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Full Circle
Nothing beats the start of the day with a good run in a beautiful environment.
I ran a complete circle around the large Alster Lake in Hamburg this week. I left my hotel thinking I would run for two to three kilometers and then return, but when I got nearly to the other side of the lake, the temptation to go full circle was greater than the pain in my legs.
A planned six-kilometer run is not that much, but I didn’t eat well the day before and slept like s#$t. As often happens, I got the running bug and pushed myself once I got into it. So, I completed the full 7.25 kilometers around the lake, motivated by approximately fifty other runners who made the same decision at 6 a.m.
Completing the run and then stretching and sitting down for a few minutes, taking in the view over the lake, is majestic. No matter how many email messages or consecutive meetings followed, the day started well.
Running full circle is much nicer than having to return the same way to go back. When I run a circle, I often run farther.
It’s perhaps the sense of discovery that makes running a circle so appealing. The entire journey feels like a revelation until you suddenly find yourself back where you started.
