020 ☼ Where is your safe space?

And can you run there?

Welcome to my email newsletter 'Never not [thinking about] running' - a weekly newsletter about running and mental health. If you haven't subscribed yet and you're not sure whether you really want to receive an e-mail from me on every Tuesday, have a look at the archive. I'm always happy to welcome new readers. I promise. I also look forward to your opinions on the topics discussed here. Feel free to contact me by e-mail or in the comments. Today’s newsletter is about the beautiful moments that running provides for you.

Planning is the key to happiness ;)

Every runner knows it. At the latest at New Year, you sit down and think about what your goals for the year are. Which competitions do you want to take part in, what times and distances do you want to run and the one of the most important questions is, where do you want to spend your vacation and how can you combine it with a few nice running sessions.

In recent years, I've often taken my family to the foothills of the Alps - to the Allgäu. The mountains are not yet so rugged, the valleys not yet so dark, there are still forests that provide shade on long runs, there are cows in the pastures whose bells tinkle in time with your stride, the peaks of the really high summits glow on the horizon in the evening - it couldn't be more beautiful.

Off to Allgäu

And so this year I'm off to the Allgäu with the family again. For two weeks. I have to say that I did miss it last year. We spent three weeks at the seaside in spring, so we thought we could spend the summer at home. And that was nice too, but we adults soon realized that we were missing the mountains a little bit too much and the one week in the low mountain range in autumn was no substitute either.

I love the scenario described above and as soon as I arrive at my vacation destination, a little weight falls off my shoulders, I can breathe freely and I enjoy the ambience. It always works.

What my therapist asked me

The other day, my therapist asked me if I could remember a nice situation where I felt completely safe and comfortable or if there might be a place where that would happen, that I can use for calming down and I didn't think for a second. I have done so many beautiful runs in the Allgäu and I can always drag one back to the surface of my memory.

The sun is shining, it's wonderfully warm, the dog is running alongside me (yes, there is a dog here too), an agricultural path winds its way up the mountain, it then goes into a forest and after a few detours and steep climbs I finally end up on a small summit where there is a small hut for shelter, a rain barrel and a dog bowl, that provides the dog with the essentials. Only a few hikers get lost here. And those who are there say few but friendly words. The view is towards the higher mountains - after the exertions of the ascent, there is nothing better than pausing here for a moment with your dog and listening to the crickets chirping.

I always find my way back here. Do you have a place like this?

This year we're based somewhere else for our vacation, but I'm sure there will be similarly beautiful moments there. I'm already looking forward to it.

Running

Last week I felt really healthy again after a long time and the beds in the family's hospital are also thinning out. I had already completed my entire running workload by Friday, so I actually had three days off afterwards, which was good. I hope it continues like this...

You can find all updates on my training plan for UTMB Obernai here.

The end

📸 If you want to see and read more of my work, find my LinkedIn-page here and my Instagram account here. If you are interested in my running, have a look at Strava.

👨🏽‍❤️‍👨🏼 If you liked to receive this piece of writing, please consider to share it with others who might enjoy it as well.

💛 If you like what you read you can always support me by using this Amazon Affiliate Link. Your support is greatly appreciated!

🗄 Here is an archive of previous posts.

🖋 You are dearly invited to reply to this email to open up a conversation.