5 Things that Inspire Me (Eric) to Run

Inspiration

My Wife

Believe it or not I am the runner I am because of my wife. Period. End of story. She is the inspiration that gets me out the door to run. She is someone that will commit to something and follow through 110%. I remember when we trained for the Philadelphia Marathon and how much she wanted to qualify for Boston. It didn’t work out, but seeing her get out there and crush 20 milers and dominate 10 mile tempo runs and destroy her personal bests was inspiration for me to get my own training together. Her commitment is my commitment and when she’s done being pregnant I’ve not a doubt in my mind that she and by default me and eventually little Myles will be out there running along side her.

Running Club

This club is the best. It just is. I’ve been on a bunch of different clubs and I’ve hung out with people from other running clubs and they all say the same thing this crew is the best. They ask how we do it? I tell them it’s the people. It just is. You all are an unbelievable inspiration to me. We have folks who are super fast, folks who are just starting out and everyone in between. To see each and every one of you training, racing and striving for either a PR a new race distance or just looking for some fitness is an inspiration to me. You make me wonder why I’m sitting on the couch writing this…maybe I should head out for a run!

Beginning Runners

This crew is no joke one of my favorite. The beginning runners are a crew that inspires me to no end. We all know running is hard, it’s not easy. The fact that these folks will show up to practice every practice and get in their work is super impressive. The effort it takes to get myself out the door is tremendous and I’ve been doing this thing for nearly 20 years. For someone who is just starting to muster up the effort is so inspiring. This crew is one of the biggest inspirations out there. They may not know it but they probably inspire a lot of people just walking or driving by.

The Clock

For me the times on the clock have always been an inspiration for me. Just trying to get those numbers down the lowest I can is one of the reasons I still run. The clock is the one competitor I can never beat but I can certainly try! I tend not to race the people around me as much these days as the time on the clock. After running for so many years it’s easy to figure out what times I should be running, the clock lets me know if I’m putting forth the effort.

My Fitness

Now that my wife and I are having a baby I think more and more about my fitness overall and how running fits into it. Running contributes to an over all sense of well being and general health and I’m going to do my best to continue to do it (even with a new baby!) My own personal fitness is something that I take seriously and I’ve even been hitting the gym a bit to gain some strength…mostly so I can lift my kiddo over and over again. This commitment to personal fitness is another source of inspiration for me.

What inspires you to run? Leave some thoughts in the comments section.

Coach E