What Matters To Me

I continue to run because I like running.  I like to run even though I’m not, by their standards, any good at it.  What matters to me is that I like to run, not what they think about my running.
—     John “The Penguin” Bingham
From his book:  “No Need For Speed“
[LoL!!  Pretty much how I feel about learning to play guitar.    —    KMAB]
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On This Day In:
2020	Make Voting A Habit
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2019	2019 49ers Season Starts 5-0!!
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2018	VOTE – We Need A Wave
2017	Soothe, Inspire And Recharge
2016	Aren’t We?
2015	Cold Embrace
2014	Delightful
2013	Apprenticeship
2012	Curtain Rods
2011	A Living Force
2010	BART Rides – A Tipping Point

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Frustrating Incentive

Frustration is the first step toward improvement.  I have no incentive to improve if I’m content with what I can do and if I’m completely satisfied with my pace, distance and form as a runner.
—     John “The Penguin” Bingham
From his book:  “No Need For Speed“
[Running is a lot like learning to play guitar.  Or gaining any new skill, I suppose.    —    KMAB]
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On This Day In:
2020	You Too?
	Six Degrees
2019	A Branching Stream
	Day 9: One Day At A Time
2018	Pity The Nation (Part 2)
	Day 1: Redux
2017	Good Blogs, Too
2016	My Prediction For #AmnestyDon
2015	Worth A Try
2014	I’m Feeling It
2013	May I Have A Little More, Please?
2012	Increasing Doubt
2011	You Can’t Touch This

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Back To Paying Dues

It isn’t the shoes, socks, clothes, or even the speed that makes me a runner.  It’s running.  I pay my membership dues every time I lace up my running shoes.  I realize that every time I challenge myself to do more, struggle to get a little faster, or face the limits of my abilities, I am a runner.
—    John “The Penguin” Bingham
From his book:  “No Need For Speed“
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On This Day In:
2020	Diets And Lifestyle Changes
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2019	The Right Questions
	Day 3: Still Difficult
2018	A Thought For Those Continuing To Support President Trump
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2017	Imagining Humor
2016	So Go On And Deal With It
2015	From A Letter To A Friend
2014	Your Part (Here)
2013	Complements
2012	Sound And Light
2011	Two Politicians Visit A Farm…
2010	Labor Day And Honorable Men

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You Cannot Pretend

As a runner, you have to face the truth about yourself on a regular basis, and it makes you more honest.  You can’t pretend to be faster than you are.  You can’t pretend that you are better prepared than you are.  You cannot pretend to be a runner, you actually have to run.
―     John Bingham
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On This Day In:
2017	A Long Shadow
2016	Learning, Experience, Chances or Money
2015	The Critical State
2014	Dawn, n.
2013	Ouch!
2012	Just Lookin’ Around
	Still Growing
2011	But Do You Want To?

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What Matters

Suddenly, when the run itself is the goal, there are no more bad runs.  Suddenly it doesn’t matter if we don’t finish within our goal time — or don’t finish at all.  What matters is that we tried, that we enjoyed the process.  What matters is that we got out there.
―    John Bingham
From his book:  “No Need for Speed: A Beginner’s Guide to the Joy of Running“
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On This Day In:
2017	By Far
2016	Until…
2015	Or Infinitesimal
2014	I’ve Looked At Clouds
2013	Undiscovered Ocean
2012	Feeling Old? (Part 2)
2011	What About Freedom?

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Learning About My Humanity

What you learn is often determined by what you need to know.  If you think you’re weak, you will learn that you are strong.  If you think you are indestructible, you will learn that you are fragile.  In the end though, you will learn that you are human.  You are no more and no less than all those who are learning their lessons as you learn yours.
―    John Bingham
[What running / jogging / walking  – a commitment to exercise – can teach you.    —    KMAB]
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On This Day In:
2017	Laugh Or Shake Your Head
2016	The Expected Cure
2015	Of Two Minds
2014	Pride And Remembrance
2013	Repeating Bad Memories
2012	No Sooner
2011	Just Cheesy!
	Are You Illin’?

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Happy New Year — 2018!

