Live life to the fullest

As I reel from today's underwhelming announcement of the new Apple iPad (Really, Steve Jobs? The iPad? Seriously?), I am drawn to areas that make me feel better — not the least of which is running. And this provides me with an opportunity to discuss Reason #436 (these are in no particular order) of why I like running: To help me live a fuller life.

This information should come as no surprise to anyone, but, as it turns out, keeping fit is even better than doctors first thought. On Jan. 26, Time magazine reported the following: "Now a series of independently conducted studies on the effects of exercise in healthy older adults, published on Monday in the Archives of Internal Medicine, confirms that logging time at the gym not only helps maintain good health but may even prevent the onset of chronic diseases, such as heart disease, osteoarthritis and dementia." (Read the full article HERE).

I'll be perfectly honest and confess that old age scares the crap out of me and I want to do everything I can to stave off its effects. I don't want to spend my retirement in a chair or a bed, unable to live independently, unable to recognize my loved ones. So I do what I can to keep those potential problems at bay. I understand, of course, that old age is inevitable, as I understand that with old age comes certain inevitable "deteriorations," for lack of a better term. Still, I refuse to go gently into that good night, to borrow from poet Dylan Thomas.

But these studies give me hope. As I near 40, I am encouraged by my own level of fitness. I am heartened as well by the numbers of older runners who fill the starting lines of races I run (and who kick my butt, too).

But what also gives me hope are words from older, wiser runners than me. As I mentioned in my previous blog, I've been reading Haruki Murakami's book What I Talk About When I Talk About Running. Here's a man who's nearing 60 who runs more now than he ever did when he was younger. Murakami puts it better than me. "Most runners run not because they want to live longer, but because they want to live life to the fullest," he writes. "If you're going to while away the years, it's far better to live them with clear goals and fully alive than in a fog...Exerting yourself to the fullest within your individual limits: that's the essence of running, and a metaphor for life...I believe many runners would agree."

Yes we do, Mr. Murakami. Yes. We. Do.

Happy running.