I DON'Tbelong to an organized religion. I am not a regular volunteer at a soup kitchen, I don't read as often as I should, nor do I play a musical instrument (the clarinet in the 6th grade has been the extent of my musical exposure). What keeps me sane in my fragmented roles as a full-time student/part-time employee/part-time social entrepreneur/part-time socialite is running.
I once thought that running as a form of relaxation was an oxymoron. What could be pleasant about huffing and puffing my way through endless laps around a track? The serenity would only come later, after about a year of building up my cardiovascular endurance. Soon after there would be no better way to start the day or end the weekend than with a long stride in the sunshine; with my music on and usually not a soul in sight. The summers are always best, with extended daylight and a kind breeze, I always feel an strange spiritual connection to the natural world.
Summer has been gone now for five months. Besides a day or two of relapse, the sun has been on hiatus--leaving me with cold, bitter winds and gray skies or worse: rain and snow. I am not what you would call an 'outdoorsy' person, and my tolerance for running outside during these conditions is embarrassingly low. And so I turn as I do every year to the confines of the gym. My old enemies Treadmill, Stairmaster and Eliptical become replacements for the outdoor trails, tracks and sidewalks. They sit coldly waiting to calculate the minutes, calorie-burn, incline and speed rates as I have no choice but to stare at these numbers. They lure me into a cycle of questions consisting of (but not limited to):
WHEN WILL IT BE OVER?
HOW LONG HAVE I BEEN DOING THIS?
HOW HARD IS IT ABOUT TO GET?
These replace the free-flowing happy and existential thoughts that outdoor running had so graciously allowed.
There are ways to get around the indoor-runner's blues.
I have utilized some of the many tactics and strategies to help increase both one's fitness and distraction when imprisoned by mirrored gym walls.
The first and most important tactic is to have a specific cardio playlist. The tracks must be updated frequently, and include intense beats and uplifting lyrics to give you that pick-me-up you need for those last 10 minutes. Top 40 dance songs and techno remixes often work wonders. Second, to alleviate boredom I recommend changing either the incline or the speed every 2-4 minutes. This will keep you focused on the 'segment time' rather than 'time elapsed' or 'time remaining'. It also keeps your body adjusting, helping you to avoid the plateau effect.
Sometimes music is just not enough, so thirdly I recommend going to a gym with TV's and/or a view of studs pumping iron. While women are usually hesitant to showcase their sweat-session for members of the opposite sex, the trade-off is distracting eye-candy. It can be entertaining and is usually worth the exposure, especially since nobody really notices you regardless of your gender or sweat-levels.
Fourthly, if there is no TV, try uploading a Podcast, movie, or episode of one of your favorite programmes to your iPod. I find following a narrative helps distract me more than music alone can. Stand-up comedy acts are also highly recommended. Don't fall within 99.9% of the iPod-owning population? My fifth strategy is to grab a good old-fashioned magazine and prop it in front of your machine. I find the celebrity tabloids most effective because the stories are short, eye-catching and again--very distracting.
While nothing can replace the mystique of the outdoor-running experience, I have beat my indoor-runner's blues using these tips and hopefully you can, too.
