Ten things you only find out by actually running – Welcome to the wonderfully glamorous world of long distance running
Running in Canberra isn’t so bad after-all
- You will eat bugs
– Sure enough on that peaceful sunset run next to a nice lake/river you will encounter a hoard of bugs that seem intent on kamikaze flight paths into your mouth/up your nose. Breathing being an essential part of running will aid their plight and you will spend the next thirty seconds snorting, coughing and trying to eject the little bastard from your nasal cavity. Embrace it as a source of protein. - Your feet will lose all feeling
– Blisters than don’t heal for months, losing toenails and finding out several days later that the little rock that went into your shoe apparently worked a hole in your heel and now has a healthy fresh layer of skin covering it. It will be gross, but your feet will become an asset defined by their utility. They get me from A to B. Their maintenance is important to keep them working, but not their looks or feelings. - There will be gas
– both ends. If you’re lucky it will just be gas… The most inspirational athlete I’ve seen speak is Kurt Fearnley. My favourite anecdote was from when he was defending his title at the New York marathon and shat himself at the 32km mark. With over ten km to go, he went on to win gold. - Ice baths/cold showers will become your friend and compression socks work
– I don’t know how, but wear then if you want to walk normally tomorrow. Ditto the ice bath. - Chafing is an issue
– prepare yourself for weeping sores that don’t seem to heal, created from next to nothing. You will gain a whole new appreciation for seam free everything and bepanthen. - It will increase your flexibility
– OK so the next day after a long run you won’t feel flexible, you will wake up feeling like an 80 year old who has spent the last 60 years living a box – but after a few weeks of training you will realise that somehow touching your toes is much easier that it ever was. Take the jagged yoga pill after your run and you will get serious rewards. - It will increase your creative thoughts/philosophical ponderings
– many great writers/comics/philosophers credit long distance running to developing and fostering new ideas. Maybe its the increased blood flow that opens your mind? - You will be starving
– all the time. Thoughts of food will consume your day and when you do eat, you will be insatiable. But that’s ok cause you just ran 20km, dig in! Enjoy those carbs, you’ve earnt it! - It is really time consuming
– “back in a tic, just gotta do this 20km easy-slow” said no one ever. - It will teach you more about self-control, who you are, and what you are capable of than any self-help book ever will.
– You’ve heard the adage “your body is capable of doing anything your mind tells it to” well actually it’s capable of much more. During standard strength tests in the 60’s scientists found that when subjected to loud sudden noises people could express much more force than by sheer will-power alone. (http://jap.physiology.org/content/16/1/157) This has been shown time and time again through studies and anecdotal evidence (‘Mum lifts car off her toddler’ etc. etc.).
As for running long distances, train the mind first, everything else is details; or as Kurt Fearnley puts it: “Your body is an idiot. It will listen I anything you tell it.” So why not tell it to run a marathon?
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