I have always imagined that Paradise will be a kind of library.
―  Jorge Luis Borges
Do not be afraid to fail.  Be afraid to accept that who you are right now is all you are going to be.
―  John Bingham
From his book: “Running for Mortals: A Commonsense Plan for Changing Your Life With Running“
We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be.
―  Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
From his novel: “Mother Night“
I am nothing special, of this I am sure.  I am a common man with common thoughts and I’ve led a common life.  There are no monuments dedicated to me and my name will soon be forgotten, but I’ve loved another with all my heart and soul, and to me, this has always been enough…
―  Nicholas Sparks
From his novel: “The Notebook“
[Happy New Year’s Day to all!  The years are beginning to run together (pun intended).  This year, my resolutions are (in addition to yesterday’s post) to read more books and to try to be more consistent in my working out so I can (hopefully) grow my mind as I shed my waist.  —  KMAB]
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On This Day In:
2017	Happy New Year — 2017!
2016	Happy New Year — 2016!
	Remembering My Brother
2015	Happy New Year — 2015!
2014	Happy New Year – 2014!
2013	Another New Year’s Thought (In Case It Rains)
	Happy New Year – 2013!
2012	Best Wishes For 2012!
	Where Did You Spend New Year’s Eve?
2011	Happy New Year (2011)!!

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Focus On Christmas — 2017

Focus on where you are instead of where you wish you were.  The joy will follow.
―    John Bingham
From his book: “No Need for Speed: A Beginner’s Guide to the Joy of Running“
[Focus on family, friends and the moment…  Joy will follow.  Merry Christmas to all… !!    —    KMAB]
[The image was “borrowed” from one of the comments I’ve rec’d from a fellow blogger. Please visit his site if you have a few minutes: http://pacificparatrooper.wordpress.com/   —    KMAB]
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On This Day In:
2016	Merry X-mas – 2016
2015	Merry X-mas – 2015
2014	Merry X-mas – 2014
2013	Merry X-mas – 2013
2012	Merry Christmas – 2012
2011	I Have Seen

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Falling Forward One Step At A Time

We were not designed to stand still.  If we were, we’d have at least three legs.  We were designed to move.  Our bodies are bodies that have walked across vast continents.  Our bodies are bodies that have carried objects of art and war over great distances.  We are no less mobile than our ancestors.  We are athletes.  We are warriors.  We are human.
―    John Bingham
From:  “Running for Mortals: A Commonsense Plan for Changing Your Life With Running“
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On This Day In:
2016	And Without Expectation
2015	Just Do It
	I Am A Runner
2014	Some Things I Learned (Mostly) In The Army:
2013	Who You Are
2012	Mine Stands
2011	Aversions

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Moments Of Truth

The moment of truth for many of us as adult-onset athletes is when we first realize that changing our lives is going to be much more difficult than we ever imagined.
—     John “The Penguin” Bingham
From his book:  “No Need For Speed“
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Are We Devouring Yet?

Of course, it’s much easier to get thin than to get fit.  Getting thinner is simply a matter of denying yourself nourishment for as long as you can.  If you reduce your caloric intake enough, your body will begin to devour itself, and in a few weeks or months, you’ll be thinner.  But you won’t be fit.  In fact, it’s likely that you’ll be in worse shape than before you lost weight.  Fitness requires perspiration.  There’s no shortcut around that fact.
—    John “The Penguin” Bingham
From his book:  “No Need For Speed“
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Just Perspire!

Until I started running, I never understood that the shape, form, weight, strength, and fitness level of my body were the result of the perspiration, not the diet.
—    John “The Penguin” Bingham
From his book: “No Need For Speed“
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Acceptance Is The Key

You can’t trade your body in for a new, improved model.  Accepting the natural strengths and weaknesses of the body you have is the key to becoming the best you can be.
—    John “The Penguin” Bingham
From his book:  “No Need For Speed“
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To Be, Do

The more you run, the more you are a runner.  It sounds simple and it is.  There’s nothing more to becoming a runner than running.  It isn’t how fast or how far you run.  It isn’t even how long you’ve been running.   It’s only that you run that makes you a runner.
—    John “The Penguin” Bingham
From his book:   “No Need For Speed“
[Runners run, leaders lead, and programmers program…   —    KMAB]
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Adult-Onset Athlete

