source description

Bettina Øverstad Høgseth

Thu Jan 01 1970

2 min read

"Why are you running mom?"

Written by Bettina Øverstad Høgseth 13.09.2020

A question I often get from my two young children. For them, it is completely pointless for mum to run, they don't understand.

So my dear children:
I run because I want to be present as long as I can.
I run because someday in the future we can be physically active and exercise together.
I run to have energy to play with you.
I run for to be able to be the best mum for you.

Honestly, I didn't really know how many benefits running or exercise in general would give me. Everyday life with children becomes easier as the training gives me surplus and energy to follow them up, give a little extra in the afternoons after work and be able to actually participate in activities that they want to do. Don't get me wrong, the toddler period is tough and it's not always easy to prioritize time for exercise.

It actually took me a while before I noticed it. Exercise should give you energy? Well, me who actually just felt tired after every time I had trained. In fact, all the benefits the workouts have given me came creeping in.

Running is personal time. It is so important to have an arena where you are actually just "yourself". Not mom, not girlfriend, not friend, not colleague. A much-needed private time in a hectic everyday life, which gives me the opportunity to feel joy, motivation and self-confidence. I choose to spend several hours a week prioritizing myself. Don't I feel bad about it? Many would probably answer yes, but it should certainly be no! No, because you invest time in yourself and get all the physical ones, but also all those the psychological benefits of physical activity.

If you haven't exercised much before, start small. Don't have too high expectations of yourself. Don't be afraid to prioritize yourself. Don't be afraid to spend 10% of your time on training. You are not selfish because you choose to spend time on you self. Don't feel bad about doing something that actually gives value to both yourself and your family.

So my dear children.
I run for you.
I run for myself.
I run for the energy it gives me.
🙂