Keep Running

I'm back, I'm back!

It's amazing how capable we are to, from time to time, ignore what really makes us pulse. I've been writing about running, I've been talking to people about running, some people think of me as the running guy, the one who once ran the NYC marathon and never stopped running.

The truth is that the NYC Marathon's main contribution to my life was to make me fall in love with the city and to make me wish I could live here someday. Now this has become reality and another good thing happened: after 2 years of occasional - or lazy if you will - running, I'm back to serious training. The ones that may eventually get me back to half marathons and even marathons. I once had a dream of getting to know the world by running marathons, then I switched to half-marathons but it happened that work was helping me more on that. I've been to Tokyo and there I could see thousands of people running the Tokyo Marathon while I was running 5k in a local park.

The problem about getting back is huge. First you have to admit you are not that good anymore. You're older, you're less fitter, but your brain does remember everything you were capable of. So, when that overweight guy passes by you very quickly, you have to tell your brain that you must not speed up, you have to respect your pace, do your training. And when you see that athletic girl running at a very fast pace, just admire the view and keep on with your slow, yet steady pace.

It's been only two weeks and I'm already getting better. I feel like my body is re-learning something that it was very used to feel and it might take some time but I will get back there. The good thing about being older is that you become more resistant, I may eventually run further than ever. Well, at least I want to believe that, it's comforting.

I was thinking about some motivational ideas. I first decided I would pursue running the distance between the earth and the moon. I thought that would not be too hard, taking into account that I have run many thousands of kilometers already in my life. But if you do the math you'll find out that it would take you hundreds of years running more than 180km a week. Even half way to the moon, to "see the moon" closer, is unfeasible for a poor guy like me. I wish I had that idea when I was 18...

Happily enough I found out that I did not need that kind of motivation, I had already started and once you decide to start it, that kind of decision that mobilize all of your body elements, it will happen in an unavoidable way.

To make things funnier though, I decided that from time to time I will take a subway to some distant part of Manhattan and have the motivation to run back home. I intend to document this here.

And for you that are thinking about re-starting, here's something that may help you:

sample week:

day 1 - 2 to 4k at a steady pace, not too comfortable, because comfortable means you're not really running

day 2 - off or cycling

day 3 - 3 to 6k again at a steady pace

day 4 - off or cycling (not too much of cycling)

day 5 - run 2k at a slow pace to warm up, then run as fast as you can for 20s and rest for 40s. Repeat this fartlek (quick / slow) 6 times, then run 2 more kilometers in a very slow pace

day 6 - go to a hospital. Not really, but relax

day 7 - run 6 to 8k at the pace you want, go to somewhere you never been to and enjoy the view.

In the first weeks you may not do everything, but try to reach to this point, or even a more aggressive one in 3 or 4 weeks.

Never forget that your body talks to you, if something is hurting too much, take care of yourself and observe what happens when you run again.

Keep running, it will keep you healthy and happy.