Today – National Running Day – seems like Valentine’s Day does to me.  Do we really need a designated DAY to celebrate running (or love)?  I celebrate running every time I lace up my shoes.  Seriously.  There is rarely – if ever – a time I think “Uggggg, I don’t want to run today.”  You all know this, but I love love LOVE running.  And I celebrate it every day of the year, not just on National Running Day (even on my rest days, when I am thinking that I WISH I was running, but know that I need rest days in order to make be strong and injury free so that I can keep running!)

So I was trying to think of what to blog about to express how much I love running.  And thought about doing the standard “I run because . . .” post.  Or the Top 5 Reasons I Run.  Or something similar.  And then I stumbled on this quote by Joan Benoit Samuelson, which PERFECTLY sums up how I feel about what running does for me.

 Not sure what’s up with the backwards e’s

Anyway, I love this quote because it’s so true.  Running (training) is challenging and requires so much time, energy, dedication and devotion.  On some levels it may seem – and perhaps is – selfish.  It requires a lot of time.  A lot of thought.  A lot of money (lots of shoes! And gu!  And race fees!  And cute running clothes!) And a lot of sacrifices (going to bed early, skipping that second glass of wine, etc.).  But the payoff for all that “selfishness” is big.  It makes my relationships stronger.  I have no doubt that because of running I’m a better mom (by setting healthy example for kids; by being in a better mood because I get my daily endorphin fix), a better lawyer (by being more organized and using my time better when I have to fit in running AND lawyering; by sorting through my tough cases when I’m out running), a better friend (running has actually made so many new strong, fun friendships for me) and just a better all around person.

Happy running!