The Running Resolution

The New Year is a time when we think about our resolutions. We always start with good intentions. We make good on our resolutions with determination and enthusiasm. And then we start to lose momentum and eventually quit.

I often tell myself that the word, “resolution,” when broken down, is “re-solution.” The prefix, “re” means to do over. I try not to beat myself up about failing to commit to my resolutions. I pick myself up and get back on track. The only time you fail is when you don’t try.

“The greatest glory in living lies not in never failing, but in rising every time we fall.” ~Nelson Mandela

It’s almost a month into the year. Maybe you’ve started running and stopped. Or maybe you’ve thought about it, but haven’t started yet. In the back of your head you’re telling yourself, I’ll pick up running again later. In any case, we think about our plans all the time. We wait for the next time or when the time is right—perhaps next year again. But it’s never the right time to start, is it? The thought about waiting for next year and then next year again, creates a vicious cycle.

Don’t let little set-backs discourage you or let excuses deter you from running. The fact that running is in your mind is a good start. It’s the cycle of trying that is worth acknowledging because I find it good for establishing a routine—a routine that will someday lead to running regularly.

Whenever you are thinking about running, remember this ancient Chinese proverb:

“The best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago. The second best time is now.”

So start running today. If you need some inspiration, accountability, or companionship, join a running group. My personal favorites are Team in Training www.tnt.org, the largest endurance training program in the U.S. and the San Francisco Road Runner Club.

~Happy New Year and Happy running!

The Running World- Cult or Culture?

Being a part of Team In Training (TNT) has been a wonderful experience for me. It is a great organization full of spirit and comradery. You can easily spot a fellow TNT participant.

TNT participants are often found wearing their team shirts or caps, sporting the colors green and purple. Sometimes you’ll find them running with their names printed on their shirts. If you look closely, you can spot a tag on their shoe bearing the name, Team In Training. You may even find a badge pinned somewhere on their clothing or shoe honoring a loved one who is battling cancer. TNT participants usually greet one another with the secret (not so secret now) “handshake” by yelling, “GO TEAM!” Donning their spirited attire and shouting their cheer is one of many rituals they go through before a run.

I have a ritual that I go through a few days before an event or a long run. Two days before my run I will eat a dinner of salad and spaghetti with turkey meat sauce. The night before my run, I will rest and eat my traditional dinner of brown rice, baked chicken, and steamed broccoli. My pre-race breakfast consist of almond butter and blueberry jelly on a whole-wheat toast, banana, and an electrolyte drink. After my breakfast, I take a warm shower, apply vaseline where necessary, spray with sunscreen, warm up my muscles on a foam roller, and stretch. Every race is always the same routine.

Even if running is an individual sport, runners will follow similar rituals and have similar beliefs that they’ve established throughout their experience and the experience of others. So I am reminded that I am not alone. I’ve discovered that running is a culture in itself.

Runners are generous in their advice and like to share tips on how to run successfully and safely. Webster defines culture as the “integrated pattern of human knowledge, belief, and behavior that depends upon man’s capacity for learning and transmitting knowledge to succeeding generations.”

The funny thing is that the more I run, the more runners I meet. And the more runners I encounter, the more interesting the running culture becomes. This leads me to question the world of running. Is it a cult or is it a culture?

Webster defines cult as “a system of religious beliefs and rituals regarded as unorthodox.” Some of the behaviors I’ve witness on my runs show me how unorthodox the running world may very well be. Here is a list I’ve compiled to show you what I mean:

Acceptable Running Habits Not Acceptable Elsewhere

• Wiping your face and nose with your shirt
• Taking your shirt off in public
• Running in a skirt
• Pouring water on your head
• Peeing wherever you can find a bush
• Running around in your bra (women)
• following a stranger while breathing heavily
• carrying food in your shorts
• digging around in your shorts for your keys
• stopping in the middle of the sidewalk to stretch
• running through sprinklers on purpose
• stashing water bottles in ditches
• running in place or stretching while waiting for the light to change at a busy intersection
• running with nothing but shorts and a t-shirt and maybe gloves in the middle of winter

So tell me. Is it a cult or is it a culture? I admit that I do follow a few of these practices on occasion. Nevertheless, I find running fun, very rewarding, and even entertaining. You get to meet a lot of interesting people who will openly accept you as part of their community with a smile, a nod, or a raised hand as you pass by.

So come join me and together we can add to this list of acceptable and unorthodox behavior. Welcome to the runner’s world…

Happy Running!