Rural Route, Running Bare feet.

The Route

I look forward to my visits to my village. My home town where my mom stays is my abode of happiness and joy. I find total peace of mind and tranquility amidst the farms and the open sky.

I had been planning on running a special route. This is the route that starts from my home and goes towards a beautiful lake. The lake is situated 2.5 km away. Thus, it makes a perfect deal for a 5 K.

The route has a Mango Orchard, a vast open space that is lying vacant these days and long narrow pathways reaching up to the lake.

The route on my running watch looked somewhat like this.

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The Climate

I always look at the climate before I run. And on this run, the climate was of monsoon. Though, it is still hot Summer back in my workplace. But, I guess the gods understood my intentions. So, they sent the clouds.

Last night, it had rained for some time. So, I was thinking if there would be rains on the run. And my hope were not dashed away. It rained.

But, not as much as to make my running difficult. It drizzled all the way. For few minutes, there was pouring but it did not soil my game. Infact, the sudden outburst and then, disappearance made it adventurous.

There was moisture in the soil. Hence, I found it as a right opportunity to do bare feet running. And the climate was just apt to experiment this new art of running bare feet thst I am learning these days.

The Run

I woke up at 4:30 am. I always read something before I go for a run – a blog, a book, a motivations poster or a story. Sometimes, I even listen to podcast. It prepares my mind for running.

At around 5:15 am, I put on my t and shorts. I had planned for a bare feet running so, I did not have to wear any shoes today. And by 5:20 am I moved out.

The Bare feet did not allow me to run initially. I could feel the pebbles, their hardness over my soft feet. But, as I kept moving, the feeling of obstruction was replaced with feeling of freedom.

The soil along the route was wet and hence, got my feet loaded with wet mud on the way.

The route was fun and the running slowly accelerated to a good pace. However, the pace was not the criteria for the run on this route. I wanted to absorb the beauty and the tranquility of the environment.

I loved it. I felt in total peace with the place the moment I reached the lake that I wanted to see for a very long time. There was only the noise of the birds chirping. The lake beauty was more than what I could imagine. I recorded a small video taking the 360 degrees view.

The route saw me passing through the mango orchard that my forefathers had planted several decades ago. I have spent a fair amount of my school holidays plucking mangoes and guarding them.

The run was nostalgic as well as fun. There was a chance encounter with a dog who after all gave me the way after listening to his owner.

The Bare Feet Running

There is a lot to say about bare feet running that I can say here. This kind of running helps you enjoy the freedom of movement and find a balance on your own. If you are negotiating through the muddy paths, then bare feet running is the only way. But, you need to make sure that you are taking the plunge of bare feet running on a route well known to you.

It took me over an hour to finish this holiday run. And every minute of it was worth cherishing. I would ocme back on this route more often. And Run.