A day of rest…..allergies hit me hard last night, all night and this morning. so a day of yard, house and stuff work.

Time to think.

What’s the one thing new runners, actually a lot of runners, really want?

When someone asks me how to run, what are they actually asking?

Have you ever heard a kid, a child ask, ‘how do I run?’ Nah, they already know how…they just run, it’s only running.

I hear a lot of questions, heck I ask the same question, always.

honestly, I think we’re all seeking the same answer…we just want permission to run..

Why on earth do we take part in so many events and races, read everything and anything, books, documentaries, and take clinics, training programs, create races, aiming at goals……..just to run?

We spend $$$$ on the latest gadgets, new shoes, so many different shoes, we buy shoes we think will make us faster, keep us from getting, omg! injured because we run…new clothes…..we puke, we find interesting places to, um, relieve ourselves…… eating what, what is right? why on earth would anyone willingly eat a gel? ……and pay $5 for that privilege. ….and then chug beer and eat burgers as if our lives depend on that next bit!?

Yeah, I know, I know, I do it to…….but permission to run…..we now have to analyze how we run…..never ever heel strike?…….we have to, no matter what, midfoot strike?….. we may actually be running wrong?

when you really dig deep into this…..bottom line, why on earth do we run? and why do we call it training? would just saying we’re just going out to play be so awful?

Yeah, I know, it’s for our health……not really though right…we get shin splints, runner’s knees, stress fractures, plantar fasciitis…….overtraining?….as a kid did you ever over play?

And then we run with others….training groups right? How about we call them play dates?

We run for mental health (why not just take a nap?) …..and is 10K enough for a health, what the heck is an ultra marathon through the mountains good for?

We all want to do Boston?

Why?…..we wanna prove how fast we are because we can’t win the Super Bowl?……..and the history, the history of someone playing?….

The funny thing, I teach others how to run…….I’m about to begin helping a group get to run 10K?……not math, not spelling, how to run 10K?…….teaching someone the right way to play?

I guess if we called it what this already is,

a book called Born to play, or the Lore of Playing would sound kind of stupid huh?……

I keep thinking, how about just have a bunch of people meet at a field with a bat a ball, just start hitting balls and have everyone chase them and call it speed intervals?

W