why I run

[jazzfish]

I run because the morning clouds delight me.

I run because my neighborhood has a couple of cool houses, and parks I would have never found otherwise, and last year there was an old guy doing t'ai chi on the school lawn when I went by.

I run because there's genuine, measurable improvement in my ability from day to day.

I run because I don't like gasping for breath when I climb stairs.

I run because I value having time with my own thoughts.

I run because I can.

I run because balance is the way of the runner. (The line from that book that has always stuck with me: "A lie: speed is the way of the runner.")

---

The ache in my calves this morning (and yesterday morning) seems unrelated to running; while I was moving this morning it mostly dissipated. Came back with a vengeance when I walked down the steps to go to work, though. I'm blaming it on the preponderance of stairs in elf's (obscenely opulent) new digs.

Also, it's so much easier to keep moving when the air's cooled down a bit and I don't feel like I'm redlining. Friday was horrid. Today, I didn't even notice much difficulty until after the 20-minute mark. I cannot wait for August to be over.

Comments

[jazzfish]

Excellent! :) The jury's still out on whether I enjoy running itself, as opposed to all the secondary benefits. Walking definitely has its advantages at times.

And, good lord. Every year August gets worse. My goal for 2010 is to spend August somewhere other than DC.

[jameshroberts.livejournal.com]

I actually thought this was a mild August compared to what I remember growing up 'round here. Maybe I've been gone too long to remember properly. Also, I haven't spent much time outdoors this summer. Most of my running takes place on a treadmill.

[jazzfish]

Every year around mid-September I block out my memories of how bad summer was, and every year around early June I start to remember again.

I suspect a treadmill would frustrate me. All that effort and I'm not /going/ anywhere! I get enough of that in the rest of my life.

[jameshroberts.livejournal.com]

Oh, absolutely it's frustrating that you never go anywhere on the treadmill. But I have it set up in front of a glowing rectangle (in CA it was the TV, here it's the downstairs computer), so that I'll run at all. I figure, if I'm going to waste time watching stuff, I might as well be moving while I do it. I'll select a TV or anime series I have on DVD and cram it in the drive. I'm ONLY allowed to watch that series while on the treadmill. Sometimes I'll try a movie if I can't decide which series to watch next. But movies don't have convenient breakpoints, and I'm not up to a two hour session.