If this week has not been the most difficult one I've experienced since I got here, it has certainly been the most disorganized. Chaos was the dominant theme. After 3 weeks of mid-terms, quizzes, homeworks, speeches and other assignments, I was exhausted mentally. I knew I deserved a break, spring break was just 2 weeks away but those were 2 weeks too many and some of my most demanding assignments were due before then. I needed a break now, so I gave myself one.
I decided to skip my bi-weekly planning session and 'just go with the flow', see what happens. In my mind it was an experiment, and a necessary one at that. I wanted to see what happens in college when I dispose of my rigid timetable. The feeling of rest was immediate, letting go of the timetable created the illusion that I didn't have responsibilities anymore. I knew the assignments were still there and that I would do them and do them well but in my mind it was out of my hands, destiny and spontaneity would determine the timing and method, I was just along for the ride. And so I watched the week from behind a screen of impartiality, like an audience member watching a particularly realistic IMAX movie, the chaos erupted around me but couldn't touch me. At least that's how it felt for a while.
The ride was not what I signed up for. Sure, there were a couple of fun days but by the end of the week I'd averaged only about 5 hours of sleep a night. I only went to the gym once; on Monday and had to settle for the track at 11pm on Thursday. I also missed most of the dinning commons open hours, so my healthy eating went right out the window. It was a rough week. I got everything done but I was even more tired at the end of the week than I was at the beginning. Strangely, the main problem wasn't how I used my studying time, but instead how I used my leisure time. I'd end up using leisure time doing something that would stress me out (like shopping for my $150 econ text book) so that I kept having to rest after my 'resting time' before I could work.
Never again! That was the most ridiculous week ever and I've had my fill of that particular brand of experimentation. It seems I constantly need structure in my life, at least when I'm in school, so I'm going back to plan A and hoping I get a chance to make up my lost hours of sleep this weekend, which seems unlikely seeing as it's State Patty's day on Saturday. *Sigh* 1 more week to spring break...
Progress report: On the one day I was able to get to the gym, I did 2.36 miles in 20 minutes - the EXACT same as last week.
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Okay, now the hard part...
Gym is becoming a mild addiction for me. I have many of the usual signs. It's my answer to everything; when I'm stressed I go work-out, when I'm happy I go work-out, when I have to study I go work-out, when I don't have to work or study I go work-out. Ironically, while I had believed that consistency would me my biggest challenge, I now find that having to stop myself from going to the gym, in the interests of my studies and to avoid burn-out, represents the greater difficulty. That got me thinking this week; now that I'm past the gym-o-phobia, isn't it in my best interests to make certain that I am getting the most out of my hard work? Running like mad is easy, but if I really want to get to my 5-mile target by April's end, some areas will have to be addressed.
First up is diet. I've always had a tradition where after a work-out I would go and reward myself with a hefty meal. At home however, it was mama's good old healthy, no red meat, no oil, balanced cooking. Here however, it has meant raiding the various tasty but calorie-packed meals available in the dinning hall. It dawns on me now that if I am to reach my target, then this practice has to stop. Thus I have made a few commitments towards this end. Firstly, at least 4 out of my week's meals will be partaken in Simmon's Dinning Commons, nicknamed the 'healthy commons'. Secondly, all my weekday lunches and dinners must begin with a salad and end with a fruit. Finally, my weekend brunches should be proportionally more fruit-based, than tatter-tots based.
Secondly, now that the good Lord has seen fit to reward our endurance of suffering in winter, with warm weather and ice-less side-walks, one of my 3 runs during the week must be outside. Finally, some research is required. I must ensure that my running and breathing techniques are maximising my output and growth. I must also ensure that my diet is not working against me and perhaps find a solution to the mid-night snacking that my late-night studying seems to necessitate.
All in all, these commitments will require a some-what drastic change in lifestyle. These changes may be difficult for many reasons including the change in routine and the adjustments it will require in the rest of my daily life. What I know for sure, is that I am going to reach my 5-mile target one way or another, if indeed these changes will aide my pursuit then I welcome them with open arms.
