If you’ve returned to running during the pandemic or have had your usual races cancelled, MS Run Presented by Running Room is a way to make your kilometres count and run at your own pace while raising much-needed funds for Canadians living with multiple sclerosis.
Register for MS Run and make your kilometers count this September! Register here: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising-page/creation?campaignShortName=msrun2020
My apartment flooded last week. Not once. Not twice. But three times within a forty-eight hour period. The kitchen sink fully backed up and flooded the kitchen, front hall, and parts of the living room with eighteen stories worth of dirty water from the building’s main line. Pleasant — right? Fortunately, the issue was resolved within a few days and the damage will be covered by insurance.
After indulging in an appropriate(?) amount of self-pity (we’re all so very familiar with the repeated laments of Why ME?) I changed the narrative and decided to ask what serendipitous lesson the universe was trying to aggressively bring to my attention with this experience? What did this flood really represent?
There is no current consensus among professionals on the average number of thoughts an individual has per day. For my purposes, the amount of thoughts we have over the course of the day is not as interesting as the type of thoughts we have, and, how we choose to react to them. If you’re anything like me, dear reader, there are some thoughts you don’t necessarily want to address when they pop into your cerebrum. It’s much easier to say…lace up a pair of black and gold Nike’s and pump out a run. You convince yourself whatever that thought (or those thoughts) may have been can wait…right?
Let’s return to the beginning shall we? This article was inspired by a series of floods that dampened my condo (and mood!) earlier this week. Between the first two floods the solutions implemented by the plumbers were evidently quick fixes. Temporary. Simply a redirection of the main problem instead of a long term solution. The problem reappeared and the damage was greater each time. Can you guess where I’m going with this…?
You got it! I’m using my experience from earlier this week as a catalyst for a personal experiment. It’s time to take a mental dive into the deep end of my mind. (Water puns — am I right?) For the next month I’m challenging myself to become comfortable with the uncomfortable thoughts I have a habit of (literally) running away from. How? Meditation.
I am aware meditation has become somewhat trendy. There are a gazillion apps; sleek, exclusive meditation studios; and luxury retreats in Bali. (Side note — do we not find meditation apps to be somewhat of an oxymoron?) However, meditation and mindful contemplation go back millennia to some of the earliest civilizations. In my opinion, there is obvious benefit to this practice for it to have stuck around for so long. My personal interest lies in observing the benefits of incorporating meditation into my life as a tool to enhance my athletic performance. The hypothesis in question can be written into the following two equations:
Being more in touch with your own mind = being more in touch with your physical body.
Being more in touch with your physical body = better athletic performance.
Feel free to follow along as I plunge into the world of meditation for the next month in effort to see whether or not these equations ring true. Through personal research, interviews with fellow athletes, and health care experts I will share a final written anecdote about my experience. Through my trial and error let’s see how, for one curious and humble runner, the impact the mind can have over the marathon.
Photograph by Valerie Miles.
For Lori Kemp, running has always been connected to multiple sclerosis (MS). It was a probable MS diagnosis that prompted her to start training for a half marathon back in 2011. Her she recounts her story.
“When I was 25, I lost sight in my left eye due to optic neuritis (a condition that is commonly linked to MS). Unfortunately, the damage to the optic nerve became permanent and my vision never came back. Seven years later and after the birth of my third child, I experienced numbness in my hands, so I headed to the MS Clinic in Winnipeg. An MRI scan revealed poor results; a number of lesions where the neurologist said they’d typically see lesions in people with MS. At that point, I felt like an MS diagnosis was imminent.
I’d always wanted to run a half marathon and after that poor MRI, I decided to do it while I still could. My sister registered with me and we trained together, completing a half marathon three months later.
After that, with three young children, my own business to run, and a new MS diagnosis to manage, I put running on the backburner. As my kids grew older, having two hockey players and a figure skater under my roof meant practices, tournaments, and competitions that kept me very busy. But all of that disappeared during the past few months because of COVID-19.
