Let’s face it we all have days when our motivation just isn’t there. Your head isn’t in the game, and it feels like it may never be. Even an ultra-marathoner like Ray Zahab felt unmotivated during his training. How does he deal? Zahab has a strategy that’s a little different than simply pushing through those downtimes.
The ways in which running can be thought of as a privilege are endless. Seemingly simple factors like time and basic physical capability are not guaranteed to all.
The world over, running and those who pursue it also increasingly have the privilege of being embraced by the surrounding community. Despite the complaints we may overhear or see on social media lamenting road closures on race day, running has become part of the character of so many cities, particularly in the case of the World Marathon Majors.
Today, on Bell Let’s Talk Day, beautiful stories will be told about the power of running. Many of those stories are of individuals and their individual journeys – not always straightforward and not always unfailingly upward, but always in hope of something better they know they deserve.
Running, so much as it requires privilege, creates it too and runners have embraced and used that privilege to build and strengthen in return the community that embraced them. When it comes to mental health, running is not just something from which we take, but something that has grown to give as well.
JP Hernandez is perhaps one of the most instantly recognizable faces in Toronto running, though the famous face is not his own, but the “bat cowl” he’s now worn in more than a dozen races, whether solo or as a member of the Justice League Runners (JLR). Petja Taivassolo is often right alongside the Dark Knight Runner wielding Thor’s hammer as his blonde locks fly in accordance with his pace.
JLR have run in support of several causes affecting children and youth, most recently supporting Ooolagen Youth Mental Health, a Toronto based mental health agency which provides counselling programs to over 4,000 young people and their families every year.
JP’s motivations were simple. “When I chose to help Oolagen, I did so because our kids face a much tougher world now than when I was a teen.” He adds, “No child or teen, or even adult for that matter, should ever feel they can’t turn to someone for help.”
Oolagen was an obvious choice for Petja as well. As a physical education and health teacher, he says, “I see first hand the battles teens are facing today and helping bring much needed awareness and support to a place that provides a safe and comforting outlet just felt so right.”
As a parent, JP’s greatest goal is to, “…leave a legacy for own my kids to teach them that we can do our part to help our fellow man and woman.” Batman provides the perfect vehicle for that goal. The costume has allowed him to catch the attention of several news outlets each time he races. When a 6-foot plus Latino man built like a linebacker is running a marathon dressed in a superhero costume, people are going to notice.
When the notice falls on him and JLR, JP turns the attention to causes like Oolagen and the young people he hopes to serve. Like Batman, JP himself has no superpowers, but simply, “works harder to be able to do what is right.”
For both runners, who may have started their journey, in Petja’s words, “all about setting times and PB’s,” the sport has come to represent a responsibility, one that they’re both glad to have.
Petja recalls, “Not until I first picked up Thor’s Hammer (Mjölnir) and ran with JLR in the Toronto Yonge St. 10K back in 2014 did I become aware of the incredible privilege and responsibility that we have in bringing awareness and support to our causes.”
Neither JP or Petja runs for himself anymore. In fact, their own struggles seem small as they take on their roles as advocates. According to JP, when he finds himself struggling in the midst of training or a race, “I don’t allow myself the right to complain because I will heal. A baby of 6 months old might be fighting stage 3 cancer, or a teenager is grappling with suicidal thoughts – those demand more attention. That’s how I put all this into perspective.”
The story of JLR illustrates all that running can become. An educator like Petja sees the running community, “…playing a strong role in getting get kids active and helping them better cope with the challenges they face on a daily basis.” As runners with a theatric style that can resonate with young people like the child who posed with Thor’s hammer at the 2014 Yonge Street 10K, they hopefully light torches of inspiration at every race they run.
Beyond this, however, their efforts are an example of running’s potential to turn attention to causes beyond itself and inspire action on behalf of those affected. Running is not just its own community, but something of a gentler version of Thor’s hammer that gracefully bludgeons surrounding communities into something greater.
Visit Oolagen.org to learn more about the organization’s work with youth in Toronto and how you can support it.
