Amy Lu's View

Thanks to the badge that popped up on my phone today courtesy of my Garmin watch, I know that today is Global Running Day. 

Surprisingly, I did not know about this holiday through social media. Just like back in 2018 when I also blogged about it, I was oblivious: https://amyluedtke.wordpress.com/2018/06/07/happy-global-running-day/. 

I did go running this morning, but it was a short run and, more surprisingly, it was one of the few runs that I did NOT document/celebrate with a selfie. 

I have blogged so much about running that I am a bit stymied about adding anything to my body of running blogging. Do I have anything left to say?

Probably not, but I do still think it’s worth taking some time to reflect on running today. Out of all the things I’ve felt and experienced and written about running, what feels really relevant to me now, today?

Gratitude.

I’m so grateful that my health and my schedule continue to allow me to run. I’m grateful that I don’t have to worry about my safety when I run because of my race or where I live (although I still have to worry about falling and geese/turkeys). I’m grateful for how my body can move even when I don’t treat it as well as I could and it doesn’t look quite like I want it to. I’m grateful for the beautiful weather when I run and (in theory) the crappy weather that makes me appreciate the beautiful weather more. I’m grateful for audiobooks and podcasts to listen to when I’m running. I’m grateful for having more opportunities to wear all my race shirts and running attire afforded by lockdown (I did spend extra time deciding what to wear for Global Running Day, deciding on my Grandma’s Marathon Finisher Shirt). I’m grateful that I can occasionally indulge in the body and mind depletion that comes after a long run (amplified by some celebratory festive beverages which may relate to the not treating my body as well as I could #ProcessNotPerfection). 

I’m grateful for the “global” aspect of running–of realizing in some small way that I am part of a larger community that even goes beyond my social media connections. Through running I have a shared experience with extremely diverse people across the world. 

People often ask me if I’m in training for anything. Right now, I’m kind of, sort of in training for the virtual, incremental Grandma’s Marathon. Yeah, that’s a lot of descriptors and qualifiers. I am signed up to run the Grandma’s Marathon, BUT I have a two week period (June 19 through July 5) to complete the 26.2 miles and I can run them from anywhere (so I will not be going to Duluth). So this is not anywhere near as demanding as running an actual marathon. I do intend to make it somewhat challenging by running the 26.2 miles over three days, with one of those days being a Half Marathon. 

I have not been very focused or strategic about my training (in other words, my training has been half-assed), so while I’m pretty confident I can run 26.2 miles in three days, I don’t know how speedy I’ll be. I’m sure I’ll be disappointed in my performance in some way, but it will also be a good lesson in adaptability and embracing where I’m at. 

That’s definitely an insight to be grateful for.