Zen Sports: Any runners out there?

[Shinshi]

I am wondering if I should move this thread into the "Arts & Music" Area ("Arts, Music & Sports?"), so that it can be a kept around?

Gassho, J

STLah

From me, but you know I am kind of into running.

Gassho, Shinshi

SaT-LaH

[Meredith]

Thanks for all the encouragement, I really appreciate it! I'll post about the 5k as I get a little closer. I have dreams of completing a sprint triathlon next year, but...idk.

[Shinshi]

I am a trail runner. My A race (I don't really race, but...) is Leadville, in Colorado. I haven't gone the past couple of years because of COVID, but I am hoping to be back next year. Yes to it being a part of my practice, but it is definitely not the same a zazen or kinhin. I think zazen helps my running, but I'm not sure the reverse is true.

Gassho
Nengei
Sat today. LAH.

Sorry I missed this before. Leadville is a serious race. Deep bows.

Gassho, Shinshi

SaT-LaH

[rj]

I am wondering if I should move this thread into the "Arts & Music" Area ("Arts, Music & Sports?"), so that it can be a kept around?

Gassho, J

STLah

st/rj

[Heiso]

I've only just seen this thread - I'm also a long time runner although time constraints and fallen arches have limited my running to 5ks a few times a week. And I like a Park Run too, I'm lucky that there's one 5 mins from me.

As a side note at the beginning of lockdown I was reading Adharand Finn's book 'The Way of the Runner' about running in Japan but got fairly frustrated about how he thought every Buddhist monk he met was a Zen monk

Gassho

Heiso

StLah

[m.c.]

any folks here run with their mouths shut/breath through the nose only?

m.c.
to sit is good
to have sat is postable

[Seishin]

any folks here run with their mouths shut/breath through the nose only?

m.c.
to sit is good
to have sat is postable

Many decades ago when I first started but soon realised I was expending additional energy breathing like that, opposed to breathing open mouth. When I started sitting daily zazen back in 2016, I started to adopt what I called "shikantaza" breathing, albeit with an open mouth, just letting the breath go where it needed or wanted to go. Previous to that I was a regimented 2 step inhale 2 step exhale runner but just letting the breath doing its own thing was quite liberating. Not run much this year due to my wife's health issues and aging dog, so I expect when I hit the treadmill (handy in the zendo this time of year) all that will go out the window and I'll be back to panting and wheezing, while my body remembers what it is supposed to be doing.

Long post deep bows of apology.

Sat

[Heiso]

any folks here run with their mouths shut/breath through the nose only?

m.c.
to sit is good
to have sat is postable

If I'm doing zone 2 aerobic base training (which I reckon makes up about 80% of my running) then I sometimes use nose breathing as a form of regulation - if I can't breath through my nose, I know I'm running too fast.

Gassho,

Heiso

StLah

[m.c.]

For ref if anyone becomes interested in the performance benefits of nasal breathing in running -early days in the research but looking good as a deliberate practice -

https://oxygenadvantage.com/nasal-breathing-running/

it's a skill and a practice and can be profound in terms of performance.
ultra runners like Scott Jurek - nasal breathers.
And great in zazen - nasal breathing is better for cognitive performance https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34072444/
also better for memory (has to do with nitric oxide it seems)


m.c.
it's good to sit/sat

[Huichan]

Hi everyone

Generally run around 3-4 times a week/40km a week, depending on the season and other stuff happening in life. Prefer getting out in the hills but don't do that as often as I'd like. Even though I want to carry on tracking my runs, so I know how far and fast I'm running, I need to run without an ego a bit more (not comparing running to others or caring how fast I go as much).

Gassho
Ross
STLAH

[Mason]

Ran a great 5k this morning after coming off of an ankle injury that kept me from running for 2 months or so. Before that, I had just watched Jundo’s beginner video on Zazen posture. During my run, I came to think a lot about how Zazen and running can be so similar (coming into the here and now, focus on maintaining the right posture/form for you, yet not judging your posture too much, embracing the run as it is, etc.).

Gassho,
Mason
Sat.

[Gareth]

Last week I ran 300m sprints after 1-2 months without running (thinking I would be ok due to other things I do) and came away with a sore achilles.

Today I am back to running, but this time just to jog extra slowly and for a few repeats of a short distance. So there is nothing to attain, just extra-slow jogging while enjoying the day

Gassho,
Gareth

Sat today, Lah

[Huichan]

Mixing it up with running helps a lot. There's time for slow runs, long runs, sprints or just whatever feels right in the moment

Gassho
Ross
stlah

[Soka]

I broke down a little on my last run, it was good practice. I was about 85 km into my run and it is unusually hot for the UK at the moment, and I struggled over the last 15 km. It was probably the first time in a long time where I wasn't so good at observing the games the mind plays and the stories it builds during these sorts of runs. Hopefully my ability to just run will be better next week. More zazen needed methinks.

For what it's worth, with my personal training clients, I always make sure they're regularly running 3-5 km before giving them sprints, just to condition their legs to the movements and help avoid injury and soreness. Even if they do other sports, I've found if people aren't used to running or haven't run for a while, sprints can be really hard on the body.

Gassho,
Sōka
sat