I wouldn’t say I like running; I never have, and I can’t say I expect I ever will. Yet I go on a run at least three times a week. Don’t panic; I am not applying to be a fitness writer. These runs are anything but glamorous and are far from being a fitness with RunTok’s perpetually smiley and endlessly motivational runners.
My runs consist of music blasting through my headphones (usually musicals or questionable rap) while I pant round a solid 3km. I sport what I believe are Amazon’s best answer to running leggings and one of my miscellaneous school sports or bad pun t-shirts. I tend to go at 8:00 in the morning which often leaves me a little moody in early morning seminars. And to really bring together the image for you, I would say when running I most closely resemble a sweaty egg with my hair pulled back. I’m not sure what possesses me to still go on these little jaunts. I don’t particularly find joy in running. I’ve never resonated with peoples slightly patronising comments of ‘oh you will feel so much better after you have done it’. No, I’m sorry that’s not me. I do not feel better, the pleasure I derive from running is getting to tick it off my to do list and nothing more.
Now HerCampus is many things, but it is not simply a forum for me to whine, so what is the point I am trying to make? Well, I suppose it’s that even after all my complaining, I still do the very thing I am complaining about. It appears that you don’t have to love something to just get on and do it. It is enough to recognise that it provides you some benefits but why bother endlessly singing its praises. Living a life dedicated to only doing things that bring us joy would mean that we missed out on some things that we just need to do, like paying taxes or going to school. My dislike of running is okay! Somehow in society we have got to the place where we feel like we must like things that are good for us and enthusiastically do them. I say no. I don’t like salad and I’m not going to pretend to, but that doesn’t mean I won’t eat it.
I came to these realisation after being struck by the modern plague (a common university cold) and being unable to run. My Lemsip-addled mind wasn’t exactly yearning to go on a run, but I was able to actually think about why I do usually go. I run because it’s a little way of keeping my fitness up, its low commitment and it’s all about what I can do, when I want to do it. I don’t need to be like running influencers who say running is the thing that gives them the most joy and make an endlessly sweaty activity look aesthetically appealing. Nor do I have to be training for a marathon. My little 3km around the streets of Exeter is just fine. It gets me up and out of bed, lets me listen to some good music and admire the local dogs on their morning walks. With running, there is often a message that you should be constantly improving or at least have a goal to aim for. But for me, it’s not about signing up for the next park run or god forbid anything longer. I don’t run to become a runner. That is something I do not have the patience nor attention span for. I run because I want to have something that raises my heart rate and makes me sweat more than forum hill does.
Seeing people have a passion for something, but equally have no desire to join them in that passion, is a valuable experience in empathy that I recommend everyone has. I love watching creators like Jonny Davies (@jdrunsfar) or Savannah Sachdev (@confusedindiangirl) who complete crazy feet’s of athletics, running marathon after marathon. I personally could not imagine anything worse, but I am eagerly tuning in to see which marathon or, in Jonny Davies’ case, which tube line is next. The creators I resonate with the most are the ones who acknowledge that it hurts, who admit to the days were they really didn’t want to get out of bed to run in the cold, and who really try to open up the running space to people right at the start of their journey.
Now none of this is a call to start running as you can probably tell from me lambasting it for the last few paragraphs. But what I will say is that running (or even a brisk walk) feels more accessible than other sports. It’s about you, doing what you can at your own pace. But don’t beat yourself up about not feeling in love with it. There are other ways of staying active and if Covid taught us anything it’s the value of a nice long walk.
So go on a run. Or don’t. I’m not going to tell you to do it. It’s up to you!