I know it is not normal. Running long distances is not a standard practice for most people. In fact, people who run a lot might be considered slightly weird, atypical, or just this side of crazy. I have thought about it quite a bit because I run quite a bit. I do not want to be considered weird or a little crazy. At the same time, I find running enjoyable and beneficial, so I run often and hope to keep doing so as long as I am able. And I am learning to embrace the weirdness of it. To be clear, I am only a mediocre, middle-of-the-pack runner. Most serious runners I know run much farther and more often than I do. You will not find my name anywhere near the top of the race results!

Although I am no superstar runner, I do want to highlight the excellent benefits of running because I believe others can enjoy these benefits through other physical activities as well. I am thinking about activities like walking, biking, hiking, rowing, kayaking, cross-country skiing, and weightlifting, to give a few examples. There are undoubtedly various benefits associated with routine cardiovascular and muscle‑engaging activities.

I am also thinking specifically about the benefits of such athletic activities for pastors, elders, deacons, Christian counselors, medical workers, social workers, etc. I will call them “Christian caregivers”—Christians whose job it is to care for others in need. Regular athletic activities are especially beneficial for those of us who serve others by helping them through trauma, conflict, grief, sinful behaviors, and deathbed experiences. Those of us who care for others during trials and hardships are often deeply burdened by such interactions. Caring for those in need is often a challenging, emotionally draining, mentally exhausting, and incredibly stressful task. It is a labor that will destroy a person if he does not carry it out with wisdom, faith, hope, love, and self-discipline.

To be sure, those of us whom God has called to help others through trials need to pray often. We need to meditate on God’s Word and be fed and led by his life-giving truth. Christian caregivers need to rest in Christ and his constant love for us. We need to be regularly refreshed in corporate worship, nourished by the Christian sacraments, and refreshed by a weekly day of rest. We need to take care of our spiritual lives so that we can give spiritual care to others. In a way, Christian caregivers are also caretakers—meaning we should also biblically take care of ourselves.

Christian caregivers should attend to the physical and biological aspects of our lives. It is in line with biblical wisdom to care for our bodies by getting enough sleep, taking days off, enjoying vacations, having breaks from caregiving, and so on. It is also biblically wise to have regular health checkups, eat properly, stay hydrated, limit screen time, avoid over-caffeinating, and steer clear of excessive alcohol, among other things. Healthy life habits are essential for Christian caregivers.

One of my pastoral philosophies is this: I need to care for myself well so I can take care of others well. If I am spiritually malnourished, physically run-down, and mentally drained, I cannot take good care of those whom God has put in my care. So I have learned to care for myself. This helps me better care for others. There is a balance here that requires wisdom, prayer, patience, and practice. I should not love myself more than God or my neighbor, but I should love my neighbor as I love myself. No one should hate their own body. It is proper to nourish and attend to our bodies (Eph. 5:29).

Part of my personal self-care is running. I vividly remember a two-hour run I did last fall on an abandoned Wisconsin railroad track near my house. I relished it because it was a warm November day on an excellent path lined with trees full of Autumn’s colors. I enjoyed the run because I was alone, the weather was perfect, I felt strong, and my mind was clear. On that run, I thought: Why do I run? I came up with a few answers to that question and wrote them down after the run. I will share them here; they are in no particular order. Note: You can substitute the word “run” below for the physical athletic activity of your choice—hiking, walking, biking, skiing, rowing, spinning, etc.

I Run for the Mental Benefits

As a pastor, I have many things on my mind, including the stressful realities of counseling people through mental challenges, marriage conflicts, difficult life choices, and foolish decisions, to name a few. Those issues can cloud my mind and give me stress headaches. When I run without earbuds, it clears the mental clouds from my mind as the morning sun burns away the low-lying fog. When I run, it is good for my mind to wander from one thing to the next, without being pulled in by a screen, answering phone calls, or being distracted by media. I have read that creativity comes from letting your mind wander for long periods. I agree! It is hard to explain, but the more I run, the more my mind benefits. The “runner’s high” is a real thing! After a marathon, although my body takes a few days to recover, my mind remains clear for days. The payoff is worth it. Pain is gain! I often say, “Running is my therapy.” It is not even a joke anymore. Running is perhaps my number one stress-buster.

I just mentioned running without earbuds. I will occasionally listen to music or an audiobook if I am on a run longer than two hours. Most of the time, however, I like to keep free from such distractions so I can hear the sounds around me and keep my mind free to think, reflect, pray, and so on. Some people have told me they cannot let their mind wander long, or it turns out badly. I sympathize if that describes you. However, with practice, I am sure most people will be able to do their favorite athletic activity without always needing earbuds to distract their thoughts. Try an activity without earbuds for fifteen or thirty minutes first, and likely you will soon be able to go for long periods without music, podcasts, or audiobooks. Practice and be patient. After a few months, you will no doubt notice an improvement in your mental state.

