Dating a Runner 10 Undeniable Reasons It’s Amazing

We all know I love running, so what kind of Valentine’s Day post would that be!

No, no, I want to talk about why life is so much better for my husband because he married a runner. There is clearly a possibility that I’m biased, but you should ignore that in reading and simply use it as criteria when swiping right (or is it left?) on your next potential date.

Of course for my married friends, a reminder as to why we’re loved beyond our great legs.

Dating a Runner

If you’re one of the lucky one’s who has found yourself entwined with a runner, we congratulate you.

We also fully own that some things going to seem a little strange for awhile.

Like the dry fit clothing hanging all over the bathroom after laundry day, the way we thing sweating is super sexy and that we actually don’t care if you run…but we might suggest it a few times to see if you bite.

If you’re feeling a little nervous about our hobby, don’t worry it comes with some amazing perks for you!

Without further ado, the top 10 reasons to date or marry a runner.

1. Morning People And Not Both Win

If you aren’t a morning person, no worries we will be out the door before you rise giving you plenty of time to be up showered and feeling mildly more alert before we bound in with our runner’s high.

On the other hand if you happen to be a morning person, good news! We’ll be up right along side you ready to tackle the day after you’ve had your coffee and we’ve had our miles.

2. Stamina Beyond The Miles

A number of studies have shown that all those miles logged actually help us in some other key areas of life…eh hem:

From an evolutionary standpoint, it makes perfect sense that long-distance runners would always be ready for a go in the sack. Athletic endurance was, after all, key to helping our ancestors outpace predators and track down dinner, researchers note. Runners were ideal mates, and the higher their sex drives, the more likely they would be to procreate. Or, as far as we’re concerned now, get their jollies.

3. Pizza, Burgers, Cake

We eat. It’s a well known fact that we fantasize about food while running and often one of our main reasons for a few extra miles…is a few extra cookies.

We might not make every meal a burger, but we’re open to splurging and always down to split dessert. No dainty salads or pretending we aren’t hungry around here.

Admittedly, if I weren’t married with his plethora of cookies and pizza in the house, I’d probably eat far less of them…but he would eat less fruits and veggies! I guess that’s what you call balance.

4. We’re Pretty Pleasant People

Yeah running is proven to make you happier, so we’re more fun!

I mean sure we’re irritable if we have to miss a run and you tend to listen to us moan about one thing or another hurting and if a race doesn’t go as planned there are likely to be moody moments for weeks that follow….

But other than that we’re very happy people!

5. Scheduled Vacations

We’re committed to travel…it might always be around a race, but still it ensures that you too get to see more of the world.

David has asked a few times if it’s possible to vacation without a race and we both had a really good laugh. No, no it’s possible, but a vacation without a run well that’s like taking a kid to a candy store and saying they can’t have anything!

If it weren’t for my running David’s first race would probably have been a little Turkey Trot in Iowa, but NO I packed us up for a half marathon in Puerto Rico! Of course it was ridiculously hot, but I’ve also taken him chilly places like Alaska, so it all evens out.

See how this compromise thing is working so well for us both.

6. We Supply the Motivation

We’ll get you moving, you may not want to, but it will happen.

Maybe you won’t join us on a run, but seeing our consistent persistence work towards a goal, often one that’s very far off, rubs off on you.

In fact, this is a big reason why David got in to mountain biking and now loves it so much. We take weekend dates to the trails where I run, he bikes and we connect to talk all about it on the drive there and back. If I wasn’t out doing my thing, he would likely feel guilty needing hours for these adventures.

7.We’ll Be Your Rock

Running does a lot of amazing things for our bodies, but it does even more for our minds.

Most runners find that learning to tackle hard workouts or long distances makes them more confident they can do scary things in all areas of life.

It means when craziness arises around the house, we know how to take it in stride because we can persevere through tough things.

8. Planners Extraordinaire

We are usually uber organized. It takes some Macgyver maneuvering with the schedule many days to get in our workouts, our smoothies, our PT and if we’re lucky our shower.

Of course our planning actually means that we are better employees!

That’s right I’ll let you go read that and then come back to marvel and why our running could mean better paychecks, jobs we enjoy and still plenty of time left in the day to enjoy our time with you.

9. Tight Clothes

Spandex. It happens. A lot….and it usually means a whole lot of us aren’t wearing any underwear. Again do I really need to go in to any more detail here, this is a Valentine’s post after all.

10. Healthier Families

It might go without saying, but there are a lot of studies that show our running can make the entire family healthier!

A study in BMJ Open found this:

Researchers examined 42 marathon runners and their partners, and found that while the marathon runners were in considerably better shape than their partners (most of the partners only exercised twice a week or less), the partners were overall pretty healthy and walked or moved around more than most people.

11. Fountain of Youth

All that blood pumping, hormone shifting sweaty time can actually slow down the aging process! Some you might expect, but others could surprise you!

Archives of Internal Medicine published a study which showed elderly people who regularly jogged were around half as likely to die prematurely from diseases such as cancer than those who didn’t run.

• Healthier hearts lowering heart attack risk
• Better bone density and joints means no broken hips
• A boosted immune system means avoiding pneumonia
• Quality sleep means overall improved health
• Better skin from years of staying hydrated

You don’t need to love running to marry a runner.

You don’t even need to love running once we’ve been together for almost 20 years(hi honey), but you do need to indulge us when we seek out new places, ramble on about a run that was epic or plan yet another vacation that involves you holding a sign.

Dating a Runner Girl

And because I thought this was so well put, here’s a snippet from Elephant Journal on why to date a girl that runs:

Date a girl who runs because she knows how to go the distance, even when the going gets tough.

Date a girl who runs because she doesn’t need you to be her therapist or to fill her up because she has her beat-up running shoes to do that for her, and this means that you can just be you.

Watch how she never asks you if these shorts make her look fat. Because they don’t. And even if she’s a big girl, she won’t care what you think because she will feel powerful and strong. When you’re with her, you’ll feel powerful and strong.

Date a girl who runs because she’ll know how to be alone without you, and sometimes she’ll need those solo runs.

Need a little more humor in your day?

• Top pet peeves of runners
• Funny marathon signs
• Funny running quotes

Did you marry a runner?

Are you a runner, what benefits does your spouse get?

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