Penny Mckay

Archive for the ‘Jog-Blog’ Category

A few months ago I introduced you to “J’oga” (see March archive) which is “jogging with awareness” and combines two of my great loves; jogging and yoga.

I do recognise that I may be in the minority with this outlook (particularly the love of jogging bit) and for many just the thought of jogging is tedium itself. So to reach the point where the trainers are on and you’re heading out the door is actually truly miraculous and you really are to be congratulated!

However, if you really want to transcend any thoughts of turning back and find a new sense of enjoyment when you jog, it is at this critical point where tedium goes out the back door (or whichever door you are not leaving by!) and J’oga comes in to its own. Here’s how I discovered how.

A few years ago I found myself engaged in a particular yoga practise.  The practise comprised of a number of asana or postures which I truly found beneficial, nothing too unusual there. However at that time and with that practise I did yoga, pretty much, every day for the year. There may have been odd days that I missed but generally when I hit the mat, I did the same routine, every day, all year and I loved it. The great thing I discovered and uncovered through this practise (which was not intended it just sort of happened) was that no two days of practise were ever the same and as a result I never got bored.  How could I? Every time I got on the mat I was different and my body was different and so every day of practise was a whole new journey of discovery even with the same old postures.

Uncovered was an awareness of the same posture, revealed, in a different way to the day before. It was quite incredible and to be honest I have never practised so consistently since that time, but what I uncovered remains with me and helps me as I seek to bring that sense of presence to the days when I’m not on my yoga mat.

Try this one. Say you have a regular drive to work along the motorway. You leave the house every day at the same time and follow the same route year after year. For you it is a familiar, known quantity and holds no surprises and no break from the norm. Without awareness it appears that the  daily experience never changes but if you can engage in bringing a sense of presence to it you will find that every experience, every day is completely different.

Every day you will never encounter exactly the same configuration of cars on the motorway.

Every day you will never encounter exactly the same climatic conditions.

Every day you will never encounter exactly the same “you”.

So how to apply this to your jogging?

Generally we perceive our days as being the same. We seek constants and familiarity to give us a sense of certainty, a sense of feeling safe and sometimes we cling to these constants of  people, places and things. But perhaps we do so to our detriment because nothing is constant and no day is the same and somehow we have to find a way to achieve a sense of balance in a constantly changing reality.

So (again) what’s all that got to do with jogging?

Well, when you head out of the door to trot round the same old route you are usually on automatic and sometimes that isn’t a bad thing, to just zone out and off you go. But if familiarity is breeding contempt (for your regular route) it is time to bring your full awareness to be present to your jog.

The beauty of Groundhog day is in its predictability (did you see the film - where the guy woke up day after day and it was the same day but eventually he worked it out and realised what he needed to change in order to get the girl he loved?); the beauty of your J’oga is in its unpredictability. When you apply J’oga you realise you do not have to experience ”groundhog  jog”!

Every time you set off on that same old route remember this, it is a new day, a different day and a different you and so a different run. Bring your awareness with you when you jog and eventually you will bring your joy.  Notice your breath, your body, your soul. Notice nature’s nudges that ask you to pause and to “be”.

If you can bring a sense of presence to the so-called familiar, you will be in awe of what you find anew. Not just when you are jogging but in all aspects of your life and not just one time but every single time, over and over and over again.

Joyous jogging xx

Recently I have been trying a spot of barefoot jogging or to give it it’s correct title “Natural Running”. Which in its “natural” state is jogging without footwear (no, not without clothes, though I’m sure they’re doing that somewhere in the world!). I actually read about it in a magazine article and I am one of those people who when they like the idea of something they have to try it. The thought behind ”natural running” is that many of our modern day joint problems and postural problems are more as a result of the shoes we are wearing, the surfaces we are walking on and the habitual way in which we are moving. So for many of us it is about getting your shoes off  on a regular basis, connecting with the earth and actually encouraging your bones, joints and ligaments to do what they do best and that is to absorb the impact on and support the body. So that’s what I’ve been doing. Now don’t get me wrong I have no intentions on becoming the next Zola Budd or anything (though she was incredible and very brave) but once tried running barefoot is incredibly liberating and I am hooked.

Today was the second time for me to brave getting my tootsies out whilst moving at faster than walking pace and the experience was as liberating this time as it was the first.

When I made the decision to take my trainers off for the first time, it was pretty early in the morning and there weren’t too many people about to point and stare at some nutter without any shoes on! And I was at the beach. That seems to help somehow because it is deemed as acceptable to take your shoes off at the beach anyway so I felt somewhat less conspicuous than if I were jogging round the block from home. The decision was also made more for me, than by me, by the sight of the golden sand looking so clean and incredibly inviting, all new and fresh first thing in the morning. The sun was glinting and winking on the sea and seemed to ask it of me. Why wouldn’t you? Why wouldn’t I indeed? So with that off came the trainers and off came the socks and came a sense of freeedom and reconnection that was totally unexpected.

It was the same today. It’s as if the minute your shoes and socks come off your child comes out. Being barefoot is so indicitive and so evocative of that child state of running free with boundless energy and gay abandon without aches and pains. I felt this. But not just this.

