Why I Run Reason #8 - To Dissociate and Appreciate

Disclaimer: The contents of this post might be considered gruesome and disturbing for new runners and those not familiar with the practice of our sport. Reading discretion is advised.

I have always believed that I have a high tolerance for disdain.. Maybe as the result of years spent running and training in a busy and congested metropolis, I’ve pretty much grown accustomed to the runner hate I see being expressed all around the city on my daily runs. I’ve been sideswiped by bikes, ran over by baby carriages, and hit on the back of the head by misdirected flying objects on more than a few occasions while running through Central Park. Although I’ve received quite a number of bumps and bruises from these unfortunate encounters over the years, I’ve always brushed these injuries off as part of doing business in the city. Through it all, I had never considered running as a dangerous, high-contact sport. That all changed last week, in the outskirts of a small city in Nevada no less.

I had woken up early after a fitful sleep in a foreign bed, sharing a room with three other guys who were too tired to care what I was doing. We had stayed up ‘til 3AM the previous night drinking, laughing, and playing cards, so even waking up at 9AM was not easy.

Yet, because it was my first day in a new town that I’d never been in before, I sucked it up, got dressed, and got out for my run. There were already quite a few pedestrians on the main road that traverses the town so I decided to pick a quieter side street to begin my trek. I had picked out a nice circumferential route for my run the night before, so I was ready and excited to start running.

I was barely a quarter mile into my run when I ran by a bus picking up some passengers from a bus stop. Because there was no sidewalk and the road abruptly narrows right after the bus stop, I skirted a bit to the left to continue my running. Suddenly, right at the moment that I passed by the bus, the bus pulls out of the stop, accelerates, and bumps me on my left side as I’m running. As soon as I made contact with the bus, I freaked, and dove headfirst to the side of the road. I landed on some dirt and gravel on my right side and slid a few inches. After regaining my senses, and realizing that I had somehow survived a collision with a bus, I stood up to assess my injuries. I had scratched up my right arm pretty bad and it was bleeding bright red blood. My right shoulder was also a bit achy, but otherwise, I was not that badly hurt. As I removed the ground debris off my arm and used my bandana to apply pressure to the fresh wounds, I realized that the bus had already driven away. What a jerk! It had not even bothered to stop to check on me. I was bitter and angry and sent a few four-letter words in the general direction of the bus.

After cleaning my wounds and dusting off, I had a decision to make. I could scratch the run and walk back to the hotel, or I could continue to run despite the bleeding and the pain. I don’t know what possessed me at that moment, but I decided to pressed on with my 8 miler like I had planned. I think this was a turning point for me because despite the aches, the pains, the bleeding and the emotions, I ran strong and finished the scheduled run without any problems.

The most amazing thing was that although I started the run after the accident full of anger and spite for the bus that ran me over and didn’t bother to stop, I finished it with a sense of happiness and fulfillment, as if I succeeded despite the obstacle. Something beautiful happened in the eight miles I spent on the road that day. I witnessed the transformation from an irrational, vengeful, and mad me to an accomplished, successful, and happy me. Somehow, in some spiritual way, I was able to dissociate my being from my negative thoughts and replace the feelings of victimization and anger with sentiments of appreciation and euphoria. The change in attitude was so drastic and apparent to me, that even as I walked back to the hotel after my run with my blood-tinged bandana wrapped around my right, I was more thinking of a good story to tell the guys than feeling sorry for myself.

Yeah, running does strange things to people and makes them think strange thoughts...but that's exactly why I run.

Running Inspirations

This is my contribution to Take It and Run Thursday on the topic of running inspirations, or the “why(s) I run” as I like to call them. It is an intriguing topic because there are always so many reasons, each one unique, each one personal. For those who haven’t known me for so long, I actually used to have a weekly post where I tried to answer the question as it pertains to me. Here’s a quick recap for those who are interested:

Why I Run:

Reason #1 – To Be Athletic

Reason #2 – For Mom

Reason #3 – For The Emotional Experience
Reason #4 – To Live Passionately
Reason #5 – For The “Runners’ High”
Reason #6 – To Find The Courage To Read And Write
Reason #7 - To Be A Better M.D.

I thought at the time that I had a pretty comprehensive list; that I’ve listed all the important reasons for why I hit the roads everyday. But now as I’ve grown a little as a runner, I see that the list is not nearly complete. So I’m removing the cobwebs, dusting off the cover, and making further amendments to this list that gives substance to my random acts of running.

Trust Your “Breaks”

It’s good to be back; back to the hustle and bustle; back to street musicians playing jazz on subway platforms and of course, back to Central Park, where I was sideswiped by a bike on my 13-miler today. Yes, as if you haven’t noticed, I’ve been away for the past week, taking a short break away from work. No internet access meant no blogging during the trip. But, I did have a few relevant thoughts that I jotted down while I was away that I wanted to share.

Hockey and basketball players usually take one or two days off to do this. Football players can take almost a whole week. Even baseball players, who arguably seem to be doing more of it when they’re on the diamond than when they’re not, perform much better after they’ve done it than when they don’t. Yet, it is surprising to me that there are some runners who either don’t believe in it or just don’t do it, and many others who don’t pay enough attention to it. In my opinion, it is the single biggest mistake that prevents us middle-of-the-pack runners from reaching our fullest potential at our distance events.

What, this “it” is, my dear RBFs, is the idea of rest and recovery, or taking sufficient time away from the road in some kind of proportion to the time you spend on it. Although the concept is basic and simple to implement during the off-season or at the beginning of the running season, it inevitability becomes less important and easily forgotten as we increase the miles and approach the peak of training for our long distance events. As a result of this seemingly innocent mistake, we develop dead legs, tired egos, not to mention a host of overuse injuries that may sideline us for the rest of the season. I believe I’ve detailed my own battles with this condition (in the old post titled A Cautionary Tale From a Running Schizophrenic), so I will not repeat my story here. Suffice it to say that my adventures last summer has made me realize the importance of rest days and its effects on my performance on the road. Not only so, but it has completely changed my perspective on the term. Whereas I used to regard rest days as an annoyance and an excuse to be lazy, I now perceive it as a time during which I’m allowing my body to heal itself and become stronger in preparation for my next run. As a consequence, I no longer blame myself or feel guilty for taking a break, whether scheduled or unscheduled. Instead, I focus on the positive benefits of resting, both physical and psychological, and anticipate the fresh legs I will have for tomorrow’s run.

All I'm saying, runners, is that in order to run well, you must rest and recover well. Don't neglect to remember to step off the pedal every once in a while, especially during high mileage weeks, to allow your body to heal. Trust your "breaks". After all, didn’t God Himself take a breather on the seventh day after working hard to create the heavens and the earth on the first six?