I recently tried a cook book called Run Fast. East Slow. Nourishing Recipes for Athletes, written by Shalane Flanagan and Elyse Kopecky. Shalane is an Olympic medalist, four-time Olympian, American record holder and world class marathoner. Elyse is a chef, food writer, nutrition educator, runner and “proud mother.”
This January I turned forty and decided that this was a good time to make some goals for myself. I had already committed to running a half marathon with my brother in May in Toronto and was well on my way towards building my mileage. However, I also wanted to make some improvements to my diet. I never was a terrible eater, but I was a convenience eater in that I was no stranger to frozen or packaged meals. In the past I had always struggled with obtaining the right nutrition to sustain me on my long runs. I always equated eating healthy with cutting calories and fat. I believe that this inhibited me from meeting my maximum running potential and made me more prone to injury.
This cookbook is perfect for the beginner cook who is looking for nourishing, healthy meals to fuel their runs. Everything I have made from this book has been easy and delicious. I have a small child at home and work full time while training for a half marathon, so I need my cooking to be easy and hassle free.
The flu-fighter chicken soup was a crowd pleaser. Making something that my husband and daughter will both eat is almost impossible, but they were both delighted by this simple crock-pot meal and asked for seconds. This meal is loaded with natural, whole ingredients that include ginger, lemon, spinach and brown rice. There are reminders in the book to always consider where your ingredients are sourced and buying local and organic is always favored.
The “Superhero” muffins are an excellent grab-and-go breakfast before or after a long run. I wake up at 5am to get my long runs in and grabbing a muffin has been the perfect solution to getting enough nutrition, calories and carbohydrates to maximize my strength and sustain my energy. A bonus is that my husband and daughter will eat these too (my five year old has no idea that there are carrots and zucchini in them!).
Another family favourite is the Beet Smoothie. Beets are filled with antioxidants that are great for your cardiovascular health. I personally have never been a fan of smoothies. I like to chew my food rather than drink it, but the smoothie recipes in this book are so delicious that I finally have found smoothies that I actually like. The Kale smoothie is also excellent.
I am still exploring this cookbook, but so far it has been really helpful as I adapt to, incorporate and enhance my clean eating diet. This cookbook shows that you can eat clean and eat well while maximizing your strength for whatever your running goals might be.
You started out 2017 with great resolve to run fast, get stronger and generally do better. By the end of January, between the ice, snow and nearly thirty days without the sun, you’re fading fast. No one knows better what it means to begin again than iRun’s runner-in-chief, Ray Zahab. The ultra marathoner, and founder of Impossible2Possible understand what it takes to build consistency and stick to a training plan. In this first installment of RayTV, he’ll share some quick training tips that will help your make the most of your next run but get you out the door in the first place. What are you waiting for? This is your year, #MakeItCount!
The Ottawa Marathon is coming May 28, 2017. It’s already one of the best events in the world, but this year, in honour of the country’s 150th birthday, it’s getting better: the beer tent is jam-packed with Beau’s Beer. Beaus, which is 100% organic and brewed about 100 kilometres from Ottawa in Vankleek Hill, will be on-site and engaged in the festivities, celebrating with all runners. Thirsty for more information, and excited about their fourth year involved with the program, we spoke with Beau’s CEO Steve Beauchesne.
iRun: Steve, you run, some, but it’s your sister who’s the runner in the family, right?
Steve Beauchesne: My sister is definitely way more into it than I am; I do run a fair bit, but I tend to be more of a road cyclist. But I do enjoy running—I think I’m at the 5k level, but beyond that my knees start to go out of me.
iRun: That sucks because it’s so beautiful where you live and the Ottawa Marathon is such a fun event.
SB: I know, but I have Osgoode-Schlatter disease, which is something you get as a kid going through growth spurts and never leaves you. But it’s not like if I run I might end up in a wheelchair, I’ll just be sore for a few days.
iRun: That happens to all of us! Hey, how long have you been aware of the Ottawa Marathon?
SB: This is our fourth year being involved and we always like community-building events and certainly support like-minded people getting together and doing something they love.
iRun: Like running a great run and then enjoying a great beer.
