Runner’s World+ Member: Mac Lower
Mac is a Runner’s World+ member. Join him and thousands of others chasing their goals with day-by-day training plans, expert advice from editors and coaches, and unlimited digital access. We regularly feature members online and in print!
I run for my health; my physical health, my mental health, and my spiritual health. When I run I know I’m working on becoming healthier and stronger. However, I also use the time to decompress, meditate, pray, and absorb the beauty around me. Running reminds me to keep MTXE top of mind. Mental Toughness eXtra Effort is useful in many areas of life, but it is continually taught, used and reinforced while running. Running has taught me the value of community. You have to someone to coach you, pace you, and pick you up when you fall. A large part of why I run now is to pay it forward to the next runner who needs a coach, pacer, or friend. Finally, I run because it continues to teach me the value of hard work, exposes the purpose in the pain, and uncovers the glory of accomplishing goals.
Running has made me believe I can do things I once thought impossible. I can do estimable acts. As of the writing of this email, I have run at least a mile a day for 272 days for a total of 952.3 miles. Running has made me a morning person. I typically run at 5 a.m., and I have learned to enjoy the peace and calm in the morning. Running has taught me about gratitude. After recovering from an achilles injury I am grateful for every mile. Running has taught me the body soul connection. I believe our bodies are our pathways to our souls.
I joined RW+ because I want to be a runner, and I wanted access to the training programs and other help membership provides.
I typically run first thing in the morning. I have my neighborhood 5K loop that I love. I wanted something easy; easy to measure, easy to run, easily accessible. So, I logged into my map run and kept mapping circles from my house until I had created one that began and ended at my front door, and was five kilometers.
I love my Altra Torins. This zero-drop shoe helps me keep a previous achilles injury from reoccuring.
My first goal is to continue my running streak until at least 365 days. After that I plan to use the RW breaking 20 plan and break 20 minutes in a 5K.
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