Progress Report: I'm now running 2.36 miles in 20 minutes, up from 2.31 last week. A modest improvement.
First up is diet. I've always had a tradition where after a work-out I would go and reward myself with a hefty meal. At home however, it was mama's good old healthy, no red meat, no oil, balanced cooking. Here however, it has meant raiding the various tasty but calorie-packed meals available in the dinning hall. It dawns on me now that if I am to reach my target, then this practice has to stop. Thus I have made a few commitments towards this end. Firstly, at least 4 out of my week's meals will be partaken in Simmon's Dinning Commons, nicknamed the 'healthy commons'. Secondly, all my weekday lunches and dinners must begin with a salad and end with a fruit. Finally, my weekend brunches should be proportionally more fruit-based, than tatter-tots based.
Secondly, now that the good Lord has seen fit to reward our endurance of suffering in winter, with warm weather and ice-less side-walks, one of my 3 runs during the week must be outside. Finally, some research is required. I must ensure that my running and breathing techniques are maximising my output and growth. I must also ensure that my diet is not working against me and perhaps find a solution to the mid-night snacking that my late-night studying seems to necessitate.
All in all, these commitments will require a some-what drastic change in lifestyle. These changes may be difficult for many reasons including the change in routine and the adjustments it will require in the rest of my daily life. What I know for sure, is that I am going to reach my 5-mile target one way or another, if indeed these changes will aide my pursuit then I welcome them with open arms.
Progress Report: I'm now running 2.36 miles in 20 minutes, up from 2.31 last week. A modest improvement.
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Breaking The Wall
"There comes a point in every race - it could be the fifth mile, it could be the 25th- but, eventually,you're gonna hit ... what runners like to call "the wall. " And when you do ... you won't be able to breathe or think or even move. All you're gonna wanna do is give up."
I don't know how many of you have watched the 2007 Simon Pegg film 'Run, Fatboy, Run'. For those who haven't, I strongly recommend that you do; it is absolutely hilarious. Those who have watched it, will remember the villain of the film delivering the above monologue to Pegg's character. As a runner, I believe that no truer words were spoken in this movie.
Whether you are pushing your limits on a treadmill, running in a competition or simply aiming for a better time, you often 'hit the wall'. In that moment your body tells you it is certain that it can't go on any longer and begs you to stop, just for a little while. How well one deals with this is what separates the champions from the runner-ups. I don't know how other people deal with it when they 'hit the wall'. For me the method has changed over time and most would probably seem bizarre to others. For example, when I was younger I'd repeat 50 Cent lyrics in my head over and over again. When I was learning to drive a stick shift I'd think of myself as a car so that when I'd feel like stopping I would just imagine shifting to a lower, heavier gear which could handle the strain.
As I now train for cross-country, visualization is the driving-force in my training. As I run, I am totally disconnected from my surroundings. My mind goes into a different world painted with my ambitions. I see myself getting that 4.0 GPA and see myself leaving behind the competition in the last leg of a race. I see myself lounging on a beach, obviously ripped in nothing but my yellow Billabong beach shorts. I see myself in a fine Italian suit, looking down at Manhattan from my multimillion-dollar pent-house apartment, surveying my kingdom. And in that moment, when my body is begging me to stop, all my desires and ambition become tied to me finishing the race. In my head, I believe that if I can only keep going, beat my earlier times, then my desires will be waiting on the other side of the finish-line. With that thought, the wall comes crumbling down, I push harder, run faster, look and feel stronger. In that moment I already feel like a champion and it's almost too easy to keep going.
P.S. Progress report; I'm now running 2.32 miles in 20 minutes, up from 2.17 last week. I'm encouraged but still keeping in mind it's still a ways to go to my 5 mile-a-day (separated into two 20 minute runs) target.
I don't know how many of you have watched the 2007 Simon Pegg film 'Run, Fatboy, Run'. For those who haven't, I strongly recommend that you do; it is absolutely hilarious. Those who have watched it, will remember the villain of the film delivering the above monologue to Pegg's character. As a runner, I believe that no truer words were spoken in this movie.
