Morning run

 

Went out for a five kilometer-run early today, after almost a month of going through all my other daily routines and without any form of physical exercise.  Well, except for the short walks with Sam, my three-year old Belgian Malinois, or the weekend jaunts to the mall and back (that secondhand book stall, pet store, and grocery).  It was the same old route, with my first kilometer just going round and round this cul-de-sac near our place (total diameter: 10 to 15 meters), where Sam usually does her morning and evening rituals, while hidden among the tall grasses growing on vacant lots.  After around ten to fifteen minutes, she was ready to go back home.  Had to clip and secure this short leash to her body strap and guide her back to our place where she then got her probiotic tablets for the day (her first meal had to wait).  Went out again to finish my run.

As with my previous runs, my next four kilometers took me to this tree-lined asphalt road going up past the gate of this former drug rehabilitation camp (already abandoned and closed for years), and then to this intersection where the next nearest houses in the neighborhood were located.  Hardly have the stamina now to run uphill (since those three bouts of COVID, or maybe with these lungs just getting old), so had to walk most of the way until the first house at the intersection.  

That was where I made my turn and ran downhill, all the way back to the dead end street.  A complete lap was around 200 to 250 meters, which meant about four laps to finish a whole kilometer.  Took me more than 46 minutes to finish the whole run.  My lungs felt like they were about to burst most of the time, and my stomach felt like it just had a full breakfast (took only half a glass of cold water prior to going outside with Sam though).  But, despite the struggle, the really good things about this run were the silence (except for some pedestrians and a few passing motorcycles) and nearly blank mind during that almost one hour.  Well, a few thoughts as well about these changes that were bound to happen again soon at work.  Including changes in personnel as a few more people resigned from their jobs.

It's like 2018 all over again, when I first joined the organization after two years of doing just freelance work.  Lots of adjustments in terms of relating with various colleagues and partners (including some new faces from beyond the country office).  Would be needing more of these down times and recharging breaks in the coming days.  These quiet runs in the morning and on weekends seem to do the job quite well.  May have to bring back some of those stretching exercises and sittings too.  And those occasional trips outside the city.