Juneathon Day 16&17 - Walking and pushing

Juneathon Day 16&17 - Walking and pushing

Walk - 4 miles, 2.5 miles

Babysitting for the weekend meant activity was limited to pushing a pushchair around Winchester. I know this is a bit weak on the Juneathon scale of exercise and barely scrapes a pass -  but this was all I could manage. However it's not all the exercise there was, unfortunately though I just couldn't quantify the work involved involved in chasing after a 12 month old, to stop him going in the places he shouldn't

Juneathon Day 15 - So many earlybirds

Juneathon Day 15 - So many earlybirds

Gym - 45min

As there are no good photos to be taken in a gym so I thought I show some horses from the nearby moor. Far more visually pleasing and a definite link with my last post about biophilia.

Today was interesting because I had to exercise early and went to the gym as soon as it opened at 6:30 - new experience. I had thought that it would be like anywhere else when it first opens-up: slowish with one or two customers drifting in whilst the staff got things ready for the day ahead. Days ought to begin gradually and everybody needs to get set. But how wrong could I be: the car park was full, people were lining up for aerobics and spinning classes, the pool had people swimming lengths and the gym was full of people exercising with intensity.

The pre-work work out is a different world. People are very serious and the overall shape of the exercisers was slightly leaner. I was impressed by all the activity, except that I remembered my niece, who worked for a period in a gym, telling me that her gym opened at 5:30 and there were always regulars queuing to get in. In Hemel we are obviously a load of stay-a-beds. 

When I was in the changing room I overheard a conversation between two people who had gone to the spinning class. " I'm not sure I enjoy it anymore. It's something I do because I do it. The kit is laid out and I just go but I don't look forward to it." I thought this was interesting because there were two messages about exercise. One was the strong force of habit in keeping us going, making sure we maintained fitness but the other is about enjoyment. If you don't enjoy something you might as well look for something else because you don't want it to be work, to be drudgery. Really, I thought, we ought to be playing but perhaps 6:30 is not a playful time and the power of habit is really what is needed.

As i said the pre-work work out is a different world

Juneathon Day 14 - Biophilia

Juneathon Day 14 - Biophilia

Cycle - 15 miles, Time - 1hr 8min, Weather - clouds and some blue sky, cool, blustery wind

This is a follow on from my post about Sam Murphy's attitude to the recent study on the efficacy of exercise as a treatment for depression. (No I am not going to flog those arguments again - the subject can quietly rest until the next study or new conjecture stirs up some interest). In defence of her position she Tweeted:

@Kocenator Don't agree. Exercise can work on depresive mood in so many ways - distraction, self efficacy, social contact, biophilia effect

Although irrelevant as a comment on the Bristol study the word 'biophilia' grabbed my attention and forced me do a little research. From Wikipedia I learnt that it was coined by Erich Fromm, a psychoanalyst and social commentator, who used it to mean basically a love of life. There is something quite affirming about his creed "I believe that the man choosing progress can find a new unity through the development of all his human forces, which are produced in three orientations. These can be presented separately or together: biophilia, love for humanity and nature, and independence and freedom." (from 'On Being Human'). I am not sure whether socially we have progressed as much as he would have hoped in the past 50 years - but I like the idea.

However the meaning of the word in the biophilia hypothesis, proposed by E O Wilson, is subtly different: an encoded attraction to nature that has an evolutionary purpose (a description of the hypothesis can be read here ). Again this is quite affirming as people have accounted for that theory in the design of living spaces and justified the need for greenery. 

My guess is that Sam Murphy is probably using the word to describe the feeling you can get out on a run, when you become aware of the landscape and other living creatures and feel a connection, i.e. that sense of attraction. The encounter I had yesterday with a heron is probably an example of this. Yes it can happen through exercise but exercise is neither necessary or sufficient. For example one of the times I feel it most strongly is sitting still, in a hide, watching birds. Similarly I can feel the same sense of happiness patiently waiting to take a picture of a bumble bee.

