WHAT I TALK ABOUT WHEN I TALK ABOUT RUNNING

Know how I keep saying that I miss climbing and how I can't wait to conquer a mountain again? Well, I still feel that way BUT

I found a new love.

Running in Marathons.

I never got into team sports when I was a kid. That doesn't mean I'm not competitive but really, the only person I like competing with is myself. Whenever people would ask me what sport I was into, I would always say, swimming and running.

Thanks to my friend, April, I ran my first marathon last March. I finished 5km in 47 minutes. Not bad at all, I think.

Since then, I've been making a conscious effort to run at least twice a week. I wish I could run everyday but since I now work the night shift, it's just not possible, unless I want to be a zombie at work.

I ran my 2nd marathon (with Bea and a bunch of other friends) last month and this time, I finished the 5km run in 42mins. My next run is scheduled at the end of this month at McKinley Hills (really training myself for this because of the uphill parts)

Anyhoo, a couple of weeks ago, while waiting for hubby to finish his business in Greenhills, I saw this book at a bookstore, grabbed it and bought it.



I can't believe I've never read any of his books (I'm so buying his other books but this one's really special coz it's a memoir and I feel like I've gotten to know Haruki Murakami on a more personal basis). Mr. Murakami is inspiring in so many ways. Did you know he started running at the age of 33? Means it's not too late for me! I swear, you don't have to be a runner to appreciate this book. There's so much wisdom in it that I understand how Kookie feels like when she reads Murakami---Woozy.

I love how he talks about disciplining the mind and the body. In the book, he shares a mantra which I now live by: "Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional."

Here are my other favorite quotes from the book:

"Nothing in the real world is as beautiful as the illusions of a person about to lose consciousness."

"People sometimes sneer at those who run every day, claiming they'll go to any length to live longer. But don't think that's the reason most people run. Most runners run not because they want to live longer, but because they want to live life to the fullest. If you're going to while away the years, it's far better to live them with clear goals and fully alive then in a fog, and I believe running helps you to do that. Exerting yourself to the fullest within your individual limits: that's the essence of running, and a metaphor for life — and for me, for writing as whole. I believe many runners would agree"

"It doesn’t matter how old I get, but as long as I continue to live I’ll always discover something new about myself. No matter how long you stand there examining yourself naked before a mirror, you’ll never see reflected what’s inside."

"For a runner like me, what’s really important is reaching the goal I set myself, under my own power. I give it everything I have, endure what needs enduring, and am able, in my own way, to be satisfied. From out of the failures and joys I always try to come away having grasped a concrete lesson. (It’s got to be concrete, no matter how small it is.) And I hope that, over time, as one race follows another, in the end I’ll reach a place I’m content with. Or maybe just catch a glimpse of it. (Yes, that’s a more appropriate way of putting it.)"

"The most important thing we ever learn at school is the fact that the most important things can't be learned at school." (YES YES YES YES YES!!!)

"To keep on going, you have to keep up the rhythm. This is the important thing for long-term projects. Once you set the pace, the rest will follow. The problem is getting the flywheel to spin at a set speed--and to get to that point takes as much concentration and effort as you can manage."

"It's just that for some reason I never cared all that much whether I beat others or lost to them. This sentiment remained pretty much unchanged after I grew up. It doesn't matter what field you're talking about--beating somebody else just doesn't do it for me. I'm much more interested in whether I reach the goals that I set for myself, so in this sense long-distance running is the perfect fit for a mindset like mine." (Could super relate to this)


P.S.
I lost 5lbs na! Yippee!!!