5 Unusual Ways to Run Faster

Do you ever notice yourself thinking about things at potentially not good times? Saturday granted me a surprise run alone since our little one went to bed early. My training plan had as easy 4 miles for that day, but it also happened to be Eisley’s 3rd birthday, so I originally thought I’d have an extra rest day. As I headed out for the run, my mind was filled with happiness from our daughter’s birthday and remembering her birth. So much has changed for our family in those short three years. After a few minutes of reflecting, I simply admired the Pacific Northwest nature around me.



All of these sweet thoughts, followed by (my typical random running thoughts) curiously wondering what types of situations would cause people to run really fast? A few ideas came to mind:

1. The sun is almost setting and it will be dark.
2. You are in an unfamiliar part of town (or visiting a town for the first time).
3. You hear a possibly large, dangerous wild animal moving in the sword ferns next to you.
4. Right before your run, you listen to a Podcast explaining what to do if you encounter a mountain lion or bear on the trails.
5. As gravel is kicked behind your shoes from running, you hear it and think someone is following you. 

As these thoughts filled my head, I began to imagine myself in each of those situations. My speed steadily increased and it seemed like a false sense of ‘fight or flight’ took over, but in a fun, playful way! So there you have it! If you’re hoping to pick up the pace, pretend you’re running alone in a dark, remote forest filled with hungry animals and strangers following closely behind you. Haha, happy Friday my friends.

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