It’s time to meet the blerch – the fat little cherub who follows when I run, sleep, work and eat. He’s a wretched lazy beast who represents all form of gluttony, apathy and nothingness. Thank you to The Oatmeal for giving this beasty a name and such apt descriptors.
This means of late, most of 2016 in fact, running has been barely part of my life. There have been so many excuses and so many forgotten runs. I’ve succumbed to a routine of Netflix, wine and somewhat tasty food of the not so healthy kind. It’s resulted in once there being muscle, there’s now a little more padding. My running shoes have moved to the back of the cupboard and are gathering dust.
But it’s time for change. I’m fed up with being fed up if you know what I mean.
I have faith of sorts thanks to some folks from my running club. They have convinced me (sort of) that there is hope. It will take some time and those first (quite a few) runs will suck. The blerch will continue to whisper and shout on occasion but he will quieten down…one day.
One thing I do know is while I haven’t been running much, I have been thinking about it. I don’t feel guilty for not running, I just feel that something is missing from my life. Running has given me so much over the last few years so I do miss it. It’s not about fitness or weight – while that might have something to do with starting to run, it is no longer the reason. I run for one simple reason – because I run. Mark Rowlands puts it beautifully when he says
‘I ran that hill for one reason only: to run it. And that is a clue to the final cause of running. You and I may run for many reasons, but the purpose – the final cause – of running is always the same. At its best, and at its purest, the purpose of running is simply to run.’
Read a review of his book here.
Do you have a story about how you quieted the blerch? It would be great to hear.
(August 2016)