Notes: Sport

Yesterday, I decided to take a break from work and go for a good run. I headed to the local park and did a few laps. Sitting there catching my breath, I grabbed my phone to switch the track, and there it was — a congratulations from my fitness tracker.

So much for taking a break. The platform is watching you, %username%!

P.S. But hey, now I’ve got a custom badge with the platform's logo. Gotta wear it with pride!

This summer, my friends and I traveled to the Mongolian border: by car to Tashanta, then by bicycle to Kok-Kol. We were absolutely knackered, but it was worth it: the mountain views were incredible! Shame we didn’t see more wildlife. We didn’t even run into the plague-carrying ground squirrels everyone, including the border guards, kept promising us :-)

You're sliding down the side of a mountain and trying to feel an equilibrium point, for the hundredth time. However, your nagging back is the only thing you're able to feel, and the Vaas speech from Far Cry 3 isn't going out of your mind.

Did I ever tell you what the definition of insanity is? Insanity is doing the exact… Same fucking thing… Over and over again expecting… Shit to change… That. Is. Crazy.

― Vaas Montenegro, Far Cry 3

Surprisingly, you're certainly satisfied with the trip when it's done.

There's some kind of magic in it.

Something occurred to me: long, hard, complicated things, studying, workouts, diets, all that misery, get a lot easier once you realize you really want what’s at the end of them.

So there you are, comfortable doing nothing, when you finally decide to lose some weight, or study for an MBA, whatever. Your blisters hurt, it all sucks, maybe you don’t need that MBA after all, and wouldn’t a lie-in beat a morning walk? But after the first go, a bit of studying, a jog, kefir instead of a pastry, you catch this quiet but ridiculously strong endorphin rush. Hey, look at me! I’m doing the right thing. I’m getting somewhere!

And when you slip up, playing a shooter instead of reading, eating cookies instead of cottage cheese, somehow never having time for the gym, you miss that kick. You eat cookies today and can’t stand looking at them for a week. Not because you don’t fancy them, but because you’re back to going nowhere, like a lump.

Getting somewhere really is a drug, as long as you know where you’re going and know you want to get there.

Like most fat guys, I’m not big on running, and just forcing myself doesn’t work. I get two or three days out of sheer willpower, then I’m back to being lazy and dreading the next run.

So I had to find something that would actually make me want to run. Eventually, I came across the phone game Zombies, Run!. Basically, it’s a music player: load a playlist and go for a walk. But familiar tracks alternate with a simple story about surviving in a typical zombie land. Your helicopter has crashed, and you’re trying to reach other survivors. You search for supplies and medicine… And zombies surround you, so if you want to live, move your ass.

Je-e-esus Christ! It’s fantastic. I don’t know whether the game or my imagination deserves the credit, but hundreds of thousands of kills in Left 4 Dead didn’t help me at all: growling behind your back makes running incredibly easy! The game calmly tells you how far away each undead pursuer is. When one of them suddenly gained forty meters on me, I probably ran the best sprint of my life.

(Toward the end of the second walk, Runner Five also hurt his leg and started limping very convincingly. Really added to the drama and made the whole thing feel real.)