Run Beta Run # 1

In the past month and a half, when I didnt post any article, my hit count has more than doubled. Taking the hint, ideally, I should not be posting at all. Instead, I should just monetize my blog and make easy money. But I have been inspired otherwise in more than one way. More on that later. Meanwhile, if you are real people, please join my sparse but exclusive followers list and/or leave comments. If it is too much pressure, dont run away and at least continue to visit this space.

So, I have started running again. Not sure why as yet which is quite ironic because just recently I totally psycho-analyzed a friend who had taken up running after investing a life-time into cultivating a vain, shallow and incoherent life style consisting of largely drinking and eating, in that order (Thats a typical Malay for you anyway). He was also not sure why he had suddenly started running. Roles have reversed now. Thankfully, so far he has restricted himself to providing me with running tips only. Quite likely, he is subtly passing me the message that one should always mind one's business. Message taken and would be ignored only selectively.

The first day (or more like night), I ran for 4.4 kms or 2 rounds of a lap which was carefully measured the next week. It told me many things. First and foremost was that I am not fit at all. Second was that it is very difficult to run without music (You see my iPhone was playing the same song over and over again and I had to switch it off. Later I realized that it was a simple case of changing the setting to 'Dont loop' but that was in future). Third and the most important thing is how still your mind can be when your whole body is screaming in cacaphonic agony. Your legs are at a breaking point. Your heart is about to burst. Your hands are shaking uncontrollably. But your mind is hell-bent on trying to achieve that harmony in this chaos. It is focussed on breathing in and breathing out in a rhythmic manner that you can use to tell the time. Pretty soon, nothing matters except that next step that springs from the previous one.

The second evening, I improved upon my distance. I was at 8.8 kms or four rounds of the same lap. The first two laps were easy. It also helped that whenever I felt like giving up, I ran into small crowds and I felt compelled to show off my stamina. I actually increased my speed then. It was only by the third round that I was able to attain that stillness of the mind again. And it felt so good that I continued on for another round after that. Funnily, I couldnt sleep at all that night and the following day, I could have used clutches.

As I write this now, I have increased the distance to 13.2 kms covered in about an hour and a half. It could have been that many kms but really, I still think in terms of number of laps which stand at 6. I really think that if I had chosen a bigger lap in the beginning, I could have covered more. Looks like, I am the victim of my own underachieving myopic vision. I need to find another bigger stretch.

Now, that my breathing is pretty much on auto-pilot mode, I am also thinking of including music in the mix. Tomorrow, I will put together a playlist of angry, anti-establishment rock songs. The body is evil and it needs to be punished.