Ouch ! That Hurt's !

It began how it begins every year - Year 2021 ! With renewed hope of keeping fit, I spent a week trying to get my body accustomed to walking long distances.. five, six, seven, even eight kilometres. 

There is something about Monday's - after the morning blues are gone, I finally make up my mind to try n run this evening. And wow, Do I feel awesome ? "Hell yea!"

What went right that day is what I will replicate on my following attempts I decide. 

So here it is - whatever went right & more of what went wrong : 

1: I made peace with my circumstances : 

Yes, this is a running tip. Anything you will attempt out of your comfort zone, has everything to do with your Mind first and your body later. So you may have demanding pets / children / ageing parents n in laws needing attention, maids that don't keep commitments, unannounced guests, incomplete errands, abandoned chores, a hard day at work, subordinates that under-deliver or bosses that over-commit, you're thinking about finished groceries or that course you had to tick off a week ago, which you remember not starting at all, laundry, dishes, prepping meals, several notifications crying for your attention, basically all hell breaking loose - but the truth is - life has always been like this - irrespective of your age, gender, relationship / employment / financial status - chaos is synonymous with everyone's life in one degree or the other. And hence, rather than trying to dot every i and cross every t, you must just make peace with your circumstances and get things and people around you, used to your short-lived absence ! 

2: Warm Up : 

While a lot of You tubers will claim - "30 minutes a day is all it takes" - that is not the truth ! It takes me a while to train my mind n body to get into that "zone". Then there's the dressing n lacing up for the run - a transformation from your Work-From-Home clothes. And now-a-days you will most likely come back to fetch your mask - if you are a mask hater like me ! Then you will want to take at least 10 minutes to warm up and another 10 to cool down, if you intend to run injury free. That is 50 minutes of your 24 hours gone right there.. ! However, if you really are a sucker for your time and other commitments - you do a ten minute run - just as good. In the age of capsule wardrobes, why can't there be capsule runs !  ;)

3: Breathe : 

To breathe is to live - literally ! Its taken me umpteen injuries and bad runs to learn to attach importance to the right breathing pattern. For this Monday evening what worked was breath in for 3 strides and breathe out for 4 strides - an odd-even breathing pattern. So let's say you took your breath in on the right foot strike and then after you breathed out for four strikes you end up taking in your breath on the left foot strike - ensuring both sides of your body get enough oxygen in the cells. Result - no injuries due to incorrect breathing. 

That's all that I got right on my Monday evening run. 

On Tuesday, I avoided these mistakes : 

1: Replaced my earphone with ear pods : 

Running with a phone in your hand and the cord hanging from the earphones makes one feel like you're running with too much circuitry in a wireless world ! 

However, even my ear pods fell off while I attempted my run today. (Lol !! :) ) And no, its not the B&O earpods at fault - it's just how my ears are. I've struggled for years trying to find something that fits well ! :) So if you're like me who refuses to move an inch without music, then it's worthwhile to invest in the right alternatives. 

2: Went without my jacket & with my waist pouch : 

You can get warmed up pretty soon and even the weight of a light jacket can prove to be a drag, especially when you're just starting. So you may be better off leaving it behind, unless you're running in the north pole ! 

Anything in your hand is a distraction. Your phone is best carried in a waist pouch. Better still, don't carry your phone at all. But again, if you want to carry your music along and don't really have a GPS enabled watch, you are left with little or no choice but to invest in a waist belt. 

Tuesday's run should have been better - or so, I thought ! It turned out worse - cause I committed new mistakes ! :)

1: When starting anew running everyday isn't going to work : 

While my knees don't hurt at all, it was my calf's and hamstrings that refused to let loose today. 

2: Of course the absence of music was a big let down : 

Elite marathoners never run with any music on - but its years to go before I get there ! For now Music is Motivation ! or to be precise - "Shape of You" is motivation ! ;) 

So this is how my first two days of a new running season have panned out. 

And hopefully, I'll keep learning, un-learning, re-learning along the way until I join the club of "Elite Runners" - for 

"If Your Dreams don't scare You - they aren't Big Enough!" 

Sweet Dreaming...! :)