Every Wednesday, the Deb from Deb Runs will be providing a word about which to blog. Kind of like a nice little blog prompt. Posts can be fitness or health related, but don’t have to be, so really anyone can play along. Just be sure to link up with InLinkz on Deb’s main post, and share the love by reading and commenting on other’s participant’s posts.

This week’s Word is Quality

or according the dictionary “a distinctive characteristic possessed by someone.”

Well, for runners, there are several important ones:

• Confidence.

We runners may not have started out confident.  And we may not be confident all the time. But if we didn’t have the confidence to start running, then we never would have.  With each step, we become more confident.  We enter 5ks and then 10ks. Eventually we may become confident enough to run a half marathon.  Some of us even attempt marathons and ultras.  When we lose our confidence is when we have problems.  (90% of running is mental so they say.)

• Sense of humor.

This means rolling with the punches and not sweating the small stuff. Let’s face it, sometimes running sucks. Sometimes it’s cold or too hot or raining. Sometimes we forget to pack our socks. Sometimes we are off pace. Sometimes we have intestinal issues or chafing. A sense of humor comes in handy in all these situations! There is always tomorrow, and after all, not every run is going to be a good one.  Knowing that things happen that are out of our control, helps us to stay focused, laugh it off, and move on.

• Commitment.

In running, you must be committed. You get out of running what you put into running. In theory, if you do those drills and weekly training runs, you will get stronger and/or faster.

• Consistency.

Consistency is key to any workout routine. If you want to be a better runner, you need to establish a routine and avoid deviating too much from it.  We all know what happens when we skip runs and let our training slide … poor results or even worse, an injury.

• Flexibility.

Runners need to go with the flow, and often. Maybe you were looking to do your long run on Saturday and now realize you can’t. It may be the weather or work or family obligations. Maybe you planned to run 10 miles but only have time for five. Runners need to be flexible for many reasons.  I could go on and on about this because often it is frustrating.

• Enthusiasm.

Being an enthusiastic runner is contagious! If you’re enthusiastic, you will inspire those around you to embrace running.  It feels great when someone says that they started running “because of you.”

Happy Running! Any other qualities of a runner that you can add?