Running: An Integral Part of American Culture Essay -- Essays Papers

Running: An Integral Part of American Culture The running phenomenon has blended into society in many different aspects of our lives. This does not only include track and field, but also cross country, road-racing, and jogging for health and leisure. Many Americans make running an essential part of their day. Running is not only good for your heart and lungs, but it is very beneficial for relieving stress, keeping your metabolism high, and keeping you trim and muscular. Another expanding characteristic of running is using it as a social experience. It is a part of people’s routine to meet with friends and to catch up with one another. Track is a sport that is shadowed by the likes of football and basketball, but is definitely a crowd-pleaser at the Summer Olympics every four years. Yet track begins at the youth level and expands beyond high school and college. Even though it is not the most popular sport in America, it has made an impact on our culture and our lives. Running shoes that are on your feet or in your closet probably were not created to lounge around in or to wear to school. Today the majority of running shoes are used for that. The running shoes that we know and appreciate today are a response to the numbers of people that have begun to pick up running. The market is flooded with different brands of athletic shoes, and running shoes are a large portion of that. A few decades ago there was a generic athletic shoe used for all sporting activities. Through the growing popularity of running, shoes have become much more specialized in an effort to cater to the specific needs of different runners. While running to some may be a way to earn a living or a way of life, others may do it in order to ... ... of the Internet, people can find race results that have occurred within hours of the event. There are numerous web-sites that address any runner’s needs, in addition to chat sites like Track Net that people subscribe to, and talk about†¦what else, but running. In many large cities you can find running specialty stores that sell running shoes and apparel. This is where many running groups meet for their daily run and where road racers register for the races. These specialty stores are becoming more common today as the fitness craze strikes like wildfire across the nation. As stated above, the running craze has caught on in many different aspects and on many different levels. Whether people start to run to lose those extra few pounds, or to win their age group at the local road race, running is catching on fast and the running trails are becoming more crowded.