I run, therefore I am

As part of this assignment, I've done much self-reflection on why I love to run. I love to run because in a time in my life when my life is busy with work, family and fatherhood, it's the one time that I am in complete control. I love to run because it makes me feel good. Both mentally and physically. I love to run because it transforms me into a person that I want to be. Running to me is what spinach is to Popeye. It gives me physical and mental strength. It gives me energy and clarity and makes me feel good about myself. It provides stimulation and a time to think.

Running is my mental dashboard

Ok. So I took my little Luke out for a 2.5 mile stroll today (Sunday). I was observing him while I was running. Watching him take it all in. First we ran along the water, watching the boats & the people. Then we stopped to see the dogs at the dog park. Then we ran around Battery Park and worked our way back to the swings so Luke could play while I could cool off.

But while Luke & I were running, I saw a similarity between the curiousity of a little kid and that of a runner. When Luke is looking around, he's learning things for the first time. Calibrating thoughts and taking everything in afresh. Only when I run to I feel like I do the same thing. Running is my mental dashboard. It's my thinking time when I generate thoughts, ideas for work. Or have more macro thoughts about my life, my family, my job, my goals. Occasionally it serves as my life's to do list or my days to do list. My thought process can be as macro or micro as I want it to be. But seldom do I have a time when I can just go out there & think. And that's what I love about running. If only I had more time to do it.

Fortunately my running isn't as slow as my blogging

I've been pretty bad recently with my blogging. Its tough to keep up. Running is such a great routine & ritual to it, that it's not something that you want to spend too much time writing about. I used to write in my nikerunning.com personal diary, but that outlined what shoes I used, how many miles I ran, what the weather was like, what my pace was, etc. That was more of the factual information I needed to know to ensure that I didn't run myself into the ground. This is more self-reflective, which is always more difficult to write about.

Ok, I think the verbal diarrhea above is sufficient enough to fool people into thinking I wrote in my post. Kidding.

Here is my thought of the day. Running is a very personal thing. What you seek to accomplish, what you actually accomplish, what you are thinking about while doing it, how you feel, etc. Its typically peformed in the public domain but seldom shared in the public domain. Every runner has their own stories, their own experiences but you couldn't identify what they are just from looking at them. That is why I like the blog, you can express your inner-runningness & you can learn from the wisdom of other runners.

Runners high is cool

I'm righting these blogs post-daily as I did not get around to post my blogs on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday, so there you go.

This blog goes back to my Tuesday & Wednesday runs. Amazing. That is all I can say about them. These runs were this moment in time when the world opens itself up and it's just you, your body, the earth. Now let me prefaces by saying that I'm not one of these supernatural guys who speaks of exersential life and all that mumbo jumbo. No. But there are moments in life, where it all just seems to come together. The weather was absolutely amazing. Stunning fall days of sun, clear sky and a light breeze that feels so good when you run. I just felt on. I had a tremendous amount of energy. A very clear head, that only got clearer when I was running. I could have run for every.

Throw in some music and then I'm on my way. They talk about a runners high. I get that. I think it's the relationship between you, your body and the earth. Not a bad drug to bottle up eh?

Monday is my day in cruise control

I never run on Mondays. It's too early in the week to do much of anything beyond just trying to ramp up for the week. The funny thing is that I'd probably start the week so much more efficiently if I just got up in the morning and went for a run. Get the blood pumping, unleash those endorphins and I'd be on my way. But no, instead I ingest coffee and complacently sit at my desk checking e-mails and getting ready for the work week ahead. I must run on Mondays. To start the week right.

I was too busy running to write...

Ok, so I didn't submit my post on Sunday. Reason being? It was a beautiful day and I felt compelled to be outside running, or walking and doing outdoorsy things.

It was ok. Felt a little sluggish, but felt good after the run. Need to keep up the pace and try to run as consistently as possible. Feel so much bettr throughout the day when I run.

It was time to untie the knots

I needed to run today. No matter the distance. My brain was in a knot. My body was feeling sluggish. After a long work week. I needed to go for a run.

I set out to only run 10 minutes since I had a bunch of things I needed to do. But I just kept going. My mind wandering, my body feeling more in synch I just kept running. I ran 3 miles, which months ago would be just another run, but now sadly was a big accomplishment. But it felt great. And now a few hours later I feel great. I feel more in control. I feel sharper. I've eater better today & haven't craved junk food. I'm excited it's only Saturday and I have another day with my little Luke.

So now I must leave you as I'm going to take Luke out to the swings.