Beberapa tahun yang lalu yaitu sebelum tahun 2017 aku termasuk orang yang benar-benar tidak mengerti mengapa ada orang yang mau berlari marathon dengan jarak yang jauh, karena hal tersebut tentunya sangat melelahkan, memakan waktu dan monoton.
Sampai akhirnya di tahun 2018 aku coba-coba mengikuti event lari marathon untuk pemula dalam event Surabaya Marathon 2018. Bismillah dan just do it.
Eh, ternyata cukup menyenangkan. Saat berlari kita akan menemukan moment yang disebut dengan "runner's high", yaitu keadaan euforia yang sangat santai dan singkat, yang terjadi saat pikiran kita sibuk berfokus pada gerakan monoton sehingga segala rasanya sesuatu di sekitar kita akan mulai melambat dan kita akan memasuki kondisi meditasi.
Hanya ada kita tanpa ada gangguan dan tanpa ada stres, sehingga pikiran kita akan jernih dan pikiran kita bisa bebas. Hal ini tentunya akan berdampak baik pada kesehatan mental.
Hal ini mirip dengan yang dialami oleh Youtuber niklas.christl berikut ini.
A few years ago, I simply couldn't understand why anybody would voluntarily run for such a long distance.
It's exhausting, time consuming and monotonous.
Why would anybody find pleasure in that?
In the world of running, there is something called a "runner's high", which is described as a brief, deeply relaxing state of euphoria.
When running for long distance, it often happens that you get lost in that monotonous motion.
Foot after foot, breath after breath, your mind is so busy focusing on that repetitive motion of your body that everything around you starts to slow down and you enter a meditative state.
You feel the wind blowing along your face and you watch your legs move on autopilot. It's just you in your tunnel, no distractions, no stress.
A place where your thought are clear and your mind can run free.
During my long runs, I experienced these moments all the time, and I really felt like it had an incredible impact on my mental health.
Hal diatas diungkap oleh Niklas di menit 13. Di menit 30 juga hal menarik yang bisa kita simak juga, sebagai berikut.
Sore muscles, pouring rain, painful stretches. Non of those things counted as an excuse. You might ask yourself "why run?".
Why do this to yourself?
Why push yourself until your muscles give up and you can't breathe?
I used to ask the same questions back then, but during the marathon, I started to realize what this whole journey was about.
When you're running, it's you against you.
No players, no competitors, no enemies.
It's you againts your own body and your mind.
Foot after foot, breath after breath, you push yourself to go further, go faster. You can feel your body sweating and your heart pumping.
Mile after mile, you push yourself to not give up. Your muscles get weak, your feet start hurting, and your body is telling you to stop.
But you still keep going.
Running is the essence of ambition. Always fighting, always pushing, always improving.
It's about embraching the discomfort and breaking your mental barriers. You realize that with dedication and hard work, your body can do anything, and so can your mind.
Running taught me the most important lesson in life.
It taught that we're aware of only a fraction of the things we're capable of, and that our limitations only exist in our minds.