I think it is an important feeling but the only pre-requisite is to be outside in some sort of natural environment, the amount of physical exertion involved is not relevant. All that matters is the counterbalance to something else Fromm wrote about "Briefly then, intellectualisation, quantification, abstractification, bureaucratisation, and reification – the very characteristics of modern industrial society, when applied to people rather than to things, are not the principles of life but those of mechanics. People living in such systems become indifferent to life and even attracted to death" (Heart of Man)

Juneathon Day 13 - A heron and an airship

Juneathon Day 13 - A heron and an airship

Cycle - 16 miles, Time - 1hr 14min, Weather - some blue sky and clouds

My normal practise in Juneathon is to post a photo taken on the day but today is different. I needed a picture of a heron the latest one I have is this from a month ago. Nevermind, it will have to do.

On a single-track, country lane, around a bend I saw a heron standing in the middle of the road. As I approached he flew off a few yards further down the road and again stood in the middle. I slowed down and with as little movement as possible approached to see how close I could get. Close but not very close, then he flew away again and the game was repeated. After 3 or 4 goes he flew away over the fields but it left me with a smile.  Already this was a good ride and it showed the difference between what I do and training: I am happy with gentle diversions and am paying no heed to the clock.

After the heron there was another lull as I watched a proper airship moving slowly across the sky. I looked lovely, floating, almost still. Aeroplanes may rule the sky but they do not have the visual splendour of a blimp, gently moving at its own slow pace. They are also a reminder of a time, in the 1920s and 30s, when airships were seen as a vehicle for lang haul flights. The R101 was designed to link the distant parts of the Empire, such as India and Australia, and was huge. If you are ever travelling south of Bedford you will see the two Cardington airship hangers built to house the R101, loom up out of the flat landscape (a sense of their scale can by looking at the satellite view on Google Maps and compare the size of the village to the two hangers in the south west corner). For metal sheds they are awe inspiring.

There is a link between the two sightings: one of the reasons I find heron fascinating is that their gaunt shape makes it very easy to see how birds evolved out of dinosaurs, as for airships I think of them as mechanical dinosaurs of the sky.

Juneathon 2012 Day 12 - A blogging interlude

Juneathon 2012 Day 12 - A blogging interlude
Gym - 45min

Today I went to the gym. As nothing much happened during my set of exercises there is  little to talk about. Instead I will post a useful video with top tips on how you can  impress your friends and win bets. Fitness is not only about the big muscles you know.

uneathon 2012 Day 11 - More on exercise and depression

Juneathon 2012 Day 11 - More on exercise and depression

Walk - 1.6 miles,  Time - 30min, Weather - raining stair rods, terrible day, so out for as short a time as possible

A day spent watching the rain come down and listening to water pouring out of drains. Juneathon exercise was negligible - the barest minimum and all dressed up in waterproofs.


So to blogging and it is with a heavy heart I have to return to the subject of exercise and depression because the optimism in my summary of reaction to the research was misplaced. I had thought the follow-up to the original news reports had left us better informed and we had got beyond the exaggerated headlines. But I was wrong.

Sam Murphy is a highly respected journalist who writes on fitness and health but particularly specialises in running. She has written a number of books and writes regularly for the Guardian and in all her works she likes to quote research and researchers. As well as this she puts her knowledge into practice by running to a good standard and by coaching. In other words she is an authority  So I was rather sad to read this Tweet:

Sam Murphy @SamMurphyRuns 
Excellent response from Simon Hattenstone to unhelpful research saying exercise 'no good' for depression gu.com/p/385jc/tw via @guardian

The first, and in many ways the least important, reason is that she misunderstands the findings. It didn’t show exercise was 'no good' for depression, instead it said a particular intervention had no significant long term benefit - something very different. It meant she hadn’t followed-up to look in any detail at what the research was about instead she just reacted to the headlines. That might be slightly disappointing for journalist with her expertise but it is not an unforgivable sin; after all who amongst us, at sometime or other, has not offered an instant opinion based on partial information. The trick then is to acknowledge the mistake and find out more

However the second reason for my reaction to the Tweet makes me suspect this will not happen. The use of the phrase “unhelpful research” suggests an already closed mind that only wants to accept research that confirms pre-existing beliefs. I am sure if the findings had shown a positive effect for the exercise programme she would not have called it unhelpful. If so her problem is with the results not the research (especially as this particular piece of research, by examining the efficacy of a particular form of treatment, was designed to be very helpful indeed).  Having a problem with the results is not grown-up, it’s a bit like throwing a hissy fit if your team loses. It is sometimes you have to deal with. You have to look at the scope and limitations of the research and whether the conclusions are fully supported. Are there alternative explanations? What more needs to be known? 

