Sunday Sayings – by Dean Karnazes

“LIVE! with Regis and Kelly” is partnering with Dean Karnazes, renowned ultramarathon runner, on his biggest endeavor EVER! Running across the United States … from California to their studios in New York City!

Along the way, there will be 5k races in select cities and I’m running the Philadelphia 5k  with him on Thursday, May 5th at 9AM. I read Dean’s book, Ultra-Marathon Man a few years ago. Now I pulled it out again to reread it … here’s a few quotes from it.

As a high school student: I run with my heart. His coach laughed at the comment. Dean walked off the track and hung up his shoes. And didn’t run again for fifteen years.

After his first run, fifteen years later: For the first time that evening — hell, for the first time in years — I felt like this spot was precisely where I belonged … never mind that I was half naked, in the middle of nowhere, and nearly incapable of taking another step forward. That was inconsequential. I was happy — entirely content just standing there. I had listened to my hear, and this is where it had led me.

I run because if I didn’t, I’d be sluggish and glum and spend too much time on the couch. I run to breathe the fresh air. I run to explore. I run to escape the ordinary. I run…to savor the trip along the way. Life becomes a little more vibrant, a little more intense. I like that.

Most people never get there. They’re afraid or unwilling to demand enough of themselves and take the easy road, the path of least resistance. But struggling and suffering, as I now saw it, were the essence of a life worth living. If you’re not pushing yourself beyond the comfort zone, if you’re not constantly demanding more from yourself–expanding and learning as you go–your choosing a numb existence. Your denying yourself an extraordinary trip.

Running is about finding your inner peace, and so is a life well lived.

Though I don’t run the crazy distances Dean does, running helps me have inner peace. Where/what/how do you find inner peace?