Running and relationships

Over the past couple of days I have been chatting to various friends (running and non-running backgrounds) about keeping relationships healthy and also keeping the passion for your sport going at the same time.

A clear theme that emerged (and has been my experience to) is that you really need to find a partner (or even friends) who are either active in your area of fitness or well being or indeed who understand how important it is to you in completing you as a person. One female friend who has done the trifecta in dating a runner, a swimmer and a triathlete is very vocal about the fact that she will never again become involved with another man who is active in any area of sport since she found that this takes over and quite frankly she has had in her words ‘enough of this’ after 3 guys in these areas.

One would be forgiven for thinking that perhaps this phenomena is only driven by males, however I have several female friends (of varying ages) who all take their running and triathlon very seriously, however they seem to have ended up with men who are perhaps not as serious, but who compete nonetheless and who share the same sets of values of maintaining healthy body, healthy mind and for them healthy relationship.

One of these ladies has always competed and as her hubby says if she does not get in a daily workout then she gets antsy. Even during her pregnancies she ran (albeit at a lesser intensity) and all the babies are healthy and happy. In fact her doctor and her husband both agreed that she would probably have been climbing the walls had she not been allowed to run during this time.

Then there is another couple that I know where the wife goes to the gym, but does not understand her husband’s joy that he obtains from long distance running – but he comes home happy. However as she says ‘At least at 43 he is fitter than people half his age and is acting as an example to the kids’. She also adds that if all she has to contend with is running then that is just fine and after all she would far prefer him coming back happy after a run with his mates than coming back after a night at the pub. And that pretty much sums it up really..

Does this make me boring? To some perhaps.. But then again I don’t care what others think as I am happy and running is hurting no one so onwards and upwards.

Running together (while seeking out like minded people) – Stride for stride on a life changing ride! – Sean Muller