My brain has never been so calm and quiet. The music in my ears is a second thought to my paced breathing. My feet beneath my body pushes me off the paved road over and over again as my thighs burn with effort. Each part of my body is working in tandem to get me to the finish line. My heart pounds rhythmically in my chest and I’ve never felt so content.
I grew up doing ballet. The first 19 years of my life were dedicated to learning the classical art of dance, but ballet had always been my favorite. It consumed my every thought. But that phase of my life came to a close once I got into college. I didn’t have time to do it, let alone the fact that I had to leave the dance studio I grew up in.
Not having a rigid schedule really made me miss ballet, or at least the habits that came with it as far as staying active. I felt lost and guilty about not being as active as I once was.
Throughout the last two years of me dancing, I had dabbled a bit in running. I wasn’t terrible at it, but I didn’t love it and really only used it to keep up my cardio for long dances. Unfortunately, I had a negative mindset with only adding running into my routine to stay slim. The ballet world really idolizes being slim, so being around that mindset with some of the instructors I had flipped a bad switch in my head.
With that being said, I never ran more than around three miles. But after trying lifting for a few months, I found that running was a new passion I had. It’s not that lifting wasn’t fun or good for me, but I never felt fulfilled or like it was really me.
I attended some random spin classes as I experimented with what exercise I really wanted to stick with long term. I met some amazing people who inspired me to try long distance running. I was really intimidated at first, but one day at school my friend and I, spur of the moment, decided to say “screw it” and signed up for the St. George Half Marathon.
Best. Decision. Ever.
When I say running is the best exercise in the world, I really mean it. The benefits and discipline you get from this activity are so rewarding. It’s incredible.
Remember when I said, “My brain has never been this quiet before?” Yeah. I really meant that. Plus, science truly supports that claim. When you run, your cortisol levels are lowered and endorphins are released into your body, which basically lowers your stress levels, which then can help with your mental health.
This is something I have always struggled with. I get overwhelmed and get really stressed out and can’t think straight. But while I run, I am able to turn my brain off for a while and enjoy what my body is doing for me and hit the reset button in a way. It is just me out there running around, either with or without music. Either way, I am able to be in the moment and just focus on my breathing, my steps, my form, my route and my music.
My mom always says, “Running is one of the only sports where it is just you against you and you’re completely alone.” She is totally right about this. Running is a sport where you push past your mental barriers every time you lace up your shoes.
Running isn’t about having motivation. It is about discipline, especially if you have signed up and paid money to participate in a race. If you don’t get up and train, you’re never going to cross over that finish line, whether it be a finish line you made for yourself or a physical one at a race.
This mentality and habit can translate into other aspects of your life. It can help you be disciplined enough to get things done. Get up when your alarm goes off. Get that assignment done. Get that work done on your car. Going for an eight mile run even though you’d rather sit on the couch. It is all connected. Habits last if you have discipline.
One of my favorite things about running is that I don’t do it to maintain or lose weight anymore. I do it because I love it. As much as I love ballet, I was always worried about what I looked like and how much I weighed. Having guys lift you, looking in the mirror for three hours a day or having a dance teacher tell you that you need to suck your stomach in can really damage your self-esteem.
I even had this same mentality while I was lifting. Lifting is good for you, but if you want to lift heavy, you have to have a bit of meat on your bones so your body is able to withstand the weight you’re holding. This is incredibly impressive, and I give props to people who can do this and lift really heavy, but again, I was struggling with my body image.
When I started running, yes, I started seeing changes in my body, but I noticed that I felt better than I had in a long time. I wasn’t staring in a mirror all day or I wasn’t always beating myself up about not being able to bench a certain weight. I was just running around listening to music and having dance parties as I did so. It was fun! Losing weight and gaining toning in my body was just a side perk. It wasn’t my main goal anymore, and I barely ever think about it now.
I don’t remember the last time I weighed myself and I don’t plan to anymore, simply because I feel good. Yes, running is good for you if you want to lose weight and studies have shown that it can work well for this, but a lot of the time those who run to lose weight will continue to run because they enjoy how it makes them feel, while just like me, they lose weight as a side perk.
The main thing I love about running is the pride and respect you gain for yourself when you accomplish your goals. Whether it be a mile or a marathon, you can always feel accomplished and proud of yourself.
This last year I ran a half marathon. Never in a million years would a younger me have ever guessed I would do that. But when I pushed “enter” on that sign up button for the St. George Half Marathon, it launched me into a whole new world. I have learned so much about myself that I never would have known before, and now, I’m planning to sign up for a full marathon.
Hitting a new mile marker each week made me tear up many times, and when I crossed that finish line at the end of the race, my heart felt so full. I had all of my loved ones there to support me and I proved something to myself that I didn’t even know needed proving. That I CAN do hard things. That life is so much more than just worrying about your weight or how you look, and that our bodies are capable of so much more than we would ever know—just so long as we give it a chance and chase those ambitions.
Running has saved me in more ways than one. I have so many goals that I want to hit with running and not a single one of them has to do with losing weight or how I look. It is all about how I feel and testing the limits of my body in a healthy way.
If you’re looking for a passion in life and also want to be active, consider running. It has so many benefits, both mentally and physically. Plus, you can have some bragging rights. In all seriousness though, running is one of the best ways to keep a healthy lifestyle, and I highly recommend you at least try to run a mile. See how it makes you feel and allow yourself the pride that comes with that accomplishment.
