler, one of the biggest 10-mile races in the US. Sometimes, when I tell people I ran a race, they ask "oh wow, did you win?" Um, no. There were over 20,000 people racing Sunday, and I am not someone who's going to win a race like that. The people who do are running 5-minute miles for the entire race...not something my body will ever do.
No, I'm not running against anyone else. I only race against myself. My hope is that I will keep getting faster. I've been consistent about that in the 10-mile races, though not in my marathons. I've now run six 10-milers in the last 2 1/2 years, and I've run faster in each one, going from about 89 minutes in my first one down to 76:52 in last weekend's race. A nice improvement, if I do say so myself. There is going to come a day when my body will start slowing down, but today is not that day.
I had a dilemma this past weekend: do I try to set a new personal record, or do I use this as just a training race for the upcoming New York City Marathon, running at a somewhat slower marathon pace rather than at a fast 10-miler pace? I wasn't sure until the night before, when I decided to go all out. I'm glad I did; I ended up setting a new record for myself and I know I would have been disappointed if I hadn't tried.
But why do this? Why put my body through races, why miss out on Friday night socializing because I'm getting up at 5am Saturday to run, why put myself out there in the rain and the snow to train for a marathon in the spring? I first decided to run a marathon because I knew I should be running for my health, but I needed a goal if i was going to keep it going. But now I don't mind running for fitness, I actually enjoy it, so why keep racing against a clock?
Because it makes me proud.
Running gives me a sense of pride that's different from what I get from my other achievements. Yes, I know, I've accomplished a lot of things about which I could justifiably be proud, and I am. But running is different. Why? Because this time, it's me. I set the standards, I determine the effort, I judge the results. No board of officers deciding I should be promoted, no commission deciding I should be a Fulbright Scholar, no dissertation committee deciding I should have a PhD, no employer deciding I should get a job, can make me feel as proud as me telling myself "you did good." My opinion of myself matters more than anyone else's opinion of me, and when it comes to running, I'm the only one who decides how well I've done.
I was reminded this weekend that some people ran a lot faster than I did. I also noticed in the results that I ran faster than about 80% of the people out there. Neither of those matters. What matters is that I ran faster than I ever did before. For a 44 year old guy who started running less than 3 years ago, that's not bad. Not bad at all.
Last Sunday I ran the Army Ten-Miler, one of the biggest 10-mile races in the US. Sometimes, when I tell people I ran a race, they ask "oh wow, did you win?" Um, no. There were over 20,000 people racing Sunday, and I am not someone who's going to win a race like that. The people who do are running 5-minute miles for the entire race...not something my body will ever do.
No, I'm not running against anyone else. I only race against myself. My hope is that I will keep getting faster. I've been consistent about that in the 10-mile races, though not in my marathons. I've now run six 10-milers in the last 2 1/2 years, and I've run faster in each one, going from about 89 minutes in my first one down to 76:52 in last weekend's race. A nice improvement, if I do say so myself. There is going to come a day when my body will start slowing down, but today is not that day.
I had a dilemma this past weekend: do I try to set a new personal record, or do I use this as just a training race for the upcoming New York City Marathon, running at a somewhat slower marathon pace rather than at a fast 10-miler pace? I wasn't sure until the night before, when I decided to go all out. I'm glad I did; I ended up setting a new record for myself and I know I would have been disappointed if I hadn't tried.
But why do this? Why put my body through races, why miss out on Friday night socializing because I'm getting up at 5am Saturday to run, why put myself out there in the rain and the snow to train for a marathon in the spring? I first decided to run a marathon because I knew I should be running for my health, but I needed a goal if i was going to keep it going. But now I don't mind running for fitness, I actually enjoy it, so why keep racing against a clock?
Because it makes me proud.
Running gives me a sense of pride that's different from what I get from my other achievements. Yes, I know, I've accomplished a lot of things about which I could justifiably be proud, and I am. But running is different. Why? Because this time, it's me. I set the standards, I determine the effort, I judge the results. No board of officers deciding I should be promoted, no commission deciding I should be a Fulbright Scholar, no dissertation committee deciding I should have a PhD, no employer deciding I should get a job, can make me feel as proud as me telling myself "you did good." My opinion of myself matters more than anyone else's opinion of me, and when it comes to running, I'm the only one who decides how well I've done.
I was reminded this weekend that some people ran a lot faster than I did. I also noticed in the results that I ran faster than about 80% of the people out there. Neither of those matters. What matters is that I ran faster than I ever did before. For a 44 year old guy who started running less than 3 years ago, that's not bad. Not bad at all.
Labels: Running
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All great reasons to run :) But if I said I run only to see cute guys in shorts, will you hold them against me?
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