Like Sam Murphy I am strongly convinced exercise is thoroughly beneficial but when I come across some evidence that seems to challenge this belief I don't want to say it is unhelpful. I want to say "Hmm I wonder how that relates to everything else we know?". To dogmatically assert exercise is good is not an adequate response

Juneathon 2012 Day 10 - A reminder of what I should be doing

Juneathon 2012 Day 10 - A reminder of what I should be doing

Cycle - 15 miles, Time - 1hr 3min, Weather - pleasant

The plan was the normal one for this Juneathon - cycle to St Albans, wander round, have a cup of coffee, and then cycle back. Nothing too arduous as it’s just a way of gradually building back some base after having lost huge amounts of fitness. At the moment all I am doing is  pre-running training - getting to state where I think I can feel comfortable on the road. In the gym I am working on strength and on the bike I am doing something gently aerobic. Nothing is being pushed too hard instead it is a gradual accumulation of effort. After 10 days I am beginning to notice some improvement - nothing startling but enough to offer encouragement.

The concept of getting fit for running may be a strange because running is usually used as a way of getting fit for other sports but I for me it is important because I find no pleasure in running when all I can do is lumber. Base training is fine when you run slowly and it feels easy but slow running when it feels hard is something else, and something rather dispiriting. So I am building up to running again.

Today I had a reminder of what I should be doing and what I should be aiming for as St Albans felt particularly festive. In one part people were wandering around with race numbers on their T-shirts and medals around their necks, in another part there was a farmers market. It was all rather jolly. I had completely forgotten it was the day of the St Albans Half Marathon and it gave me a bit of a jolt - reminding me that I like the atmosphere of these races.  I must do some more and next year I will run this one.

P.S. the photo shows the appropriate thing to wear to a farmers market - a Marmite cycle top

Juneathon 2012 Day 9 - Exercise before breakfast

Juneathon 2012 Day 9 - Exercise before breakfast

Gym - 35min

The picture is quite exciting - blue sky. I haven't seen that for a while. If I had waited a little bit longer there would have been even more of it. Perhaps things are looking up.

As today was another gym session, this time, because of other commitments, before breakfast. I am not sure if exercising when semi-fasted is recommended or whether the consensus is that you need to have put some fuel in your muscles to perform at your best. I will have to do some research and report back later. All I know at the moment is that there is satisfaction in feeling you have earned your food. Breakfast tastes better.  That in itself, never mind any training effect or nutritional science, is a good enough reason to get out early.

Juneathon 2012 Day 8 - Exercise and depression

Juneathon 2012 Day 8 - Exercise and depression

Walk - 3.3 miles, Time - 1hr 5min, Weather - high winds with rain

The study in the BMJ on facilitated physical activity as a treatment for depressed adults has already been well discussed and just about every point I would want to make has already been made. But I can't let that stop me,   being late is one of my specialities and the subject of exercise and health is central to this blog.

First of all some background. There is a lot of anecdotal evidence that exercise can affect mood and help people cope with depression and a structured group physical activity programme is recommended by NICE as an intervention for those with subthreshold depressive symptoms. However the academic evidence is scant and the Cochrane Review of 2010 found that when data from  25 trials was combined,  exercise did seem to improve the symptoms of depression, but there was uncertain as to how effective it was, or what the most effective types of exercise were. So it is an area ripe for further study.  A heavyweight study from Bristol University would therefore seem to be just what was needed. 

It is a proper large scale study with 361 adults split into two randomised groups one of whom received normal treatment, the other normal treatment + support with an exercise programme. Their conclusion that the exercise support programme they used (3 face to face sessions and 10 telephone calls with a trainer over 8 months) had no noticeable extra benefit over normal treatment must therefore be taken seriously. But all that it really shows is that a particular type of intervention did not work. It did not show that exercise could not help people with depression and it had no information whether there were differing effects with different types of exercise. 

