© Ugur Akinci
Since I started this blog I also started to get one or two amazing letters a week, letters that I never expected given the humble dimensions of this tiny blog. But it means there really are people out there who are trying to go back to something that used to make them feel FREE back in their youths... or people who feel that there is a WAY OUT of their present physical-psychological predicament and running is just one of those things in the solution mix...
There is one particular reader who have shared with me recently how she used to run good enough in her youth to win medals but could not share it with her parents who were "absent"... So she threw all her medals away, imagine...
I wonder how many other readers do share such a similar background. But I'll tell you this: I'm a guy whose parents divorced when I was a little boy and the repercussions of that life-altering event still continue for me at this ripe age of 60. And probably my running has something to do with that event as well although I never thought about the connection until I received this lovely letter from my reader. I asked her permission to share it in full with you all and if she says yes you're in for a treat because it's such an honest, warm, and inspiring letter...
THE LATEST... I was in Baltimore for the B'More Marathon. No, I did not run but my son did a half-marathon (13 miles) and I was there to give him logistic support. He ran under 2 hours which is great I think given the fact that he never ran the distance before. I also took a bunch of photos that I'll share with you all in the days ahead. Sorry for my tardiness in that respect.
Wish you all a great happy day! May your days run free like a gazelle and may you always have the wind on your back!
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Running as an Olfactory Feast - a Random Catalog
© 2010 Ugur Akinci
Running is an intense olfactory experience.
Here is a random catalog of the odors and fragrances that I enjoy (mostly) on a typical 5K run around my neighborhood:
Running is an intense olfactory experience.
Here is a random catalog of the odors and fragrances that I enjoy (mostly) on a typical 5K run around my neighborhood:
- Fresh-cut grass
- Laundry detergent (sometimes mixed up with steam vapor)
- Carpentry
- Still-warm and ticking car engines
- Onions and assorted kitchen odors
- Meat grilled on barbecue
- Charcoal
- Fresh paint
- Cat piss
- Perfume of a woman who just entered a house
- Sweat
- Rubber
- Softened asphalt
- Pine resin
- Rose bush
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
LOG: 3.2 Miles (Bug symphony)
Ran my usual 3.2 miles (5K) over my measured route after work.
Days are getting shorter already I can tell. When I slipped on my New Balances and hit the pavement the sun was down. A quiet evening. A little girl playing her guitar on the stairs leading to her house. A woman saying hi with a truly angelic expression on her face, like she'd also like to run but for some reason she can't and she is blessing me for my effort. A vicarious celebration of life. It's like I represent all those who'd like to run but can't. A strange thought and I don't even know if it's true or not... The things that a brain thinks when its blood supply is doubled :-)
Squeal of happy children at play echoing from the street beyond. May they always be healthy, at play, and screaming with joy. Temperature in the low 70s. Perfect for a run. What a lovely evening. Street lamps come on live.
Three different layers of "cricket" sounds I hear.
One layer is constant, like a drone, a hum, an unending din coming from inside a sea shell.
That is punctuated by short bursts of much-higher pitched staccato arias, rapid riffs, as it were. More actually like the sound a razor blade makes when pulled across a corrugated metal roof. Sharp and nasty.
The third layer is something in between. A little longer but less pronounced than the "razor blade."
I don't even know the names of these bugs. I just become aware of them when I'm out there running and when I'm waking up to all these wonderful variety of sounds and smells out there.
"Becoming aware" is one of the joys of running, for sure.
Days are getting shorter already I can tell. When I slipped on my New Balances and hit the pavement the sun was down. A quiet evening. A little girl playing her guitar on the stairs leading to her house. A woman saying hi with a truly angelic expression on her face, like she'd also like to run but for some reason she can't and she is blessing me for my effort. A vicarious celebration of life. It's like I represent all those who'd like to run but can't. A strange thought and I don't even know if it's true or not... The things that a brain thinks when its blood supply is doubled :-)
Squeal of happy children at play echoing from the street beyond. May they always be healthy, at play, and screaming with joy. Temperature in the low 70s. Perfect for a run. What a lovely evening. Street lamps come on live.
Three different layers of "cricket" sounds I hear.
One layer is constant, like a drone, a hum, an unending din coming from inside a sea shell.
That is punctuated by short bursts of much-higher pitched staccato arias, rapid riffs, as it were. More actually like the sound a razor blade makes when pulled across a corrugated metal roof. Sharp and nasty.
The third layer is something in between. A little longer but less pronounced than the "razor blade."
I don't even know the names of these bugs. I just become aware of them when I'm out there running and when I'm waking up to all these wonderful variety of sounds and smells out there.
"Becoming aware" is one of the joys of running, for sure.
