50 metres from the fork in the road I had to decide, "where do I want to go from here?" To the left was a detour of about 7 kilometres; on the right, a more direct route that would have taken me home in about 3. It was an exceptionally warm day; I hadn't ran... Continue Reading →
Training for a Marathon
For the past half a year I've been in the midst of training for a marathon. The decision to participate this year came after incessant badgering by a colleague. As I remember, when I finally agreed it came when my defences were low following a particularly stressful period at work, during which I couldn't think... Continue Reading →
The absurdity of running
I've clocked 80.76km so far in runs this month. That's almost 80.76km more than what I ran last month. The reason, I tell myself, that I have run so much is because there's quite a bit of a competition in the office. We've signed up for a marathon; we're tracking our runs; and being competitive... Continue Reading →
0445club
Read Tim Ferriss' Tool of Titans on the train yesterday evening on Jocko Willink. There was this thing about the #0445club, which after a late night of drinks seemed to me like an incredible idea I had to try. So this morning... #0445club A pity about the rain though. Had gotten my gear all readied... Continue Reading →
The Run
We act very much as if we were on a voyage. What can I do? I can choose out the helmsman, the sailors, the day, the moment. Then a storm arises. What do I care? I have fulfilled my task: another has now to act, the helmsman. If the weather is bad for sailing, we... Continue Reading →
Thinking About Life
Maybe it's do with the weather of late - cool, dreary, wet; or maybe it's to do the long runs I've been doing - lonely, peaceful, contemplative. Whatever it was, I've been thinking about life - about how it has been; about how it is now; and about how it is going to be. I... Continue Reading →
Falling to the level of our training
I first saw the following wonderful quote in a book by Joshua Medcalf (called Hustle), attributed to an anonymous Navy SEAL: Under pressure, you don't rise to the occasion, you sink to the level of your training. What a beautiful principle to live your life by. (I was particularly inspired because I have been doing quite a... Continue Reading →
Going beyond economics
"So," he asked, "what should he do?" Straightforward as the question may seem, it was anything but. There were two tracks I could take: (1) the economic, rational track; or (2) the moral, slightly irrational track. I can't quite share with you what the exact nature of the discussion was, but the question would be... Continue Reading →
Running “barefoot” with shoes isn’t as silly as it sounds
It's been more than a year since I started running "barefoot" (and yes, I have to admit it was due to the book Born to Run -- one of my first of many, and still my favourite, book on running). I do not quite run "without shoes", but wear either my New Balance Nimbus or my... Continue Reading →
There's a wonderful cartoon on running over at The Oatmeal. Beautiful as always, especially to this avid runner without a chance in hell of winning any running awards ("so why do it?" they ask -- not quite understanding that I run for running's sake. I just don't get it, either).