Suddenly, I had free time. I started going outside and running one mile, two miles, three miles – and figured that I could actually make it five or six miles. MS can sometimes play with your mind and make you doubt yourself. Before I started, I don’t think I thought I could run five or six miles.
Quickly getting into my previous running routine, I started using the a running app to track the miles I ran and after 30 days, I saw that I’d run over 100 miles – something I never thought was possible.
During this time, running has been an escape from being in the house and doing nothing. This summer, I’ve been way better. I feel better, I feel stronger, I feel like I can handle more.”
If you’ve returned to running during the pandemic or have had your usual races cancelled, MS Run Presented by Running Room is a way to make your kilometers count and run at your own pace while raising much-needed funds for Canadians like Lori who are living with multiple sclerosis.
Register for MS Run and make your kilometers count this September! Register here: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising-page/creation?campaignShortName=msrun2020
On this edition of iRun Radio:
Some incredible stories, including a man who actually ran with Terry Fox during the Marathon of Hope 40 years ago. We’ll talk about the Run for Women, which is coming up in a few weeks and will raise awareness and money for women’s mental health. And a runner who survived a rare form of cancer and then actually met his stem cell donor at the finish line of a race.
Nothing gets much easier than this power bowl. Try it for dinner and make extra for lunch the next day. Grilled zucchini, bell peppers, and artichokes on a bed of delicate lentils and barley, brings all the fresh flavours of the season together. The lemon and herb marinated grilled shrimp and drizzled with basil yogurt dressing are the perfect pairing.
INGREDIENTS
Basil Yogurt:
¼ cup (60 mL) plain Greek yogurt
1 Tbsp (15 mL) chopped fresh basil
1/2 tsp (2 mL) oregano
1 tsp (5 mL) lemon juice
to taste, salt
Marinade:
half lemon, juice and zest
2 Tbsp (30 mL) canola oil
3 tsp (15 mL) oregano
1 garlic clove, chopped
pinch, chili flake
to taste, salt and pepper
Bowl:
4 oz (115 g) shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 Tbsp (15 mL) canola oil
1 small zucchini, sliced thinly lengthwise
1 yellow pepper, quartered
2 artichoke hearts
1 lemon, sliced
¾ cup (175 mL) cooked green lentils
¼ cup (60 mL) cooked or canned chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 cup (250 mL) cooked pearl barley
1 Tbsp (15 mL) chopped basil
1 tsp (5 mL) chopped oregano
1 Tbsp (15 mL) lemon juice
½ cup (125 mL) sliced cucumber
¼ cup (60 mL) sundried tomatoes
2 Tbsp (30 mL) chopped kalamata olives
2 Tbsp (30 mL) chopped walnuts
DIRECTIONS
ONE: Prepare shrimp marinade by mixing all ingredients together in a small bowl. Pour over shrimp and refrigerate for 1 hour.
TWO: Prepare basil yogurt by blending ingredients on high until basil has broken down and turned the yogurt slightly green. Reserve.
THREE: Season a grill pan on high heat with a drizzle of oil. When the pan is nearly smoking, char zucchini, pepper, artichoke hearts, and lemon slices. Reserve. Next grill the shrimp for 1 minute per side, until both sides are bright pink. Reserve.
FOUR: To build the bowls, start by placing a large dollop of prepared yogurt on a spot where the bottom and the side of the bowl meet. Using the back of a spoon drag slowly across the side of the bowl in a swiping motion. Next, mix lentils, chickpeas, and barley with chopped basil, oregano, lemon juice, and salt to taste, and place in one section. Repeat with zucchini, cucumber, chopped pepper, sundried tomato, olives, walnuts, lemon slice, and finally shrimp. Serve.
Recipe courtesy of Saskatchewan Pulse Growers.
It’s spring of 2020. Race events like the Canada Army Run were tested, having to abandon years of tradition to embrace a new virtual format aimed to keep the running community alive and well. In a matter of a couple months, virtual races became the new trend. Mary Lou (Bolger) Trowell, a long-time supporter of Canada Army Run, anxiously awaited the news on the status of the 2020 Army Run so she could continue her tradition.
