Why I run in dumb costumes

Yes, I will admit it. I like to run in dumb costumes (that's my husband and me above in our Devo costumes when we ran the relay race in the Rock N Roll Marathon). The part of that sentence that sounds odd to me is "I like to run." I have never been a runner in my life, but in the last few years, I finally get it. I signed up for Tough Mudder (a 12 mile obstacle course race) with a little over five months to train. I had never run in a race before and actually hadn't done much running ever. To prepare, we started entering 5Ks and then gradually added miles. I learned over those months and since after, that running isn't that bad and (eek) I actually enjoy it.

Kiss me I'm Irish run (8K)

I do have a love-hate relationship with running, however (as I assume most do as well). I often hate the thought of doing it, but during, there are moments when I absolutely love it. My mind can escape any of the stresses of every day life, I really don't think about much at all. 

The benefits of running far outweigh my feelings towards it. It's a stress-reliever, mad calorie burner and its relatively easy (I've been doing it since I was able to walk for the most part and I can do it almost anywhere). It's free (minus decent running shoes), which is a bonus. However, it's not exactly free for me, when you factor in the cost to enter a race and of course the cost of my dumb costumes. So why spend money to run and why on earth dress in a dumb costume? 

Team "I Love Lamp" (our first 5K)

Team NAUGHTY in the 12ks of Christmas

It's simple really: MOTIVATION

1. Signing up for a races makes me run. I have to train for it, I don't want to die out there
2. Every run is a feeling of accomplishment
3. Dumb costumes are fun and make me happy.
4. Coming up with the idea and creating the costume help get me excited about RUNNING
5. I have fun running in my dumb costume!

So to sum it up, running sucks and costumes are fun.