IT has taken me more than two years, but recently I finally beat my Personal Best (PB) for Parkrun.

Parkrun is a free 5km run held every Saturday morning at 9am in various locations around the country, and even around the world. There will be one near you.

The following week I beat my PB again! 

So what was the difference?

A friend of mine recommended a book he had been reading on the ‘Pose’ Method of running.  Basically, it means altering your running technique completely – trying to run in a specific way by doing drills to reinforce the technique in your practice of running.

It reckons to help you run farther, faster and fitter by remaining injury free and reducing the impact on your joints as you run. 

It worked for me, and after some initial weeks of doing some of the exercises I decided it was time to try it out for real. I bought some zero-drop shoes (no difference in height from toe to heel), got rid of the orthotics, and suddenly I was flying (well, going a lot faster than I had managed previously) and with less effort. 

Previously I had struggled to get anywhere near my PB, but I beat it comfortably by 18 seconds, which was more than a minute faster than any other run this year.

In the bible we read that the apostle Paul told the Christians in the church at Corinth to ‘run in such a way as to get the prize (1 Corinthians 9:24). 

In our Christian life we also need to be properly equipped and follow the right technique to run the ‘race’ (our life) well.

Getting the proper equipment might well be as simple as getting a modern version of the Bible, maybe even a Study Bible with some helpful explanatory articles included. 

But, in just the same way that new running shoes won’t do any good unless we wear them on a run, it doesn’t do just to have the Bible somewhere – we also need to actively use it. 

Trying to read a portion of the Bible every day works best; but like running, it gets easier the more you do, and you might just want to start with a few days in the week.

When we then ‘try it out for real’ – by living it out in our daily lives we might well find ourselves flying, and with less effort, as we seek to run in such a way as to get a PB!

Rev Ian Enticott

Area Dean of Accrington