To Write, Run!

Every day, with more of a shuffle than a stride, the scribe runs for more than an hour. Earlier, he used to sit for hours on end at his workstation, doggedly trying turn in tolerable copy long after the initial spark had faded.

Then he met a pro, the acclaimed Japanese writer Haruki Murakami, who between the covers of a book called What I Talk About When ITalk About Runninggave the wannabe writer what proved to be tipping-point advice. To get your creative juices flowing, run regularly, Murakami said.

In other words, anything you do, don’t sit too long like a chain-and-ball prisoner at your slave-station! “Being active every day makes it easier to hear that inner voice!”

Modern science is now corroborating the Japanese master’s advice: boffins have found that mental fatigue does set in after you have been sitting down for an extended period of time. An easy way to boost your alertness, they found, was to get up and walk around.

It’s not for nothing that Ayurveda brands walking as a perfect Tri-Doshic exercise, which balances the three bodily humours without putting excessive strain on your body. Now what would happen if one were to intensify the walk?

Scientists found that exercising the legs also exercised the brain: a lunchtime workout improved your cognitive performance, mainly by improving blood circulation and by boosting levels of “brain food” such as brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF).

This is the substance that nourishes existing nerve cells and promotes the growth of new ones. Moral of the story: running is the right way to write!