So it's true I really only have a loosely laid plan for this blog. Being unemployed right now, I should be 'post-rich' as I have more time than others might have to keep something like this up. Not having internet at my apartment is somewhat limiting, but if I really wanted to, I could post shorter articles from my phone. So far, not into that. To that end, I wanted to post a little something about what is motivating about running, what motivates me, who motivates etc.
Today's post on motivation was inspired by an extreme lack of said psychological instigator yesterday. Motivation (or motorvation...I'm so clever) can really be thought of like the engine that makes things go. Whether it's a combustion engine in a car, plane, train etc, or whether it's an electric engine running on batteries, powered by a person generating electricity, or even self-propelled and non-electric/combustion modes of transport.
Something has to have, at some point, been compelled to create the energy to make it go. This can be psychological or physical.
Running is the same way, by my estimation.
In the past, I've 'surveyed' people on what motivates them to do things, anything. Frankly, offhand I don't remember all of the answers I got, but I do remember the answers being all over the place. I was trying really hard to find an answer, maybe an easier answer than could find on my own. Such is the way with me and my running motivation. It's everywhere.
I was recently asked by a member of my running group, amidst a conversation about the running streak, what motivated me to start running. I was momentarily silenced. If you know me, that's a big deal, as I always have something to say. I thought all the way back to when I was in my early to mid-twenties and what made me run then. So much more simple then. Of course, I only ran once a year so how hard is it to be motivated for that? I ran the Butte to Butte in Eugene on the 4th of July.
Awesome race, awesome event, and the one day I thought I could be vaulted into a running habit. Of course, I was really only fooling myself then. Habits are made over time, not on a one shot event. Races are awesome motivators but you only race once a week, once a month or in my case at the time, once a year, not with enough frequency to actually form a habit.
Initially when I tried to start running regularly last spring (2-3 days a week), it was because basketball was both hurting my knee and limiting my exercise capabilities. The more I played, the more I hurt and I realized that it wasn't sustainable. If you've known me for any length of time, you know how much I love to play basketball. You might also then realize, what it took to come to the semi-illogical decision to try and replace basketball with running. It didn't make sense at first, running is high-impact, so is basketball.
My logic was pretty sound, at least to me, though. When I play basketball, I don't really have an off switch. I play hard, all the time. This means a lot of driving, twisting, turning, leaping, falling, getting knocked over, you get the point. Running, while high impact, is one motion. Forward. Also, you can do it at any pace, and any pace is good. You are burning calories no matter how fast or slow you go. You just have to get out and do it.
I started off very slow, taking it easy. Really, I was walking nearly half of my 'running' distances. I was wearing shoes that were not appropriate, then talked to some fine folks at what became my running store (I'll talk more about them in a separate post, to be sure) and we got me into some great running shoes. Running was instantly easier, I'm not kidding you and you're hearing this probably 8 months after the switch. I'm still wearing the same brand and style for my every day and long distance running. I also motivated myself by using Jelly Belly's and Gu. These little bad boy supplements are full of stuff you can physically use, as well as, for me at the time, motivation.
My pre-run routine, no matter what the distance, was: an appropriate meal, ibuprofen, jelly belly's and plenty of static stretching. I knew if I took the ibuprofen and ate the jelly belly's, I only had about 30 minutes to get on the road or I risked wasting the energy and joint protection. Some of the candy has caffeine too, and I rarely consumed it at the time, so I didn't want to be all wired for no reason. I knew if I ate a huge meal or something too heavy, the run wouldn't feel good (or I just wouldn't do it). That was motivating.
Running also got me out of the office for a while, in the middle of the day or maybe out of the office earlier at night. Pretty good motivation in and of itself, I say.
I also love destination runs. Crystal Springs is a great place to run, Lake Merced is nice, but my most motivating run will probably always be Golden Gate Bridge. Seriously, this is on people's bucket list from around the world and I can run it almost whenever I feel like it. Amazing.
My motivations now are based on people, places, events, physical improvement, running schedule...even my gear. I discovered last week that I just felt better putting on my running shorts and shirt. After feeling slow and only semi-motivated, I put on the gear and suddenly was ready to go. It was a great feeling.
To get back to the conversations I had about motivation, I don't know if it's something you can find or if it finds you. It's very likely more about timing. Motivators are all around us but our minds have to be ready for them and accept them, forced 'motivation' is not likely going to stay with you.
My engine requires both physical and mental fuel for motivation. It's not always easy to find one, the other, or both, but running every day, I work hard to keep my engine running.