SB: That’s right, and we’re also working with the Marathon to do more. There is a Beau’s beer garden near the finish line—it can be a little hard to find after you navigate your way through the maze of bananas and bagels, but it’s worth seeking out. There are bands playing and a great vibe, especially after the 5K and 10K events wrap up on the Saturday.
iRun: And why is it a good event for a beer brand?
SB: I think the idea of a recovery drink has hit a lot of people’s consciousness and I find the connoisseurs of craft beer are almost a similar kind of person as a runner, someone that’s health conscious and tends to focus on long-term health as opposed to: ‘I’m going to be healthy for a weekend and then go back to destroying my body.’
iRun:I like the idea of beer as a recovery drink.
SB: I’m going to suggest that while milk might be more nutritious, it’s not nearly as rewarding as a really good beer after a run.
iRun: And your involvement with running goes further than the Ottawa Marathon; you also sponsor the great Canadian beer runner Lewis Kent?
SB: He’s a good guy and that relationship happened naturally, my sister’s into running and saw something he posted on our beer and we reached out to him; next thing you know, we’re sponsoring him!
iRun: Can you drink Beau’s in a Beer Mile?
SB: Nah. He’s looking for something as light and watery as possible. He saves our beer for when he’s done.
iRun: All this beer and running talk makes me curious. I understand you have a knee problem. But I also understand that if it’s properly monitored, it could be something you could work with.
SB: I think I know where this is going and really, it’s my sister that’s the family runner. Ever since she ran her first 5K at Ottawa Race Weekend in 2015, she’s fallen in love with running and now she’s going four times a week and she’s the kid who used to pull out her asthma puffer as soon as someone mentioned the word “sports” in school.
iRun: That must inspire you.
SB: Yeah, I get to see the positive benefits that her training has been for her and I know I can probably stand to do some of this, too.
iRun: I’d like to make a proposition for you.
SB: Listen, I’m more of a cyclist. I don’t really run.
iRun: But what if we trained you? What if your sister and I worked out a plan and promised to work with you from now until the Ottawa Marathon. You think you could be up for the half?
SB: I know I have to get over that preconceived notion of Why the hell would I want to just run and get to that wonderful feeling afterwards. . .
iRun: Come on, it’ll be fun. It’s 2017. Race Weekend is four months away and you’ve already done a 5K and you’re sponsoring the race. Please run the half marathon with me?
SB: For me to crack that beer afterwards, and get that sense of almost euphoric relaxation that hits after you finish, and get that adrenaline rush and all the endorphins then on top of that you have this awesome beer that’s replenishing the liquid you lost and makes you feel great?
iRun: Yeah, for that. Let’s do it! Let’s train.
SB: OK, I’m in. Can I bring along a few friends from the brewery to train with me?
iRun: Absolutely, the more the merrier!
SB: OK, great. Let’s do it. Where do we start?
iRun will be training Steve Beauchesne for his first half marathon from now until race day and we encourage you to join along with us. Steve will be sharing his progress—and offering readers the occasional beer—and every Sunday we’ll be updating his program on iRun.ca. See you in Ottawa everyone. We’ll meet you in the Beau’s tent with Steve.
Over the next few months, we’re interested in telling the stories of those who came to running after the age of 40 and what they’ve learned and accomplished in the process. If you’re interested in participating, tweet Ravi and introduce yourself. We’re starting with Jonathan Greenwald, who you can follow on Instagram (Runthesix) and on his blog “Brooklyn 2 Boston.“
Though he hails from Brooklyn, Toronto has been the site of many life changing milestones for Jonathan Greenwald, having moved north after meeting his Canadian wife in 2005. Shortly after, he became a dad to his now seven year old son and the family have called Toronto home ever since.
Toronto is also where Jonathan kindled his obsession with running in June of 2013, just four months after turning 40, which makes his Instagram handle (Runthesix) so appropriate.
As is the case for many who turn to running later in life, it began as a preventative health measure and only became a passion over time. According to Jonathan, at the time of that first foray into running, “I was 183 pounds, the most I ever weighed in my life. I decided I needed to make a few changes and a couple of friends invited me to start running with them.”
