Running For Your Life

When you hear the statement, running for your life, you consider that the author is running from adversity. Whether or not they are running from violence or anger, they are scared. The emotion is that of fear. Running for your life, yet for many of us, we need to run.

We run from one opportunity to another in order to find those key parts of our life. Whether that is a relationship, a new job opportunity, or the chance to build a house in the middle of New Zealand.

Running is key to moving forward or we are left behind. We are left in the same job in the same town, alone. Running is motivational, it provides the chance to decompress from modern life and clean out the cobwebs. Running offers us a breath of fresh air.

Mental Health

The battle for mental health is a daily battle. I am happy to say that it is a war that I am winning, but that is not to say that in a year's time I will not be on the receiving end of a beating. Running, at least twice every week, provides me with a break. If I am annoyed about something with regards to the wedding or if I am annoyed with my job due to a stressful day, then I go for a run. This may seem like the opposite thing that you should do but the release of endorphins is perfect for your brain.

You could say that masturbation also provides stress relief but this is naturally not something to prescribe. To each their own. For me, it is the run that is most appealing. It is you on your own against nothing but your own body, and if you run enough then your brain drifts off. You process those annoyances and for the majority of the time, come up with a solution. It is the best stress relief as it has the added bonus of also getting you into shape.

With COVID-19 running rampant across the world, the chances to run have been reduced. Thankfully, in the United Kingdom, we have been able to run through the successive lockdowns and restrictions on life. If the ability to leave the house was restricted to a greater measure then I would have struggled.

The Human Body

As you get older, you get stiffer and that is not a setup for a sex joke. This is to say that running becomes more difficult as you age. For me, it is something that I started when I was 14 years old, with the sole goal to lose weight. I was anorexic at this time and running became an addiction. I was skinny to a point where people would comment. Not to a point in which I was at a healthy weight, but at a point in which people were worried about me.

At this time I was able to run multiple times a day. I was like the Duracell bunny and at the height of my running and or anorexia, I was running three times a day. Whilst I will back running to the end of time, doing so to do lose weight and doing so multiple times a day is harmful unless you are a professional athlete. I was not and needed to learn to take a step back.

Over the years I have gone from multiple runs per day to lose weight, to training for a marathon, and today, regularly running 10k each week. I love the release and hope that it will be a key part of my life for as long as possible. God knows if this will be the final picture but for as long as I can I want to be able to go for a run and give my mind the attention it deserves.

Everything Has Its Time

I know that one day I will no longer be able to run as I will be unable to see my friends and family. Nothing lasts forever and this is why it is more important than ever to engage with the world around you and make the most of your time. Engage with what works for you. For me, it is running but for you, it might be eating cupcakes. We are all unique and whilst I would encourage everyone reading to run for your life, it will not appeal to all. We need to find what works for us and continue to evolve with the times.

Running in ten years may not be something which I can regularly do. I work in an office job and I am conscious of the time I spend sitting. Running is great for giving me a break but the more I run and the more I sit, the more I add wear and tear to my body. It is inevitable that at some point I will need to pivot and move into something else, such as cycling to ensure that I am still able to exercise.

Everything has its time and everything dies. This is something that none of us can change but it is also something that provides focus. We have no idea how long we have and so making the most of what we have today and running for as long as we can have to be the focus. No minute should be wasted and we should engage in the world around us.

A Final Thought

Running is something that does not need to be a life or death endeavor. It should be a key weapon in our battle for positive mental health. It is for me and I smile every day that I am able to run. It could be something that is swept away from me at a moment's notice, but for today and for the foreseeable future I am able to run and encourage everyone reading to do the same.

Run for your life and provide your mind with the break that it needs.