Why do you run?

Thanks to the Holiday Bootie Buster Challenge, I was introduced to a new blog, Run to the Finish by Amanda.  Today, Amanda posted about why she runs.  It was spawned from this video made by a few ZOOMA runners about why they ran the race that day:

I wanted to share with you why I run.

In college, one of the sororities sponsored a 5k each year as a fundraiser.  I decided during my junior year of college to try and complete this race.  I ran with some of my sorority sisters, and I had a good time.  I was never consistent about running, but I always enjoyed the runs I went out and liked the challenge it provided.

Since then, I've gone on runs every now and then, but I never would have considered myself a runner.

In September, a friend of mine posted about the Disney Princess Half Marathon in February 2013.  I looked at the race information and thought about how awesome it would be to run through the Disney parks, and the medal you get for finishing is so cute!  The coolness factor of this race made me want to sign up for the race.

The more I thought about it, though, the more I wondered why I really wanted to run a half marathon when the last race I ran was about 4 years ago.

I figured it out: I wanted to prove to myself that I could do it.  I've always kind of wanted to be a runner and eventually run a marathon, but I felt like I wasn't fast enough or wasn't as "good" at running as others. I run to show myself that I AM a runner and that I CAN run.  It doesn't matter how fast/slow I go, it doesn't matter how far I go, what matters is that I GO!  

I also wanted to prove to myself that I can motivate myself to set a goal and stick to it.  I am famous for having a great idea, being so excited about it for a few minutes/days/weeks, and then not following through with it in the end.  Running this half marathon will prove to myself that I can have a goal, I can be excited about it, and I can follow through to completion.

So there you have it!  My reasons for running.

Find out how you can win a t-shirt from ZOOMA for sharing why you run by clicking here.

Question for you: Why do YOU run?  If you aren't a runner, why do you work out?

I'll be back later with my regular post for today :)