Why do so many people only run?

13

Replies

  • thedreamhazer
    thedreamhazer Posts: 1,156 Member
    When I run, I'm not thinking, "Gawd, I just want to get this over with to burn calories." I'm watching the clouds over the lake as the sun sets, smiling at children in strollers and cute dogs, encouraging the little octogenarian whose outstripping the teens with her power walk, organizing my novel in my head, challenging myself to pass the jogger ahead of me, humming songs in my head I'd thought I'd forgotten the words too, not thinking about work or drama or stress, planning gifts for the holidays, and in general just being happy.

    I like sports, but sports are not the same as running to me. Running is liberating.
  • bigdawg025
    bigdawg025 Posts: 774 Member
    I happen to enjoy running very much! I couldn't play sports right now if I wanted to. I have a hurt shoulder that is still healing, and I'm doing physical therapy for it. So... running and cycling is just about all I can do anyway.
  • MayMaydoesntrun
    MayMaydoesntrun Posts: 805 Member
    It's my mental enema.
  • AnninStPaul
    AnninStPaul Posts: 1,372 Member
    if you travel for work, it's the easiest to find facilities (you can run along the street, on a track, etc) with the smallest amount of equipment to pack
  • fbmandy55
    fbmandy55 Posts: 5,263 Member
    I get so lonely exercising. I do have a bowling league and a volleyball league but if I could find somethign to do on a daily basis that doesn't requir eme to be alone, I'd be happy!
  • staceyseeger
    staceyseeger Posts: 778 Member
    I don't play well with others!:noway: :noway: :noway:
  • Qarol
    Qarol Posts: 6,171 Member
    It's my mental enema.
    I get what you're saying but just.....eww
  • Yanicka1
    Yanicka1 Posts: 4,564 Member
    I do it because it can be done anywhere anytime. That being said I hate cardio LOL. and also many of us have been traumatised by gym class at school!!!! I suckkkkkkkkkk at it
  • Nikki582
    Nikki582 Posts: 561 Member
    I am a socially awkward creature who'd have to summon up a lot of courage to join a team sport. I'm also slow, uncoordinated and, let's face it, fat.. my self esteem takes a real hit.
    Running I can do alone, sure, I see other runners and yes, I worry about what I look like to them, but I have my headphones in so I can't hear anyone, I don't have to think about what I'm doing, if I'm throwing to the wrong person or if they're all watching me miss a catch.. and I don't really enjoy team sports. I do like netball, but I don't think I could join a team of people that I don't know at this stage of my life.

    I do strengthening exercises to compliment my running, btw. :) I don't just run.
  • ilookthetype
    ilookthetype Posts: 3,021 Member
    I hate running. I will just have to sacrifice myself to the zombies so my friends can get away...

    I'm dragging your *kitten* behind me so you don't get nommed.
  • starbucksbuzz
    starbucksbuzz Posts: 466 Member
    maybe I prefer not to be a weight on a team. When I run, I am only competing against myself. I'm not worried about looking foolish and letting a team down.

    I suck at sports, I have no skill with speed, but I can run six miles in my own time and that is way more thrilling to me than missing that ball yet again.

    EXACTLY.
    I am terrible at sports. I'm also a really bad loser (ask my husband, he won't play board games with me) so when I'm running I'm only competing with myself. It's good. That said I do take walks and hikes with friends, and I enjoy skiing, and general active lifestyle stuff... but organized sports just doesn't work for me.
  • helma123
    helma123 Posts: 79 Member
    I HATE team sports! Running is the first athletic activity that I have ever enjoyed. I LOVE to compete in races & I love training for them. For the first time in my life, I consider myself an athlete!
  • MotherOfTwins2010
    MotherOfTwins2010 Posts: 14 Member
    Because running lets me clear my head and relax while I get some time to myself which is a rarity when you are a stay at home mom to 2 year old twins! They way I feel after a good run is indescribably amazing!
  • engineman312
    engineman312 Posts: 3,450 Member
    i have a lot going on, and i can't commit to anything. i was on a soccer team until recently, but i couldn't commit to practices and games because of my crappy work schedule.

    but now i'm getting ready to become a triathlete. how's that for a sport?
  • janet_pratt
    janet_pratt Posts: 747 Member
    I ride my bike because I love it. It is my sanity, my relaxation, my time to challenge myself. It's not just to burn calories. It is where my joy comes from. And now the snow is coming...cranky, hostile, mildly insane posts to follow, through about March or April!
  • skylark94
    skylark94 Posts: 2,036 Member
    I run because I lack the time or the schedule for sports. Running is something I can do whenever and wherever I want to and it costs me nothing more than the price of a good pair of shoes every few months.
  • shellbell1993
    shellbell1993 Posts: 315 Member
    I have become a lover of running only the last 4 years, my true passion is for Soccer though! I use to play it year round, until my recent move to a small town USA (just across the border from my Canadian hometown) where they for some reason don't have any soccer! BOOOOO (stuck in the US until I get my greencard so crossing over is out of the question)
    So hoping to play this summer again!!! But until then, running keeps me in shape to play the 90 min game. Also it is very relaxing and calming! It's Me time!!!
  • Jesung
    Jesung Posts: 236 Member
    Sports is something that is up to the individual but it boggles my mind why some people would not want to lift heavy weights.
  • Samerah12
    Samerah12 Posts: 610 Member
    ????? Dude, running IS my sport. There is nothing I would rather do.
  • JamesBurkes
    JamesBurkes Posts: 382 Member
    I'd love to find a sport that I enjoyed, but I haven't yet. Too many memories from school. Besides, I prefer doing things by myself. I don't even like running or cycling with other people - it puts me off and I don't push as hard.

