The treadmill spoiled me this winter. The conditions were always reliable and consistent: temperature steady at 70 degrees, water fountain within 10 feet away, ESPN displayed on the flat screen, bright lighting (albeit fluorescent and unflattering), & smooth trails. No matter how wretched the weather was outside, I could always rely on my sanctuary in the gym, running in 30-45 minutes intervals at 6.0 mph with a 5 minute cool-down. There were no surprises or challenges, nothing standing in the gap besides my own personal restraint and the threat of succumbing to my laziness. If I felt particularly tired or out of breath during a run, the end of the track was just a push of a button away. Honestly speaking though, each time I stepped off the treadmill, I never received a sense of satisfaction. Sure, it took effort and motivation to get my heartrate up, I definitely worked up a sweat and my legs felt sore somedays, but I literally went nowhere. Regardless of if I ran 5 miles or 15, I was exactly where I started with nothing to account for it except for burned calories. But now that spring is fast approaching and the great expanse of the parks and streets are beckoning me to tread through them, I figured it's time to venture outdoors. Afterall, it's been almost 4 months of simulating actual running on a stationary high-tech machine with a belt that goes round and round. So as I expected, today was rough. It was chillier than I typically prefer and my ears began to ache. As I jogged through Central Park, I had to maneuver through the clusters of pedestrians & mind the fellow runners sharing my path. Making my way back down 5th avenue, I had to stay alert to avoid the oncoming traffic and aggressive bikers. The later and darker it got, the more difficult it was to bypass the potholes, uneven roads, patches of slippery sidewalks and I relied on the streetlamps to light the path. As cumbersome and inconvenient as it may be on certain days, there's nothing quite as liberating as running through wide open spaces. With the next several months of opportunities to run outside ahead of me, I expect there will be times the sun will be beating down on my shoulders leaving farmer's tans and sunburns. I'm sure there will be days I get caught in the rain when I'm still miles away from my destination. If there's a wreckless driver on the road one day, I might even run the risk of getting hit, even with my reflective gear on. And maybe, like it has happened in the past, during a long run I'll take one too many wrong turns and lose my way. I'll look around and find that I've wandered off too far and can't find my way back. But no matter how lost I am or hopeless I feel, I always eventually manage to find the road that leads to home. There's really no other option. There's no "stop" button or easy way out. Even the familiar paths will change through the seasons and wear & tear. Looking back, I realize that whether I have a tremendous run when I actually feel as if I could run all the way to Kansas or even when I struggle through every excrutiating mile & my shins are begging me to stop, I still finish feeling victorious. I know it mattered. And such is life. It's not just all about sweat & pain & endurance though. There are sweet rewards along the way.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
running.
The treadmill spoiled me this winter. The conditions were always reliable and consistent: temperature steady at 70 degrees, water fountain within 10 feet away, ESPN displayed on the flat screen, bright lighting (albeit fluorescent and unflattering), & smooth trails. No matter how wretched the weather was outside, I could always rely on my sanctuary in the gym, running in 30-45 minutes intervals at 6.0 mph with a 5 minute cool-down. There were no surprises or challenges, nothing standing in the gap besides my own personal restraint and the threat of succumbing to my laziness. If I felt particularly tired or out of breath during a run, the end of the track was just a push of a button away. Honestly speaking though, each time I stepped off the treadmill, I never received a sense of satisfaction. Sure, it took effort and motivation to get my heartrate up, I definitely worked up a sweat and my legs felt sore somedays, but I literally went nowhere. Regardless of if I ran 5 miles or 15, I was exactly where I started with nothing to account for it except for burned calories. But now that spring is fast approaching and the great expanse of the parks and streets are beckoning me to tread through them, I figured it's time to venture outdoors. Afterall, it's been almost 4 months of simulating actual running on a stationary high-tech machine with a belt that goes round and round. So as I expected, today was rough. It was chillier than I typically prefer and my ears began to ache. As I jogged through Central Park, I had to maneuver through the clusters of pedestrians & mind the fellow runners sharing my path. Making my way back down 5th avenue, I had to stay alert to avoid the oncoming traffic and aggressive bikers. The later and darker it got, the more difficult it was to bypass the potholes, uneven roads, patches of slippery sidewalks and I relied on the streetlamps to light the path. As cumbersome and inconvenient as it may be on certain days, there's nothing quite as liberating as running through wide open spaces. With the next several months of opportunities to run outside ahead of me, I expect there will be times the sun will be beating down on my shoulders leaving farmer's tans and sunburns. I'm sure there will be days I get caught in the rain when I'm still miles away from my destination. If there's a wreckless driver on the road one day, I might even run the risk of getting hit, even with my reflective gear on. And maybe, like it has happened in the past, during a long run I'll take one too many wrong turns and lose my way. I'll look around and find that I've wandered off too far and can't find my way back. But no matter how lost I am or hopeless I feel, I always eventually manage to find the road that leads to home. There's really no other option. There's no "stop" button or easy way out. Even the familiar paths will change through the seasons and wear & tear. Looking back, I realize that whether I have a tremendous run when I actually feel as if I could run all the way to Kansas or even when I struggle through every excrutiating mile & my shins are begging me to stop, I still finish feeling victorious. I know it mattered. And such is life. It's not just all about sweat & pain & endurance though. There are sweet rewards along the way.
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TL;DR. Run Forrest Run.
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