The Art of Running Part 1

      Running. You hate it right? It's tiring. It's painful. It's difficult. Well yes, all these traits about running are indeed true.
      Maybe middle school P.E. instilled into you this image that running sucks. Having to run the mile under a certain time. Being forced to run laps and laps around the field for those dreaded circuits. Who cares how fast we can run anyway? Essentially running was viewed as boring and a burden.


Steve "Pre" Prefontaine, considered to be the greatest American distance runner in

history, popularized running in the U.S. in the 1970s through his successes in both

cross country and track while running for the University of Oregon.

      I used to feel the same way. That is, until I joined Mira Mesa's cross country team. Running everyday for miles an miles may seem pointless at first. I'll tell you that it's pointless only if YOU make it pointless. Allow me to elaborate on that. When it comes to running, YOU NEED TO HAVE A GOAL! This is your reason to run. This is what keeps you going when your body tells you its time to give up. Having a goal cannot be stressed enough. Otherwise, you're just wasting time and energy. Your goal doesn't necessarily have to be to become the next Prefontaine(pictured right). Your goal may be to get in shape. To build endurance for your other sports. To have fun while interacting with other people.  To not feel so guilty about eating that extra slice of pie in the fridge. Whatever it may be, ALWAYS KEEP YOUR GOAL IN MIND!     For me personally, I run to compete and to challenge myself both mentally and physically. By nature, I enjoy racing as a test to see who's the best. And to be the best, I must train. To train, I have to push my mind and body to their outer limits. Yes, it's tiring and painful. It's never easy. But it's how I get better.
     Looking back to August of last year when the run life chose me, I struggled with a basic thirty minutes of running. A year later, that's just a warm-up compared to the ninety-minute long runs and 6x800-meter repeats I do as part of my training. But why don't I struggle with thirty-minute runs anymore? Did it get easier? No. In fact, it never gets easier. I JUST GOT BETTER! And that's what's so great about running. Being able to track(pun intended) your improvement as you keep pushing yourself towards your goal. To say you're closer today than you were yesterday. To finish a difficult workout and feel the glory of self-accomplishment. It's a truly amazing feeling really and is the reward to look forward to at the end of every workout.