Yelling "Shoot!" from the Treadmill

I occasionally have to do my long runs on the treadmill. It can be pretty awful to undertake this task...9, 10, 11+ miles on a treadmill. I once did a 19 mile run on a treadmill. In truth, it's pretty good training for psychologically enduring whatever may come my way during a marathon.

 It is usually weather or an upset stomach which puts me on the treadmill for a long period of time. To make this task bearable, I try to find something on TV to watch that has a strong narrative line that keeps me reeled into the story, as opposed to watching the miles pass 0.10 mile at a time. My new gym provides a TV with each piece of cardio equipment, so with more channels than I have at home, I can usually find some kind of "junk TV" to watch.

 I like detective shows: old, new, reruns...it doesn't matter. I just like detective shows. I think that the intensity or thrill of a show helps me with my runs, too. My adrenalin is already pumping, so it's pretty easy to get sucked right into the excitement. In fact, one time when I was running on a treadmill I became totally engrossed in a TV show. As a good character pointed a gun at a bad character, I caught myself saying out loud: Shoot! Shoot him! Of course, I would never have been this wrapped up in a show at home to do such a thing. Let's blame it on the adrenalin. I was reminded of this today when I was running next to a man who, with arms flailing, made a moaning sound. I thought: Oh, no! He's injured himself!! Where's the red emergency button?? Then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw that he was not injured. He was just watching a disappointing outcome of whatever sports team he was viewing. Maybe he does this at home; maybe he doesn't. But, regardless, under the circumstances, it's safe to blame it on the adrenalin.



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