The "Why" of it

Some say (sorry Top Gear! ), why do you do it? What's the fun in it ?

How can you get out of your bed when it so cold ?


All I know is (again sorry Top gear! ), i love doing it, the reality is the fun part of it and I just use my abdominal muscles to hoist myself out of the bed (the cold being a non-factor )

I love doing it - Running is and always has been something that was a part of the human culture.
Not always the most popular thing otherwise we would have been without locomotives, it was a basic necessity to move fast if your food was live and had legs.

 Pheidippides was the first guy who ran and became famous (though he died after it, but if run barefoot for 42.2 kms after a war you WILL be dead because of the exhaustion ) but running has always been in history.

The cold breeze that blows across your face (or hot breeze like in Badwater ), the rush of blood, the adrenaline that flows as you overtake a fellow runner or see the finish line and the surge of emotions that come through after you cross the finish line are some thing non-runners will never understand.

When I first ran a half marathon, I had doubts. Doubts whether I could touch the distance, whether I was even capable of doing the distance. 21.097 kilometers is a long distance ( don't judge me Dean/Arun ) for a first timer and I had my fair share of doubts.
When I crossed that timing mat, those doubts were gone. Everyone who has ever questioned you, made you believe you would amount to nothing - "Up Yours!! I am capable enough to put my face down and cover a distance on my willpower and strength. "

During the 1st time its about making it, from the next time on its about improving. "Be like the river and not the lake" I was told by my dad and river is what I choose to be.

Faster and Better. And what do you get from it? Satisfaction, joy, happiness and the immense pride that you are above the million other homo sapiens who can't do what you can.

Legs were designed to move and if you prefer to hang them loosely without challenging yourself, well its your choice. I love challenging myself because its the only way I know I will improve and so I move.


Reality is the fun part :"Move! If you can still move you are still alive"
Common sense right?

Try running once, early in the morning with the cold breeze blowing or in the evening while the sun goes down or in the afternoon while the sun betas down on you or in the night when you hear the silence out loud.

There would be one thing common, you'll feel alive. You'll feel you're getting somewhere. You'll feel a connect with yourself. You'll feel your life does have a meaning outside your offices, your PCs, your air conditioned rooms and the ties that bind you to other homo sapiens.

My friend asked me, "So hows life beyond the marathon training"
I replied " Beyond it? Life's virtual."

Getting out of bed : It's actually not the hardest part actually.Neither is opening my computer strained eyes after 5 hours of rest. Neither is the cold ( its 11 degrees outside and the coming months will be colder) or the heat or the rain.

Why?

Refer to point 1. I love running.

When we love someone, we go out of our comfort zone to be with them. And we sacrifice a lot for them.

Running is 1 great love. You get out of your comfort zone and she in return makes you stronger.
Makes you more patient, gives you 1st hand experience of life, teaches you willpower and determination and makes you a better person.
Plus you can two time on her with other sports ( which makes Triathlons an exotic affair :P)



" I run to seek a void " - Haruki Murakami

I run to be alive.