“My goal was to not die,” Jonathan remembers. Like many new runners, Jonathan had no idea how his body was going to react to running. He’d been active throughout his youth playing tackle football and hockey, but running was never really in the picture. Much of that activity had also stopped after his teens and it wasn’t until moving to Canada all those years later that Jonathan decided to become active again.
While the first run was a success in that Jonathan didn’t meet his mortal end, it still served as a rude awakening. Jonathan recalls, “I wasn’t obese, but after my first runs, it was clear I was out of shape.”
At the very least, Jonathan hoped he could at least stick with running long enough to lose a few pounds and maybe come to actually enjoy it.
There was also the matter of justifying all the running related purchases he made before that first run. “I purchased a running watch, shorts, a top, and running shoes,” Jonathan says. “What scared me the most was that I wouldn’t enjoy running and would have to explain to my wife that I purchased all of these items and wasn’t going to use them!”
In the subsequent years, Jonathan has certainly justified those purchases, and the many that surely followed, as he took running from a hopeful experiment that might lead to better health to a full on obsession (Seriously, check out his Instagram!). He stays consistent, cranks out high volume, and is never quite ready to settle. Accomplishing one goal just means it’s time to chase another.
2016 was Jonathan’s marquee year, with PBs posted at the 10K, half marathon, and 30K distances. The last one resulted in a silver finisher’s medal at the classic Around the Bay race in Hamilton, which requires a sub-2:15 finish. There was also the crowning achievement of Jonathan’s running life, racking a BQ (Boston Qualifier) “…with a time I never would have dreamed I could obtain.”
The only drawback was that his BQ was ultimately 51 seconds off the final cutoff time. Nonetheless, it’s quite a remarkable list of achievements considering that Jonathan spent most of 2014/15 learning to keep himself from being constantly injured.
Reflecting on those incredible accomplishments, Jonathan says the biggest lesson he’s learned about himself running is “…to never underestimate the power of determination and perseverance. I am a firm believer of the saying, ‘Don’t just wish for it, work for it!'”
At the same time, the experience of chasing those goals has fostered a sense of maturity that allows Jonathan to accept results that may not necessarily reflect his greatest potential despite what he acknowledges to be his very competitive nature. Enough races presenting varying conditions and results have brought about the realization that, “There are so many factors you can’t control and you just have to accept it. I still get disappointed when I don’t meet a goal or have a bad day, but I quickly brush it off and move on.”
Jonathan has put that lesson into action by continuing to chase after Boston with hopes of finding himself at the start line in 2018.
There are many keys to Jonathan’s growth as a runner, but he emphasizes that your fellow runners might be your greatest resource for knowledge and inspiration. Jonathan urges new runners to, “Research run groups in your area. You will learn so much more running with your peers than trying to learn on your own and the running community is the most supportive community I know.” In addition, he adds, get to a local running store and have the friendly staff fit you with a pair of shoes that works for you so as to save you the agony of discomfort and potential injury.
Beyond the practical lessons that other runners offer, Jonathan adds, “All accomplishments aside, the friendships I’ve made through running is something I will always cherish. If I never get to Boston or never beat any of my previous finishing times, I will always love running because of the friends I made.”
And he doesn’t seem ready to slow down despite the challenges that come with potential injury and balancing running with other commitments, which often means he has to fit in runs at varying times of the day and at times where he may not necessarily be eager to get out the door. These, however, are mere inconveniences and don’t seem to make him question his commitment to goals and to running. “Nothing has made me want to quit running,” Jonathan proclaims, “I’m addicted!”
Racing is fun. Traveling is exhilarating. Combining a race with a vacation? What an incredible way to have the best of both worlds.
By Pamela Mazzuca HBSc. Kin, Athletic Therapist
Whether you go solo or pack up the whole family a racecation is a great way to see new, and even exotic, destinations and cross them off of your bucket list. Run through a national park, across a historic trail, through the most magical place on earth or even through wine country. Destination races are becoming increasingly popular, which isn’t much of a surprise considering it’s just another way for us to multitask.
As great as racing on vacation sounds, it can cause some logistical nightmares if you aren’t prepared. So before you pack your bags here are the top five things to think about when racing abroad.