What I felt beyond this was every footfall. Each time my foot struck the sand, the sand moulded and mirrored my foot giving “me” total support where I needed it. I actually felt the earth beneath and I actually felt my body respond. It was as if, with each strike there was a wave of response from the earth, that travelled back up through my body.  I also felt a return to something completely unadulterated and totally natural and my body seemed to breathe this incredible sigh of relief  as it let go. Through this sense of connecting down as each foot hit the earth, I was communing directly with the earth and she was responding. My joints were absorbing the impact and supporting me as a team and I just wanted to keep going  in this natural state with the wind in my face and the sun on my back. My feet and legs being rejuvenated by the waves of the sea and the waves of energy from the earth. With that gay abandon of old I splashed through the shallows until the stones at the shoreline (a recently added feature to Bournemouth beach due to an alleged surf reef being built!) finally drove me up in to the soft sand of the beach and back in to my socks and trainers to continue on the promenade. Just fantastic!

So, if you fancy the idea of natural running, jogging or walking too, pick your where and when carefully. Clearly grassy areas are going to be more comfortable then concrete, but you may find you will be doing the dog poo dodge more than jogging unless you can find a no dog area. So if you have a beach nearby I’d head for that option. I’m also not suggesting you do barefoot anything for very long. No, we aren’t use to it, yet, but it is our natural state and I’m sure that somewhere within your physical structure and your psyche you will remember what it is all about. 5- 10 minutes willl be plenty for starters. Combine a walk with a little jog until you feel you are coming alive to your body again.

Finally, if you have any form of joint problem endeavour to connect with your body and connect with the earth in a natural state (without footwear) more frequently. Who knows, it could help?

For more information and courses (particularly if you are prone to injury) check out www.naturalrunning.co.uk with John Woodward who has a background of working with Alexander Technique. How he works is very interesting indeed.

X

I consider myself to be really lucky because most days the biggest decision I choose to make is usually whether I’ll go for a jog today or do some yoga. If I’m really blessed I get to do all of the above!

Jogging for most of us, consists of doning some form of comfortable kit and trainers and going outside (usually but not always) to move, for a slightly pro-longed amount of time, at a quicker than walking pace. This quicker than walking pace usually results in the body getting warmer and perhaps sweaty, the heart and lungs working a little harder so we get a bit puffed and endorphins being released so that we feel great whilst we’re doing it.

Yoga, however, means doning some form of comfortable clothing but not trainers. Remaining inside (usually but not always) to move in ways that we typically do not move in on a daily basis. This a-typical moving usually results in the body getting warmer, the heart and lungs working a bit harder and endorphins being released so that we feel great while we’re doing it.

These two accounts are a little simplistic, I admit and for most people going for a jog and going to a yoga class appear to be at opposite ends of the spectrum in the fitness game. But I have discovered that they are not such a world apart and, when they are combined, these two disciplines provide a powerful tool to support us in the understanding of our inner world in relation to our outer world, journey. The practise of yoga involves bringing full awareness to the moment. “Full attention without tension” as my yoga teacher would say. So in keeping with this philosophy I introduce you to “J-oga”. Sounds like yoga but with a “j” and is jogging with awareness. Awareness means noticing and being present to what is happening in this moment. So jogging with awareness means noticing what is going on whilst you are jogging and it  does require some regular practise.

How does my body feel? What do I see? What can I hear? How is my breathing? 

How am I choosing to feel? How do I perceive what I am seeing? Can I fine tune my ear to hear? Where is my breath?

“J-oga” will ask you to notice all of this whilst jogging but without judging. No,no no. No judging whilst jogging, thankyou. Just “be”ing, through moving, and that moving is jogging. Then and only then, can you move out from all those unhelpful things that that voice in your head keeps telling you, like “oh my legs ache!” or “oh I can’t get my breath!” and ultimately you allow, which prevents you from fully experiencing the moment as it really is.  You move out from focusing on your inner, not so great, experiences and you start to notice what is around you. Then you actually begin to connect with what it is you are jogging through. At this point I would strongly suggest you choose to jog through nature. When you move through nature there is an opportunity that a miracle can happen.When you start to notice the beauty that surrounds you, something very innate in you is activated and you start to fill up. You actually can’t help it it’s so instinctive. You start to breathe more deeply and as you fill up with oxygen you start to relax and enjoy the scenery. You no longer notice your aching legs because it is your heart that is aching more than anything  from witnessing the bounty of the beauty that surrounds you. You become inspired by what surrounds you, the leaf that has drifted down in front of you, the canopy of the trees that shelter you, the breeze that awakens your face and the oxygen that floods in to your lungs and just fills you up with that vital breath of life. You don’t even hear that complaining voice anymore because all you can hear is birdsong.

So if jogging aint your thang but yoga is or yoga aint your thang but jogging is, why not try a spot of ”J-oga” and experience a miracle?

