Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant; they, too, have their story. This is from Desiderata which we in the University Town — an academic community where the search for truth is a constant quest, characterized by a strong commitment to encourage dissent and intelligent discussion, and avoid any direct or subtle attempt at argumentum ad hominem — should take to heart.
As a teacher of more than 50 years, I make it a point to speak my truth as I have experienced them, constantly provoking dissent, and encouraging robust and intelligent discussion. This I have always done without fear and need to disguise my identity when speaking my truth. Timidity is anathema to the search for truth. And I constantly tell my students, “without courage, all other virtues are useless,” a conviction shared with us by author Edward Abbey.
In this column two weeks, I shared with “budding runners” and “running enthusiasts” some advice which, based on my many years of experience in directing running clinics, are pitfalls to be avoided that could put a premature ending to their running for life. What I wanted to emphasize was the need to avoid injury that could discourage them to pursue further training and that they should train safely and prudently, and to consciously avoid being carried away by what I call “too much too soon” and “too little too soon.”
The “too much too soon” syndrome is characterized by adopting a training load that the body is not ready to endure. For example, incorporating fartlek which involves alternating fast-and-easy pace of running to a beginners’ workout could be too exhausting and unnecessary. Ditto for interval training which, even for experienced runners, is difficult to apply because it is a tedious process that involves the manipulation of a) the distance to be ran repeatedly, b) the time/pace to run, and c) the duration of the rest period in between each repeat runs. Doing intervals also requires judicious monitoring of pulse/heart rates to make sure the runner has recovered adequately before running the repeats. To my mind, subjecting beginning runners to fartlek and interval training is inappropriate and unnecessary. It could result in overtraining and doing too much too soon.
The DARS participated in the 21K half-marathon from the Provincial Capitol landmark to Amlan municipal hall two weekends ago, and Alex Pal related to me how he accompanied Marlon Tanilon in walking part of the distance. This is an example of “too little too soon.” I surmise not enough mileage was logged to finish the 21K distance in grand fashion.
Running a half-marathon is no walk-in-park for beginners, and for those who fail to keep a regular training regimen. There are several ways to prepare for a half-marathon but because of space limitation, I will just give a general formula: a one-hour run of six days a week which could total to logging 30 kilometers per week for a period of six weeks–and no skipping of workout, rain or shine! This is a very easy training load for beginning runners and may not apply to others because “each one is an experiment of one,” a dictum coined by Dr. George Sheenan, the renowned running doctor of the “running boom” of 70s and 80s whose treatise on running served well those who were lured by the ultimate challenge of running and finishing the marathon.
Dr. Sheehan served as medical editor of Runner’s World magazine, wrote eight books, and lectured around the world. “Listen to your body,” was his slogan.
A unique experience brought about by running is the sense of becoming more introspective and sensitive to the subtle changes that takes place in one’s body, mind, attitude, and spirit. We respond to these changes differently — in the attitudes we develop towards people, events, and day-to-day experiences.
When we take up running, we becomes more conscious of what we eat. The adage “one man’s food is another man’s poison” is an example of the principle of individual differences, interpreted another way by the Sheehan dictum.
I know of runners who became vegans or have adopted some form of vegetarianism as part of their running lifestyle. I know of many non-beer drinkers who developed a fondness for the brew when they found out that beer is better than water for rehydration.
But while some running enthusiasts may become vegans, vegetarians, or beer drinkers as a result of their running experience, this is not a general expectation of transformation for every budding runner. What we become is due to the influence of parental upbringing and shared-values, education, the environment we are in such as an academic community–and running.
One thing I know, based on my experience with members of the Runnex Club of Quezon City that I founded 39 years ago, is that because of shared advocacy in promoting running as a way of life, they have remained close together, a group of people who have become more caring, more concerned, and continuously seeking for ways and means to help their community. These members of the oldest running club in the country now manage the Quezon City International Marathon. In the disaster wrought by Ondoy, Runnex contributed P500K thousand to the flood victims, an amount earned from managing the QCIM.
If there is any basic skill that beginning runners must be taught to acquire, and to understand, and appreciate is proper pacing in training runs and in running races. Proper pacing is key to fun-filled and life-long running. It is also the secret to health and longevity.
I have read the comments to my column two weeks ago. I hope those who gave feedback find my rejoinder a source for gentle, civil, and open exchange of views.
