Running Diary 1 - Laps of the Park

Inspired by What I Talk About When I Talk About Running: A Memoir by Haruki Murakami (村上 春樹).

New York is cold and has been cold for the last week. The snow that fell over the weekend is still here after a week. People have shoveled little footpaths on the sidewalks and people are making their way in single file lines. Not ideal for trying to run. The roads seem to be the same way - just enough room for two cars to pass each other. No room for a runner. I made the decision to do laps around Prospect Park. Which made me excited since I have been meaning to lap the park on a long run for sometime. I figured that the laps would create a meditative feel from the similar scenery and the potential for unbroken running. Each lap would be about 3.5 miles so I was aiming for 5 laps.

It is cold. I had to get the layers involved. I have been loving my merino wool base layers this winter. It is warm and breathable. Put a jacket over that and you are good to go. As for fuel, I am dead set on fueling with real food 98.9% of the time. Today I had trail mix, M&Ms, and Mizu Kokan (red bean gelatin).

Today, I decided to listen to NTS radio for my long journey. I have been loving just letting the radio run and letting the Selector do their thing. In the age of Algorithms, it feel nice to discover music not because a computer nudged you to the next song but a DJ found the track digging or they were told about it by a friend. Music is a collective thing that is meant to be shared in a peer to peer way. I remember HOTNEWMIXTAPES, Limewire, Soundcloud - I would spend hours finding new tracks and burning CDs of the music I liked and popping it into my friends car system on the way to school. We would put each other on. This feels like that. You know?

Continuous running was such a breath of fresh air - looping the park. No need to look for cars or stop lights. Just the occasional need to pee. I found the experience meditative - a moving meditation. There are so many things that float through your mind on a run. Like a dream, I can’t remember all the details. Sometimes I try to repeat things in my mind in the hopes I remember them. Sadly, today I forgot mostly everything. What a shame. I defiantly had some good thoughts. I mean I decided to start writing after my runs on this run so there is that!

It was cool to see other runners multiple times too. Like me they must of thought circling the park was a good idea. I mean, how many miles can you really do on a treadmill?

Oh! One thought I had - the training starts when things get tough. When it is easy it is easy. You’re not really challenged mentally. Running or any other sport take so much mental strength. The mental training is where I felt the biggest push today. When your body stops being so springy and you start to hurt what is your response? How do you find ways to stay in it. What do you tell yourself. I think it is important to observe these moments. I think it reveals the truth of how you motivate yourself. The inner voice. “You can do it!” Or “You better finish or else you are a failure!” I have found that motivation from a place of love is more sustainable than motivate from fear and shame.

Happy to be able to get out there. Now I need to rest my legs.