There are some quotes about running, like the one with the image above, that are aimed at making slow runners feel good and that resonate with me. Those expressions all make clear that we’re all runners whatever the speed. You do you. Race your own race.
I also like this one a lot:
But there’s one I don’t like. It’s the one below. It’s the one about lapping the people on the couch.
That rubs me to wrong way. I think it’s the comparisons thing. Yes, I’m faster than people who aren’t running! No surprise there. But it’s the assumption that I’m better than non-runners that I don’t get.
I work hard not to feel smug about exercise, about fitness. I try to resist healthism and the politics of respectability. I’ve got friends who prefer reading to running, watching Netflix to bike riding, and hanging out on the sofa talking over CrossFit. I’ve even got one friend who thought she hated all exercise but later who admitted she was wrong.
But I’ve also got another friend who resolutely hates all forms of movement (well, possibly excepting sex). Writing about her I said, “She loves books, good movies, the company of friends, fine food, good wine. She leads a rich full busy life, with a rewarding career and loving family.” I don’t think that while she’s happily sitting around reading that I am in any way “lapping” her. She’s reading and I’m running. End of story. No judgement.
Ragen Chastain feels the same way. She writes:
“The thing I don’t understand is why it’s so important to people involved in athletics to be “better” than someone else – I’m not talking about people who choose to compete in a race. I’m talking about people who talk about lapping people on couches, and people who are sitting on couches who didn’t ask to be involved in this mess. I choose my own goals for my own reasons and I pursue them. At this time one of those goals includes running. I have no need or desire to claim be “better” than anyone else to be happy with myself and my choices.”
Enjoy your couch. You do you!
What do you think of the cat’s words below? Any running slogans that rub you the wrong way? Let us know what you think.
