I decide to do a long run today. Long as in 12km long. It is not a marathon. Well, it’s not even half a marathon, but I’m working to that. My goal today is to do a run for at least 1 and a half hours. More would definitely be welcomed, but I’ll settle for 1 and a half hours. So I park myself down on a bench, psych myself up, lace up the shoes, and will myself to take that first step. I am still sitting on the bench while I watch others run…
The moments before a run is always the most difficult. All I need to do is just to take that first step right? I just have to let my right foot step forward. The left foot will then automatically follow suit. But eventhough I run regularly, the first step is always the most difficult. As my bum warmed the bench, I begin to feel very lazy to even make that first step.
It only took a change in attitude that the first step was made. All I needed to do, was to forget about the long run. I am only here to run. If it becomes long, that’s a bonus. So I stood up, and let the right foot kiss the ground in front of me, and I started my journey.
I ran by the beach today. I like a quiet environment when I run. Nobody singing. No smoke from a barbeque pit invading my air. No bikini clad girls to distract me, although I wouldn’t mind that kind of distraction.
Still, running is a quiet sport. There is only me, so I do prefer it that way. Just me and the road.
As I run, my legs start to warm up, and then the run got easier with every step. The waves lapping at the beach gave me a sense of strength to keep on running. I started to pass by some people who were running in front of me. That always feels good, until some old guy did the same to me. That’s always demoralising, but I continued running. The legs are having a mind of their own by then. They do their part, while I do my part, that is to convince them that I am not tired or distracted.
As I near the 30 minutes mark, the legs are still runnning, but the mind is racing on a different track. Should I continue? Should I stop now? Every step I take would mean a longer return journey! As the mind struggles to decide how far to run, the legs seem to have heard the mind and slow down as well. As the legs slow down, the mind got the signal, and just said, “let’s go back”. Even the legs are telling me to go back. In this mind vs muscle battle, the 2 seem to be reinforcing the message to each other that we should just stop right now and head back.
Still, a silent strength remains. I still want to accomplish at least 1 and a half hours of running, and I am only at my 30 minutes mark. With that change in attitude again, the legs complied, and continued to run at a normal pace.
There are less people on the road now. No one to pass by, and no one passed me by. The only people who could get ahead of me now are cyclists with their fanciful bikes. At each passing, I thought I could maybe outrun them, but the fancy bike scares me. You know those kinds of bike? The bikes with so slim a profile that at an angle, you could hardly make it out that it’s actually a bike! It’s just a line. And the cyclists would have matching outfits too, those that cling so tightly that every inch of bulge can be seen, which is quite disturbing sometimes. It’s like someone cycling naked but painted their body black. It is normally black for some reason.
So, I just ignore them, and continue my run at my own pace. I’m into 45 minutes of the run, and since my aim is for 1.5 hours of run, I thought it’s time to paddle back. Plus, my shoes are getting soaked with sweat. The squishing sound from my shoes got louder as I near my starting point. And there are more people now as well. Nobody seemed to care about the squishes I make, so when I could see the finishing line (it’s imaginary of course!), I did a final sprint for it. And then, I collapsed into the bench that started it all.
Phew! That was the end of that run, but not the end of my runs. I still continue to run on a regular basis, at least 3 times a week. And even though the first step is always the most difficult, something tells me that the lesson of that first step is worth taking that first step. And I hope you will try it too. 
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2 Comments
Taking the first step is difficult for most people to take. Perhaps the fear of the unknown is preventing them from discovering the better of things.
By taking the first step and the next will be revealed.
Hi Walter! Thanks for dropping by.