I Run for the Health Benefits

I do not even need to cite sources because everyone knows that cardio activity is good for the heart, lungs, muscles, bones, and joints (etc.). Cardio activities like running can help lower blood pressure, regulate cholesterol levels, reduce the risk of heart disease, increase mobility and metabolism, help maintain a healthy body weight, and so on. Running also enables me to eat a lot and eat well, which in turn gives me the energy to do my daily work—fueled and fed. A good run will also typically help me sleep better (as long as I finish before 4:00 PM). Running has definitely helped keep me in shape and has made me better able to perform my daily duties. For those interested, it is worth researching the health benefits of regular exercise.

I Run Because I Enjoy Being Outside

Although I enjoy studying and reading, I equally enjoy seeing the different parts and wonders of God’s creation. Running slows me down so I can look around and see the creation God has made for us to enjoy. Running in the early-morning humidity of summer offers different views of God’s world. I enjoy running trails along rivers because I sometimes see small schools of trout swimming frantically away from my clodding footsteps. Running on the rural Wisconsin roads in the spring is also a treat because I get to see the crops poke up through the soil, trees budding bright green, and small ditch flowers making their way towards the sun. Being out in creation also ties into the mental benefits listed above. There are plenty of scholarly reports today that prove being out in nature is good for mental health. In fact, I have heard of doctors prescribing outdoor time for their patients. That makes perfect sense to me, and I have encouraged some Christians to get outside for these reasons.

I Run Because It Increases My Thankfulness to God

I would never say running is a sacrament, or even close, but being outside on a long run has a deep spiritual dynamic for me. When I come around the corner of a solitary trail and scare up an eagle, I thank God for such a wonderful encounter. When I run at dawn on a cool, crisp fall day, I am always in awe at the beauty of the sunrises God paints. And when I finish another run, I say a prayer of thanks for the experience and ability to run once again (I do not take it for granted!). Sometimes I run with others, and I enjoy the fellowship and bond that comes from overcoming such an obstacle together.

I Run Because It Helps Me Write Sermons

I have told people that I do my best sermon writing when I am running. That statement might be a bit hyperbolic, but there is a lot of truth to it. If I study for a sermon all morning, many thoughts come together when I am on a run at lunch. It is hard to explain, but if I get four hours of study in the morning followed by a long run, during the run I have quiet time to think more deeply about the truths I have studied. I often finish the run with a sermon outline and various points of sermon application. Since I already admitted I am abnormal, I can also share that I talk out loud on my runs. I sometimes vocalize parts of my sermons while running to see how they sound out loud. This also helps me contemplate if the statements make biblical sense. And sermon-self-talk on runs sticks in my memory and often makes it into the pulpit on Sunday.

I Run Because It Helps Me Pray Better

When I am on a run with no distractions, I pray about things that come to mind. On a run, I can pray for people in the church family who are going through trials. Sometimes when I run, I pray for my family members by name. During a run, I will also reflect on some of my pastoral counseling sessions and end up praying for those people as well. There have even been times during a run when I have cried out to God with prayers of lament. I do not really plan my prayers, but running inevitably leads me to pray about different things in my Christian life and in my pastoral ministry.

I Run Because I Like Challenges and Goal-Setting

Some people like to set challenging goals and work to accomplish them. During my Army Basic Training at Fort Jackson some years ago, I found out that I am one of those people who like physical challenges and goal-setting. Although I am certainly not a fast runner, I do like to check my Garmin stats to see if I can beat my previous times, lower my VO₂ Max (maximum amount of oxygen during intense exercise), keep my average heart rate low during the run, or run farther than I did before. For me, such challenges and goals give me small things to work towards. Although in the big picture of life these goals are not very important, they do help me face challenges and set goals in other areas of life.

Conclusion

Those are some reasons why I run. Again, you can substitute “run” with other athletic endeavors and enjoy similar benefits. I also enjoy biking, walking, and multi-day hikes, and I can say those are beneficial as well. There are many activities with the above benefits, including rowing, tennis, kayaking, swimming, and paddleboarding, to name a few. I gravitate towards running because I am able to do it, I (mostly) enjoy it, and it is not a terribly expensive athletic hobby. For readers who are Christian caregivers, I encourage you to engage in regular physical activity to reap the benefits. Do not forget to care for your bodies as well as your souls.

Someday I may not be able to run, bike, or hike. Perhaps something will happen to me that prevents me from engaging in physical activities. If that time comes, I will have to seek God’s help in finding other ways to care for myself in a Christian way. Perhaps I will need to lean on other Christian caregivers for help. Whatever the case, I pray for grace and for trust in God’s providence when or if that time comes. For now, I will run. I know I should not find my identity or my life’s meaning in physical activities, but they are not worthless. Paul’s words to Timothy are never far from my mind: “Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come” (1 Tim. 4:8 NLT).

Shane Lems is a minister in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church and serves as pastor of Covenant Presbyterian Church (OPC) in Hammond, Wisconsin. Ordained Servant Online, November–December, 2026