Running is My Oxygen
Why do I run? Running was never related to winning a race
for me, I have never been an athlete in my childhood or even later.
Then what is the reason for this mad addiction to get up each morning and get
out for a run with a target in mind. I
ask this question to myself and sometimes don’t get a clear answer.
But why is an answer required?
There are many things in life which are intangible and inexpressible in words.
The feeling that I get every day after a run is great as if I have achieved
something, and this feeling eggs me to run more, set higher targets and the
story continues. There are ups and downs each day, some days are lost due to
travel/ social commitments etc. and for a runner, each day lost means going
back in training especially if the break in running is more than a couple of
days. Consistency and commitment to training schedule is extremely important to
avoid injuries. The human body is a
marvellous piece of machinery which adapts and conditions itself to whatever
you decide to do with it. So is that it? Am I trying to discover the capability
of this human body by running longer distances and trying to see how the
adaptation process occurs? The mind plays games every day, some pain here, some
niggle there, but once you start running, all this disappears and appears only
afterwards in the day, especially if I am idle. On a busy day, there are no
pains or niggles. Amazing thing, isn’t it? It is how our minds have been
conditioned by us and how the body reacts to it. When I run long, I focus on my
form and keep checking my breathing pattern. That way the mind is busy and
stays away from idleness and pain. So is idleness and pain related? Maybe, is
it why as humans age conventionally, they develop pains in joints, muscles
etc.. Is ageing due to idleness? We may argue that ageing happens therefore we
become incapable of doing things and so idleness is because of incapability.
But how is it that a person who has never run in his life takes up running and
is able to run a full marathon comfortably even at an age of 60? This is the absolute reality and fact on
ground, and not a mere imagination or exception of one odd individual. Take
anyone who is reasonably healthy and not already suffering from some disease,
and start training him/ her, I am sure that the person will be able to run and
put aside ageing for a long time to come.. So is this why I run, am I trying to
put aside ageing and become immortal?
Running is next to nature; I
don’t run inside a gymnasium on a treadmill, I love to run outside on roads,
beaches, and parks and so on. Why? Because I love nature, when I run generally
in the mornings, there is solitude and peace of mind. I can harmonize with the
trees, birds, the darkness of the very early mornings slowly opening out to the
first rays of the sun and if I turn lucky to hear the roaring of the sea and
playing with the tide on the beach as you run along the water line. It is
really beautiful to be out in the early hours of the day and become one with
nature. It is said that the mind is most fresh in the early hours and maximum
creativity flows during these hours. Let
us analyse and see what happens inside this mind:-
When I wake up in the morning, a
thought arises,
Mind: Am I OK to run or should I give it a rest
today?
This happens usually in the
mid-week time when you have run at least two or three consecutive days. There
is bound to be a niggle here or there and the mind identifies it and this
becomes a reason to not go for the run.
Self: You cannot skip, have to
go, just put on your shoes and WPJ and out you go.
Mind: Even the running coach
says, if not feeling up to it, give it a break, if you overdo, you will injure
yourself.
Self: Shut up and get out of the
house, everything will be alright.
This play goes on for a while and
then finally the steely resolution and the thought of the beautiful sounds and
scenes outside seduce me to step out of the house. Then it is pleasure and
paradise on earth... So guys.. Just kick yourself out of the house and see the
magic after that....
Happy waking up and early morning
running.......
All the best for SCMM 2015... all those participating...
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