What is this "passion" thing actually?
What is it in itself? What is its nature?
Running is my great passion. That much is certain. After music and writing, nothing in my life has inspired and fulfilled me like running. But what exactly is it that makes me so passionate about running? Since I can't indulge in my great love right now, it's a good time to reflect on it more closely.
“What is it in itself? What is its nature?” – Hannibal Lecter quoting Marcus Aurelius
The Easy Answer
I like running. It feels good. Very natural. I like the movement and the dynamics. I also like the effort. Feeling my pulse, sweating and breathing deeply. I like the way the impact of each stride is transmitted through my foot, my ankle, my calf, my knee, then my thigh, my pelvis, my upper body up to my shoulders and my head. I like to feel the wind in my face and the warmth of the sun on my skin. But I also like the feeling of cold fingers clenched in a fist in the rain, or a t-shirt sticking to my back. I love to be aware of the things around me or to block them out completely. I enjoy focusing on running or just letting it happen. I like the honest thirst and hunger during and after the run. I enjoy the hope and excitement of setting out and the liberating feeling of arriving.
I could go on forever. To cut to the chase, running has become my great passion because it gives me so much joy. It's that simple.
I like running. It feels good.
The Deep Answer
When I look beyond the joy of pure movement, I immediately encounter my lifelong longing for security and structure. Ever since I was a child, I have craved an orderly life, clarity, clear paths, stability, and fixed routines. Running, especially running training, gives me this sense of security.
For others, a training plan is like a corset. It is a restrictive necessity that is only meant to help the runner reach his or her goal as quickly as possible. Some runners even do without a training plan altogether.
For me, training is the goal. I don't mean that in the sense of "the journey is the reward", but exactly as I say it. My goal is to train and thus run regularly and in a structured way. That is what gives me the most fulfillment. That is my passion.
Training is the goal.
The Outside the Box Answer
A third answer to the question of why running has become my great passion lies in its multifaceted nature. Running can be so much more. Allow me to explain.
At first glance, running is just a sport. Cool enough, but already in the third year of my "running career," it became a business for me with the founding of my running brand Willpower. And again, just a few years later, it became the subject of my first book, many magazine articles and the running blog & newsletter you are reading now.
Running has also become a place where I meet my closest friends. A place to connect, to share the excitement, to support each other and to be there for each other when we need it.
Even though it is always about the pure movement, I can also transfer running to many other worlds that inspire me. The only thing I haven't done yet is to write and release songs about running. But who knows, I'm still young.
Running can be so much more.
Sounds great! But you're injured.
Thanks for the reminder. That's right, I'm injured. And that's why I try to maintain as much of my passion as possible. Mainly by cycling. The transfer is sometimes not so easy, but I try.
Cycling allows me to push myself, to sweat and to get tired. I can train in a structured way. I'm in nature, I feel the wind in my face and a burning sensation in my muscles when I push hard. It feels different going downhill than going uphill, and different on the road than on a gravel path. I can ride slowly for a long time or fast for a short time. Sometimes I ride alone, sometimes with others.
As you can see, some of the things that make running my great passion also apply to cycling. Not all, but I am grateful to have the opportunity to keep a part of my life's love alive.
Everything not Running
[Below, I am writing about a podcast interview I did in German language]
Was für ein schöner Zufall: Genau eine Woche vor dem legendären Western States 100 hatte ich die Möglichkeit, meine eigene Western States Story noch einmal in voller Länge zu erzählen. Und zwar im "Laufen und Leben" Podcast von Anna Hughes, vielen Dank für die Einladung!
Auch wenn ich alle Details zu meinem ersten 100 Meilen Lauf bereits ausführlich in meinem Buch "Runhundred" niedergeschrieben und Anfang des Jahres für die deutsche Version "Hundert-Meilen-Herz" noch einmal übersetzt, also gewissermaßen neu geschrieben habe, war es trotzdem eine schöne und bewegende Erfahrung, die Geschichte in der Tonspur zu erzählen.
Es reißt mich jedes Mal aufs Neue mit, mich gedanklich und emotional wieder in die Canyons des Western States zu begeben und die Erlebnisse wie in einer Schneekugel (Hitzekugel wäre treffender) noch einmal aufzuwirbeln und mit leuchtenden Augen zu betrachten.
Neben dem Western State sprechen Anna und ich über viele andere Dinge, die den Podcast sehr hörenswert machen. Ein tolles Gespräch. Hört mal rein!
Chris, first of all, thank you! Reading this means a lot to me. Like yourself, I came into fitness from an arts background. It's been so rewarding for me to experience fitness through the lens of art. I see the two disciplines in a very similar light. I enjoyed learning about how you've fallen in love with running and fitness in general, and how that passion has also become a profession. This was the motivation I needed today to get my mind and body in a productive place!
It´s so rewarding to evolve as human beings, through something so simple and yet complex as running is. I truly enjoyed our deep talk and accessing the essence of what running means to you. Now finally getting around to sticking my nose in your book.