Do you listen to your mind and body when everyone only talks about goals and productivity?How I learned this lesson again while running a half marathon.
When was the last time you actually listened to your mind and body ?
The preparation for a half marathon
I have been running the Chennai Marathon for the past three years and have graduated from the 10 km category to half marathon-21km category in the past three years. This year(2020) I did not register for the Chennai marathon keeping in mind the crowd and social distancing norms in the wake of the pandemic. Me and my running buddy decided to do a half marathon ourselves near our apartment instead(yes I know this does not give the same feeling as running in large event with thousands of runners,media coverage,drums and what not). In half marathon (or any long distance run greater than 15km) it’s essential, that you have some hydration points planned for water, glucose salts etc. Trust me that you need that if you don’t want to end up in a hospital ! Our body loses lot of water and salts in the form of sweat and also our energy levels are depleted owing to such a long physical activity with additional pressure on all the internal organs as they are working under strain. Also the core temperature our body rises up. We used our cars as the hydration point and stocked it with some of the basic items and parked it en-route so that we cross either of our cars every 2 km and grab something to drink if we feel like it. Of course, there are seasoned runners who carry these with them to save time.
The run
We started the run at 5:30 am after a warm up and it was very dark. After 5 minutes into the run I realized that I had some acidity. I ignored it thinking it’ll just magically go away and kept running(this was the first sign from my body saying there is something not right). Please keep in mind that I had practiced for a month for this day and my maximum run in the past one month being 13 km. I will not recommend anyone to suddenly get up one day and try running 21 km just because you want to prove something to the world and post a selfie. We can do better than that. First 10 km went like a breeze(with the niggling pain that I comfortably chose to ignore). Morning when we started at 5:30 am it was quite humid, in fact it was extra humid and I was sweating a lot(In hind sight it was more related to my acidity as well). By 7:30 am , weather had cleared and there was cool wind with a good cloud cover which was ideal for running. Whenever we stopped at the hydration point, I did not drink much water as I was not feeling much thirsty. My stomach was too bloated to feel anything at all, leave alone thirst.
Pain strikes
After completing 15km, different body parts started hurting .Start with my knees, lower back, shoulder and then neck. I used the pain spray to alleviate the pain which gave a temporary relief because of minty cool burning feeling. Every km after this I felt like giving up. Marathon is a mind and body game. I was confident that this is the all too familiar feeling and I can push myself through and finish the run. Of course, I could have given up any time in the run, and no one would bother or know but I know it and I did not want to start the year with an incomplete promise which I do for many things in life.
Finished the half marathon-again!
I Ignored my mind and body’s voice to stop and carried on and completed the run in almost 3 hours. Yes, you read it right, I ran for almost three hours continuously with may be few mins break here and there. There was not much improvement in the timing compared to last year. But the feeling of finishing after running for almost three hours is surely and exhilarating one. Some call it runner’s high as well,may be it’s endorphins. I felt good about myself and the sense of achievement was exhilarating. I was covered with sweat both dried and wet and yes dirt as well.
I finished the run or did the run finish me?
After stretching post the run, I realized that I could not even walk properly with severe pain in my knees and back. It felt as if this pain was lurking behind, waiting to strike at me once I complete the run. After taking bath and having breakfast, I could not walk much and I just lied down on the bed. Body started shivering and I developed fever and splitting headache. I would be lying if I say the thought of getting infected with corona virus did not cross my mind. I did not know what was happening and this was quite a surprise. I did expect some cramps and pain but this was at a different level. Had some paracetamol and lots and lots of water and glucose and kept sleeping throughout the day thinking it’ll be fine soon. Also, I was applying all types of pain relief ointments. I got up only for lunch and then slept again. My wife was scared. She had seen me run half marathons before as well but she did not see these kind of symptoms . By evening I was feeling better and fever subsided as well. Like everyone, I turned to google for answers, and found that I had severe dehydration and my body was crying for attention. The acidity had suppressed the feeling of thirst somehow and I continued running with less water in the body which finally took a toll on me. This had given rise to the fever, cramps and headache.
What did I learn then? Are goals everything after all?
What did I learn from this? First of all, confidence is good and over-confidence is not. I may have seen it before, but each time there is something to learn and continuous learning is something we all need to embrace. Life gives opportunity to learn each day, and it’s on us if we would like to learn that or ignore it. Being goal oriented and ambitious is excellent, but don’t ignore your body and mind in that pursuit of goal. Body gives us signs through fever, body pain, aches, blood pressure etc. and mind also communicates to us via stress, state of low energy, fear, tension etc. It’s trying to tell us to may be step back and give a break . Ask yourself if this something that you really want to be doing? Do you enjoying doing this? Does it make you happy after all? If you had a choice not to do it, would you still do it? After all what use are those goals, if we are not in a state to enjoy them once we achieve it. Listen to your body and mind to ensure a healthy and happy life.
How did you start your new year and what kind of goals you have this new year and how are you planning to achieve them? How are you going to ensure that you are not ignoring your body and mind in this endless pursuit of goals.
Note: I am chronic procrastinator, and I started writing this in Jan 2021 but did not publish it. Working on it !!