Tranquility

For the past 9 months I was heavy on running about 3 to 6 kilometres daily, except on days when I was too tired or when I was in need of rest for my hurting legs. I did my runs on a fairly intense pace. It felt fast, but most times, I'm drained by the end of the run.

As of two weeks ago, having been inspired by the book "Born to Run" by Christopher McDougall, I plunged headlong into some short-lived fantasies about getting into ultra marathon distances. I ventured into runs that averaged 12 kilometres - hardly ultra, but to me it was pure bliss to know I can persevere for those distances. This is double what I was used to, but truth be said, I won't trade long runs for shorter and more intense ones.

I was so into the book, that I raced through the pages within 2 days. If you need some running inspiration and motivation, this is it!

One clear reason for me is the runner's high that kicks in after more than half an hour pitter pattering on the road. Of course I had to run through the initial niggling muscular discomforts early in each run. Well, I guess we've all got to go through some kinds of lows before we hit some kind of highs! And all this "highs" are legit! And free as far as monetary transaction is concerned.

There's also that almost heavenly sense of well being - the sense of peace and serenity, the clarity and depth of reflective thinking that seems to open up deep into the run.

Besides, I found a new level of confidence that I can go further than what I thought I could run. I'm already looking forward to building up my strength and stamina to push beyond 12 kilometres runs in the not so distant future.

So now, I'm willing even to rest one day in between my long runs, just so I can be rested and fit enough to go the distance. Besides, I've found lovely trails to roll the kilometres away, but that's a story for another day.