I haven’t ran in about eight years, since my freshman year of high school when my running career ended.  I always loved running. I found it to be my adrenaline rush and my way to relax all at once.

But over the years, I lost it and found different ways of finding relaxing adrenaline rushes, like biking and swimming.  So when I decided to try and get a little bit healthier, my friend Katie suggested running a 5K before we went on a trip to Los Angeles, and I said, “Sure, okay, why not?”

Then I realized I would have to actually run the 5K, not having ran in years. So I gave myself a little practice by running a couple days before the race.

If the name didn’t give it away, The Freezer Run, put on by the Buffalo Iron Workers, was held in the Cobblestone District of Buffalo, with cold temperatures and plenty of snow to really give the effect.

As I was running,I realized how great of an experience it was to run a 5K in Buffalo in the middle of winter.  I mean Buffalo is known for snow, after all.  The race was tough, but through the smell of Cheerios, the site of the new HarborCenter and the atmosphere of Buffalo, I realized I was doing something different.

I was exploring this city that I loved in a typical, yet very different way. Who can say they ran a 5K through the hardly-plowed streets of Buffalo? Well Katie and I have and quite frankly, having a friend who has a love for this city, like I do just pushes me to see a new side of Buffalo–and life in general.

The city you live can often times become a tomb of nothingness, that you can’t wait to get out of and you feel is not giving your life any excitement.  But really, there’s a whole world out there that we don’t even know exists, unless we take the time to do something different and see something different. Then we may just see how much we really do love the place we call home.  But this philosophy doesn’t confine itself to the city you are living in–it can be applied to your group of friends and your attitude on life, too.

If you aren’t willing to explore the new and different, push yourself outside your comfort zone and really see what is out there, then you are living a life that is totally underestimating itself.  It’s not to say you need a crazy adventure every single day, but finding the time to challenge yourself in new and different ways, just gives you a deeper way to love the life you’ve been given.