Today, 28 May 2010, I just finished another tremendous “running” book.  This one is titled: “No Need For Speed“, by John “The Penguin” Bingham (2002©).  He is a former columnist for Runner’s World Magazine.  The book has some very practical advice for the beginning runner, but really, it’s about the spirit and philosophy of becoming / being a lifetime runner.
The book is very reminiscent of the “Born To Run” book and juxtaposes against Sheehan’s “Running And Being“.  It’s about the joy of running, not the agony.  This is a book I’ll keep handy and browse thru every now and then for inspiration, more than for advice.  Well worth reading for a philosophy of living, not just running.
Some quotes:
“The moment of truth for many of us as adult-onset athletes is when we first realize that changing our lives is going to be much more difficult than we ever imagined.”
“The days when you have to drag yourself out the door are very often the days when you will learn the most about yourself, not necessarily as a runner, but as a person.”
“Try to keep your expectations reasonable.  You’re beginning the journey of a thousand miles with a single step.  Each step is important; every step counts.”
“Each of us can maintain an effort level of about half our maximum perceived effort almost indefinitely, regardless of what that perceived effort level is.  We may not be able to maintain it continuously, but with a few exceptions, most of us can move our bodies at about half of our perceived maximum for as long as we want.”
[I doubt this is actually true. I can go for a good distance (several miles) at 4mph.  I have done 9mph (very briefly), and feel I could do 10mph (very, very briefly).  I guess there needs to be a “fudge” factor for “extremely” slow runners like me.]
“Don’t do anything today that might keep you from running tomorrow.”
“Frustration is the first step toward improvement.  I have no incentive to improve if I’m content with what I can do and if I’m completely satisfied with my pace, distance and form as a runner.”
“For the dedicated runner, frustration is to be sought out and savored, not avoided.”
“I continue to run because I like running.  I like to run even though I’m not, by their standards, any good at it.  What matters to me is that I like to run, not what they think about my running.”
“Life can’t be taken so seriously that you live it without risk.  There are times in life, as in running and racing, when the only way to see tomorrow is to walk right up to the edge of today.”
“It isn’t the shoes, socks, clothes, or even the speed that makes me a runner.  It’s running.  I pay my membership dues every time I lace up my running shoes.  I realize that every time I challenge myself to do more, struggle to get a little faster, or face the limits of my abilities, I am a runner.”
“A real runner, not just someone who runs.”
[The contradiction between this and some of the earlier quotes is stark.  Does the author truly enjoy running, or is it all about some “other” psychological satisfaction – like testing one’s self.  This is a trap I fall into. Wanting to go faster and be “better”.  …And then I take a long, slow jog out in the fresh air, watch the clouds go by and the day change, and I realize I just run because I like running.]
Other Topics – first of many shoe reviews:
The plan is to use each test pair about 30 days and or 100-125 miles of jogging.
Model: Delta Water Shoe
Price: $40 but you can get a discount if you are a store member.
Manufacturer: Ahnu
Web site: www.ahnu.com
Bought at: REI store in Concord, CA
Web site: www.rei.com
Initial impressions:
This is BY FAR the most expensive shoe of this type I’ve bought for my reviews.  More than twice the price of the next highest.
Not very easy to get on.  I tried to wear cotton socks with them.  I managed to get them on my feet, but they pulled the socks back into my toes so every step felt like I was kicking a wall.  I had to sit and remove the socks.  After that, they were extremely comfortable in a slimy, polyester kind of way.  Without socks, getting them on is a tug/slip/pull/straighten, but it’s not too bad.
The feel for the ground is excellent.  You can feel the smallest cracks in the pavement and the smallest stones, but there seems little danger of penetration by sharp objects.  I do my laps in a schoolyard and there is a fair amount of broken glass – and near the buildings – loose staples and paper clips.  (Who thought the world was so unsafe for feet!!)
So far I’ve done three runs on a treadmill and another four on the asphalt – about 25 – 30 miles and there is almost no sign of wear at all.
The good news is the slimy feeling goes away quickly because the shoes ventilation is great.  It remains to be seen how that translates into stink as they get a little more sweat in them.
I did a walk on the treadmill with maximum slope to see how the shoes felt.  I was surprised to find my foot consistently slid right off the back of the shoe.  If I were out in the boonies on a long jog, I would have had a problem with blisters under my heels in no time.  I was surprised because the shoe is relatively difficult to get on my feet and the lip feels snug enough to prevent stuff from getting in the shoe, so I imagined the sole would be more stable under the foot.
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