Why running suits me.

I've never been a very athletic person. I would argue that I'm not very athletic now, even though I run every single day.

When I was in junior high, we had to run a mile in P.E. I couldn't do it. I failed the Presidential Physical Fitness test that year and the next, I'm sure.

So why, at the age of 34, did running suddenly become something I wanted (and more amazingly, COULD) do?

I can't really answer that. I am reading a book of essays about running right now, "What I Talk About When I Talk About Running" by Haruki Murakami. I'm not very far into it, but one thing he wrote about hit a chord with me.

He talks about what he thinks about when he runs. His answer? Nothing.

And that, my friends, has to be one of the reasons I like to run.

From the second I get up at 5:15 a.m. to the second I go to bed (and even afterward), I am constantly thinking about something. My kids. My husband. The house. Work. What I'm going to cook for supper tomorrow. What the kids are going to wear tomorrow. What I have to do first-thing when I get to my office. Grocery lists. Gift lists. Problems. Solutions. By the time I get to work in the mornings, I feel like I've worked an entire day sometimes.

Not when I'm running, though. Sometimes, I do think about things -- I come up with my best thoughts and ideas when I'm running. But I don't HAVE to think about things. All I have to do is run.

I've tried other exercises -- weight training, P90x, other cardiac/aerobic activities -- but they don't have the ability to clear my mind like running does. Even yoga -- which I love -- gives me too much time to mull over my life.

Murakami also talks about the solitary nature of running. I think that's another plus for me, too. All day long, I have people around me.

Don't get me wrong -- I love my family and I like my co-workers and those I meet during my day at work. But it's SO nice to be alone.

Just me and the road. Sometimes music, sometimes not. I try to time my runs when no one else is outside because I don't want to be bothered. I know that lots of runners enjoy groups, but not me. I just want to run. I don't want to worry about keeping pace with anyone, or talking to anyone or anything.

I just want to run.