Michael Reibel Boesen

July 8, 2022

🏃‍♂️ Why I run

I don’t know who needs to hear this. Quite possibly most likely myself in 6-9 months time when I’m questioning running again. Or deciding to down prioritize it. Maybe you’re reading this because you’re procrastinating about going on that run and need to read some random dudes thoughts on why run. So here goes.

😃 I run because it makes me happy
For a long time I never understood this point. I never got any happiness out of running. All I got was tiredness. In my life today I get happiness from running. Even bad runs.

😴 I run because I sleep better
I sleep A LOT better when I run. Normally I wake up 4-5 times every night at least but when I run I usually find myself waking up maybe only once (and that once is because of getting kicked in the nuts by my 3 year old who’s a sleep ninja). This is also apparent from my Autosleep data which says I’ve gone from an average sleep rating of around 70 to 82.

🚀 I run because I wake up feeling refreshed
Probably related to the former and this is perhaps one of the absolute biggest pros of why I run. Before I started running I would feel so insanely sluggish when waking up. Literally taking hours before I was able to think straight. When I run I actually feel refreshed when waking up. My mind feels sharp and clear right from the get go. EVEN with little sleep.

🧠 I run to get mentally stronger
Running is a mental game. I learned as much this past year. Especially when combined with meditation it seems all too clear that you’re constantly at war with lazy-Michael who tells you to stop the fuck up. Also just confirmed by reading Matt Fitzgeralds “Run like the pros (even if you’re slow)” book who literally says that running with a quiet mind makes you perform better. Also it used to be that when I wanted to run and it was raining I was like “nah not today”. Now I’m literally looking forward to running in the rain because I know it will challenge me mentally. Take that rain! 👊🌧

🍷 I run to enjoy wine
Yes I’m a wine nerd. No exercise is probably not good for me especially not with the amounts of wine I sample these days every week.

🫥 I run to be alone
Yes I have a family. And yes I love them to bits. But enjoy being alone nonetheless (and also I run mostly during work days these days).

🌲 I run to be in nature
I love running in the forest. Looking at the trees whisk by. Finding a new path. Losing another path. Getting totally lost.

🥇 I run to feel accomplished
Some people kill evil bosses in computer games to feel accomplished (I used to do that A LOT) but I like running better. 

So those were just a few things initially coming to my mind within about 10 mins writing this. Anything added below will have come after those 10 mins.

About Michael Reibel Boesen

Dad 👨‍👩‍👦‍👦, builder (🤖⌨️🏢), 💌 Weekly Climate, 🚁📸photographer, 🎧vinyl record collector and reseller, 🥃 distiller (Gefjun), 🎸guitarist, 🎹pianist, 🍷winenerd (WSET3), 🏃‍♂️runner and 🤓engineer/PhD.