Carry it
Be sure to pack all of your race day gear in your carry on luggage. The last thing you need is for your running gear to end up on the wrong plane, delayed or completely lost. It’s also a good idea to check the weather forecast before you leave and to pack things like band-aids, second skin, and other over-the-counter medications you might need in your carry on as well. You never know what how readily available these items might be.
Time it
When racing out of town you need to give yourself enough time for travel. Consider things like flight delays (especially if you have connecting flights), traffic detours and inclement weather. Depending on how far you are traveling, you also want to give yourself time to acclimate to a new climate, altitude and/or time zone. Racing while jet lagged will not provide the most positive memories.
Keep it simple
Vacation is often a time when we indulge in new and rich foods, but it’s best to stick to what you know until after your race. You just never know how your stomach will react to new foods.
Drink
Planes are notoriously dry so make sure you drink a lot of water leading up to the race in order to stay hydrated. And you really should avoid alcohol until after you cross the finish line.
Keep it low key
As tempting as it is to hit the pavement hard your first day in a new place, save the walking tours and heavy sight seeing until after the race. Being properly rested will help reduce your risk of injury and increase your chances of having a successful finish time.
Top Five Bucket List Races
As Clark Carvish explains, he was never really a runner, until he was. A former athlete and member of the Canadian Armed Forces, Carvish had always been active but running just wasn’t on his radar. Even still, once he completed his first race, his competitive spirit took over and he was hooked. Here the Ottawa resident talks about the importance of race volunteers, what makes Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend such an incredible event for the whole community and what running gives back to him.
iRun: How does someone who never thought about running as a sport, get started in the first place?
Clark Carvish: Running wasn’t really part of the mix when I was younger. My sister-in-law was looking for others to run the Spartan Race, and when she couldn’t find anyone, I said I would do it with her. I was in the army years ago so I figured how hard would it be. I hated running for the first six months. I started in January, the race was in April and I didn’t like running on the treadmill but I didn’t want to run outside at that time of year. But I stuck with it, we ran the race and it was the best thing that ever happened to me.
iRun: You have four grown children, how important is it to you to set a healthy example for them?
Clark Carvish: While of my kids are runners, they have watched me make positive changes to my lifestyle, which I believe has a trickle down effect. They see that goals they may look like they aren’t possible, become reality with determination, drive and effort. They also do see that mentally, things are grounded and that support for them is always there in whatever they do or are doing. Also, without the support of my wife Susan, it would make things definitely more difficult. I do believe that the family dynamics certainly have become healthier as well as an outcome of running.
iRun: What brings you back to running after you’ve completed a race?
Clark Carvish: It’s the enjoyment of finishing something you started and knowing you could accomplish what you set out to do. Your time may not be what you expect but that is what drives you to the next one. You’re always chasing a good race. For me it seems that every half marathon I’ve run I’ve had some kind of injury. This year, my training is going according to plan, so we’ll see how it goes.
iRun: What’s so special about Race Weekend?
Clark Carvish: This will be my fifth year participating in Ottawa Race Weekend. Last year I did the half marathon and I will run that distance again this year. It is just such a wonderful event. I volunteer too, and the smiles of everyone at the booth is wonderful to see. The moment you get down on the street on race day and you see the excitement that starts building. The night before the race, the nerves will kick in a bit but with the energy on the streets, you can’t wait to get there and get going the next morning.
iRun: Why should someone travel from across Canada or anywhere in the world to run Ottawa?
Clark Carvish: The race course. The half marathon course is so beautiful, the City of Ottawa is gorgeous. There are so may great views, the people and the community surrounding you as you run is an incredible feeling. It’s not only important to runners but it’s also important to the people of the community.
iRun: Team Awesome is gearing up and this year and this year you’re a part of it. Tell us about that experience and what got you interested in being a part of it.
