How can something as simple as putting one foot in front of the other over and over again makes us feel so damn happy? And why on earth would someone wake up purposely at dawn during weekends to do this basic exercise?
Because our bodies and mind needs it. They’ve been designed for it. You surely won’t feel this compelling need on your very first run. You’ll rather struggle after 5 min, and get irritated thinking “what’s so funny about running?” But once you’ll try to put goals into your runs the whole thing will change.
Start setting a distance goal. For example 5k, 8k, or even 10k. I’m sure every healthy person is able to walk/run a 10k distance from scratch. It would mean walking for 2 hours… not a big deal huh? Not worrying about pace, just going for it whatever time it takes. And once you’ve accomplished this, you’ll feel true and pure satisfaction for what you just did.
Then go for another one. You’ll most probably start to struggle after 2 or 3 km thinking of quitting and going home contenting yourself with what you just did. But if you just try to take it further and overcome the 5th km, you’ll see how the other half comes by itself.
Then you push yourself further maybe through longer distances, and at some point the magic will kick in. Endorphins will increase and your body as your mind will start to feel better. You’ll start to look around, seeing and appreciating things that maybe you never noticed before even if you’ve went through them thousands of times.
All of this magic gets boosted even more while running in nature. Going with the trail’s flow. Hopping the downhills and walking the climbs. But most of all breathing, and consciously feeling what’s surrounding you. Noticing if it is hot or cold, dry or wet, windy or calm. Just absorb that feeling on your skin and the smell in the air, while you keep on putting one foot in front of the other.
This happens to us because we’re meant to do it. Human bodies are perfectly engineered to walk & run all sorts of distances, not to stay all day on the couch and use a scooter to go to the grocery store 200 meters away from home. All you need to do is “reactivate” that innate power we all have.
This is why we run, why we’re so addicted to such a simple motion. And we do this even more willingly into the nature because we’re part of it. While we run on trails we’re just reconnecting to what we fundamentally are: A piece of it.
