Give yourself "permission"!!!!!

[Bazza1234]

I think that the MOST important thing I have discovered in my new-found running "career" - which has now logged 1300 klms since January 2014 -- is giving myself permission to do whatever I want !!! Run however I want!!

I initially started to simply "exercise" because I was getting old and fat - and could see my contemporaries losing their ability to even walk. So I started out with the goal to be able to walk for 5Klms and the impossible dream was to be able to run 1 KLm. I have now exceeded these goals by a margin beyond my wildest imagination. But this means that I now have nothing to prove - even to myself - so all I really want to do now is to continue running forever. BUT - the word "running" now means for me whatever I decide it is -- not from somebody else's definition. I know an oldish man (74YO) who categorically refuses to walk at anytime during his weekly 5K parkruns - but it is plain to see that he is hurting himself by the way he runs ( too fast at the beginning, poor form as he runs and getting worse as the run proceeds). He WILL NOT accept my advice to stop to smell the roses along the way!! So now - I leave him to his choice

[Pigivi]

Well said Bazza!

The roses this year are amazing where I live, never seen so many!

[Arrietty Graduate]

Couldn't agree more Bazza!! *hits like about 56 times* 😄

[poppypug Graduate]

Good on ya Bazza

Yes it's been a good year for the roses xxxx

[no-excuse Graduate in reply to poppypug]

Many blooms still linger there.........x

[poppypug Graduate in reply to no-excuse]

The lawn could stand another mowing xxx

[no-excuse Graduate]

I agree Bazza, and we have to enjoy what we do. If we want to run forever we have to run in the way we want. Well said. Those roses smell just beautiful x

[gary_bart]

You're giving him "permission" to run his own way. Yes, I think we need to do that for ourselves and each other, although I suppose the responsible thing to do is to at least try to persuade someone who's harming himself to give himself permission to try a different way of running, so maybe the rule only kicks in after some delay. Before the permissive phase there's the looking out for each other phase.

In a way, you've been a good dad to him then, haven't you.

[ancientrunner Graduate]

Yes you are right. I always feel I have failed if I stop and walk, yet there is a whole walk/run discipline that I must look at as I think I would increase my distances and do the running bits faster.

[AncientMum Graduate]

Well said Bazza, sound advice

[Noaky12 Graduate]

Great post Bazza. Thanks ☺

[Ullyrunner Graduate]

Wise words as ever Bazza. It's got to be right for each of us on a personal basis.

[DownNotUp Graduate]

Today I ran to catch a bus. It was only a couple of hundred yards but I enjoyed it and didn't get out of breath doing it. I wasn't dressed for running, I was carrying shopping and normally wouldn't run without the right gear; sports bra; warm up etc. I enjoyed giving myself permission to do something so simple.