Obsessed Runner Blog
2024.11.27 - Running, What a gig
Running is supposed to lower your stress and magically make your life better. And I agree—after I run, this is always true. But here I am, already stressing about how I’ll fit in tomorrow’s run. I’m torn between deciding where to run, packing appropriately for the weather, thinking I really need new trail shoes, and that I’ve been trying to coordinate a run with a friend, but our schedules have not seemed to match, though if I juggle my day I may be able to fit it in tomorrow.
Whew! Take a breath. I will fit in the run, I will pack for it, and it will be great. I always figure it out and I always make it happen. So, why don’t I just skip the drama and plan on having a great day?! Duh!
Don’t overthink it, just get your butt out the door and be thankful you’re a runner!
Randy Step, an admittedly obsessed runner who writes this stuff to remind myself to get my mind back on track and enjoy the run. A run I know I will do, and I will also enjoy the run up to it! Go Lions, and go eat some turkey!
2024.11.21 - The 3 Mile run
If you read my book, you will know that this obsessed runner is a huge fan of the 3 mile run. Sure I love the adventure of the long runs, but 3 miles gives us a huge return for the time invested. Getting out the door for 3 miles is mentally easy, not stressing too much on how to dress for the weather, nutrition needs, hydration or the mental gymnastics sometimes needed to wrap our heads around the long runs. 3 miles gets us out the door and into the natural world and gives us the mental and physical benefits of an aerobic workout. A mile to get into the groove, a mile to hammer, a mile to cool down, or just 3 steady miles to clear the mind and live in the moment. Instead of a day off, the 3 mile run is a great option.
Choose long or short but choose to run today!
Randy Step, an admitted obsessed runner getting ready to put on the Ann Arbor Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving Day next week, the perfect 3 mile investment to prepare you for a day of turkey, football, family, friends and the couch!
2024.11.13 - The elusive enjoyable run
What happens on the run is not totally explainable. How can working so hard to get from point A to point B become our passion? I’ve been asked this through life, “Do you really enjoy running, it seems hard and pointless?” Always followed up with, “I hate running.” I get it that they don’t get it. Some days the run is as hard and seems as dumb as the sedentary world portrays it, but once it’s over, we are always happy we got out the door. But then, some runs are magically effortless and take us to a state of nirvana, runs that we wish would never end.
I believe that it takes a lot of runs, a lot of miles, to fully understand the run and its nuances before it becomes a passion. I seriously think everyone has the potential to become a passionate runner, including all the run haters. The obstacle to our sport is the time and hard miles it takes to finally get to, and understand the magic of the run. I’m so glad we made it through the gauntlet, I am so glad to be a runner. Let’s keep trying to explain the unexplainable and help change the lives of our sedentary friends.
May todays’ run be magical,
Randy Step, an admitted obsessed runner who continues to attempt to bring more people into the light, or perhaps it may be better explained as over to the dark side. Magic is mystically cool stuff!