MyRun Chronicles: Playing By The Rules

Similarly, if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not receive the victor's crown unless he competes according to the rules. (2Tim.2:5)

It was meant to be the mother of all trail runs. I was going to test my resilience in the Adidas Berlin virtual run. I don't want to call it 'physical resilience' . I have discovered that running, especially on fourty year-old legs, is more than just a physical experience.

My friend Wachira, who runs in all sorts of places, with all manner of running groups and to all sorts of distances once told me, "Man, it’s all in the mind". I admire his grit.

Since that time, I have pondered this important issue. Of course, it only comes up when I'm at the tired end of my tether-plodding up a trail and regretting why I got myself there in the first place! Say, friend, is it truly a matter of training the mind to ignore the aches and pains of tired limbs? Or is it a matter of 'ugali' powering the legs through the turns and twists? Should I eat more? Anyway…

My running app was set to the 10k and 5k Berlin runs. The 10k was my true goal. The 5k was a small insurance to cover up any embarrassment in case I couldn’t make the 10k. I set out at dusk and as usual, made two mental notes:
1. Try not to fall, buddy.
2. Pace yourself (like Eliud Kipchoge) and save the best for last.

At the 2km mark, I decided to try a new route. Fortunately, it came to a dead-end after a kilometer, and I returned to more familiar paths. However, at 5km I came across a new route that piqued my curiosity and I made a quick decision to turn into it.

The sun had now set but I was in good form. The route led to a wide and dusty all-weather road.

I settled into a comfortable trot but after 2km, it was getting too dark, and I seemed to be moving further and further away from any settlements. I turned around happy that I had discovered two new routes. As I considered my options I felt a renewed sense of achievement. Whichever route I took home would inevitably take me beyond my psychological limit of 10km.
By this time the Berlin race was the furthest thing from my mind.

As I came to the final turn, the app chimed 9km. It was now completely dark. I worried that I had not picked up speed for fear of twisting an ankle on a pebble or running into a thorny brush.
To compensate I picked up speed and went past the turn. Though it was getting late, I was determined to see just how far I could go. I ran along with one ear tuned to the app. After a few minutes, it rewarded me with a 10km chime. I was now feeling really good. With renewed energy, I burst into a sprint as I got onto a paved road. I could now give it my best! I ran like a madman.

It was only after I started seeing little, red lights dancing before my eyes that I slowed down. The 'blitzkrieg' came to an abrupt end. Trotting alongside the evening traffic, I could no longer hear the app. I took the turn home- a meandering 2km gentle incline. I began to feel the first signs of my folly in the mad dash.

After the crazy burst of energy, I had meagre reserves for the last stretch. My legs turned to heavy logs, and my throat cried out for water. I begged the app to say how far I had run but it was as mute as a fish.

I got home at 8 p.m. to an obviously relieved wife and whipped out my phone. To my great dismay, the running app had shut down at 10km. "Why, O why me!" I exclaimed to my bemused kids.

Suddenly, it all came back to me; I had set it to the 10k Berlin race! Worse still, my overall speed was slower than usual. I had used the first 5km to warm up at a lower speed in anticipation of a faster pace in the last 5km. What a blunder!
You see friend, I got caught up in the excitement of the trails and then gave myself goals that were at variance with the rules of the race. In the end, I got home more exhausted than I'd been in a long time and with nothing recorded to show for it. How often do we do this in life? Are you going to lose in eternity because you failed to play by the rules?
Again;
Similarly, if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not receive the victor's crown unless he competes according to the rules. (2Tim.2:5)