Stupid things people have said

[Rob Furness]

I went to my doctor a few years ago with a hamstring problem, he told me to go home stop running and be a mother and a housewife, the comment didn't sink in until I had left the surgery, needless to say I try and avoid him now

The last 'Doctor' I saw (I only went to get a referral for private treatment) told me that at 42 I should pack in running and do non-impact sports such as swimming.... Sometimes I think Christopher Leigh is right and we should be able to opt out of funding the NHS. I didn't get a referral and I paid to get private physio. (although he was useless and I wouldn't go there again!)

I F****liping hate swimmimg!

When I was young and hadn't been diagnosed with Crohn's I was struggling to eat much and my weight was around 9 stone (I'm 5'11"), I went to one doctor who suggested I needed to eat more butter on my sandwiches and add fat to meals. What a complete idiot.

My girlfriend once drew the distinction between runners and joggers, putting me in the latter camp. Fair to say it spurred me on!

My definition of a jogger is someone who reluctantly runs because they feel they should to help lose weight, or just so they can say they run, but they don't actually enjoy it at all. Whereas, a runner is someone who will run for the sake of running, regardless of any of the other benefits.

To be fair some comments are probably well deserved. I was running off of Ingleborough on Saturday, stumbling down through the rubble and crap near the top, having done something like 25 miles of a 28 miler around the 3 peaks when this really jovial lady walker said "be honest, do you really enjoy running".

I suspect that I may have had mix of my high concentration 'monkey face' and 'my god I'm fooked face' on and not surprisingly she will have jumped to the conclusion that I couldn't possibly have been enjoying myself

My club captain used to go into the same paper shop each morning after his run and the shopkeeper once said to him "do you enjoy running?" he replied "yes" and the shopkeeper said "why do you always look so effing miserable then?"

[Eleanor]

My definition of a jogger is someone who reluctantly runs because they feel they should to help lose weight, or just so they can say they run, but they don't actually enjoy it at all. Whereas, a runner is someone who will run for the sake of running, regardless of any of the other benefits.

That's really good

My club captain used to go into the same paper shop each morning after his run and the shopkeeper once said to him "do you enjoy running?" he replied "yes" and the shopkeeper said "why do you always look so effing miserable then?"

And that's really funny

[Hes]

There have been occasions when, half a mile into an uphill start, I have thought 'I am not sure I really like running' but that feeling usually only lasts for a mile or so and then my body catches up and everything is good again (even when it hurts). Sometimes I think I am the happiest I can be when the sun is shining, the land stretches before me and the running feels effortless. Its worth a hundred dodgy, niggly & exhausting runs to get that feeling but those other times I can imagine people see me grimacing and wonder why I do it...they just need to see me on the good days! (plus...as we all know, there is pleasure in just getting out there regardless of how hard it feels).