Running in Ancient Greece

“You must expect great things from yourself before you can do them” ( Michael Jordan). Did you know most sports are based on running? Mostly every sport has to involve running, so why not just do it daily without any sports equipment? Here are the three basics steps that would make you into a decent runner, or somewhat close to a runner. Everyone knows that a good runner has a great formation. Therefore, formation would be one of the important steps on becoming a good runner. Formation is basically how you would place you legs and hands when you run. Keeping your feet together instead of seperate would really help on your balance as you run. Also it’ll be beneficial to record how you run, because if you study your movements you might be…

Last year on a frigid afternoon in May, I laced up my running shoes, ready for another day of practice. Being a captain on the track team, I was also preparing to administer the daily workout to the rest of the team when I heard the frail voice of my 80-year-old coach summoning me. When I approached him, I immediately noticed there was a boy, who I had never seen before, standing beside him. The boy seemed like just another runner until he turned his head just a fraction of an inch. On him, I…

Rain streamed through my hair and down my body. Soaked from warming up in the downpour, runners stood at the starting line—Not all as excited as me. After tearing a ligament in my foot a month prior, my foot healed enough to run Sectionals. I wore the “space” boot until my warm-up when I switched to training shoes. As soon as the team and I started running, sharp pain told me that my foot demanded more time to heal—I neglected the pleas of my foot. Why the excitement in such a painful…

Running. To most people, the word itself makes them cringe. To me, it means any typical day of practice. Ever since freshmen year at high school, I’ve been running at least one season of track and/or cross country. Every year, I joined for another season until I was running all year round, even over the summer break. What stuck to me most however was during cross country season in the fall. Now, I’m no distance runner during track, so to run numerous miles every day was torture and although I…

After reaching the top of the hill, there was a sight that I didn’t want to see, another hill. This hill wasn’t as bad as the previous, but the idea of running up a very steep hill just to run up another when I reached the top was crazy. Tirelessly, I sprinting up the smallish hill and darted into the path in the woods. This was the moment I realized it might not have been the best idea to wear spikes. The jagged rocks were making it very difficult to run. Just about every other step I was…

Have you ever felt like trying something new because you are tired of the old? Well, my freshman year of high school I got this crazy idea that I would decide to actually try track and field just for the fun of it. I have never enjoyed running all that much. I wanted to quit multiple times throughout the season but I am not a quitter so I stuck it out. Sticking with track was a very good idea because I have been able to My sophomore season of track I started out running the same races I ran the…

Athletics are an amazing way to go to show people an athlete can do, but these events can also have major setbacks. My seventh grade year, it was track season for the middle school. I was running in the 1600 meter relay, and little did I know that this would be the last time I would run the same for a long time. Coming around to the last stretch in the race, our team was in first and I was almost done with the race. It happened in the blink of an eye, my legs had collapsed underneath me. I felt…

Barreling down the field, each step coming closer to the finish line, but at the same time, each step brings more pain. One by one, I’m singling out opponents I want to beat. Then, out of the corner of my eye, I see someone approaching. My peripheral vision isn’t perfect, but I notice he’s an Ankeny Centennial runner. The black jersey burns in my eyes, and that was the point where I could have chosen to give up, or push a little harder. Sure, my time is good, and even if I lose to him, I still…

Sports were a large part of ancient societies, as well as modern societies. Two of the civilizations that influenced our modern day sports were ancient Greece and ancient Rome. While both civilizations created and participated in a variety of sports, they are not exactly alike, even though they were very close to being the same. They share some similarities, but they have many differences too. Sports were very important to the ancient Greeks. As a result, they basically created our…

Hestia represented the hearth, familiarity, and comfort. Hestia is the chief of all goddesses (“The Gods of Greece” 168). According to Plato, Hestia means 'the essence of things' (“The Gods of Greece” 168). Hestia is the goddess of the hearth. She receives the best in offerings (“The Gods of Greece” 168). Hestia is the least personal goddess and the most anonymous. She gave her throne on Olympus up for Dionysus. (“The Gods of Greece” 168) The Ancient Greeks believed that “Hestia's fire, her…