-
Running is an effective way to disconnect from stress and social pressures, providing a time for meditation and reconnection.
-
In a world of constant connections, running is a great excuse to become unreachable and regain mental space.
-
Running in nature, even in the city, offers therapeutic benefits, restoring balance and mental clarity.
Some days everything seems to be too much. The kind of days when work has drained you, social media seems like a cage of howler monkeys, and the people around you all seem to be asking too much. Or maybe they really are asking too much of you? Who knows. One thing is certain: your limit is either very close or you have already passed it.
There is only one solution: drop everything and go out for a run.
Running is not just a sport: as we like to say, it is your offline moment. Out of everything, out of social networks, out of connections you didn’t choose and don’t even want. It is your moment.
It is the instant when the headphones in your ears and the regular tapping of your feet on the asphalt become your moving meditation. Have you ever noticed how after a stressful day, putting on your running shoes is the most liberating gesture you can make? It’s a kind of mental “F**k it!” that urges you to get away from it all, just to find yourself again.
Disconnect to reconnect
We live in a world where we are constantly connected and stressed. We no longer have the perception that we have power over our time; it seems to be defined by other people’s agendas, doesn’t it?
If you don’t respond immediately to a message, it’s a tragedy.
If you’re not available, you’re selfish.
If you don’t do the thing you were supposed to do for yesterday only to be told to do it only today, you’re a slacker.
Running, on the other hand, gives you a valid reason to disconnect. When you run you are unreachable, and everyone accepts that. And if they don’t accept it, let them get over it. When you run you don’t have to answer to anyone, not even yourself. Your mind needs space, and running helps it create it. That’s why every step becomes a liberation. Every meter takes you away from what is boring and taking away your oxygen and brings you closer to a clearer state of mind.
Running is a promise always (almost, come on) fulfilled: that of finding balance and inner peace even on the most difficult days. Let’s stop with the sacrifice and the habit of struggling to do everything, of working tirelessly and with unlimited willingness. As Zen monk Thich Nhat Hanh says, “Our final destination is the cemetery: why rush to it?”
Nature as therapy
We often take for granted the nature around us. We often take many things for granted. Instead, we should stop and look at it, contemplate it. You can do this even while running: you can look up a little and observe the foliage of the trees, the color of the leaves, their shape. You can notice the differences in the greenery you see: do you know how many plants there are? Do you know how many are in front of you in a park? You’d probably only know how to name a few (and if you know a lot more than that, you’re a botanist or an enthusiast, and then it doesn’t count!)
Even if you’re running around town, there’s something extraordinarily liberating about being outdoors. It’s a return to the basics, a time when the body and mind align. So you go into nature: you go into a park or you choose the dirt path on either side of the usual road where you go running. Run on the grass of the embankment instead of the paved road, look for new sensations. There is more to it than work, commitments, responsibilities. Decide there is a time to be helpful and a time to be selfish, but in a good way.
Running solves (almost) everything
If you feel confused, tired or stressed, there is one certainty you can keep in mind: running will never let you down. It doesn’t matter if it’s 5 kilometers or 10 kilometers, it doesn’t matter how fast you go. It doesn’t even matter whether it ends up being your best run or even your worst.
When you come home you will have done one thing from start to finish, and your brain will have had its dopamine hit and enjoy it. Because when you come home you are always a better version of yourself than when you went out. You’re free, you’ve regained some peace and clarity of mind. And that is exactly why, even in the worst of times, the best thing is to lace up your shoes and go out for a run.