Unfortunately that was not how it was reported. The news bulletins all reported that exercise made no difference. This was not really the journalists fault because it is very much the line of the press release (upon which all stories were based). However there is a thin line between this and an interpretation that 'scientists prove exercise is no good at all for depression'. Some people who suffer with depression read it that way and reacted with outrage. It seemed as if someone was trying to invalidate their own experience.

Simon Hattenstone is a thoughtful and entertaining writer for the Guardian but his immediate response reads like a howl of pain. You cannot lightly separate a man from knowledge he has gained from his own experience. Unfortunately you also cannot generalise from that experience and think it is the same for everybody. His article was fisked by Pete Etchells, in a way that not only  showed what was wrong with his response but also pointed out some of the limitations of the study itself (it is well worth the read, including the comments). Other good summaries have also been written by Tom Chivers and Martin Robbins

I find this all rather heartening. There was a study the reporting of which made claims that could not fully be supported by the research, there was a kickback and then there was an attempt to make some sense of what was actually said in the initial report. This is good because too often the initial, simplified news headline is repeated and repeated until it becomes accepted as fact. This subject has caused more debate, perhaps because of the  number of people with personal experience who are in a position to write about it, and report itself has been looked at more closely.

This attention might also help some of those who initially reacted with hurt to the news items. Mark Rice-Oxley started his response by saying: "The problem with arguing with science is that it is often an uneven contest, a bit like hitting a steamroller with a stick of rhubarb." But it is not like that at all. He only needs to look at the Responses attached to the article in the BMJ to see how the subject can be engaged and the way the limitations of the study can be exposed. From that it is very clear there is still an awful lot more we need to know and huge scope for further research. The subject is far from settled.

P.S. Any time there is a claim about health in the papers the place to go for context and evaluation is the 'Behind the headlines' service from NHS Choices. Its reporting of this issue was, as ever, excellent.

P.P.S. I should also mention my blogging friend Travelling Hopefully who tackled this subject before me and covers much of the same ground,

P.P.P.S. Today's picture of blurry trees is my attempt at showing how windy it has been.

Juneathon 2012 Day 7 - This is not seasonal

Juneathon 2012 Day 7 - This is not seasonal
Gym - 45min

This does not feel like Juneathon at all. It does not feel like June.

Another day for indoor activity as first the rain poured down and then the wind got up. So blustery that the scaffolding with its mesh sheeting just blew away. Sway, creak, bang, splat and there it was scattered across the road. Luckily nobody was there and so no damage, just inconvenience and problems for the police in tracing the contractors to fix the mess.

Now Travelling Hopefully is doing some sort of treasure hunt for this years Juneathon and taking pictures of what she finds. Yesterday it was twigs. Pah I  have joined-up metal poles - a toppled structure. Twigs indeed!

 As for the gym I quite enjoyed the ways in which it reminded me how far I am  from being an excellent physical specimen, or even a just reasonable physical specimen. This might seem strange to say, as the gap between what I am and what I would like to be is usually a cause of despair, but today it felt like a release. I have to work with the clay I have, recognise where and what I am and not worry about anything else.

I was on one of the mats doing an approximation of a cat stretch when a girl wandered up to the next mat, sat down, legs straight out in front and then bending from the hips, flopped forward so that her head rested on her shins. There is not a chance in a million years, practising hours everyday, that I could get anywhere close to that. In the same way I will never lift some of the weights lifted by the group of muscular men in the free weights corner. It doesn't matter, all I can do is get on with doing what I can

Juneathon 2012 Day 6 - With Pevsner in Abbots Langley

Juneathon 2012 Day 6 - With Pevsner in Abbots Langley
Cycle - 14 miles, Time - 1hr 8min, Weather - coolish, blustery, cloudy

My cycle rides are never training rides. My aim is simply to get out, enjoy the feeling of pedalling, the sensation of speed (downhill only of course), with the chance to look around or stop at any time, i.e it is a mixture of effort and leisure. I have cycled, off and on, most of my life but have never been a sports cyclist. I don't really want my head down at all times and the thought of me being in any way aerodynamic is ludicrous.

