The second jog

A distorted image of marathon runners

I’ve set my alarm for 7am tomorrow. That’ll give me time to squeeze a jog into my schedule before showering, meditating, having breakfast and then sauntering into my home office ready for a day at the helm of EggCup Web Design.

To keep things ticking over, without going overboard and ruining myself. I’ve just come back from a brief 25 minute cycle ride and feel pleasantly warm and overwhelmingly positive. I haven’t felt this happy in ages. Nor I had I realised just how dour I’d been before. I’ve no idea why I put up with the misery that comes from being inactive for as long as I did.

Pain is weakness leaving the body

I guess I was scared of the pain for one thing. Feeling like your lungs are about to explode isn’t a pleasant experience. But the pain is only temporary, whereas the benefits are long-lasting.

I once owned a T-shirt that read “pain is weakness leaving the body”. It was by a brand associated with extreme mountain biking or some kind of similar pursuit only the fittest could survive, and that would leave me sobbing within minutes. Not everybody appreciated the irony. No change there, I have a very dry sense of humour in general.

No more idling

Becoming good at running has been one of my ambitions for so many years. But it was just that: an idle ambition. Now, I’m finally dedicated to making it a reality. My favourite dreams have always been the ones where I’m flying; soaring effortlessly above rooftops and chimney pots. Nothing is any effort, and I am happy.

And that’s kind of what I’m aiming for with jogging. I know it will be a lot of effort, and that to stay fit I will have to continuously crank up the challenge to do more miles in fewer minutes. But if I could just run for an hour, two hours without feeling like I’m about to pass through the pearly gates I would be made-up to say the least.

Baby steps…

Featured image by Kevin Dooley (Own work) [CC BY 2.0], via Flickr