Keep on running (and taking the pills)
REGULAR readers of this column might remember I took up running again a while back. Decided to jog my age in kilometres in January.
Since that didn’t take very long, I decided to keep on going. See what happened next. Long story short, I’m still at it. Heading out in my running shoes every couple of days to pound the streets and parks, piling a few more miles on to the tally. It really is a lot of fun.
The joy of climbing into bed, knackered, knowing that your tiredness is all down to physical exercise. Well, it’s fab. Can thoroughly recommend it.
Before starting up again at the beginning of the year, I hadn’t done any running for ages, mainly because I had seen what happened to veteran runners. They slowly turned into moaning,
groaning plodders. Can’t blamed them.
They were all running around with their joints strapped up, their veins hanging out like spaghetti and generally, showing the wear and tear of too many years spent running away from something.
Not sure what they were all trying to run away from, but I think I know what they were running towards. A future filled with soreness.
One thing you notice with all this pounding of the streets is that bits of your body start to make their feelings known. And they’re not very happy. Feet, ankles, knees and hips, they all join in, trying to say that what you really should be doing, is nothing. Preferably whilst sitting down on a sofa, eating biscuits.
However, rather than hang up my running shoes and accept defeat, I decided to take a leaf out of my old mum’s book. Always a good plan.
You see, for years she has been taking supplements for what ails. A cocktail of the usual suspects; cod liver oil, glucosamine and chondroitine. With a few others as well, all thrown in for good measure.
I’ve never really paid much attention to the pile of pills she pops. But the last time I was up at her place, we got talking about it all. Turns out, she doesn’t take any doctors’ pills, not a single one. Which is not bad going at the grand old age of 92.
Now, it may well have nothing to do with the above, but coincidentally, she has taken hundreds of these supplements over the years. So I decided to give them a whirl.
After doing some research I settled on an enormous pack of joint supplements, mainly because I knew the brand and liked the name.
It’s quite a commitment, they tell you to take three pills each day. Which is going some. But after checking out the ingredients, reckoned it made sense. They seem to have packed in everything my mum say I
takes. A heady mix of glucosamine, omega-3, turmeric, collagen, chondroitin plus enough vitamins and minerals to fill a small suitcase. Should cover most of the bases.
Been taking these babies for a while now and I must admit, the aches and pains I was expecting after all this running have so far failed to arrive. Of course, this could just be luck. Or maybe they are just biding their time, waiting to jump out and stop me jogging later in the year. Who knows?
Main thing is that taking these daily health tablets doesn’t seem to be doing any harm. So my thinking is that I may as well keep on taking them, see what happens. See if I can match my mum’s track record.
Not quite sure if I’m going to stick to these particular pills, or shake it up by trying a different brand.
That’s one thing with these food supplements, there are lots of them. Gets a bit confusing. Every health food shop has shelves piled high with the things. All claiming to be the best of the best. It’s hard to know where to start, which ones to try.
So it might be worth sticking to the three pill daily routine for a while. Who knows?
Either way, if everything goes to plan, I will keep on running, keep on taking the tablets and take a view at the end of the year. See how many moans and groans there are per jogged mile.
Do keep your eyes peeled for further updates.
Or, if you would rather, you could get out and about in your very own running shoes. There’s always room for more joggers and plodders out there. And if you do happen to see someone plodding past, so full of pills he rattles, that might just be me. Do give me a wave.
Hope you and yours are safe, well and happy.
Until next time, all the best