The moon was shining, the sky was clear and running seemed the natural thing to do. I had been wondering what barefoot running around the streets would be like after dark. It was wonderful! So long as I ran through areas with street lights, it was easy to read the pavement and road surfaces for objects, holes and muck. The constant focus on the ground about a body length ahead made for a deeply meditative experience where I was completely in the moment of every stride and breath.
The words ‘soft, smooth, relaxed, flow’ went around with my breathing and rhythm, serving as a declaration of how I wanted the run to feel before filtering through my subconscious and out into the way my body ran. I picked this idea up from Christopher McDougall’s book ‘Born to Run’ and it really seems to work. When my achilles tendons began to feel tight I focused on them and switched the words to ‘soft, stretchy, bouncy, springs’. Not only did my achilles feel better, my body changed it’s running style to suit them and I found myself powering up the hill at double the speed!
