I'm sharing 10 of my favorite rules from Mark Remy's everyday and often unspoken rules of running, adding some perspective from my racing and coaching.
1. Expand your Definition of Fun
Fun may include waking up before 6AM to log 6 miles, running up and down a bridge or around 400-meter circles, paying a random organization to run on public roads and blistering your feet, sometimes on back to back days.
2. Have Mercy on the Slow
There will always be someone slower than you and someone faster than you. When running with someone slower, make it a point to remain a half a step behind to avoid pushing the pace too much and showing off.
3. Learn and Love the Farmer's Blow
A process by which you clear your nostril of mucus by pinching shut the opposing nostril and exhaling forcefully, ideally off to the side to avoid your snot rocket exploding on someone else.
4. Acknowledge Fellow Runners in Public, But be Cool about it
A Garmin watch, tan line, race tee, or running shoe are some ways to spot a fellow runner in the wild. An acceptable form of acknowledgement includes brief eye contact and head nod...and that's about it. Runners are dignified and understated, not golfers.
5. Running on the Beach is Overrated
It's never quite as good as you believe and can lead to more issues from annoying sand that can never be removed to attractive sun-bathers that will distract you and cause you to run into a child. Stick to a run around town or on the tread.
6. Running at Night is Underrated
I realized this during my first Reach the Beach relay, running at 3AM with proper reflective gear (try the amazing fyrfly one!) and headlights. There's something about running through the stillness of the dark, along your own path of light, that makes you feel like you are gliding.
7. Be Careful Where and Whom You Ask for Lube
A running specialty store or race expo are fine but Whole Foods or a dive bar may not be.
8. Non-Runners Don't Care That Much About Your Running
I learned pretty quickly after just a few marathons that non-runners don't care about mile splits or wind speed and humidity. Save it for the community.
9. Having a Million Things to Do is an Excuse For Running, Not An Argument Against it
Running will help you clear your mind, organize your thoughts, and return to your tasks with renewed clarity, energy, and even creativity.
10. When You've Finished, Wipe the Track Down for the Next Runner
Just kidding!