For me the bike is a good way to explore the area and one of the things I look at is buildings. If you do this the Pevsner architectural guide is indispensable. The very first building listed is St Lawrence church Abbots Langley, which is of "exceptional architectural interest due to its Norman nave arcades and Dec s chancel chapel" (you have to get used to Pevsnerspeak). It is not far away and I enjoy being able to look at it.

The detail I am showing, however, is more about local building materials than the architectural style. The combination of chalk and flint is very common for churches in Hertfordshire (as is the chequerboard pattern). However chalk, especially when facing south west will erode, leading to repair work or a rather ugly cladding with pebble dash. All of this can be seen in the photo along with the use of Roman bricks, some of which were probably still laying around at the time the church was built.

I like the idea of buildings, in some way, reflecting the character of the county, its rocks and its history, and I like looking for it in details. I could go on but I don't want to give a full description of the church. Instead I want to use it to illustrate the point of my rides i.e. a way of looking around

Juneathon 2012 Day 5 - Back to the Gym

Juneathon 2012 Day 5 - Back to the Gym
Gym - 45min

After the previous day's lollygagging it was time for something that actually felt like exercise: so off to the gym to push some weights.

I have a conflicted attitude to gyms. On the one hand having a variety of machines and weights available is encouraging: you want to try things out, you want to keep a record of the numbers, you want to push on. Also the act of going somewhere, to a space dedicated to exercise, means you have made a commitment and set aside the time. You are in the right frame of mind with only one purpose. But on the other hand gyms are fitness factories and represent the way even our movements have been industrialised and commodified. For some reason I find that a little irksome and want to rebel against the idea that fitness = gym time, when there is a deeper pleasure to be had out of doors. 

Two years ago the balance of my feelings tipped to the negative and I gave up my membership. It was however a mistake and in that time I have lost fitness. For some reason I found it virtually impossible to maintain a strength routine using dumbbells, neither could I stretch regularly. As a result I have lost strength and am too stiff. I also forget about the treadmill. Now I know many people find them dull and don't like them but for me they are a great help with speedwork. I can dial in a pace and force my legs to turn-over quickly, whilst outside I tend to be a bit lazy and just plod along. In the two years since leaving the gym I don't think I have run at any great speed (please remember though that for me speed is a relative term).

 So today was the first day back and as I type this I can feel an allover achiness from pushing weights. I am sure I will be a bit stiff tomorrow but after that all will be good. I might be unfit at the moment but this is the bottom and I am sure I will gradually improve.

P.S. I didn't mention the weather because in the gym it is irrelevant however it is worth noting that the bank holiday weekend ended as it started: cool, grey and damp. So my picture marks this by showing water droplets on leaves.

Juneathon 2012 Day 4 - Stretching the definition of exercise

Juneathon 2012 Day 4 - Stretching the definition of exercise
Walk 2.5 miles, Time 2hrs, Weather - cold for the time of year but at least the rain held off.

This is really stretching things too far! By no reasonable criteria can I call this exercise, but for the sake of the Juneathon game that is how it is being classed. Walking at 1.25 miles per hour is unfeasibly slow.  It would be inexcusable if I wasn't walking around a garden, stopping at every couple of yards to look at plants, check names and discuss what we found interesting.

The bank holiday activity was a visit to the Wisley to look at the plantings and see how things could be done. Although I am not the gardener of the family and cannot look-on with a professional eye I can enjoy the more indefinite pleasures of colour, layout, and atmosphere, and pick out plants I find pleasing.

On the whole my favourite gardens are places of contemplation (where the walking pace would, in total, be even slower) but Wisley has so much variety it keeps you moving on.  On a cold day, such as today, that is probably for the best and greenhouses become particularly attractive.

The picture of the greenhouse shows something of the variable weather. Behind me there were patches of blue sky and shafts of sunlight, in front  the dark clouds were gathering. For a few moments everything looked dramatic and then the sun went in and all was grey.