Running as Therapy
© 2010 Ugur Akinci
There was something unusual about James. He was a well-read elderly gentleman of highest integrity. A U.S. government retiree. A friendly man who never went over the top; who never became too-friendly. Always kind but reserved. He had this tremendous amount of discipline over himself, over the way he spoke or reacted...
In short time I took a shine to James. He was someone I loved talking to. A world-traveled man who knew a lot about a lot of topics. A pleasure to listen to and share the same dining table with.
Then I learned James was running marathons; in his seventies (no wonder he looked that fit)! That he actually ran a DOZEN of them in past. My fascination with James only got deeper.
Since we've established a good level of rapport, one day he blurted out the reason why he started to run marathons many years ago: he lost his young son to a tragic accident many years ago. The pain and shock of that loss was so unbearable James didn't know what to do with himself. Running was the only thing he could do that did not feel as painful. Pretty soon he was running longer distances, more frequently, until he graduated up to full marathons, and he never stopped since.
I've also witnessed the therapeutic power of running many times in my life. When you run, endorphins get released in your body, which are (bluntly put) "pleasure hormones." You'll definitely feel better after a typical daily run, better both physically and psychologically. It's the best therapy I know to beat the blues.
There was something unusual about James. He was a well-read elderly gentleman of highest integrity. A U.S. government retiree. A friendly man who never went over the top; who never became too-friendly. Always kind but reserved. He had this tremendous amount of discipline over himself, over the way he spoke or reacted...
In short time I took a shine to James. He was someone I loved talking to. A world-traveled man who knew a lot about a lot of topics. A pleasure to listen to and share the same dining table with.
Then I learned James was running marathons; in his seventies (no wonder he looked that fit)! That he actually ran a DOZEN of them in past. My fascination with James only got deeper.
Since we've established a good level of rapport, one day he blurted out the reason why he started to run marathons many years ago: he lost his young son to a tragic accident many years ago. The pain and shock of that loss was so unbearable James didn't know what to do with himself. Running was the only thing he could do that did not feel as painful. Pretty soon he was running longer distances, more frequently, until he graduated up to full marathons, and he never stopped since.
I've also witnessed the therapeutic power of running many times in my life. When you run, endorphins get released in your body, which are (bluntly put) "pleasure hormones." You'll definitely feel better after a typical daily run, better both physically and psychologically. It's the best therapy I know to beat the blues.
Monday, September 20, 2010
Over 50 and running? Pay attention to these...
SLEEP. Get your sleep. If you run with sleep deprivation you're gonna hurt your joint, ligaments. Running while craving for sleep is like burning a candle from both ends. Don't do it.
PACE. Just because that 18 year old can pass you by like a bullet, you do not need to feel bad about yourself and try to catch up. You're only going to hurt yourself. It's a miracle already that you're on the road. Look around you -- how many other post-50 runners you see around? Be grateful and slow down to your comfort zone.
FOOD. Eat natural. Eat fresh and clean. But get your protein. I'm a meat eater. Eating meat has spiritual drawbacks but definite physical advantages. Especially red meat has the highest concentration of amino acids that your body will crave for when you start running on a regular basis.
Don't neglect carbs either since they are your energy source.
Dieting is not for runners. Eat sensibly. And then get out and burn it all and have a ball :-)
DRUGS and HARD LIQUOR. A beer with lunch or a glass of wine with dinner is perfectly okay. But anything more than that is out. Keep your body clean and you'll enjoy your running a lot more.
SMOKING. But of course... it's deadly. No runner should use the damn thing.
PACE. Just because that 18 year old can pass you by like a bullet, you do not need to feel bad about yourself and try to catch up. You're only going to hurt yourself. It's a miracle already that you're on the road. Look around you -- how many other post-50 runners you see around? Be grateful and slow down to your comfort zone.
FOOD. Eat natural. Eat fresh and clean. But get your protein. I'm a meat eater. Eating meat has spiritual drawbacks but definite physical advantages. Especially red meat has the highest concentration of amino acids that your body will crave for when you start running on a regular basis.
Don't neglect carbs either since they are your energy source.
Dieting is not for runners. Eat sensibly. And then get out and burn it all and have a ball :-)
DRUGS and HARD LIQUOR. A beer with lunch or a glass of wine with dinner is perfectly okay. But anything more than that is out. Keep your body clean and you'll enjoy your running a lot more.
SMOKING. But of course... it's deadly. No runner should use the damn thing.
Running Inspiration
Who wouldn't want to run like this if you could only fly like this? :-) Go baby go!
Wikipedia Photo Credit: Jeanette Kwakye during World Indoor Championships 2008 in Valencia
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Running Inspiration
Members of the Air Force Academy football team jog on Waikiki Beach before their game with the team from the University of Hawaii.
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