Running, for me as a 40 plus year old women during early 2000’s in India was adopted as a par time practice, usually as and when I wanted to be with ‘Self’ beyond the illusionary external chaos i.e. matrix of people, places, issues as well as challenges of day to day life; particularly the concerns that were beyond my consideration zone. Successively, with adequate time and space coupled with consistent 5 to 10 minutes of daily initial slow running aka jogging; progressively transformed as a nascent addiction for short distance run in the neighborhood park i.e. Lodi Garden at New Delhi. This humble practice was innovative and different every day despite the same place, more involving and intense; transmuting as a regular meditative practice of about 30 minutes of running at the desired pace. Subsequently, there was no looking back as this simple yet profound deliberate practice metamorphosed my overall physical, mental, emotional sphere systematically to align with the spiritual spans of running.
Accordingly, this write-up is only an ‘ode to running’, sufficient hit and trials, packed with generous gratitude to each step, which progressively healed my ‘Body Temple’ inside out. Additionally, this 30 minutes of regular running as a daily drill has kept me off any kind of external medication, whether allopathic, homeopathic etc that are easily available across the shelf. I am here to share my learnings from running which initially started with physical healing, followed by mental dealings, to eventually evolve as a more balanced emotional being, guiding me effortlessly to the divine spiritual perspective of running.
During 1975 to around 1985 majority of the middle class Indian families barely permitted their daughters to choose running or athletics as a career option over academics; despite excellent performance of prominent athletes like P.T. Usha, Shiny Abraham in track and field events at international forms: yet running was a distant dream for the teenage girls in majority of the Indian cities.
Gradually I understood that there is no prescribed biological age to start running; coupled with few examples including an elderly gentleman about 80+ running every day with his pet and a sincere lady almost my age, focused and attentive, never lifting her face and only looking at the ground to avoid distraction while running became my every day role model to start this simple yet profound practice after a gap of almost 35 plus years. Since I did not have any particular objective or a goal or a target to be achieved for the morning run, therefore, this practice was more like ‘karma’ to me, i.e. ‘doing’ without expecting any trophy or recognition for same
So today as I fondly look back, as an observer to the last two glorious decades of daily running achievement, I humbly thank all the ‘naysayers’ who provided me the opportunity to overcome my inbuilt insecurities along with invisible complexes; which were insignificant as compared to the robust ‘will’ that reminded me every day that: ‘If there’s a will there is definitely a way’.
In short, running also emerges as a pocket-friendly activity with minimum requirements or fuss about a skilled trainer, a perfect kit or gear or any other paraphernalia except maybe a pair of dependable running shoes.
The joy of morning run ensured more alertness and awareness in my personal as well as professional responsibilities, guiding me to overtake every new challenge step by step; i.e. one at a time. In sum and substance, running comes naturally to human beings early in life, usually as a toddler. The moment kids are able to pick themselves up, they start running, not walking, making me wonder often if ‘Running is Life’ or ‘Life is Running’?
Consequently, with profound awe and admiration about this humble practice along with the caption that if ‘Life is a marathon: then every day running is a gift, I cherish to give my ‘Self’ to be in this journey called life as a marathon run’. As such, running is all about resilience; despite initial setbacks like accidental falls, injury etc, the runner is left with the option to either give up or to rise up to identify the mistakes linked with the fall. Recognizing that the ‘monkey mind is running faster than the actual physical steps’ thus creating a mismatch for physical injury to happen. Majority of the runners overcome such incidents/injuries, are prepared to pick themselves up gracefully after each fall and to never ever give up on this revered practice of running.
Progressively, as the runners learn to appreciate the connection between the body temple, mind and breath while running in a public area, garden or tread mill in the gym, they understand that everything here is interconnected and the feet are the best friend of the heart. Thereafter, consciously adding more gratitude to every step gradually decreases the surprises, i.e. the fall or injury in the long run. Usually, the runners do their best once healed; they get back and start running again with more focus, attention and awareness.
If Life is a marathon, then 'everyday running' is a gift I am honored to give myself.
Recreational running is a sacred ritual that awakens the body temple’s innate ‘healing potential’ with each step the rhythmic grounding of feet on mother earth synchronizes the heartbeat, calming the mind and inviting balance to everyday life. As we run, our muscles flex and extend, releasing tension and toxins. Human beings are designed to run long distances easily as per the evolutionary theories and evidence as hunters.
Running supports the heart muscles, improves cardiac output and reduces blood pressure significantly. It is known that running promotes the flexibility of arteries and reduces inflammation. Physical impact of regular running on the body temple fortifies the skeletal system, particularly the health of bones by stimulating bone growth, improved bone density and decreasing risk of osteoporosis. Regular running improves flexibility on one hand and decreases stiffness in muscles on the other.
All regular runners experience that each synchronized step contributes towards an individuals own unique style of running. The catch here is to learn gradually how well we are able to use the muscles and limbs effectively in perfect coordination so that the runner feels elated and inspired after each run. Smart running is all about effective use of feet including the footwork to understand that training feet is equivalent to training the body temple. We are only as strong as our feet, feet are essential to build up endurance and support thus improving the performance as a bit harder and a bit faster.
A combination of running and walking adds more distance and strength, particularly if an individual is aspiring to run a marathon, this improves foot strike and equilibrium; regularly improving on good foot strike creates more elasticity and rebound effect. Human beings are born to run as the anatomy and physiology of the body temple is designed to support running, which happens naturally without any prescribed training.
Running smarter is a continuous learning process by optimizing the running pace, distance, duration, time etc to minimize the risk of injury or burn out. Initially start with no or minimum target/objective; to gradually let the target or goal unfold on its own, be appreciative of the smallest effort which has the power to make the run exciting and wholesome, monitoring ‘self’ every day coupled with working regularly on improving efficiency at desired pace ensures discovering the best combination for a happier and fulfilling run.
Have you observed that running is an activity we pick up on our own as if we are born to run? Hence, no formal training is required for running as a hobby if the purpose is to heal ‘self’. Observe a toddler the moment he or she is able to pick themselves up they run naturally, kids run easily and enjoy the fun associated with running. Kids are so energetic and cheerful as they are easily able to run. For instance, these kids, as they grow to be teenagers, usually give up on regular running steadily due to academic pressure, peer pressure or other external pressures; hence, they gradually become sedentary and also withdrawn.
I recall that when I started running, I did find myself entangled in lame excuses, probably as a reason to avoid running. This was a major hurdle which I did manage to overcome with sincere efforts and also admiring the regular runners who never missed a run due to weather conditions like too hot, humid, rainy, cold, etc. Gradually with regular practice, I opted to jump out of my comfort zone to be a bit uncomfortable and overtake the common as well as regular excuses with mind power regularly; thereafter, there was no looking back as running became an integral part of my identity.
Today, for me, running has established itself not only as a hobby but a basic necessity for my overall physical and mental fitness for about a decade plus. This has made me understand the true friendship between the heart and feet. This, in turn, normalizes the various physical parameters effectively, as I have learnt with every fall that there is nothing like a good run or a bad run; as it is all about my own choice. We do not learn when all is well, learning usually happens in challenging situations or circumstances, which are definitely beyond the comfort zone for each one of us here. Therefore, running for me is not only an event but an integral part of my journey for ‘Self’ discovery.