Juneathon 2012 Day 3 - Damp and Quiet

Juneathon 2012 Day 3 - Damp and Quiet
Walk 4.5 miles, Time 1hr 30min, Weather waves of damp

Sunday and not a sole is on the allotments. Perhaps everyone has a street party, or have gone to the Thames to watch the flotilla, or have just been put off by the damp. There is no way to tell. All you can say for certain is that the day is grey, slightly windy, slightly cold, and damp in a way that seeps into you. Not the weather for festivities and gatherings. Along my walk I looked for signs of people coming together - but there was nothing.

All was quiet and peaceful, as was my mood as I pootled along. This is hardly exercise, this is sauntering.  I am not sure whether it has any virtue but it is all I feel like doing. We will see if it is a waste of time or whether a little activity, repeated each day can make a difference. A whole month is probably the length of time needed for the test.

Juneathon 2012 Day 2 - Minor Conflict

Juneathon 2012 Day 2 - Minor Conflict
Walk - 7.9 miles, Time - 2hrs 40min, Weather - drizzle damp then grey

We moved to one side to let the cyclists through: a young boy, about 10, closely followed by his father. Ahead was a man with a dog. The dog, as dogs often do, moved unpredictably and the boy applied his breaks so forcibly he shot off the saddle and planted both feet on the ground. "Shit". Behind him the father tried to avoid crashing into the rear wheel, wrenched his handlebars violently and toppled over. "Language!" he chided the boy, as he fell. I was impressed that he tried to maintain standards in such circumstances but then things went downhill as the two men squared up:

"Can't you keep it on a lead?. Keep it under control?!"
"Why is it always the dog? Why blame the dog? You go too fast! You should slow down! Pay attention to other people! Oh no you have to go fast!"
Etc etc.

Meanwhile the boy was being mature, trying to move away and end the slightly uncomfortable incident: "It was an accident. Look sometime things just happen". He was right: it was one of those things. The father was too close to his back wheel but at the same time dogs not on a leash can be a menace on the footpath. Things sometimes happen.

It had all started so differently. Our start wasn't too early, 9 0'clock is hardly the crack of dawn,  but the canal path was empty and somehow it felt as if the world hadn't woken. Perhaps it was the damp, light drizzle that put people off and made everything feel peaceful; perhaps it was the bank holiday weekend and other people had better things to do. Who cares. The conditions were perfect for a walk where attention could flick between interior dialogue and staring intently at the wildlife, whether it be the flash of a kingfisher, swans gliding by, or counting the snails enjoying the damp.  It was a gentle and enjoyable walk.

But a couple of hours later as we came back into to Berkhamsted where there were now knots of people and the problems of conflicting needs in a restricted space.

Juneathon 2012 Day 1. Limited Expectations

Juneathon 2012 Day 1.  Limited Expectations
Cycling - 16.4 miles, Time - 1hr 15min. Weather - hazily overcast, warmish.

So Juneathon is here again and somehow I must attempt to exercise everyday and then write about it - for a month. Ho hum, this year it might be difficult.

The reason is simple: I am woefully unfit and out of shape (sadly these distinct concepts both apply). Since March I have not felt right and any exercise has been a struggle - so I have done little. That, however,  is boring and I am tired of being feeble. So doing something everyday is an attempt to shock myself back into action.

Actually it will not be too much of a shock as I don't plan on anything ambitious - a little everyday is my only aim. All I want is to find at the end some basic level of fitness, so that I can think of running again with pleasure (at the moment it just feels like a slog).  Walking, cycling and gym work will be the main activities and the motto will be: just keep going.

Today showed how far there is to go. A cycle to St Albans, long break, and then back should not have felt so hard and my heart rate should not have been so high. Though as this is the beginning I am not depressed. It is only a marker. I will now, in a detached way, observe how I get on and note any changes.

Today's photo is taken from near one of the entrances to Verulamium Park. I just thought the abundance of wild flowers looked rather pretty. I rather like municipal parks where they don't try to tidy up every corner

A Lyrical Pause

Yes, I remember Adlestrop --
The name, because one afternoon
Of heat the express-train drew up there
Unwontedly. It was late June.

