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You are here: Home / Archives for Running

Running

Countdown New Zealand Day 18

05/19/2020 by John 1 Comment

This is a series of posts that will log some of my thoughts in the month leading up to my moving back to New Zealand.

Yesterday I completed an event I’m going to call the 12-Hour To Do Relay. From 6 am until 6 pm, I ran a lap of about a mile. After completing the lap, I had to spend the remainder of that hour working on my To Do list. This mostly involved checking off items in preparation for moving back to New Zealand.

It was a rainy day and the trails I was running became streams at times. I had to get used to the sensation of putting on wet socks and shoes every hour on the hour. By the end, I ran 14.5 miles and scratched 18 items off my to do list — well worth the small discomfort of putting on squishy shoes and soggy shorts.

This idea was inspired by a YouTube video I stumbled across. In it, Beau Miles completes a marathon and gets a whole lot done by following the same formula I outlined above for 24-hours. This was my original plan, but I backed down to the 12-hour version because the weather was not ideal and I figured I could maximize some of the benefits of the activity while minimizing the downside of being awake for 24-hours.

For me, this experiment proved to be a great way to get things done. It provided structure to the day by breaking up the work I needed to do into small 40-45 minute chunks of time. Getting outside and moving my body between these task periods kept me energized and engaged. It also allowed me an opportunity to pause and plan what task to do next. I was able to stay busy and engaged all day because I knew that at 6 pm, I would be done and then could rest and do what I wanted the rest of the evening.

So if you’ve got an overwhelming list of things to do, I recommend making up your own To Do Relay. Let it be whatever works for you. A walk around the block every hour on the hour for however long you can spare will give the same benefits as running a mile. Or 15 minutes of yoga every hour followed by tasks. 4, 6, 12, or 24-hours, it doesn’t matter. Just do what you can and you might be surprised by how much you get done and how much fun you have while doing it.

Here’s the video that inspired me.

Filed Under: Lifestyle, Running Tagged With: Countdown New Zealand, focus, New Zealand, running, Work

Refuse to Suffer

03/02/2019 by John Leave a Comment

John running in the Tarawera Ultramarathon

It was somewhere around kilometer 80 of 102 that a phrase popped up in my head. I was running a flat section of the Tarawera Ultramarathon beside one of the many lakes in the Rotorua region of New Zealand. Both knees were hurting, my left quad was getting tight, and the last heat of the day was still lingering in the air. So what, I thought, I refuse to suffer.

I looked around me at a landscape punctuated with soft green mountains, a near cloudless summer sky, and the beautiful blue lake I was running alongside. I listened to the laughter of people enjoying their day swimming and picnicking by the lakeside. I looked inside myself. I was hurting, but my legs still felt strong and I had plenty of energy. There was no need to suffer.

There is a saying that pain is inevitable but suffering is optional. No matter how hard we may try, pain, whether it be physical, mental, or emotional, is an unavoidable part of life. However, we do have agency over how we react to it. Pain can narrow our vision, preventing us from seeing the positive aspects of our lives. This is where suffering arises: when we let the pain define who we are instead of accepting it as only one facet of our current experience.

Running long distances is a guaranteed way to put this concept to the test. Sooner or later, the pain will come. When it does I can either create suffering by fixating about it, or I can decide to accept it for what it is: a temporary condition that I don’t have to let color the rest of my experience.

What is causing you pain right now? Are you allowing it to cause you suffering? Can you meet your pain with acceptance and equanimity? If so, it is possible to find freedom from suffering because of it.

Filed Under: Mindfulness, Running Tagged With: mindfulness, running

Putting In The Miles

02/07/2019 by John Leave a Comment

Government House Rotorua, New Zealand

Government House, Rotorua. Near the finish line for the Tarawera Ultramarathon

We are in Rotorua this weekend participating in the Tarawera Ultra Marathon. Mary is running a half-marathon, her first organized trail run. I will be attempting the 102 kilometers (roughly 60 miles) distance. This race is on the Ultra Trail World Tour. Some of the best trail runners in the world will be competing this weekend. It is by far the most prestigious event I have taken part in and the atmosphere and professionalism I’ve experienced thus far surpass other races I have been a part of.

Preparing for this event has been a great motivator over the past six months. It has pushed me to explore New Zealand to an extent I probably would not have otherwise. Wellington is known for having harsh weather. Training for Tarawera has given me the extra push to get out the door on days when the wind is howling and the rain is coming in sideways. No matter what happens during the event, it’s the preparation that makes it all worthwhile.

Finishing a big endeavor feels great. The sense of elation at getting through something challenging can overpower your emotions. But you only earn that feeling after putting in the miles. The feelings of accomplishment quickly fade into the hum of everyday life, but nothing can take away the hard work and preparation that went into it. Achieving a goal is a wonderful thing, but remember that the real value is in the things you do along the way to get there.

Filed Under: Running Tagged With: New Zealand, running

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