Running 3-4 times a week has made me restless during the days in between. I now feel that a day without substantial exercise is a setback. A little extreme maybe, but it has made me consider other forms of training that may be of benefit. As a research student I certainly have enough time to divulge in these daily exploits. My friend Aki told me a few months back that I "need to bulk up; you are just stick at the moment." Aki doesn't mince his words. He's a well built figure himself and has encouraged me to take up weight training at the gym. The problem is, I hate the gym. I find it unbelievably tedious. It is nothing but sheer agony and the end product is to stare in the mirror, looking for signs of growth in the biceps. A fertile breeding ground for testosterone fuelled Arnie wannabes. In contrast, running takes you wherever you want it to; every run is different, depending on weather, speed etc. The gym is far too repetitive and excruciating to bring me any joy. You work and build and then after a few months, you decide you wanna build some more. A vicious circle with no end goal. No thanks. However, despite all that I could do with some extra strength, so I've dabbled a bit in recent weeks.
My current flatmate, Zilani, is perhaps the greatest human specimen since Muhammad Ali. A brain surgeon with a Maths degree from Trinity, Cambridge, his brawn matches his brain. He's recently shown me the ropes around the gym and has helped improve my performance. Soon enough, I'll finally topple him in an arm wrestle (even if I do have to use both arms).
I think there needs to be a balance between athleticism and strength. Boxers and Rugby players are tanks, world class runners are "sticks". I've really gotten into Tennis the last few years and am in awe of some of the talent on display at the moment. However what really gets me about (male) Tennis players is that they seem to possess the perfect mix. They have incredible stamina, speed and strength, and yet look perfectly normal. This is a happy medium; one I feel is worth striving for. My GP made the exact same observation when I met him last week. He also advised me to use the fact that I'm under weight as a strength. No good trying to run 13 miles if you've got excess body weight to carry. For the first time ever, being under weight is an advantage. Still, a little extra muscle can't do any harm.
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When I was into weights, I kept increasing the frequency until I was training every day and doing all kinds of spreadsheets and stuff, and then quite soon it was all too much and I just got bored and stopped. My advice, for what it's worth, is not to burn yourself out; consider the itchy impatience between runs to be a good thing, because it shows you're still excited by it.
ReplyDeleteYup, very true. I wouldn't allow myself more than 4 sessions of running a week and wouldn't want more than 1-2 gym sessions a week. Add in swimming and cycling and it's jam packed. I do need to put in some hours with the weights, but will not put myself through too much. Maybe I'll step it up in Winter when running is less viable an option. In any case, it's absolutely imperative to have regular rests. Thanks, keep the sound advice coming!
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