Now, with us only a month away from race day, Mary Lou has registered for Canada Army Run: Virtual and has found something to look forward to despite the uncertainty 2020 has brought us.
“Usually my husband, daughter, son-in-law and I go to Ottawa for the event. This year I decided to challenge my son and his family, my sister, brother-in-law, and my nephews to join us (located in Sudbury, Mississauga, Oakville, and Moncton),” says Trowell.
This digital shift has created a new, more national Army Run community. The event now welcomes not only new runners craving the freedom and escape running can provide, but also those who could not make it to Ottawa each September. Traditionally, Canada Army Run sees 64% of its participants from within a 40km radius – now 84% are participating from outside that local geography. Over 45% of this year’s virtual racers have not done the event in previous years.
While virtual has expanded our reach, it has also pushed us to recreate the same unique experiences virtually. One of the features we are thrilled to have is Remembrance Row, presented in partnership with the Royal Canadian Legion – a feature that showcases photographs of veterans who have passed as a way to honour the loved ones that served.
“As it’s the 75th anniversary commemorating the end of the war, I decided to go bigger and challenge my cousins and their families all across Canada to join us. My grandparents had four children enlist in the war, two in the army and two in the air force. This year, we are running/walking to honour all four of them,” continues Trowell.
Challenging her family across Canada is a true depiction of the family friendly nature the Canada Army Run encourages. It’s a great way to get active in support of our military families.
Mary Lou’s Team Bolger hopes to have a good sized team and aims to challenge those who can’t participate to donate to Soldier On and Support our Troops fund. To honour their grandparents’ four children, they are even making race bibs to send to all of their team members with the pictures of them on it.
“Hopefully next year some of my extended family will join us in Ottawa at the finish line. Of all the events my husband and I have done over the years, Canada Army Run is the top,” says Mary Lou.
As we continue to focus on our virtual run, we look forward to the day where we can provide our Canada Army Run family that sense of normalcy they’ve grown accustomed to.
This current situation has allowed us to prioritize and identify what truly matters to us.
It’s our time to rebrand the running industry as we reset.
#armyrun #noordinnaryrace #rememberancerow
Running makes a giant leap forward with Love is Love.
Love is Love—which takes place virtually between August 28 through September 6— is a new 1-mile virtual event hosted by the Calgary Marathon with the Calgary Pride foundation making history as Alberta’s largest city’s first Pride run. It’s LGBTQ2+ friendly and the first of its kind as its registration form does not ask participants to choose a gender. Long overdo and open to everybody, the event is a braver space for people who haven’t had one—especially in sports—for much too long.
“The established binary categories (ie: Male/Female) that exist in competition make it challenging for folks whose identity may not align with the sex they were assigned at birth, and the gender identity in which they live,” says Parker Chapple, executive director of Calgary Pride, and a former competitive swimmer who felt thwarted by binary category expectations. “For us to be able to create an activity in a space that typically excludes trans and non-binary folks feels important and representational of what Pride is about—creating opportunities that inspire empathy while challenging the status quo.”
Kirsten Fleming, executive director of Run Calgary, has long been active in this space and made inclusion a priority for her race organization, one of the largest in the country. Long a voice for inclusion and equality in our sport, it was important to her to team up with Pride Calgary to launch a Pride run.
“We are learning about the lack of safe spaces in sport for the LBGTQ2+ community and are excited to work with Calgary Pride to provide an equitable opportunity for trans, non-binary and gender fluid participants to compete and join in,” says Fleming, who moved the entire Scotiabank Calgary Marathon to a virtual run earlier this spring. “Moreover, we hope to facilitate a culture of learning and allyship in the running community through this collaboration.”
