Running doesn’t always make sense. Life doesn’t either. But follow these rules, and I promise you’ll get better at both.
(Photo: Jordi Salas/Getty)
Published October 21, 2026 03:03AM
When I discovered running at age 13, my teenage brain rejoiced. It seemed so simple! Run more miles, get faster times. Finally, a sport that made sense.
At last, after failing at more complex athletic endeavors like soccer and volleyball, I’d found a pursuit with a perfect one-to-one ratio of input to output. Or so I thought.
For the next 20 years, I behaved as if more meant better. And I ran myself straight into a multi-year bout of injury, illness, and burnout. I approached life in much the same way—and with similar results.
The sport of running, as most people learn long before I did, isn’t just a matter of ignoring pain, upping effort, and eschewing rest. It was never the perfectly mathematical formula I’d imagined as a teen. Running is incredibly nuanced, and it can be complicated to find your groove—that elusive sweet spot where you’re pushing your limits without flirting with injury or losing sight of the fun. But learning to navigate that complexity has taught me more about the nuances of life than a “more is more” approach ever could.
Here are seven things I’ve learned about running that sound suspiciously like life advice.
1. Doing Nothing Can Make You Stronger
Contrary to popular belief, fitness gains don’t happen during training; muscle repair and rebuilding happen during periods of rest. Studies show that taking more rest days can make you faster. It can also make you more productive and present in your regular life.
2. More Isn’t More
It took me a long time to learn that extra mileage doesn’t mean more fitness, just as later nights at the office don’t necessarily mean additional output. Heed the law of diminishing returns and work smarter—not harder.
3. A Bad Run Is Better Than a Skipped Run
It’s easy to put pressure on yourself to execute a high-quality workout, especially when you’re short on time and feel like you have to make every session count. But that pressure can backfire, making your hobby a source of stress. Instead, focus on consistency. Build the habit and grease the groove.
4. Your Body Is Usually Right
In the fitness world, there’s a lot of rhetoric about ignoring pain and pushing through discomfort. But research shows that your internal cues are often more reliable than data or wearable tech. Your body knows what it needs. If you feel exhausted, take a rest day. If you feel an injury coming on, take three.
5. Being Sore Doesn’t Mean You Did a Good Job
Feeling wrecked after a run doesn’t necessarily mean the workout was high quality. In fact, studies show that extreme soreness usually means you overdid it. In all things, bite-sized building blocks tend to serve you better than all-out effort.
6. Solo Endeavors Are Better with Community
I love romanticizing long solo runs in the woods, but the reality of all those lonely miles is rarely as motivating as the idea of them. In all my solitary pursuits—writing, running, weight-lifting, even reading—I’m more productive and engaged when I have a community to keep me accountable. Sometimes that’s a writing class or a book club. But often, it’s just a friend beside me on the trail.
7. Nothing Is a Competition (Especially Competitions)
The most valuable thing I’ve ever learned about running is that it’s meaningless. No one will remember your mile time, your PR, or whether or not you ever stood on a podium. Having goals is great, but only insofar as they gamify the sport and make it interesting and fun in the moment. None of it actually matters. At the end of the day, it’s all between you and you—and that’s the best part.
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