So. Anyhoo...
I've had a bad 2 weeks. A baaaaaad 2 weeks. It's been the kind of 2 weeks where gravity feels like it's pulling on your body extra hard--it takes a lot of umph to smile, and a lot more umph to get up and out of bed.
We all have clumps of weeks like this. It's part of the privledge of being human. We go through ups, downs, highs, lows, great races, and races where you accidentally poop your pants. Thankfully, it's the pants-pooping incidents that make the PR races feel so much greater.
So what's my point? During times like this, the last thing I even think about doing is going for a run. Beause seriously, how does one run and cry without falling into an open manhole? And more than that, I just want to lay around.
But guess what? Running is exactly what I should absolutely be doing. Not only does is release all kinds of feel good endorphins in the brain, it also helps with anxiety, it relieves stress, it gives you a feeling of accomplishment, it gives you a change of scenery, a chance to see the world from a different perspective, and listen to the summertime birds. It's good for your physical heart, and it's good for your proverbial heart.
So. During these past 2 weeks have I been running?
Yes, I have been, but only because I have the support of the KVC running groups. They expect me to be there, smiling, joking, answering questions, and running with them. During the past 2 weeks, when I've heard someone say, "I'm gonna run after Lunch Pump," I go with them. If someone's having trouble with their motivation, I've been meeting up with them to try to rediscover some mojo. And for the second time in 2 weeks, a whole mess of KVCers will be at a road race, so I signed up.
If I didn't have KVC, I'd probably be in my basement learning how to play the XBox.
During the past year of KVC, personal things have happened to plenty of our runners. At this point we have almost 200 on our rosters, so it's bound to happen. There have been deaths, divorces, cancer, family difficulities, miscarriages, unemployment, you get the idea. Pick your own poison and add it to the list.
Sometimes, people need a break for running, and that's okay. Yet, somehow, despite these knock-you-on-your-you-know-what life events, lots of people have been running longer, stronger, and faster. They keep showing up, and during their times of turmoil, something great is coming to pass in their lives.
My point? The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
I'll try it again without the semi-confusing cliche: People keep running because they have a group to do it with. When you can't stand to get out and run on your own, the group swallows you up in the laughs and conversation, and they carry you along. Even when they have no idea that they're doing it.
Just like it says in KVC's 2nd of 5 Philosophies:
There's Power in Groups
Group exercise training provides community, comaraderie, accountability, and friendly competition.
Whether it's KVC, or a club in Omaha, you owe it to yourself to find a running group. There's a bond that grows on the road, and it's a privledge to be able to experience it.
So thank you to my fellow KVCers, for giving me the much-needed gentle shove than I've been needed these past 2 weeks. My life is better because I have you all to run with.