By the way, another gem my yoga teacher used to say is this ”Yoga doesn’t end when you leave the mat” and neither does “J-oga” when you stop jogging.

xx

I returned from this mornings run triumphant as just for today I have conquered “the dog squad”. The dog squad? I hear you cry, what are you on about? Well, if you are a seasoned jogger it usually follows that you are seeking places to run that are quite literally off the beaten track. Parks, forests, trails, seafronts and such like. All of these are beautiful and inspiring places of nature and can really make a diffference to how great and connected you feel whilst running.

However, these are also the places of  “the dog squad”.

Now I can spot them a mile off (which has been the problem actually!) and I’m not talking about your lone dog walker here. I’m talking about a minimum of about three owners (generally) and about six dogs (usually) with about on average, four on the lead and two off the lead, roaming around. Now unfortunately when you get this number of dog owners in one spot they are no longer walking but standing still chatting. In their social state they are generally oblivious to what their dogs are up to and no where near noticing a hapless jogger who is heading their way. So the encounter would normally go something like this. Read the rest of this entry »

A recent run saw me out in the late afternoon just as the sun had dipped its head. The threat of the chill night to come had not quite touched my breath but its potential was just hanging in the air. I am lucky enough that one of my regular routes takes me over the beautiful river Avon and I am always brought to a halt even if for a few moments to enjoy the views of the river, its flow and the swans and geese that are usually enjoying it too. The complusion to stop this afternoon was no different but as I paused at my regular stopping place the familiar sight I usually breathe in was very different. Firstly, there were no swans or geese to be found and due to the recent heavy rains the river Avon had burst its banks and flooded the surrounding water meadows. It was interesting that even though there was water all around it was still possible to the see the  main body of flow that is the Avon, so strong was the torrent of water that now ran along its course.

As I reluctantly left my place of appreciation I began to ponder on what I had seen and as nature weaved her magic message to me I learned of what the river represented.

Could we and our lives, be likened to the river and its course?

Read the rest of this entry »

Todays run was a pretty typical drenching which has been par for the course for a while now but is yesterdays trot out that most moved me to jot a few words about the jog.

Yesterday was a mixed bag for sure, with a sneaky little breeze that tickled my cheeks until they tingled and the soothing sun with still a hint of warmth egging me on. The combination of being dry up top contrasted with wet under foot was pure testament to only our incredible climate in the UK. My legs and breathing felt unified and as my run progressed I felt as though my senses were so bombarded that not only was I filling up but I was literally flooding over with the fullness of my connection with nature. My vision was razor sharp as I witnessed the sunlight filtering through the leaves on the trees and my eyes drank in the richness of the colours, the deep greens and rusty browns that still remain in this so-called barren season that is Winter. I breathed in the magnificence of  it all.  My hearing was led gleefully to the sound of the babbling, playful brooks that had formed in the ditches at the sides of the roads and to the sound of my feet as they slap, splash, slap, splash, splashed through the rushing rivulets of rain forming on the roads. I glimpsed a feathered friend utilising a temporary bird bath provided by the previous heavy rains,  though he swiftly disappeared in a fluttery feathery splish of wings. I was also happily halted by  the stunning sight of a young deer as he leapt in to the hedgerow to avoid a far less graceful fellow runner who was reluctantly heading home.

Everytime I run I am restored. I am rejuvenated and uplifted. I am continually brought back to my body, how it feels, what it witnesses, what it hears. I am brought in to the moment. Right here, right now. It is all that really matters.

I am reminded how good it feels to be alive!

The other day I was out running and I found myself wondering about meditation. (Before I go any further, though, I must clarify that although I paint a picture of athleticism with the word running, I am more of a trotter/jogger in terms of speed. I mean I do go faster than a brisk walk but I couldn’t quite give Paula Ratcliffe much of a “run” for her money!)

During the first ten minutes of running my mind is usually full of conversations. Those I have just left at the house, things I need to do, clients, friends and blah blah blah! But it’s one of those incredible things that happen, for me anyway, for after about ten to fifteen minutes of running, my mind becomes clear.

I’m convinced it’s something to do with the repetitive nature of the whole experience. There is the rhythmic slap, slap, slap of my trainers on the concrete and the swoosh, swoosh, swoosh of my arms as they move back and forth against my body. At some point my breath settles in to this lovely manageable pace of breathing whilst running and then my mind surrenders. There is nothing, nothing to think about except for being completely with this and in this “body experience” that is running.

  Read the rest of this entry »

This afternoon I decided to go for a run, well jog actually, but I like to convince myself I’m running. Now the fact that I have two marathons under my belt means that I run now purely for the health benefits and for being out there with the wind in my face and the sun in the sky. I love the feeling of my heart pumping, the breath coming and going, the blood flowing through my veins… you get the picture.

I run because I choose to, not because I have to but that does tend to mean that these days I am a fair weather runner.

But, this afternoon God had other plans!

I left the house, in sunshine at five minutes past two, planning to trot for about twenty minutes and at seven minutes past two it started to hail. It wasn’t very convincing at first, so I didn’t turn back. But as I turned the corner to run along the road that ran along open fields it became seriously convincing. Driving wind and driving hail, superb. Yet somehow I kept going, along with my legs and my lungs!

Read the rest of this entry »