Clark Carvish: Volunteering is what I try to give back and be a part. Last year I had seen Team Awesome on the Run Ottawa web site and on social media. I found it very positive following people from a new runner to a seasoned runners training up to race day. I really believe people are passionate about things that they do and if they find something that can help them mentally/physically, get a sense of accomplishment and feel good about themselves, it makes for happier people. That is something that can be shared. Anyone is able to follow our (my) journey on FaceBook, Twitter or Instagram, see what I’m doing on a weekly basis, ask questions if they feel like it and get support from any one of us to start or be involved in their journey to race day. I was very fortunate to get support from some very great individuals and try to share these experiences with others, the days you really don’t feel like going out to run or train but go anyways, when your legs feel like bricks and of course those training runs that are so great you wish it was race day. I think all new runners experience different things and it is so easy just to stop, but if you keep at it, it is something you can truly enjoy.
iRun: You give back though volunteering at events and with Team Awesome, but what has running what it gives back to you?
Clark Carvish: This is my time to relax, although it’s not really relaxing and mentally it is relaxing. I do triathlons too after my neice ran an Ironman. I got caught up in looking into it and you get absorbed into a community through social media. The people are so nice, I can talk to people who are world champions. I don’t know where else you can reach out to the people who are the best in their sports.
Amy Friel is a contributor to iRun behind some of the most recent stories in our print edition. In our most recent issue, we celebrated some of the incredible women of Canadian running and thought you should know the one who brings those stories to life.
“What was your grandfather’s name?” I’m intrigued when Amy mentions that her grandfather won the 1978 Toronto Marathon.
“Jack Friel.”
“Like, THE Jack Friel?”
“Yes, THE Jack Friel,” Amy responds with a laugh.
I was semi-joking, but as one of the co-founders of Toronto’s Longboat Roadrunners, Jack Friel is something akin to the Romulus of the now sprawling empire that is the city’s running community.
Amy’s connections to running seem endless. Her parents met at a race that her father, now an accomplished masters runner, happened to win. Her sister was awarded a track scholarship to Georgia State where her roommate was Pan-Am medalist Rachel Hannah.
Given such connections and circumstances, one can say that running is simply “in Amy’s DNA,” or that from the start she had no choice but to lace up.
The fact is, however, that Amy’s relationship with running – how she came to it, what it means to her, why she does it – is entirely her own. She relishes that the sport is a family affair and that in April she will run the Boston Marathon alongside her father and sister, but the path to that coveted start line was hardly preordained and in reality is the culmination of a deeply vocational approach to running and Amy’s desire to test her own toughness and learn more about herself with each step.
“My dad actually quit running when he was 22 so he wasn’t doing it when I was a kid,” Amy recounts. “My grandfather had retired and I would see his trophies and awards, but I wasn’t really surrounded by people running and I was never pressured into it.”
It was Amy’s own decision to pursue Cross Country, which led to her first taste of the thrill that came from beating all the boys at her school’s track day. Amy would run until the age of 18, after which she would take a hiatus that would last five years and result in her only fight with her father.
The eventual return to running, initially a coping mechanism to deal with relationship and academic setbacks, is probably the true start of the journey that has led Amy to Boston and what informs her current understanding of the sport. “Even if it felt like everything was falling apart,” she says, “I was still able to run.”
Though she’s proven herself capable of thriving at a wide range of distances, it’s the marathon that holds a very special place in Amy’s heart, precisely because of its humbling nature. “No one runs every mile with someone else,” Amy reminds me. “In the marathon you will race and suffer alone.”
She notes that the very purpose of the distance is to take you to your breaking point and ask you to go a little further still. Amy says, “It’s supposed to feel like an impossible, insurmountable task. It’s about trying to plumb the depths of your own capacity. It demands that you’re humble enough to fail.”
It’s a “no guts, no glory” approach to running that makes it an inexhaustible pursuit – there are always depths to plumb – and one that I admire and identify with greatly. The results tell one part of the story, but no single result, no matter how impressive, marks the conclusion of the process or is the sole marker of success. The intangibles of growth, toughness of character, and honour derive from what you gave on the course and how you confronted the moments that demanded you to give more, both on and off the course.
This, I think, is Amy’s philosophy of running, which she confirms when she states that her paramount goal as a runner is to never quit in the moments of strife, especially in the midst of a bad race.