The steam hissed. Someone cleared his throat.
No one left and no one came
On the bare platform. What I saw
Was Adlestrop -- only the name

And willows, willow-herb, and grass,
And meadowsweet, and haycocks dry,
No whit less still and lonely fair
Than the high cloudlets in the sky.

And for that minute a blackbird sang
Close by, and round him, mistier,
Farther and farther, all the birds
Of Oxfordshire and Gloucestershire.

This poem by Edward Thomas, written just before the start of the First World War, is extremely well known and may even be one of the nation's favourites (not that I have any finger on the pulse of the nation's taste in poetry). Sometimes it has been used as an exercise in nostalgia: of steam trains, the peace of the countryside and the golden summer before war ripped the european world apart, but that is conflating the time of its composition with its meaning. I like it instead for its timelessness: not being about any era but instead describing those caught moments that I am sure have affected everyone throughout history - those moments when things pause and you are suddenly more aware of your surroundings.

These sort of moments that give me more pleasure than almost all others but they can not be anticipated or planned for. They happen unexpectedly through cracks and cannot be deliberately sought. For me though, running increases the chances of them coming. One of the habits of my pottering long runs along the canal is to stop at the furthest point,  sit on the arm of the lock gate, take a drink and look around. At such times a sense of peace can wash over me. Not always but sometimes. I know I am lucky in the beauty of my surroundings and it is more difficult to imagine such moments on streets of undistinguished housing. But it is not impossible. Anywhere at any time we can see things more clearly.

For one fleeting moment.

The Tarahumara and a Lost Opportunity

Tarahumara Runners. Souce Norawas de Raramuri

The next day we played a very fierce game of volleyball with the nuns, really serious, they almost killed us. I've played volleyball but this was like all their sexual aggression coming out.

I picture the nuns in full garb jumping, smashing and aggressively intimidating their opponents puts a smile on my face. Maybe I am remembering the leaping nuns of the order of St Beryl but nevertheless the image deserves a place in my collection of sporting descriptions.

The quote is from the photographer David Montgomery who accompanied Norman Lewis on a journey to Mexico to write about the Huichol tribe and comes from the biography Norman Lewis by Julian Evans. Norman Lewis was one of the great travel writers of the Twentieth Century whose subjects included the Mafia in Sicily and the the VietCong as well as the tribal societies of South America.

One of the tantalising what-ifs of our knowledge of Mexican Indians is that in the 1970s he heard about a tribe who ran up mountains and wanted to make contact. Unfortunately because it was a serendipitous idea and he did not have enough time to wait, he never found them. I assume this tribe were the Tarahumara, recently made famous in Christopher McDougal's book Born to Run.

Over the past couple of years Born to Run has been a best seller and a phenomenon in the running world, given huge impetus to the barefoot running movement. One would therefore assume that Norman Lewis's failure to meet-up the tribe was unimportant because Christopher McDougal has now done the job. But I do not feel that; I regret the lost opportunity.

The reason is mainly one of style and sharpness of perception, i.e. the core of the writers craft. Although I am interested in the subject of 'Born to Run' I have not finished it as I could not get past its hyperbolic style and the desperate straining for similes. An example: early on he described watching a video of his own running -

"In my mind's eye, I'm light and quick as a Navajo on the hunt. the guy on the screen, however, was a Frankenstein's monster trying to tango. I was bobbing around so much my head was disappearing from the top of the frame. My arms were slashing back and forth like an ump calling a player safe at the plate, whist my size 13s clumped down so heavily it sounded like the video had a bongo backbeat."

I read it and thought "No! You may not have been elegant but you were not at all like that". The odd bit of overindulgence I can accept and might even enjoy but in this book every paragraph was the same and all the time I was pushing against it.

Towards the end of his career Norman Lewis worried about the "attentioncalling" style of the new generation of travel writers represented by Paul Theroux. I don't know what he would think now, now that the general level of volume has been cranked up to 11.

Norman Lewis's prose was not simple but his style was modest and underplayed, as if it had faith in the extra ordinariness of what he was describing. I wish Christopher McDougall had had the same faith. The Tarahumara are certainly a extraordinary tribe.

