10 Reasons Why I Run

In honor of Global Running Day on June 1, 2022, I am inspired to share with all of you 10 Reasons Why I Run. I have only been running for 3 years now, but I have learned a lot of lessons. I’ve had some setbacks, but I am always motivated to push forward, and that has helped me stick with my running goals.

Why I Love Running

“Running is my therapy. It gives me release. Mental, physical, and emotional release. Some of my fondest runs are when I was blaring music and crying my eyes out, all while trying to keep a tempo pace.”             

Alicia Ortman, Hey Goal Sister

10 Reasons Why I Run

1. I love the mental release I get, and the endorphins I feel afterwards. That is the “runners high” that everyone talks about. You really just feel better mentally, and there’s no way to describe that unless you run.
2. I love the alone time. I often run very early in the morning so that I don’t take away from quality family time, and that quiets my mom guilt. Oftentimes, an early morning run is the only time I get to have quiet thinking time to myself.
3. I love the accountability I get with having someone to run with. It’s harder to cancel on someone else when the alarm goes off at 4:30 am, and you have to go run in the dark. An accountability partner and/or coach is an tremendous aspect to reaching my running goals.
4. I love the challenge of competing in races and tracking my progress against myself. I love when I PR with either time or distance PR’s. Check out my blog post on my distance PR, Running a marathon!
5. I love watching and feeling my body get stronger, not thinner, but stronger. I love challenging myself and seeing what my 37 year old body is capable of, especially when it comes to reaching time goals.
6. I absolutely love setting an example for my daughter of what a Mama is capable of. If she sees her mom pushing herself towards goals, then she will have the confidence to do the same when she is grown up, and especially if she chooses motherhood as part of her journey.
7. I love the ripple effects running has had on my life. First, it keeps me mostly in shape, because I do love to indulge in my carbs and chocolate. I consistently drink half my body weight in ounces of water because my body needs that water to run. I drink a daily morning smoothie with greens to give my body nourishment. I make sure to get 7-8 hours of sleep, because I know that my muscles need sleep time to repair and recover. And, my body feels better. I mentally feel better after a run. I now know that if I am feeling anxious or tense, that I need to go for a run and get that tension out of my body.
8. I run to get new ideas. This site was an idea that I thought of while on a run. I remember exactly where I was when I had it. I was running around a lake, and I thought, I would really like a community of women that want to work on their dreams and goals, and maybe they don’t know how to go about it, or have someone in their life leading an example of how to go about it. I could hopefully inspire someone to move forward with their goals if I simply share my story and life experiences about how I’ve spent most of my life figuring things out.
9. I run for the friendships and community that I am so blessed to be apart of. I definitely took me awhile to get out of my comfort zone (like 2 solid years) and start running with a local running company. I could write an entire blog post on Black Dog Running Co and how much I love and appreciate the people and friendships that have developed from me finally having the courage to start going to a run meetup.
10. I run for me. I run because I love running. I run because it allows me to be my whole entire self. I can either run by myself or with others that also want to be their entire selves, and that serves my soul.

I Wasn’t Always A Runner

In high school, I remember part of our gym class grade was to run one mile. At our school, that was 4 laps around the track that enclosed the football field. I dreaded that day, every single semester. I really don’t ever remember any training for a mile run, which I really think would be helpful, because not every one is a natural athlete.

I would always start out my mile assignment with a full on sprint. By the time I would be around the first bend of the track, I was already panting like a crazy person, and by the second bend, I would be walking with side stitches. Anyone that I recognized in the same boat as me, I would partner up with and we would complain about how dumb it was we had to run a mile for a grade until we finished.

Running Stuck This Time  

I attempted running in 2013. I would go to the gym and run, and then I ran some 5K’s , but eventually I dropped it. Having accountability is everything. Having someone in the trenches with you, makes running a lot more fun. Plus, you will get to know your running partner on such a deeper level, I really can’t explain it, and I truly believed that helped me stick with it this time.

Fast forward to 2019. I started running again, really to run with my friend. I was a working mom, working a full time retail job, so adding running, was definitely a challenge. She had made a goal to run a half marathon, and asked me if I wanted to join. I didn’t even know what the distance of a half marathon was when we started. But it sounded like a hard goal we could work towards, and although far fetched, achievable.

I remember my first distance PR. I ran 5 straight miles in July 2019. That was the biggest feat that I accomplished so far in my running journey. I was so incredibly proud of myself, and actually couldn’t believe that I was capable of doing that. I was in Indianapolis, IN with my friend Riki-Leigh for a girls weekend, and that was the cherry on top (for me) of our weekend.

For a girl that could run one mile for a grade in 2002, to now running a 5 mile PR (2019), it felt like a very big deal.

My Running Time Line

2013-

• Ran a handful of 5K’s. This one pictured below was the first one I ever ran the full 5K without stopping.

2019:

• First Ever Half Marathon 10/20/19. 2:26:06

2020:

• Myrtle Beach Mini Marathon- Half Marathon 10/28/20.

2021:

• Myrtle Beach Half Marathon
• Myrtle Beach Mini Marathon
• First Turkey Trot
• First One Mile Fun Run with my daughter

2022:

• PR’d my Half Marathon Pace on a Time Trial 1:58
• Ran Myrtle Beach Marathon. 3/5/22. 4:45:32
• Running Goals-
  • Run Five 5K’s in the NS PROMOS Race Series
  • Run a destination half marathon (Asheville, NC)
  • Volunteer for the Myrtle Beach Mini Marathon
  • Possibly run another Fun Run with my daughter

Running Goal I Wrote in 2021

Then, in 2022, I want to run a marathon. Why? Because it seems like the most impossible, crazy thing I could ever do. I don’t know many people that have run marathons, but I want to be one of them. I feel like if I can run and finish a marathon, run 26.2 miles, then there isn’t anything I can’t do.

Do you love running? Leave me a comment below if you do!