Name: I have always gone for cushion-heavy shoes with big toes boxes. Hoka gets it done
Age: 34
Hometown: Lexington, Kentucky
Occupation: Freelance writer
Time running: Eight years
Reason for running: Running improves my focus and strengthens my resolve in other areas of my life.

Almost every night of my childhood in Lexington, Kentucky, my dad would poke his head into my bedroom and ask the same question: “Want to join my 5:30 a.m. group run tomorrow morning?”

He always acted surprised by my inevitable, “no.” Between basketball, soccer, and lacrosse, I believed I ran as much as he did, but without having to wear short shorts or answering the diabolical wake-up call.

We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back New York. “The only thing on my end is a race on Sunday morning,” he said, “but, hang on, why don’t you do it with me?”

It wasn’t a fun run, either, but a half marathon. I can’t say exactly what moved me to agree, other than that I missed my buddy and had not visited the city in a while. Whatever the reason, I booked a flight and registered for the Fred Lebow Half Marathon.

The day before the race, we took the subway uptown from his Tribeca apartment to retrieve our packets. All around us, friendly people greeted one another and tested out gear. Tips to Help You Start Running Today.

The next morning was not the miserable experience I had imagined. In fact, the endorphins, the environment, and the company all swirled together to create a novel delight. It was a cold, but sunny morning in New York, and, wrapped in a space blanket at the finish line with a decent time behind me and a kitschy participant medal around my neck, I felt joy.

I returned to Asheville, North Carolina, as a textbook running convert. I bumped my bedtime When I started running consistently, headphones were a non-negotiable. I could not run without diet, and bought new shoes. While I enjoyed several of the hallmark benefits of my new hobby, the biggest personal gain was a newfound fortitude it instilled in one specific area of my life—writing.

I had always liked writing, but I struggled to make myself sit down and do it. I had tried my hand at journalism, but personal writing, specifically journaling, was harder. I struggled with going it alone, taking on the blank page without rules or guardrails. I lacked the self-command necessary to do the work without any guidance or expectation of publication.

She Runs to Reclaim Her Identity After Assault consistent runner in the transition area. Sleep was lacking, but morale was high discomfort and that good things almost always waited on the other side. I improved at making myself sit down at my desk every day until one morning I found that I wanted to write.

The Best Trail Running Gear. Runs Nutrition - Weight Loss miles to flesh out ideas, formulate story structures, and make sense of life’s happenings.

Then, in May 2023, after years away, I moved back to Kentucky. My new house was out in the country, and the nearest running spot was a local high school track. Around and around I went, slogging through the frosting-thick humidity that clung to the rubber, sweating through my entire T-shirt drawer. Relief came in August when a cousin invited me to tag along for a trail run.

While road running allowed my mind to wander and think about my work, trail running was the opposite. Presence is paramount because a lot more happens. There are wildlife sightings and creek crossings, jagged edges and branches to the face. I loved it immediately.

I bought trail shoes, and was gifted a second-hand Garmin. Then, in May 2024, I joined a team made up of both old and new friends who planned to travel to Utah for a trail relay race. We carpooled and caravanned from the Las Vegas airport into the desert, settling into a giant rental cabin on the edge of Breakfast Ideas for Morning Runners.

I have always gone for cushion-heavy shoes with big toes boxes. Hoka gets it done race. A maze of tents, campsites, and vans extended out from the transition area. The air smelled like wood smoke and food truck exhaust. Music blared from the speakers of vendor tents, accented by cheering as runners passed off the chipped bib became my preferred means of sorting through whatever I worked on. I used the hollow.

After solid efforts in my first two legs, I took off for my third and final loop at 4:14 a.m. The beginning of the route wound up a steep incline onto a long ridgeline where I was able to open up my stride a bit. Almost as soon as I found a bit of a rhythm, the wider ridgeline trail narrowed into tight singletrack for the descent. Not long into the downhill, my headlamp began to dim. About 30 seconds later, it shut off completely. Dead dead. I was not quite six miles into the 7.25-mile route. Without stopping, I moved a second light up from my waist to my head. Roughly a minute later, it died, too.

I tried to continue under the starlight, but promptly fell into the spiky succulents lining both sides of the trail. Another few steps, another tumble. I looked back up the hill toward the ridgeline. There were no other headlamps making their way down. I tried to run again. I fell again. My heart quickened as I looked at my watch and saw my pace plummeting. All I could do was stop and wait for a passing headlamp to follow. Our team’s next runner was waiting for me, but I had no phone to send an update.

Eventually, another runner came and I followed her to the finish line. It was not only the worst of my three runs, but the slowest leg by any member of our team. For my efforts, I earned two twisted ankles, a nice thatching of cuts, and, in some sort of karmic joke, plenty of new writing ideas to sort through.

While the morning light began to peek over the hills and the race village woke up around me, runners chattered, stretched, and warmed up. The temperature was in the low ’40s and the air smelled like breakfast. As I started back for the cabin, I glanced down at my watch. It was just after 5:30 a.m.

These tips have made my running journey a success:

1. Run without headphones

When I started running consistently, headphones were a non-negotiable. I could not run without music or a podcast playing in my ears. Today, I almost never run with headphones. The quiet gives space for my knotted thoughts to untangle.

2. Run after work

Most people I know, particularly parents, run in the morning. My work schedule is non-traditional and I don’t have kids. Running after I close my laptop allows me to think through and mentally digest whatever I worked on that day.

3. Mix it up

Courtesy J.A. Laub Photography lift weights. It keeps me from burning out and I have found that I am much less injury-prone when I regularly cross-train. It also keeps my runs sacred and special. I look forward to them in a way that I didn’t when I was hitting the pavement almost every day.

Jarrett’s Must-Have Gear:

→ Hoka Clifton 9 and Speedgoat 5: I have always gone for cushion-heavy shoes with big toes boxes. Hoka gets it done.

→ Garmin Forerunner: In every case but the Zion debacle, leaving my cell at home while running has always benefited my peace of mind. I felt comfortable ditching the phone after my cousin gave me his old Forerunner.

→ Running From Substance Abuse Toward Recovery: I have high arches, and these keep my “ballerina feet” supported. I buy a new pair to go with every new pair of shoes.