For sneakers, you can go to the nearest sporting goods store, but personal motives for running will have to be looked for. We asked several working mothers to answer the question: “Why do I like to run?” To inspire all women with our example.

The opportunity to be alone

Maria Romanova is a nutritionist, mother of three children. Maria started running when her third child was two years old, and now she tries not to miss runs even in rainy weather, she regularly participates in marathons. “At some point, I realized that I need time that I can devote only to myself and be alone with myself. Running gave me that opportunity. For me, this is not just a sport, but also a way to put my thoughts in order, get rid of worries and anxieties and restore a good mood. After jogging, I feel harmony with myself and calmness. It seems to me that the world would be a much better and kinder place if everyone started running.”

A positive example for your children

Anna Kameneva works sports coach. Five years ago she had an accident and got serious injury. For a long time she thought that she would never be able to play sports again, but gradually she managed to regain her former shape. Now Anna organizes races on fresh air, attracting as much as possible more people most different ages. “It is very important for me to be a positive example for my children. Teach them a healthy lifestyle. I want them to enjoy running as much as I do. I love doing mass races and seeing how running brings people together.”

Way to get over yourself

Elizaveta Rusakova is a primary school teacher and mother of two children. Elizabeth has been running for over 5 years. “Running has become an integral and very important part of my life. Thanks to him, I gained confidence in myself and my abilities. I used to think that sport was not for me. I looked at the athletes as if they were people from another planet, and with difficulty climbed the stairs even to the second floor. But at some point I realized that it was time to change something. At first I ran only 15 minutes a day, but gradually began to increase the load. Now I can safely run for at least two hours. I believed in myself and I know that there are no obstacles that cannot be overcome.”

The New York Marathon is one of the largest in the world; in 2014, about 50,000 people completed the distance (and we won’t even think about how many started!) Along with the Boston and Chicago marathons, it is included in the World Marathon Majors series. The marathon was organized by the New York City Running Association and was first held in 1970. It is held annually on the first Sunday of November (that is, today).

Why are we telling you all this? Yes, because individual heroic sibmums are running the New York Marathon today! Polina Maksimova (), fitness trainer and mother of three wonderful sons, explains how she got there, or rather, ran to such a life!

(Click on photo to enlarge)

You can't stop running. Why do I love to run

Quite recently, the Siberian Running Festival took place - I ran the second half marathon in my life. More than half of the distance was in pouring rain, which means that in sneakers that were wet through, which added weight and discomfort. But, despite this, there is little that can compare with the sensations at the finish line. A new goal is ahead - the New York Marathon, which means it's time to run!

How I love to run

Why am I doing this? I periodically ask myself this question, especially when I don’t feel like running, when you get up before dawn, in order to have time to run to schools, gardens, work, when the weather is bad.

” The main competition is with yourself when you put on your sneakers and still walk out the door.

I will try to answer the questions that a person who is thinking about going for a run will have. I must say right away that I am not a professional athlete and I ask you to consider everything that I write about only as personal experience a person who loves running with all his body and soul.

By occupation, I am related to fitness, but for the first time I went for a street run after the birth of my third child, when I was well over thirty, with a completely banal motivation - to get in shape after giving birth. This had to be done without the expense of the road, and running was the best option.

” I remember my first runs and feelings - my face was burgundy and "slightly dead"!

Tell me then that I would have the unthinkable idea of ​​running a marathon, I would never have believed it. In my picture of the world, only professionals ran half marathons and marathons. Now I perceive 5-7 km as pleasant leisure- running evolution is evident, or rather, on the head and legs.

Why don't people like to run?

“I don't like to run” - I constantly hear this from friends and clients. But when I ask when they ran in last time, in response, they most often talk about physical education lessons. If attempts to start running happened at a conscious age, but did not bring any pleasure or results, then in 99% of cases it was a bust of workload and a lack of knowledge. We'll fix it!

