I love a Parkrun. Now I need to quantify that because I don’t actually love running and that, in all honesty, is a massive understatement! But the idea of lots of people coming together, giving up their time, getting out in the fresh air (through every season) there’s something really lovely about it.
The Parkrun community — and why I love it
My local Parkrun is probably typical – there are people who take it seriously, people who turn up early to volunteer, people who walk, people with prams, dogs, children, and people of all ages, abilities, coming back from injury. I could go on. There are a few ladies at my Parkrun who inspire me. They must be in their late 60s. And they turn up every single week, rain or shine, and take part. I look at them and I think I’d love for that to be me in 20 years’ time.
And for that to be me, I need to turn up regularly now. And those days I don’t feel like it, to do it anyway.
The Saturday morning alarm I ignored
Of course, it’s much easier to say this, than to do it, and Saturday just gone, when my alarm went off, I did not want to get up. Because I don’t drive, I need to leave home just before 8am to get the bus, so I’m on the start line for 9am and I just didn’t fancy it. So I didn’t do it. I went back to sleep for a couple of hours.
What happened when I went out anyway
I’d set an intention for Saturday, however, and that was to run 5k (though when I say ‘run’ I mean jog for a few of minutes, walk for a couple and repeat). So once I was up, I had half a banana and then went for a run where I live. And it was glorious. The sun was out, there were other runners, dog walkers, families, and I saw how much green there was out and that spring really is here. I also saw a family of ducks on the canal, which I would never have seen, had I gone to my local Parkrun.
I still love the community that Parkun offers, but I also appreciate that on those days when it feels a bit much, rather than say ‘I didn’t make it, I’ll go next week,’ I can say ‘I’ll put my trainers on and go out round here’.
Why this matters beyond the run
And why am I sharing this? Well for a couple of reasons. It’s always great to explore what’s on your doorstep and you never know what you might see when you go out. But also, if you don’t do the thing you said you’d do, it doesn’t mean that you fail. It doesn’t mean that you can’t do something else instead, or you simply think ‘I’ll try again another day’. So no, I didn’t go to Parkrun, but I did manage 5k, I got to do my cool down in my garden, I saw my first ducklings of the season. It’s time we got out of this ‘everything or nothing’ mentality and maybe, just maybe go after an ‘everything or something’ one instead, and you never know what you’ll see.