We are meant to run ...

"Anybody can be a runner. We were meant to move. We were meant to run. It's the easiest sport."
--Bill Rodgers

Today is a race day. I have been running fairly consistently for the past year and I am just recently discovering two things:
1. I actually love it, where before I tried to just get through it
2. The above quote is a truth that resonates with me - running is natural and we have all the equipment.

Many people believe that running is bad for your body, "It's so jarring, it destroys you knees, etc." But we know that weight-bearing exercise is a great way to strengthen bones and keep us healthy. It is my conclusion that running the right amount of distance and making it part of a holistic, healthy lifestyle is the key.

For example, I do my best to live a yogic lifestyle. For me this means being vegan, regularly practicing asana and Pranayama, following the eight-limbed path as expressed by Patanjali in the Yoga Sutras, and being around people I care about and who care about me. All of these things work together and help me to live mindfully, healthily, happily..

My knees ache when I am not running consistently; they feel great when I run on a regular basis. I do not run more than 4 miles at a time and usually only 2. Again, mindful to what works best for me. I think the knee problems arise when runners unknowingly push themselves harder than what is good for them (unawareness), fill themselves with high cholesterol food that is derived form the suffering of others (animal products), and do not have a meditation/breathing practice that allows them a centering experience (yoga). Additionally, we need to surround ourselves with those who are supportive of our choices and in return, we need to show that we care and love those around us.

Holistic, not compartmentalized. All parts of the human need to be nourished, exercised, and cared for. Running is one part of this way of living; when practiced with the others previously mentioned, running enables us to lead happy, healthy, pain-free, lives. I want to be happy. I want to get up each day without cringing. I know that today's run will significantly contribute toward my reaching these goals and I am sooo super excited!!!