I’m not saying that everyone will have a running love-carrot at first sight, but:

• inadequate technique training process,
• inappropriate shoes,
• malnutrition

capable of killing pleasure and neutralizing all the pluses.

Why do I love to run

Feeling and feeling

• Running works better than any immunostimulants and pseudo-prophylactic pills. What are colds, I forgot after six months of regular jogging.
• Running is great for slimming. The original goal - to get myself into an acceptable shape - was quickly realized. When we run, almost all muscles are involved, including the heart (also a muscle!)
• The cardio-respiratory system is trained, which means that the capacity of the lungs increases, the functionality of the heart increases, blood circulation improves, and the work of the endocrine system is activated.

Peace of mind

There is no better remedy for blues and chaos in the head. Thoughts on the shelves, the puzzle from the to-do list adds up to a clear picture in my head. An invaluable bonus - time alone with yourself, mothers will understand.

” It has been proven by scientists (probably British) that 30 minutes of moderate jogging is equivalent to a daily dose of an antidepressant. Personally, I almost never met depressed runners.

In general, in any incomprehensible and melancholy situation, I run, and life is getting better.

Positive change and personal growth

It sounds pretentious, but it's true. As a psychologist, I declare that through the body we train the psyche. Volitional qualities, like muscles, can be trained. One of the strongest motivating factors for me personally is the changes that have taken place “at the level of the head”. When I first started running, 5 kilometers seemed like a hard long distance to me. In life, I'm rather a sprinter - I quickly started in business, but also quickly got tired and lost interest. But, regularly running and increasing distances, I realized that in life and work “races” my self-perception and behavior also change. I am less tired, I cope better with stress, skillfully calculate my strength, and self-discipline and motivation are stronger than ever!

Communication with like-minded people

When I started running, I periodically looked for answers to my questions. And I found, and not only answers, but also enthusiastic people. New interesting acquaintances appear, new motivation, goals, experience, boundaries expand - this is how the dream of a marathon arose in my case.

Involving the family in a healthy lifestyle

You don’t force anything, you just run regularly, and one fine day your husband goes jogging with you. And then, you already run fartlek (a kind of interval cyclic training - ed.) together every weekend. Benefits not only for the body, but also for relationships. And one day the son shows interest and participates with you in charity races!

For those who are thinking about whether to go for a run right now, in the continuation of the publication, I will give some really valuable tips that were born from my experience.

(On Instagram @polly_max)

I don't like running, but I've been running all my life. In his youth, he simply ran, because he went in for sports, and then physical education. Then, like many, I struggled with being overweight. I even had a period when I got excited to run a certain number of iconic marathons, planned my results.

I always needed some reason to run regularly and justify the effort. If I loved running wholeheartedly, I would not need justifications and goals. I envy people who can put on a uniform and run at any moment. This is true love, without any conditions.

About five years ago, I stopped talking about running altogether. I continue to read specialized sites, take an interest in equipment, take a closer look at the starts, only all this happens in the background - running has become a tool interesting life.

I have a primitive idea of ​​an interesting life. Tortured to choose destinations, goals for years to come, I decided to cheat: I thought that, probably, an interesting life consists of successful days. And successful days are made of happy moments.

I follow this instrument, I look after it, but I think about the functions that it performs for me. Through running, I have learned many things that help me make life more interesting:

1. Make better use of time

Limitations motivate me. When among the dense plan for the day there is running training I get more done - not because I'm more energetic after running. I understand that I will have less time and I need to use it more efficiently.

2. Clear your head and find answers

I run without headphones, in the forest. I try to reset my head and turn running into meditation. However, after a run, I always write down three or four ideas, solutions that come to mind while I'm back in the city.

Sometimes before training I write questions on a card. If you do not forget to reread them after a run, the answers are sure to come.

3. Know the world, expand its boundaries

New opportunities for us are in communication with people. Running expands the surface of contact with the outside world - that's what I call getting out of the personal comfort zone.

The main result of participating in competitions for me is not time or a medal, but impressions from the city where you run and new acquaintances.