I need to put my squeamishness aside and finish the book. However I can still regret that story was not written by  Norman Lewis 30 years ago.

What We Can See

"It is overcast this afternoon  and there is a fine, misty drizzle that feels fresh on my face. The still air amplifies the sound of water dripping on maple leaves. The leaves are still bright green, but will transform into a kaleidoscope of yellow, orange, red, salmon and purple in another week or two. The goldenrods along the dirt road are just starting to fade, and several species of wild aster are beginning to flower instead. I note the splashes of their lavender, purple, and blue flowers. There are usually bumble bees in these flowers, but today these cold-hardy bees remain torpid in their underground nests deep in the woods.
Watching a large orange and black monarch butterfly feeding at an aster, I wonder how much sugar it is getting from the nectar to fuel on this stop on its migration from Canada to Mexico. The butterflies like human ultramarathoners need regular refuelling stations. While it is warm and sunny, during the last couple of weeks, I've seen the monarchs floating by on lazy, soaring wing beats. These individuals are at least the third generation of those that left Central Mexico last spring to come north to breed. All of hem are now journeying to their communal wintering area in the cool mountains near Mexico City from where their ancestors had come. There they conserve their energy reserves through winter by literally putting themselves in refrigeration that slows their metabolic fires."

The extract is from the opening of a book called 'Why We Run' by Bernd Heinrich and describes the start of a run after a sedentary day. I quote it out of envy.

I wish I was a naturalist who could get all the juice from what I see: know the exact stages of the wildflowers and what they were, see passing animals and know their life cycle. But I am not. My eye for identification is pathetic and I have to rely on my wife to tell me which flower is which. She is not there on most of my runs. 

I do however have certain birds and animals that give me pleasure when I see them. Foremost amongst these are herons. They always lifts my spirits. I don't know why: probably something to do with the ungainly, boney shape that almost looks two dimensional. I doesn't matter. I know I like them and luckily they are a fairly common sight by the canal.

I saw this one yesterday. I was not running - but never mind; that is a mere detail.

Ferrets, Running Ancestors, and Philosophical Assumptions

Yesterday I wrote about an article showing that ferrets do no produce endocannabinoids when they run and gently mocked the triviality of the finding. Although I posted it, I was not too happy with the quality of my work: it was slightly too heavy handed to let the absurdity speak for itself but not earnest enough to engage with all that irritated.  But I left it because  I am interested in any evidence about how we evolved as runners even if comparisons with the brain function of a small furry creature with little legs can't take us very far.

The reason I like reading about our running ancestors comes from when I first encountered the idea that we were more efficient than many other species over long distances. It was one of those little light bulb moments that made me think more clearly about our nature of animals. Until then I had tended to think we were a bit rubbish: others species were faster, had sharper teeth or claws and were more ferocious or stronger. In a fair fight we would lose but we could over-compensate with the use of cunning and tools.

Finding that ancestors were capable of chasing a gazelle all day until it became immobile was a revelation that made me realise that we were a big beast with physical capabilities to compete. Learning that before the development of spears we used to catch and then strangle the prey was even more astounding. It was clear we are nothing more or less than another species of animal with and evolutionary niche and its own adaptations.

This might not sound like a very unusual insight  (surely everyone knows that!) but it had to combat many teachings I had absorbed from childhood, all based on the underlying assumption of human exceptionalism. Humans were civilised, humans had language, humans had intelligence, humans were distinct from the rest of creation. All of these ideas were part of the ideology I imbued. To this was allied its natural partner the philosophy of dualism, which saw the mind and soul as separate from the body, so that the body's role was that of a vessel. 

It's funny how we have these ideas buried so deeply within us that we hardly notice. When something comes against them we tend to reject it without knowing quite why. That we could have been magnificent animals was such a challenge. That our bodies and mind are indivisible was another. But accept them I did. However once I had done that there was a corollary, a glimmer of a hope that I might have the potential to be a better animal than I thought I was. 

I am no longer convinced about the corollary (I am too far gone) but running is a way of working through these ideas.