It’s been incredible to get back into running. I am so grateful not to have lost all my running abilities, and that I’ve been able to dive right back into at least vaguely comparable mileage to what I could run over the summer when I was training for my marathon. My shin maladies, which were ultimately the reason I had to give up (temporarily) on my own marathon, appear to be completely gone, as I have run approximately 32km (20 miles!) over the last few days, and my body has never felt better.
In one short week, I’ve both fallen in love and developed a rather intense addiction to running in my beloved Vondelpark; I sit in class and dream about being able to run in the evening, as the sun goes down and its rays slide through the trees, light up the lakes and ponds, glisten on the feathers of the ducks.
Furthermore, a list of practical reasons that the Vondel is pretty much the best place ever to run:
- It has a zillion little paths winding through woods, across meadows, by creeks and ponds, over bridges, under the sweeping branches of willow trees...I take different routes each time and never fail to get lost and run until I am found again!
- All the paths are dirt, so they’re very kind to my knees and shins.
- There are water fountains throughout the park, with Amsterdam tap water, which is some of the best water in the world.
- It’s totally flat (I guess this is sort of a downside, too, because ultimately it limits my training, but I definitely appreciate it now).
- The weather is incredible – no humidity whatsoever, very little wind, cool but not freezing (yet) – I can actually run any time of the day for once – no more waking up at 6 a.m. like in Kansas over the summer to beat summer heat and humidity!
- There are always people around, and it’s well policed, so I can run alone, with headphones, and never feel in the least bit unsafe.
- There are always people around, and interesting people at that, so there are always infinitely interesting things to look at while I’m running.
- There are several major loops, all of which have marked mileage (3.6km for the outermost dirt path), so there’s plenty of varied scenery, but I am never too far from home in case something starts hurting, or I get a blister, or I need more water, etc etc...
- It’s a 20-second jog from my front door.
Friday night, I went with Cinta to train at the Olympic Stadium with her athletic club. It was really incredible being in the stadium late at night when it’s lit up but almost totally deserted...especially compared with the chaos and commotion of the crowds at the marathon just a few days ago! There were only about ten people who showed up to work out, and we split up evenly between the two trainers there – one of whom was in the Olympics in 1972, and held the Dutch track and field record for the high jump for twenty years! We did a fabulous workout, culminating in a dozen self-regulated 400m repeats, that left me feeling dizzy with exertion, high on life, and also totally taxed physically, in the best of ways. My runs in the Vondel have been pretty relaxed, so it was a nice changeup for my body to really be pushed hard. (Seyeon, I’m serious, I can’t wait to get back to Oberlin, and eventually, Seattle, and train hard with you.) Afterward, we all sat inside and shared tea and little almond biscuits to warm up, relax, and celebrate the start of what’s hopefully going to be a great weekend.
Addendum: Well, Saturday has sucked so far. No more internet in my house. My phone ate up the rest of my phone card sending blank text messages from the depths of my backpack to the first contact in my phonebook. I shelled out too much money for a crappy cappucino at a place that usually has free internet, so I could send off my homework that was due last night, but their wireless has been down all week. Ugh. Time to go for another run...
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