Why running?

Of all the things that my fertile imagination has thought for me, serious runing never figured in it. In my dreams,I was sometimes a marketing top dog, sometimes a spiritual guru, sometimes a street smart guy.. but never ever a runner.

Why do I run now? Flashback 6 odd months to last December... I could barely walk 10 steps without breaking into a sweat,I was eating wrong and was living wrong. To cut the long story short... I needed to change and this change needed to be permanent and for the better.
And so I started my journey.... I just wanted to be fitter and I thought that it was a good enough to start. I realized soon that I needed to be more specific...I then went through a whole gamut of goals that I wanted to achieve for myself..having a 6 packs, doing 108 Surya Namaskars at a go,having 18 inches biceps amongs others. I did chase each of these goals with a lot of enthusiasm and dedication but I realized most of these weren't something I could sustain for a long time except perhaps Surya Namsakars which is something I stil do may be not so regularly and certainly not with the competitive streak I had earlier (which is not a bad idea as performing any exercise in Yoga with a compertitive streak defeats the purpose in the first place). I actually eliminated serious running earlier partly because I was running on treadmills,partly because it seemed very boring but most importantly running doesnt have the same "glamour value"attached to it as going to a gym.

In India, atleast in Pune running is not a bright idea- the traffic, the absence of running paths, the sad state of roads, intermittent rains make it an actual for run your life kind of situation. Lets not get into the pollution bit and the fact that people give you strange looks when you run.

Then I came across a wonderful piece of writing "What I talk about when I talk about running?" by Haruki Murukami. I had earlier been greatly moved by the tender emotions potrayed by him in "The Norewegian Wood" and I amazed how person could juggle his time being a serious marathoner and a world renowned author. The book introduced me to the world of running hitherto unknown to me. As luck would have it, I got packed off to US for work. The book has numerous references to the many famous marathons in US and this whetted my apetite to put on my running shoes (sorry if that sound too cliched).

So here I am running. Running makes sense in US... I dont feel couped up.. .I dont need a partner.. just a good pair of shoes and and ipod and i am off .. It helps that this is summer and the days are long so I can run after work.

As the sun sets beyond the green fields and the far away mountains, my ipod plays "Peaceful Easy Peaceful" mirroring my thoughts.I jog along happy at the prospect of a warm bath, cold drink and a light salad that await me at the end of this mile.