Running My Social Anxiety Away

How spending time outdoors has mitigated my fear of awkward moments.

As we all know, citizens of the world have interpreted “5 weeks of lockdown” as “time to get off your ass and run your fastest 5K.” And this is great! Running is fantastic for burning fat, smelling things other than Doritos, and putting all the overpriced Lululemon gear you’ve been ordering to actual use.

But one thing running, walking, or biking is also great for is reducing social anxiety.

At its core, social anxiety is rooted in a low tolerance for discomfort. It’s a fear that probably sounds like, “What if the conversation gets awkward and I have nowhere to go?”

Nothing to feel bad about here; we’ve been trained to avoid conversational silences like the plague. In reality, though, they are a natural part of life!

As someone who has struck up one too many awkward conversations at the bar, I’m here to tell you short, uncomfortable moments are key to eliminating that fear. And that’s where outdoor exercise comes in!

Every day I go for a run, I see people: young people, old people, fat people, skinny people, sad people, happy people, etc.

However, it wasn’t until recently that I realized just how many awkward moments are littered throughout my workout. Some examples include: making weird eye contact with drivers, running on a long straightaway where I see someone walking in the opposite direction, and having little kids point at you and tell their parents, “Look! He’s running without a shirt on!”

These suck, but the beauty is each time I get through one without peeing my pants or sprinting into the woods, my tolerance for discomfort rises. And since they occur outside between two moving people, they go by quicker than I imagined!

Nowadays, since I’ve survived enough of these devastating occurrences, I’ve “leveled-up” and made a habit of smiling and waving to everyone I see. And I mean everyone, not just the old people.

This is especially interesting when I wave to the 13-year-olds playing Pokemon Go that have no idea to respond. Also, there’s always that angry cyclist whose spandex is so tight that he cannot smile at anyone. Encounters like these are blessings in disguise because they prove the discomfort I feared isn’t actually that bad.

On the other hand, for every person who gives me a cold shoulder, there are five others who respond warmly, which boosts my mood (and probably theirs, too). In addition, it feels like they are cheering me on to be my healthiest, happiest, and hottest self!

After a few weeks of practice, not only have I become more accustomed to awkward moments, but I have also experienced firsthand that most people in the world are actually friendly!

In the future, I plan to raise the bar again and strike up conversations occasionally or dish out compliments here and there.

With that being said, I’m not advising everyone to go out and do that right away — reducing social anxiety is a step-by-step process. If you’re starting out and are still petrified at the thought of waving to a stranger, begin with walking by in silence. Then maybe work in a smile, and then a “hi,” and eventually a “hey baby girl yo sneakers lookin’ clean today!”