by Kai Deniri

Created on: September 17, 2010

People should run because running improves, prolongs, and even saves your life.  Yes siree Bob, the ways that running can help you outnumber a marathoner's blisters.  While some people should probably consult a doctor before running, every abled, uninjured, non-pregnant, serious-illness-free American is losing out on fantastic benefits if he chooses a sedentary lifestyle.  The benefits of running range endlessly and can be physical, mental, social, and even altruistic.  Sometimes running opens opportunities you'd never even think of. Let me explain. 

Running may improve your life in the widest range of ways.  Physically, running is two hundred times more likely to give you a smokin' body than any pills touted on late-night infomercials.  Actually, running is even better than having your stomach stapled, and a lot cheaper.  One cokehead-thin (yet drug-free) runner I know eats worse than a preschool class unleashed in a grocery store's candy aisle.  While she dipped her 5th consecutive Double-Stuff Oreo into her whole-milk pumpkin spice latte one day, co-workers sighed with disgust and said, "I want an Oreo so bad, but I can't..." "I wish I could do that and stay as skinny as you!" "You make me sick!" "How do you stay so thin?"  This runner barely hears these comments; to her they have become just a noise people make while she is wondering if she has room for a third peice of cake.  But once in a while, she tells them, "It's nothing, really.  I run four miles a day.  Anyone who ran four miles a day could eat like this."  You can argue that consuming numerous Oreos and a pumpkin spice latte whenever you want would NOT improve your life whatsoever, but only if you're a big fat liar. 

Socially, running can make you more attractive and connect you with a community of new friends.  I know a runner who met his wife at a race, and they have been happily married for 26 years.  They have five children.  Races can be wonderfully family-friendly, providing busy parents with some much-needed, head-clearing exercise, even if they run with a stroller.  Kids should run, too.  They are naturals, usually - running is a game to them, and if they keep it up they can develop lifelong healthy exercise habits.  As a plus, running fast will help them win games like jailbreak, kickball, and soccer. For little kids, there are many "fun runs" or "fun walks" of shorter distances alongside

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