Three Things #38: October 9, 2022
Running is elemental
Another stressful week. When I'm stressed, I run. Writing about running isn’t quite as good as running itself but it does also reduce stress!
There are a number of reasons I run. Some of them are concrete, easy to reason about, and easy to explain. It keeps me fit. It’s challenging, and I like to start the day with a challenge and a little victory. It keeps me honest.
Some of the reasons I run are a little more abstract and difficult to explain. I’ve had a notion for a while that running keeps me grounded, in the sense that it both literally and figuratively keeps my feet firmly on the ground. Literally because, while many of us live modern lives that aren’t particularly tethered to nature (thanks to electric lighting, climate control, etc.), running is a great opportunity to spend some time in nature. Figuratively because it establishes a connection to the earth that’s elemental.
When we talk about the four (or five) elements, it’s usually in the context of some traditional, historical system like Chinese medicine, Ayurveda, or Buddhism. When I say running is elemental, I mean something less metaphysical and more pedestrian. But these traditional systems and beliefs are beginning to make a lot more sense when I understand the role the elements play in my running. When thinking about why I enjoy running, how I run, and what works well for me while running, I realized that one way to understand these things is along elemental lines.
We’re going to zero index today to pretend we have three things :)
Thing #0: Earth
Earth is the most obvious element involved in running: running is, literally, the act of placing oneself against the earth and traversing it for long distances. When running, not all earth is created equal! Running on concrete is a very different experience than running on soil, trails, sand, or gravel. You notice every detail of the ground when running, and when it’s uneven or loose, you especially notice it.
The most explicit way I experience earth while running is the earth’s features: hills, mountains, and elevation gain and loss. Most of the places I run are pretty flat and close to sea level. I don’t usually gain or lose more than a few hundred feet on a daily run. By contrast, when I’m in rockier places, I love to run up the tallest thing I can find. I’ve spent countless hours lost in the hills and mountains around LA, from Topanga in the west to Cucamonga in the east. When I lived in Hong Kong, my favorite run was from the Central District up and around Victoria Peak, then back home; or up one side of the Peak and down the other.
Running and biking trails tend to follow these natural features as well. The best trails often start and end in, and traverse, parks, some of which are strung together over many miles. I’ve learned to avoid cemeteries or, when unavoidable, to traverse them slowly and respectfully, lest an angry groundskeeper come after me.
Of course, many of the biggest, most important of the earth’s features, and many of the best runs, involve water. Lakes are often a good place to find a running trail, but most aren’t big enough for a serious run. Rivers and shorelines are a safer bet. Which brings us to our next element.
For more: Study relief maps. Understand where you live and spend most of your time, relative to the terrain and topology around you.
Thing #1: Water
Water isn’t as obviously important in running as earth, but it does play an important role both internally and externally and forms an interesting contrast to the role of earth.
Internally, I need to pay close attention to my hydration level before, during, and after a run. Before, I don’t want to over hydrate myself or I’ll have to visit the toilet halfway through a run. For a short run, this should never be necessary. I never drink during a short run. After the run I hydrate and get some electrolytes and protein, and I’m all set.
For a long run it’s a much finer balancing act. I want to be sufficiently hydrated ahead of time, but not so hydrated that I need to pee right after I start running (a successful long run includes zero or one pit stops!). I can run for hours in cooler seasons (see fire, below) without water, but in the hot season I need water much sooner. The rule of thumb for distance running is, “drink before you’re thirsty.” It’s super essential to keep yourself well hydrated, especially in warm weather.
Externally, water plays a different and very interesting role. As I mentioned above, many of the earth’s features have a connection to water. I noticed that, when I’m on the road and running on unfamiliar ground, the feature I pay the most attention to is water. This is because I really hate to run through the middle of a city, with concrete and cars and traffic lights. I check the map, find the nearest stream or river, and follow it as it grows larger and makes its way towards the sea. This doesn’t always end well but it’s usually a safe bet.
