Know the Treadmill Tragedy.
This is #54 of 108 Ways to Livin the Moment. Let’s take back our lives one beautiful, funny and delicious moment at a time!
#54 of 108: Know The Treadmill Tragedy
“It is the stillness that will save and transform the world.” ~ Eckhart Tolle
Lately, I have been running on the treadmill (see pic) to beat the cold and get in shape for my very first marathon in 2013.
Various yogis have warned me that running systematically destroys your muscles and joints, but I’m a sucker for the endorphin high and the sweat.
So I keep running and to be honest, I’m enjoying it.
Here’s the problem: I feel like something is not right about running in place on a treadmill, which is not too different from a hamster wheel.
The truth is, we developed long distance running as a matter of survival.
According to one science journal, “It’s known that ancient tribes such as the Australian Bushmen and the Navajo Indians would catch faster prey such as zebras and pronghorn sheep by chasing them until the animals were exhausted.”
But people on treadmills are not trying to catch prey. So running is an escape. We are running from something we don’t want to deal with.
I know, I know, I know…I can hear the runners out there screaming at me to stick my nose in some other hole. But hey, I’m with you—I love running!
You get in shape by running, just like smoking pot gets your brain in creative shape. You liberate yourself from stress by running, just like drinking lots of alcohol liberates your inhibitions. Point being, running is another addiction.
As goes the quote, “Before you die, you must answer these questions: what are you running from, what are you running to and why?”
In some way, we are all running, escaping and avoiding some part of life we don’t want to deal with. If it’s not lacing up the shoes and hitting the treadmill, than maybe it’s buying a six pack, or going crazy shopping or getting way too deep into that pint of ice cream.
It’s why Adam bit the apple; it’s what we humans do.
Photo: Galileo Solutions Limited
But…there needs to be a moment each day when we stop running…and most of us don’t have that moment.
That is why it’s important to become a Momenteer, because we all need to catch our breath.
The Momenteer journey begins January 11.
Become a Momenteer. Show Up Fully.
Email me at yeahdave@mac.com with the subject ‘Momenteer!’ for more information.
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Ed: Bryonie Wise
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I cannot agree that smoking pot gets brains into creative shape. Creativity is hard work, and although drugs might provide an insight here and there, the realization of creativity is more a matter of putting one's nose to the grindstone, not kicking back with some ganja.
NIce post. I really like to read it. Thanks for sharing this here with us.
[...] Everyone has a different reason to run. Some people run for fitness, others to compete. For some, running is just a way of life, an extension of who they are. For others, running not only becomes a metaphorical extension, but a necessity—a key component to their survival. [...]