National Running Day

Dartmouth Natal Day Road Race 2011

Bluenose 10k 2010

Hypothermic half marathon 2015

Today is National Running Day, so I thought it would be appropriate to write a little post about running and why I'm thankful for running (check out Brooks Blog).

I started running in High School; I did track and cross country —now I didn't put a lot of effort or training into these events haha Although I ran sporadically throughout my undergraduate degree, I really started running long distance during my Masters degree, and it's stuck with me ever since. I ran throughout my pregnancy, but not more than 10-12km, and boy was it hard. I tell ya, carrying a baby makes any form of cardiovascular activity 10x more difficult! Since having Finley in November, I've been running quite a bit (I've been averaging 50-60 miles per week since April). Anyways, today, I put in 10.5 miles including 11 hill repeats and it felt great!

Thank-you running for giving me...

1) All of those post-run endorphin highs. I love love love that feeling after a nice long run.

2) "Me" time. I really enjoy running alone and having no one else around. It's peaceful. And, taking care of myself enables me to take care of Finley better.

3) Energy. Ironically, I feel the most energetic on days that I've went for a run compared to days when I haven't.

4) An excuse to listen to an obscene number of podcasts! I love Balanced Bites and The Running Lifestyle Show on my Stitcher app.

5) Strong legs.

6) A reason to eat all of the carbs on long run days. Man, I love my ice cream.

7) A form of exercise that I can take with me anywhere.

8) A unique way of exploring a new town, city, or country, and stumbling upon places that I wouldn't have otherwise. It's like a fun adventure whenever I set out to run in a new place.

9) Healthy lungs.

10) The opportunity to set goals and compete in races.

11) Confidence.

12) An excuse to buy gear from lulu lemon and REALLY bright running sneakers. I feel like bright sneakers makes me go faster —this is totally supported by research, right?! haha

13) A reason to eat ALL of the nut butter!!!!! :)