Sometimes streams, lakes, and rivers have nice running paths; other times I find myself jogging on dirt trails or, in extreme cases, tenderly making my way around mud or lost completely. These are some of my very favorite runs (it’s not always about speed!). Just as becoming an avid snowboarder taught me a lot about winter weather and new words for snow, after following the patterns of the hydrosphere many times in many places, I’ve become intimately familiar with certain patterns in different climates and geographies, and even learned new words and concepts such as the arroyo and paved, dry, urban “rivers” of the southwest, the rugged, rocky seashore of the Bay Area, the wadi of the Middle East, the bayou of the Gulf region, the escarpments and changes in elevation leading to locks, dams, and weirs along rivers (e.g., the old locks along the river in Prague), etc.. As with so much of life and of our experience on the earth, there’s a lot hiding in plain sight that you’ll miss if you don’t pay attention. Running is a great way to become more familiar with this planet.
For more: Find a stream and follow it. See where it leads.
Thing #2: Fire
When you spend hours running outside, you become intimately familiar with the patterns of the sun. For instance: did you know that, as a rule of thumb, you’ll only burn during hours when your shadow is longer than you are tall?
I plan my runs—and, as a result, my entire life—around the sun. Of course, this is nothing new: human life has always worked this way. The position of the sun matters less during an age of electric lights and air conditioners, but it matters a lot when you’re outside sweating for hours. I don’t like running in total darkness, but I also like to run during hours when I won’t burn and can avoid sunscreen entirely, i.e., early or late. In the summer, timing is absolutely critical: there’s a narrow opportunity each morning to do a long run after sunrise and before it gets too bright and too hot. (Once in a while, I’ll run in the middle of the day on an especially hot, sunny day for the same reason I do hot yoga: it’s challenging and I feel amazing afterwards.) I have the sunrise and sunset on my wristwatch, and even without looking I can generally tell you within the time of sunrise and sunset within five minutes, year round. I sleep earlier and wake up earlier in the summer to get those early runs in before it gets too hot, and transition to a later schedule as it cools off.
Temperature matters internally too, of course. There’s a real risk of overheating and of heatstroke on the hottest, humidest days, especially during a race. I’ve come pretty close a few times. Your body definitely tells you, and there’s something special about the sun -> body -> awareness connection.
After being in the sun for an hour or two, I can literally feel it on my skin, even early or late when there’s no risk of burn. It’s difficult to describe, but I feel its presence. Feeling the sun’s warmth on a cold day is nice, but feeling like you’re baking isn’t so nice. For this reason I try to avoid unshaded running paths whenever possible, and spend as much time in the trees as I can.
For more: Pay attention to your shadow the next time you go for a walk or a run.
Thing #3: Wind
As with the other elements, there’s both an obvious and a non-obvious component to the wind element in running. I don’t often get to run in windy conditions, but when I do, it can be pretty epic. Running in cold wind isn’t fun. When I dress for a run, I also have to consider the “wind chill” factor: it feels ten degrees colder when it’s windy. But running in strong wind is, more than running in any other type of weather, somehow a cathartic experience. I don’t love getting wet or parched or sunburnt, but there’s something magical about wind, as if you’re in direct contact with primal natural forces. Of course, wind can either speed you up or slow you down depending on direction. Running with a tailwind makes you feel like a superhero; when you reverse direction, running against a strong wind makes you feel like the force of nature itself is against you. And not all wind is created equal: a gusty, humid, salty sea breeze is not at all like the scorching, desiccating wind of the desert. Wind in the winter is especially dangerous as it can lead to windburn on long runs.
The less obvious components of the wind element are things like altitude, oxygen level, and the breath. Ten miles run at altitude is not the same as those same ten miles at sea level, as I’m finding out this week in Bogota. I don’t often pay close attention to my breathing while I’m running, but I should, and when I do, it makes for a much more meditative experience.
For more: Pay attention to your breath the next time you work out. Try a breathing exercise.