HI Runners,
For those who have been following me via email prior to the blog you have been around for Mark Remy’s Runner’s Rule Book Lessons. With race season approaching and some loyal runners requests for a refresher Mark Remy’s, The Runner’s Rule Book: Everything a runner needs to know–and then some, is taking up coffee table space again. I will be sharing with you the most important runner’s rules guaranteed to get you to race day ready to run without embarrassing yourself or committing runners fauz pas along the way.
Before we dive into the actual rules it is important to define “running.” “The only rules you need to remember for running-the-verb are these:
- Use your legs to move forward (or to avoid moving backward if you are on the treadmill.)
- At some point, both feet must be airborne at the same time. (Otherwise, you’re walking, shuffling, or lunging. Or skating, if you happen to be on skates.)
- Avoid running into things, such as holes, vehicles, structures, cacti, lampposts, fences, other animals, and large bodies of water.
There is no better way to learn then by example so here is how we followed the most basic rules on our long run yesterday:
“Rule 1.1 HAVE FUN
You thought I was kidding when I called this the first rule of running? No way. I’m serious about having fun….
In fact, even when you do it improperly, running is still pretty fun (just like another animal impulse that we could mention, but won’t.) It is inherently, liberatingly fun. There is a fundamental joy in movement, in forward motion….
Running is fun. Indulge this instinct. Enjoy it. After all, there aren’t many animal impulses we can act on in public without getting arrested.” -Steve Remy
On long runs don’t treat them as something you “HAVE” to do. You GET to go outside and play in the sun. SO PLAY! Have fun with your course. Here are some natural obstacles I found along our Saturday run around Lake Union.
The Ladies didn’t want to partake in the fun with me, but I did get my bros to join me in a couple of bounds!
Everyone did stop with me though to ham it up at the wall of death!
“Rule 1.2 EXPAND YOUR DEFINITION OF FUN
This is a corollary to rule 1.1. As a runner, your definition of fun–which previously might have included such activities as visiting water parks, watching screwball comedies on DVD, and scrapbooking–must be…well, let’s call it broadened.
For runners, fun might include:
- waking up at 5:30 a.m. to run 10 miles
- running in blistering heat
- running in the rain
- running in 400-meter circles
- feeling as if your lungs are about to explode
- paying a race director good money for the privilege of turning your own toes black and blue
- any combination of the above.” -Mark Remy
We luckily had an amazingly nice day and didn’t get to hit any of that early 5:30 a.m., blistering heat, or rainy fun. We just got to enjoy the sun! On days like that you may even have enough energy to jump at the end of your run!
And remember if you go for a long run you can feel less guilty about finding “fun” afterwards! You do have to refuel! 😉
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