“Everyone has their rivals,” Amy contends, “and you kind of owe it to them to not quit because if you just drop out just because you’re not having your best day, you’ve cheated yourself and cheated them.”
For Amy herself, those teachings were put into practice after her first marathon in 2014, which she says she had absolutely no business running. Amy recounts, “I had no speed work in my training and was just wearing myself down with too much mileage.” It was her dad’s subsequent coaching that cut 24 minutes from that first marathon and brought Amy to Boston.
The experience of a disappointing first marathon is difficult to convey to those who have never been there, but to have such a long and gruelling training process that entails so much sacrifice culminate in yet more suffering and disappointment proves reason enough for many to leave it behind for good. It’s a sign that running maybe “just isn’t for them.”
Running doesn’t tell Amy what she is, however. Rather, she uses the sport to be what she wants to be with the same spirit of determination that made her a writer despite being laughed out of an interview for a job with a magazine years ago. Amy takes the lessons of running, but ultimately only she decides what she is and will be.
To talk to Amy is to have facts, trivia, and wisdom about running fly at you at a rate that’s difficult to keep pace with. My single favourite and the one that sticks most is when she tells me, almost in passing, that Tom Longboat’s Onandaga name, Cogwagee, means “everything,” and, “That’s what running is, it’s everything!”
For Amy, running is a passion, a family tradition, a subject for meticulous study, and a connection through which strangers become a community. She says, “When I moved to Toronto, I didn’t feel like I really lived here until I found the running community.”
These experiences have given way to the wisdom that running’s riches are far ranging and that through running, there are many things we can be and many joys in which to bask. The result is that Amy’s devotion to the sport is built upon a foundation of many pillars and unlikely to falter any time soon, even with experiences like that first marathon. “If you’re more than one thing,” Amy says, “you will never be broken by one thing.”
Yes… I get it – we hear it constantly: in life, everything is about balance. Anyone working 42+ hour/wk. gets that, any parent with young one gets that, I get that… but… the need to exercise is sometimes too strong, too compelling. Personally, and like many other runners, I hold an utmost importance and cherish the concept of the life/work/run balance. I run not just to follow a good physical and healthy lifestyle but because the mental health has so much to benefit from it.
For starters, the stressors that surround us and that we experience in our often overwhelming chosen way of life. A key concept that was passed along at work by our wonderful Peer Support Group people is that of the ‘Penny Jar’. A full penny jar represents what you have to give in a day. Taking time for yourself adds pennies and daily stressors take them away. In the (almost) 15 years I have been working in the emergency services field, I have been able to maintain pennies in my jar by running. The daily stressors of my work as a paramedic continually take pennies. Running adds pennies to my jar every day and helps me carry on with a certain degree of sanity. We, as paramedics, live a particular type of stress every single shift. Everyone will feel, live and cope differently to a given stressor or trigger event and, in many articles that have been made available to us; we find that a healthy lifestyle is one of the most successful ways to overcome it. I am far from being a social worker, psychologist or else but I find that running helps tremendously.
Here’s why:
First, you don’t really need to plan ahead. I have half an hour free? (45 mins, if you include shower time), I just go.
Secondly, no special equipment is required. Sure, if you want to keep stats, your phone / other device will come along but really, just get your shoes on and – weather dependent – some extra layers and off you go.
Then; the simplicity of the outdoors. Enjoy the scenery, the nature’s calmness. We are so fortunate up here in the National Capital Region with all the surrounding green spaces and kilometers of trails (e.g. Gatineau Park) that are no further than 20 minutes from downtown Ottawa. Running doesn’t require lots of focus; it’s in the human nature. The fact that I dislike running with music gives me full awareness of the environment that I run in.
Finally; to change it up once in a while, invite a friend to join in. The running chat – or ‘small talk’ – helps changing one’s mindframe.
Every one of us needs time to disconnect, my way is to go for a run. If you are able to, I strongly encourage you to do it. Run once or twice a week, you’ll feel great, mentally and physically!
Fitting everything in an already busy and overbooked schedule can seem to be an unachievable task but please, take time for yourself and practice one of the best sports on earth: running!!
Our Magazine
Previous Release