“If you want to become a runner then get onto a trail, into the woods, or on a sidewalk or street and run. Go 50 yards if that’s all you can handle. Tomorrow, you can go farther.”

Scott Jurek

That’s pretty much how I started running down the street for like a quarter mile in March 2015, after which I increased the distance, my stamina, and so on. Therefore, if you hear me say running is easy, I refer to this aspect of running that allows great flexibility, a road right outside your home, and a decent pair of running shoes.

 

RUNNING IS EASY

I don’t know how many non-runners I can convince with the above-mentioned statement before I actually make them run away from running, but I will explain my reasoning and my positive affirmation about running as an easy, healthy, and even highly enjoyable activity.

1. Most running takes place right outside our doors, so we don’t need any special places to start running.
2. Running is easy to do on your own.
3. Running does not require much planning, as you can always lace up your shoes and bolt outside your home.
4. Running is plain fun every time we decide to venture outside of our homes, our worlds, and our comfort zones.
5. Running is powerful, as it opens our hearts and souls to new possibilities, while we continue our journeys down the path of exploring life with curiosity, mindfulness, and awareness.
6. Running is social and can bring people together.
7. Running is blissful and puts us in a great mood after we are done.
8. Running is healthy for the mind and the body.
9. Running helps us live longer.
10. Running makes us smarter.
11. Running makes us happier and more content.
12. Running is an easy way to explore new places.
13. Running is time efficient.
14. Running burns a lot more calories than other activities about three times more than biking, for example.
15. Running makes us sleep better.
16. Running increases the good hormones in our brains.
17. Running takes us closer to nature.
18. Running brings us closer to God.
19. Running is healing.
20. Running is LIFE.

THE HARD, THE BAD, THE UGLY, & THE STRUGGLE

One of my good friends from Sac State Kellie Edson shared this wonderful story about the butterfly and the chrysalis and their metaphor for life’s struggles. So powerful! It applies to running, too, as we struggle sometimes, but then we finish our short and long runs, our races and marathons as changed people, light, beautiful, and victorious!

“Along a dusty road in India there sat a beggar who sold cocoons. A young boy watched him day after day, and the beggar finally beckoned to him.

“Do you know what beauty lies within this chrysalis? I will give you one so you might see for yourself. But you must be careful not to handle the cocoon until the butterfly comes out.”

The boy was enchanted with the gift and hurried home to await the butterfly. He laid the cocoon on the floor and became aware of a curious thing. The butterfly was beating its fragile wings against the hard wall of the chrysalis until it appeared it would surely perish, before it could break the unyielding prison. Wanting only to help, the boy swiftly pried the cocoon open.

Out flopped a wet, brown, ugly thing which quickly died. When the beggar discovered what had happened, he explained to the boy “In order for the butterfly wings to grow strong enough to support him, it is necessary that he beat them against the walls of his cocoon. Only by this struggle can his wings become beautiful and durable. When you denied him that struggle, you took away from him his only chance of survival.”

From this story, here are 10 hard and yet beautiful aspects of running:

1. Running is hard, or I should say challenging, since I don’t like to use the word hard.
2. Running is a struggle on some days depending on our mood, pace, environment, weather, the alignment of the planets, etc.
3. Running reminds us of our own fragility before we can feel our strength.
4. Running leaves us breathless literally, not figuratively.
5. Running takes a lot out of us.
6. Running can take a toll on our bodies.
7. Running takes courage.
8. Running is not for everyone, and yet we were born to run.
9. Running means getting outside our comfort zone and that’s challenging.
10. Running is sweating.

Yet, when we run, whether it feels easy or hard, we can all ask ourselves: “How can we disrupt our complacency and satisfaction with things we do on all levels of our lives?” Answer: “By gently pushing ourselves to do more and to require more of ourselves, as we are all perfectly capable of reaching higher professional, fitness, intellectual, and any other goals we set our minds on achieving.”

HAPPY FEET! RUN WITH JOY!

For more info on running and real estate, whether buying or selling, please e-mail me at carmenmicsa@yahoo.com, or call me at 916-342-2446. Running for real estate with joy!