Keeping track of each run

So I have embarked on serious scheduled training to prepare myself for the marathon. One way of knowing if I am improving in my running stamina is to time my runs. That's easy. My Timex digital watch does the trick since it comes with a chrono/stop-watch function. That was how I tracked my runs for the past umpteen years. 

Lately, with improvements in tracking technology, there has been a wave of high tech gadgets that not only keeps time, it does a whole lot of other stuff. Nike has this shoe sensor that estimates the number of strides you take and from there the distance you covered in your run; Garmin, Suunto, Timex have devices that uses GPS to track your location, calculate your speed, elevation, distance and it could display your heart rate if you are wearing a heart rate monitoring belt; Adidas came up with a device similar to Nike's but to top it off, it also has a MP3 player and an audio voice that tells you how fast you are going, how hard you are training (based on your heart rate) and motivates you like a coach; the iPhone 3GS has a built in program that can work with the Nike shoe sensor to store data about your run and because it also has a built-in GPS and tri-axial accelerometer, there has been many app (application) developers who came up with apps that incorporate those sensors to monitor activity of the iPhone user. 

One example of an iPhone app that tries to monitor activity is called ‘iMapMyRun’. As what the name says, it basically maps a person’s run when he/she is running outdoors, with the iPhone of course. I discovered this app one day when I was browsing through apps in the health and fitness category and decided to give it a go (since it was free!). But it was awkward to carry the iPhone when I run so I had to get an armband and with that I join the tribe of people who run with an electronic device strapped to the arm and has ear phones plugged into my ears, only I was also mapping my run! It was awesome for a while until I realized that the armband can get a bit annoying. If I strap the armband too tight, my arm gets a little uncomfortable mid-way during the run or if I strap it a little too loose, there’s excessive movement and I kinda need to adjust it every couple of minutes. So I decided to just stick to my trusty Timex watch with simply time keeping and if I really want to track how far I ran, I could just measure it on Google maps or the MapMyRun website which also uses Google maps. Occasionally I might pull out the armband just to add some ‘flavour’ to my run.

Anyway, keeping track of my runs does two things for me: It lets me see how far I have come in my journey in training for the marathon and how much closer I am to the goal of running the marathon. 

I find that in life, there are also many other things that we need to keep track of. It may be our finances, our health (generally just the waistline), our schedule of work and other activities, etc. One important thing we should all keep track of is our blessings – how we have been blessed throughout the different stages of our lives, how we have got to where we are today and how we are moving closer to the goal/s that God has put in our lives. As we face the drudgeries of life each day, remembering our blessings and being thankful for them can really help us put things in the right perspective and let us move forward.

A hymnal by Johnson Oatman Jr and Edwin O. Excell, ‘Count your Blessings’ summarizes it very nicely:

When upon life's billows you are tempest tossed,

When you are discouraged thinking all is lost,

Count your many blessings, name them one by one,

And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.

Are you ever burdened with a load of care?

Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?

Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly,

And you will be singing as the days go by.

So, amid the conflicts, whether great or small,

Do not be discouraged, God is over all;

Count your many blessings, angels will attend,

Help and comfort give you to your journey's end.

Signed up for the Melbourne Marathon

Running is something I have enjoyed doing for the past ten years of my life. It is the best way to keep fit, I feel better after a run, I breathe better, I think clearer and there's this sense of satisfaction. All I need is a pair of runners, comfortable clothes to run in, road to run and I would be off. 

But over the years, it has become harder and harder to get myself up for a run. There seems to be tons of other things that require my attention (housework, reading interesting stuff on the internet, lying on the couch..) so I push it to the next day or the next weekend. 

Back in my uni days, I was in the varsity sprint kayaking team; there was that extra motivation not just to run but to really train -  every run had to be better than the last run and there would always be someone in front that I could catch up with. But these days, I no longer feel motivated to run faster or further and I kinda miss that. 

So I have decided to set a goal for myself, give myself a bit of a challenge and signed up for the Melbourne Marathon! It is going to take place on the 10th of Oct 2010 (awesome date - 10.10.10) which means I have just over 6 weeks to train for the event. Yes it seems a bit short but I reckon it will be enough. Anyway my goal is just to complete the marathon in 6 hours. I believe it's doable.   

On a similar note on setting goals, I think everyone needs a goal in life. It makes life much more meaningful and purposeful. Some time back I watched a Ted talk given by Dan Buettner who talked about How to live to be 100+ and he brought up a Japanese word Ikigai which means "the reason for being" or "something important one lives for" and how this 100 year old fisherman from Okinawa continues to catch fish 3 times a week for his family because that is his Ikigai. Of course there are a lot of other factors that lead to longevity for that 100 year old fisherman other than knowing his Ikigai, but having that sense of purpose can make life so much more worth living. 

Two weeks ago a special speaker came to my church and he shared about how our sense our purpose should come from our source of life. If our source of life is God (meaning we rely on Him), our sense of purpose would come from Him. He knows exactly what is best for us so it makes perfect sense to follow Him, although we may not fully understand the purpose He has for us and it would not be easy to follow through. On the other hand, we could rely on ourselves and try to make up our own sense of purpose, it will be easier to follow through but it wouldn't make sense because we don't know the big picture like God does.

The apostle Paul wrote in Philippians 3:14 (NIV) -  I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. 

I also like this version in The Message - "but I've got my eye on the goal, where God is beckoning us onward-to Jesus. I'm off and running , and I'm not turning back."

I think there is nothing this world can offer that can beat what God can offer. So yes, one of my short term goals is to run the Melbourne Marathon but  I have decided that my ultimate goal in life is to go ahead and run after God like what Paul did.