We are deepening, together with New Balance, what running is for all of us, as we were saying a few days ago. We have received many letters, and today we publish the first one, written by Daniela, which struck us very much because it focuses attention on a very important aspect: balance.
If you too would like to contribute your views on “Run your way,” your understanding of running and what it is for you, please email us at info@runlovers.it. Some people run to stay in shape, some run to participate in races, some run for the race pack, some run to meditate, some do it to take a break from life, to be better mentally, to solve problems, and some run because it is the only sport that allows them to get organized with workouts between commitments. Every opinion, every point of view matters.
What is running for me?
I could tell you why I started running, why I decided to dedicate my life to it, why I plan my daily activities around training.
But you already know this.
Instead, I will tell you about an ordinary morning when the alarm clock goes off too early, the city outside is still sleeping, as is I, as I drag myself out of bed.
I try hard to put on my contact lenses, which otherwise I can’t see anything and I stumble.
I go to the living room, put on the clothes I prepared the night before, and my head says, “Come on, are you sure? Come on back to bed. You’re tired today, don’t play games. Come on, go back to sleep.”
A small part of me wants to give in but … I feel it, I feel that feeling: it’s a mix of euphoria, energy, peace.
Quickly I grab the last few things, close the door, and am on my way.
The fresh morning air hits my face, there is only me.
My mind is blank, waiting.
I walk a few meters, a few paces, activate the tracker, and I’m running.
The mind crowds with thoughts: what I have to do during the day, how to handle that situation at work, the washing machine I forgot to do the night before, and meanwhile I push, feel my heart pumping in my chest, feel all the muscles working together, reacting.
Thoughts continue to crowd my mind, but slowly they become less confusing, I begin to re-proportion the urgencies, I feel that after all, some things were not as important or complicated as I had thought.
I meet another runner, we say goodbye, and I continue through the streets of my city.
Meanwhile, the air is less pungent, the sky is getting brighter, and I can hear the little birds waking up from their slumber.
I arrive at my favorite spot: there is a road, at a certain time in the morning, where to my left it is still night and to my right, dawn is rising.
And in that moment, I realize that what really matters is that moment, that breath, that beat, the sound of my footsteps on the asphalt.
It is that road, which is the metaphor of life, poised between night and day, light and dark.
And I am balanced.
And I run.