“The reason I run daily changes as often as the weather does in Wellington. I know this because quite often I’ll snap out of my random thoughts I get while running and start to wonder how running became such an integral part of my identity. This self reflection usually occurs when I’m struggling deep into a tough workout, or I realise I’m in the middle of nowhere and completely shagged and still need to get myself home. It’s at those times I have to laugh and ask myself ‘WHY?!’.
While I do have many varied reasons as to why I run now, or why I started running as a teenager, or even why I got back into running in my thirties, there are some solid contenders that are the tenets I place my running story on top of.
The first of these, and probably the most uncool in some running circles to admit, would be my ego. I like to feel fit. I want to push myself to beat others and it feels good to do so. There are always people faster than you out there, and to be able to even start to get to their level, you need to train incredibly hard, and I love that if you put in the hard work, it pays off. The process of getting as fit as possible is actually quite simple, but takes a long time to master, particularly when you’re middle aged with all the constraints that a family and job can lay on you.
The other major reason I’m out there is because I cannot get enough of the outdoors. I adore Aotearoa’s fauna, our native bush, our gnarly mountains, the sunrises and sunsets that can grace them and all that is in between. To be able to use your body to move through the outdoors and enjoy what nature has to offer, in as maximal a way as you can, is a rewarding experience that is hard to replicate otherwise.
And I could go on, but ultimately I’m probably kidding myself… it’s because I love buying running shoes!”
Andrew @runthehills.nz
(Wellington)
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All Runners. All Stories.
@RunnersNZ
