Some friends may remember the story of the over-achieving guy I told them about. See, this guy took up running, and went for a few marathons. But he wasn't satisfied at that level. One day, he finds out about ultra-marathons and starts training for those and participating in them.

Ultra marathons, btw, can be something like 100miles long. -_-!!!!! That's..... way longer than 2.4km.

( If you are interested in reading more about him, or to find out whether I'm really bullshitting you all, you can click on this article to learn more: The Tough Track by Psychology magazine. )

I'm not that crazy to do that, but I did take part in the Earth Day Night Walk recently. This was supposed to be a leisurely 3.5km walk from the Marina Promontory, to MBS, Esplanade, the Esplanade bridge, past Fullerton hotel, and back to Marina Promontory.

Siao siao that I am, I decided to jog the whole distance.

Well, I don't think my average timing could have helped me pass my 2.4km. But I felt a great sense of achievement when I was the only joker to run through the gantry as I finished the distance. Since everyone was walking anyway, it wasn't such a tough deal to run ahead of everyone, even the guest of honours. -_-!!!

But it's in the completion of the race that I understood what was so rewarding, and even addictive about the whole thing about running. To finish the damn thing, to know that you are capable of such a thing, blows your mind away. When I finished and I looked around at the distance I covered, I could only think "dang." And how shiok is it to know that here is something I achieved with my bare two legs.

This kind of achievements are hard to come by. So many of the things we want to achieve today are dependent on so many factors outside of our control. Our fortune is dependent on our boss, or our customers. Our happiness dependent on our family, friends, work and money. Even our weight is dependent on the food we eat, cooked by other people!

When I run, my achievements become dependent on myself. It is not immediately dependent on factors like my boss, my husband, my friends or my family. It is dependent on whether I want to do it. It is dependent on whether I want to finish the distance, no matter how slow I run, or even walk. Because the only way that I am finishing that distance is by pumping my two legs and pushing myself past the finish line.

The high from exercising is unlike any other. I only improve based on what I want to, and not on how much I fawn the boss. Not on how much I beg the husband. Not on how much I talk to my friends. When I finish the exercise, I know that I did it all by myself, and that I need not share the glory with anyone.

Now when I look at the whole MBS, Fullerton view, at least I can think to myself: "I ran that. Dang."