Exercisers vs. Marathoners

Yesterday, I had just finished my run and was enjoying a rather leisurely stroll up the street to my house. To my left was a lady walking her dog. We exchange our morning greetings, and I was pleasantly continuing on my way.

This is when I hear from behind – “Do you run for exercise or do you do marathons? “. At first, I am not sure who this is being directed, so I look back to see that she was talking to me. At the same time, several responses rolled through my head, but I landed on the following response – “Yes, running is great exercise, and I enjoy it. I have, however, run a few marathons over the years”.

This seemed to satisfy her on some level because she turned and continued on her way. I watched her as she headed further up the street before turning to continue my own journey home – shaking my head along the way.

Did I miss an educating moment here? Could I have shared that there more types of runners than just people who exercise solely vs. those who run marathons. Probably.

But I doubt she was looking for a long answer. She got the answer that she thought sounded right and with that, she was happy to move on.

The Cool Down Runner