Needless to say, there are many strategies involved in running, jogging or walking a marathon. No matter how you plan to cover the distance of 26.2 miles, if you were able to follow at least some of the advice offered here, you will be ready both outwardly and inwardly. The confidence and faith in yourself should be strong enough to get to the starting line, to begin and to continue your journey.
“Faith in oneself
And faith in God
Must run together.”
“I do not know
How to run alone.
Therefore my friend, faith,
Accompanies me.”
- Sri Chinmoy
During the marathon the most important things to be aware of are: your consciousness, being cheerful and offering gratitude each mile, keeping your physical energy high enough by drinking water regularly and drinking other nutritional replacement drinks that keep your glycogen, or blood sugar level up. Even small amounts of fluids, a few
swallows every so often, will help tremendously in maintaining your energy levels and muscle efficiency. Other ways to do this include taking small bites from an energy bar or some other solid food if you like. Try doing this during your longer training runs to get used to it first. Normally it is not a good idea to eat anything during the race that you have not tried in training.
Another important thing to remember while running is to stay focused on something positive or spiritual. Keeping a rhythm going in your breathing by chanting or repeating a short aphorism, spiritual word or song can help greatly in getting you through each mile, especially if the going gets tough.
“I am running a marathon,
Self-pity, self-doubt, all gone.
The golden Goal is beckoning me.
I am now ecstasy-flood-sea.”
- Sri Chinmoy
No matter how you look at it, the marathon is a great challenge, taking much effort and involving quite a bit of energy and perhaps a bit of pain or discomfort along the way. In any case, it should be a wonderful experience of transcendence, no matter how many times you may have covered the distance before. Regardless of the time it takes you to
reach the finish line, because of your preparation and sincere efforts, you should feel like a winner.
“Who is the winner? Not he who wins but he who has established his cheerful oneness
with the result, which is an experience in the form of failure or success, a journey
forward or a journey backward.
Who is the winner? Not he who wins the race but he who loves to run sleeplessly and
breathlessly with God the Supreme Runner.”
“There are only three winners:
The one who competes with himself,
The one who crosses the finish line first
And the one who finishes the race.”
- Sri Chinmoy
Finally, with a cheerful attitude and a hero-warrior determination, anyone can cover the distance of the 26.2 mile marathon. The result will not matter, whether you consider it victory or failure, because in either case you will have made tremendous progress.
“To make the fastest progress,
Be an absolutely cheerful
Hero-warrior
And take both victory and failure
As parallel experience-rivers
Leading to the sea
Of progress-delight.”
- Sri Chinmoy
Sri Chinmoy running a marathon, 1979
It is my hope that these guidelines will be of some value in getting you across that finish line, cheerfully and safely, and to have fun. Here‟s a little more inspiration from Sri Chinmoy to carry you along:
“O Lord, may each marathon runner run along Your Eternity’s Road to receive from
You Your Infinity’s Love-Light and Your Immortality’s Oneness-Delight.”
“O my poor body,
Your marathon run
Was not a bad mistake.
But your lack of marathon fun
Is, indeed, a sad mistake.”
“Courageously surmount each obstacle
On your spiritual journey
And continue to walk, march and run
Along the sunlit path.”
“Carry on the struggle.
You will eventually win.
Strive with vigour.
You will certainly win.
Depend entirely on God’s Grace.
You will immediately win.”
“Run,
You can easily shake hands
With fleeting time.
Run,
You can easily challenge
The pride of frightening distance.”
“Marathon, marathon, marathon,
Eternity’s dawn.
O kindling, streaming flames
Of great Olympic Games,
O Greece-world vision-height,
Cosmos-oneness-delight!
Humanity’s transcendence-race,
Divinity’s supreme Grace.”
“Twenty-six miles I am running,
Smiling, dancing, no crying.
I am a marathon runner:
Body’s ignorance-hunter.”
“O marathon runner,
God the Smiler-Winner!
Bondage-body’s supreme victory
Challenged life’s summit-glory.
You claim today for every day
In the Captain’s cosmic Oneness-Play.”
