Yesterday morning I decided to change it up a bit and take a new route for my regular run. Not to sound like a hard core runner because I’m not. I still haven’t even decided if I like running but I’ve committed to keep it going, to keep some of the pounds off and to try and stay in shape. My work use to keep me outside for large chunks of the year but still I found that I got a little too lethargic in the winter and bulked up, only to work it off again in spring, summer and fall.
A polar opposite to bears, but then they don’t celebrate Christmas and gorge themselves on turkey and the trimmings.
But I digress.
Winter running here on the coast is nothing like winter running on the Prairies, in the North or in most other parts of the country for that matter.
Here on the West Coast you rarely have to contend with snow, or even ice. Yes it rains, sometimes a lot, but as much as it can get on your nerves when you haven’t seen the sun for days, the rain is almost therapeutic.
I know I’m going to get wet anyway when I run, either from the inside out or the outside in, so the rain becomes irrelevant.
Runners here come in all shapes and sizes and from all sorts of backgrounds so depending on where you run, you may just as likely pass by an Olympic athlete in training as an ordinary Joe or Jane off the street. No matter.
Many run in groups and while I see its benefits, I generally like to run alone.
It gives me time to clear my head, to set my own pace and not worry about keeping up with someone else or them having to keep up with me.
I think I do my best thinking when I run, walk or ride alone.
Ideas flood in and swirl around for a while before slipping away or getting locked in to whatever part of the brain that stores “keepers”.
In passing, I always acknowledge other runners, walkers and bikers. And they reciprocate. Whatever they are doing I just think it’s great that they are outside, making the effort.
Running gives you a chance to rev up your senses and become intimately aware of your surroundings, and depending on the route, a chance to experience things in a different way.
Much of my running is along roadways and bike paths but I’ve started to change it up a bit and seek out trails that thread through more natural areas … running wild, or as close as you can get to it here.
Songbirds that don’t bother migrating from this temperate area in winter provide an interesting backdrop for a trail run.
Nuthatches, finches and a variety of sparrows can be seen on any run and if you’re lucky and observant, hawks and owls may be perched above. While some of the calls can be challenging to distinguish, many are easily identified by even an untrained ear. And if you are so inclined, even the most rudimentary knowledge of the habitats that various species utilize can help with identification.
And the nice thing is, you really don’t have to break the rhythm of your run to take in these sights and sounds.
But if you want to take a break and a better look, walking is always an option.
Remember.
It’s not a race.
And as much as it is a workout physically, it can also be a workout for your mind, helping to sift out and dispose of the white noise that seems to clog the brain’s neural pathways.
That’s the beauty of a trail.
Running alone or with a companion or even a small group, you’re more cognizant of the shorter sightlines, the narrower tread and the need to be vigilant about where you place your next step and who or what’s around the next turn.
You’re more alert to your surroundings, aware of things that previously were out of mind.
Songbirds perched above you or ravens circling in the distance become part of the experience.
As much as they are a minor obstacle to be circumvented, wetter spots on the trail offer the possibility of animal tracks and some new discoveries.
Trail running offers an opportunity to experience nature in its simplest form and can be as wild as you want to make it or are willing to venture.
Winter, spring, summer and fall even offer different versions of the same route.
And if you are so inclined, recording what you saw along with logging your distance and time can be a rewarding way of broadening the scope of the experience and fine tuning your connection with nature.
So for now and for as long as I stick with running, trails will be the routes of choice.
And the morning run, well I know it will keep on getting better.