Whether you are pushing your limits on a treadmill, running in a competition or simply aiming for a better time, you often 'hit the wall'. In that moment your body tells you it is certain that it can't go on any longer and begs you to stop, just for a little while. How well one deals with this is what separates the champions from the runner-ups. I don't know how other people deal with it when they 'hit the wall'. For me the method has changed over time and most would probably seem bizarre to others. For example, when I was younger I'd repeat 50 Cent lyrics in my head over and over again. When I was learning to drive a stick shift I'd think of myself as a car so that when I'd feel like stopping I would just imagine shifting to a lower, heavier gear which could handle the strain.
As I now train for cross-country, visualization is the driving-force in my training. As I run, I am totally disconnected from my surroundings. My mind goes into a different world painted with my ambitions. I see myself getting that 4.0 GPA and see myself leaving behind the competition in the last leg of a race. I see myself lounging on a beach, obviously ripped in nothing but my yellow Billabong beach shorts. I see myself in a fine Italian suit, looking down at Manhattan from my multimillion-dollar pent-house apartment, surveying my kingdom. And in that moment, when my body is begging me to stop, all my desires and ambition become tied to me finishing the race. In my head, I believe that if I can only keep going, beat my earlier times, then my desires will be waiting on the other side of the finish-line. With that thought, the wall comes crumbling down, I push harder, run faster, look and feel stronger. In that moment I already feel like a champion and it's almost too easy to keep going.
P.S. Progress report; I'm now running 2.32 miles in 20 minutes, up from 2.17 last week. I'm encouraged but still keeping in mind it's still a ways to go to my 5 mile-a-day (separated into two 20 minute runs) target.
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
The Master Appears
You know how they say, "When the student is ready, the master appears". Well, that's how this week has felt. For two years I tried to look for gym partners and running partners to keep me motivated but it always fell through. Finally, when I've made a commitment to regularly work-out with or without any gym partners, is when they're coming out of the wood-work.
My 'master' in this case is a fellow Kenyan here at Penn State who I was put in touch with through a mutual friend. We met last week and hit it off. Due, in no small part, to the fact that he also ran cross-country events in High School and has been looking for a running partner. Ding, ding, ding. So we agreed to meet last Wednesday at the Rec. Hall gym. I don't know why, but for some reason, I had assumed that we would be around the same level of fitness, we weren't. After exerting all my will-power into completing a 2-mile (20 minute) run on the treadmill, he walks up to me and asks - ever so kindly-if I think I could run for 3 more miles. To which, I replied by holding back an incredulous look and explaining that "I'd love to but I gotta get in some abs-work as well". And true to his good nature, he gave me an understanding smile and proceeded to finish his 5 mile run.
So that's my target right now, to surpass the master and be able to run 3 five-mile runs a week. I've been working out 3 times a week for the last two weeks with my friends and I'm up to 2.17 miles. Which is an improvement of about 0.9 miles from orientation week. This isn't going to be easy, but most things worth doing never are.
My 'master' in this case is a fellow Kenyan here at Penn State who I was put in touch with through a mutual friend. We met last week and hit it off. Due, in no small part, to the fact that he also ran cross-country events in High School and has been looking for a running partner. Ding, ding, ding. So we agreed to meet last Wednesday at the Rec. Hall gym. I don't know why, but for some reason, I had assumed that we would be around the same level of fitness, we weren't. After exerting all my will-power into completing a 2-mile (20 minute) run on the treadmill, he walks up to me and asks - ever so kindly-if I think I could run for 3 more miles. To which, I replied by holding back an incredulous look and explaining that "I'd love to but I gotta get in some abs-work as well". And true to his good nature, he gave me an understanding smile and proceeded to finish his 5 mile run.
So that's my target right now, to surpass the master and be able to run 3 five-mile runs a week. I've been working out 3 times a week for the last two weeks with my friends and I'm up to 2.17 miles. Which is an improvement of about 0.9 miles from orientation week. This isn't going to be easy, but most things worth doing never are.
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