New Delhi, Dec. 11 -- I started running in 1991. The two long breaks I have had to take from running in these 34 years have both been recent, neither because of running injuries. In October 2024, I tore a muscle around my spine doing something else and could not run for more than two months. Then, beginning April 2025, I couldn't run for about four months for another health reason.

Changing this habit, around which my day has been organized for 34 years, was easy because it was physically impossible to run for much of this period. But I did terribly miss running.

Writing about running is now quite a subgenre. Its mediative thrall, its tribulations and triumphs, and its effect on life can make for a riveting read. This piece, though, is ...