    And, just speaking personally, I don't actually like the kinds of people who play team sports that much. Too much macho testosterone BS for my taste....
  • HeidiMightyRawr
    HeidiMightyRawr Posts: 3,343 Member
    I don't do much cardio in general but if I did I would prefer to do it on my own. I'm a bit anti-social when it comes to team sports and find it hard to speak to new people and generally just prefer to do things like that my own way.

    I hated PE at school and would literally grab any excuse not to do it. (apart from Badminton in later years when all my friends and I would do was whack the shuttlecock back and forth) - I LOVE that sport (as a rally only, not a proper scoring game), and I'll quite happily go the gym with friends/bf (my bf trains with me there) that's about it. Basically in those things, I'm still working on my own - either against my friend in Badminton, or against myself at the gym but with someone there to keep me company :) Team games are really not my cup of tea.
  • Superman_sean
    Superman_sean Posts: 12
    Simple answer to your question. They are clueless. Tis all.
  • runnerjenn0708
    runnerjenn0708 Posts: 400 Member
    I'm not a people person. Sports would require people.


    This made me chuckle !! THX - I needed it!
  • Hirundo
    Hirundo Posts: 148 Member
    I like to run

    I can do it on my own schedule

    I can do with with my girlfriend

    I can combine it with other adventures, I do not have to stay on a soccer field for 3 hours, I can explore a path with a nice leisurely jog

    You do not need any equipment

    You do not need a membership

    You can relax and just be, running is often called "moving meditation"

    Running is awesome cardio exercise

    You can set goals and work towards them

    It is highly functional and transfers well to any sport pretty much

    ... and I just love it

    All this !

    And you can do it everywhere anytime .. all you need is your shoes ...
  • HMonsterX
    HMonsterX Posts: 3,000 Member
    Wow, lots of replies since i went out to Badminton, getting ready for which was what got me thinking and made that original post!

    I guess i take my hand/eye co-ordination, availability, social skills (:huh: ), location, etc for granted!

    Interesting enough, many people said running was their mental enema (well, one person used those exact words, but i get the drift :P ) , giving them time to think etc. I guess that's the one reason why i DON'T like it, as it gives me to time think about things. The only way i get through each day is to try NOT to think about things! That's why i love my sports, as it takes my mind off my real life.

    Plus, being a smoker I'm not able to run that long :P
    but it boggles my mind why some people would not want to lift heavy weights.

    I would, but i'm afraid of getting DOMS on a badminton night... =/
  • alacyt
    alacyt Posts: 9
    Why don't more people do strength training? Especially women. I believe running is a cult-ish fitness obsession. The people who do it seem to view it as a type of religion.
  • sarah307
    sarah307 Posts: 1,363 Member
    i'd like to be part of a sport but there aren't any I can 'join' around here and I don't have any friends that play sports :/ which sucks! I used to play basketball a lot but not so much anymore


    btw, i think running is AWESOME LOL
  • 3dogsrunning
    3dogsrunning Posts: 27,167 Member
    Why don't more people do strength training? Especially women. I believe running is a cult-ish fitness obsession. The people who do it seem to view it as a type of religion.

    That's quite a sweeping generalization. Yes, there are some who are like that, but not all of us are.
    Everyone else has pretty much covered why I run.

    PS - I do strength train too, but with shift work, it is a whole lot easier to get a run in than make it to the gym. I also bike, and swim.

    ETA - running also ties into my work as well.

    Also, as for team sports, again, with shiftwork, it isn't possible to be a regular member of a time. My schedule rotates meaning I am never off the same day.
  • strawberryromper
    strawberryromper Posts: 64 Member
    I live in a very rural area; there are few opportunities for adults to play sports except in college. I enjoy running.
  • JamesBurkes
    JamesBurkes Posts: 382 Member
    I suppose there are other factors at play, too. I like running mainly because I live in an area of outstanding beauty (or whatever the Government calls it). So on a nice day, I'm running down country lanes, through woodland, next to fields etc.

    Drop me in a city or town though, and I'm sure avoiding traffic, stopping at road junctions and running in circles around a park would become a chore very quickly.
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