Team Zen

from JoeUser Forums
Good Morning Again,
 
A Team Zen Update:  This morning I did a hard hill repeat  workout (8 repeats) in the desert on sandy trails and steep hills. I completed 1.75 miles in total.    My modest training schedule is as follows:  Sunday, long run; Monday easy walk; Tuesday, desert hill repeats with a trail run base; Wednesday, easy walk; Thursday, interval run; Friday, easy walk; Saturday, off.
 
Shortly I will add a little biking, easy kick boxing, and some free weight training again, but I need to get a base established first. (Our garage is almost ready to act as a gym.)
 
I plan to increase my distance, repeat numbers, and interval numbers by 10% or so weekly, with the goal of completing the 15 mile portion of the Bataan Death March in March 2009. 
 
For those of you who don't know, we had a "Team Zen" at the Zen Center for a couple of years and did local races.  We made t-shirts that had "Stillness in Motion" printed on the backs. It was a lot of fun.
 
Fitness Training is an excellent Zen practice as it requires focused attention in repetition.  The practitioner places his/her complete attention on the body and breath, integrating that with the physical environment while in motion.  Some, while doing long distance running, get a sense of "zoning out"  which is not exactly a good thing, nor is it good Zen.  Zen training, whether seated Zen or Zen in motion, requires moment-to-moment attention.  It is not about an altered state, but about waking up and being present.
 
I would be interested in hearing about your training.  Maybe we can reestablish a team and find a race in the future to do together.
 
Be well.
religion
1,419 views 2 replies
Reply #1 from JoeUser Forums Top

 

More and more I find myself leaving out on my runs sans my ipod. It seems the music, I don't know, "intereferes" with what I'm wanting to do -which is -like you say- be "present" in the run.

My training varies: this week for example I'll be running 5 easy, 5 easy, 6 (of which 4 are tempo), 5 easy, rest day, and then 10 long run on Sunday. This mileage goes up each week to a max of 15 for a long run and then back down for a week. I'm sure you're familiar with the drill, lol. Problem is, however, I've been having an "issue" with my left calf and don't know what I'll end up doing -it may be time  to take a month off and get on the bicycle for a while!

Maybe we can reestablish a team and find a race in the future to do together.

That would be cool! Perhaps, maybe this one next fall?

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