A marathon distance is a great analogy of life: at a distance you cross paths with a lot of people, the audience is looking at you, you see and perfectly understand how hard it is for those who run next to you.

Three to four hours intense workout awareness: you thank the fans for their support, you cheer those who run nearby. I even manage to get acquainted at a distance.

Running for me is a working filter for finding people with whom it is easier for me to communicate and interact.

4. Get into the state of Flow

The American came up with a convenient definition for the state in which we feel good: to feel that you are in currently you complete the task set for yourself, and in the process of its implementation you discover new abilities and opportunities in the world around you. At the same time, you communicate, interact with others, you are interesting and useful, and you receive feedback.

My favorite quote from Sweet Csikszentmihalyi's book on Flow: "The main point of flow activity is to find joy." For me, this is the meaning of an interesting life, and running helps to train in the ability to understand and get into the Stream.

5. Act, not talk

Understanding is necessary only for action! For nothing else: you can understand as much as you like how important it is for health to be physically active, to teach children and relatives. And you can just show an example.

And if you train regularly, then the life of those around you will inevitably change. This is important, first of all, for our own children - you have an excellent reason for communication and unobtrusive education.

My friends, burdened with excess weight, stopped talking to me that they do not have enough conditions, money, equipment in order to do physical education. You can run anywhere and anytime.

Never been a propagandist and agitator healthy lifestyle life: I believe that everyone is responsible for their own condition. However, running made my environment healthier and more interesting. When you run, you can't help but influence those around you.

You may not like running. However, it is worth just trying to introduce it into everyday life so that radical changes take place in it.

Run, rejoice, and the meaning will come by itself.

As a child, I did not like physical education. The only thing that was more or less bearable was running, and not the traditional 30/60/100 meters, but long distances - 2 km or more. I was quite competitive on them)) On short ones, I accelerated when it was already late, already running past the physical education teacher with a stopwatch. Probably my love long distances associated with hiking, which my father dragged me from childhood, thanks to him!

After school, I naturally did not run, having successfully abandoned physical education at the institute. I returned to running only a few years ago and found it very exciting and interesting. A kind of dynamic meditation. Well, this is in addition to the standard benefits of running, such as health, vigor, endurance, and weight control. In short, running is cool!)) And here's why:

Why I Love Running in the Morning

1. Running helps not only to be in shape, but also to control weight., namely, to deal with its excesses. For me it eternal problem and running combined with adequate nutrition is a very good solution.
2. Running develops discipline. An extremely important quality in achieving success in life. Forcing yourself to get up early and go for a run, even when you don’t feel like it at all, is a great practice for pumping self-discipline.
3. Morning run is a great start to the day, exercises for the body and a great way to saturate the blood with oxygen, which has a positive effect not only on the general condition, but also on brain activity. For someone who is engaged in mental work - an excellent way to keep in good shape not only the body, but also mental activity.
4. Running helps develop acceptance of the situation. Even if you run around the stadium, as I do, you must have been caught by changes in the weather, such as sudden rain or a rising headwind. Accepting calmly everything that happens and finding positive aspects in it is an excellent quality that helps not only in self-development, but also in a calm attitude to the surprises that every day brings us.
5. Running is great meditation practice which contributes to the development of a conscious attitude to life. Awareness of everything that happens around you and inside you is an important quality, developing which, we begin to notice the new around us. Including - new opportunities that appear in our lives every day, but which we pass by, not noticing them or dismissing them as insignificant.

Morning jogging is a health benefit and a great tool for self-development!

In short, running is one benefit!)) Of course, if you run correctly, in good shoes, without overloading yourself unnecessarily and without forcing natural progress. By making running a good daily habit, you will achieve a lot.. Health, vivacity, enthusiasm and a positive attitude to life will become your faithful companions and help you successfully develop and improve! If you already run, do it regularly, and if not yet, be sure to try it! Perhaps you will find the long-awaited key to further development and exit to new level of your life.

Have a nice day and good mood!