The collaboration is exciting, and not just to the LGBTQ2+ community looking to participate in the events and feel safe and respected, but to Calgary—and Canada’s—diverse community of runners, no matter how they identify. Parker Chapple says their community doesn’t want to win “Best Trans Athlete” or “Best Non-Binary Runner.” They want to compete on the same playing field as every other competitor. The Love is Love 1-Mile virtual event may even be the catalyst to modernize running when road races finally return after COVID-19. Parker Chapple says it’s about time.
“During Pride Week, cis-gender and heterosexual folks tend to become more engaged with our community by proxy and want to be good allies, they just might not have the tools,” Chapple explains. “Love is Love sparks a conversation in a healthy, timely manner and we believe it can empower individuals so that when it’s not Pride Week, importantly, we all employ tolerance and empathy all year round.”
Calgary Pride week is August 28th – September 6th, 2020. To sign up for Love is Love, open now, click here.
#WeAreCalgaryPride
On this edition of iRun Radio:
We’ll talk to independent running store owner Lynn Bourque about how the pandemic has produced a new group of runners. John Smallwood will share the lessons of half a century of running. And a runner who has completed 35 marathons before turning 40.
Pasta is always a good idea. This cavatappi pasta dish is one that’s versatile enough you can use whatever meat or pasta you have in your refrigerator and pantry.
Serves: 4-6
Prep Time: 25-30 minutes
INGREDIENTS
DIRECETIONS
ONE: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Using a sharp knife, slit each sausage down the side. Remove meat and place in a large ovenproof skillet. Add butter and onion. Set over medium heat. Stir to keep meat crumbly and cook until no longer pink, about 5 min. Add tomatoes and red pepper. Cook, stirring, for 3 min to soften tomatoes slightly.
TWO: Add pasta to boiling water and cook according to package directions or until al dente, about 8 min.
THREE: Meanwhile, sprinkle flour, oregano and nutmeg over sausage mixture. Stir to combine. Gradually stir in milk. Stir until mixture boils and thickens, about 3 min. Stir in parsley, Ricotta and half the Parmesan. Remove from heat.
FOUR: Preheat broiler. Drain pasta very well. Stir into sausage mixture. Add pepper and salt if needed. Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan. Broil for a couple of minutes or until top is bubbly.
For more recipe ideas check out Dairy Farmers of Canada.
They say all you need to run is a good pair of sneakers and some free time, and that’s true. But if you were to go skiing and didn’t have snow pants, there’s little chance that you’d enjoy the experience, and running is sort of the same thing. Chafing is no fun and neither is being wet, cold or overheated. Dayna Pidhoresky knows something about dressing for her sport. A lifelong runner, she qualified for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics at the 2019 Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon by finishing first Canadian female in the marathon. “Socks, $20; tights, $45; shirt, $30; coat, $100—getting off the couch watching Netflix, priceless,” she says, with a laugh. Here’s five tips for getting yourself a decent running outfit that won’t leave you out in the cold.
5. Socks matter.
Whether it’s a thick sock or a thin sock, that’s personal preference, but everyone agrees that you don’t wear cotton. “You want a wicking fabric to prevent blisters,” says Pidhoresky, adding that different types of socks range in their amount of cushioning, but nearly every sporting good store sells something for your feet made of synthetic materials, like acrylic and polyester. You can wash and dry your new running socks like anything else and if at first it makes you giggle—how the socks are designated for your left and right foot—that’s OK. It’s a right of passage of every new running getting serious in the sport.
4. If bashful, wear black.
Starting out, it may feel strange wrapping yourself in tight-fitting clothing and running around your neighbours’ houses dressed up like a sausage, so choose black when purchasing tights or T-shirts. Not only is the color slimming, but it’s easy to coordinate and gives a runner the impression of entering stealth mode, especially when many of the offerings are fluorescent. “When you’re starting out or shopping for a new runner, you can’t go wrong with one pair of black tights and a black shirt,” says Pidhoresky, who adds that sized medium in street clothes generally translates to a size medium in running gear, although certain brands like Mizuno, based in Japan, tend to run small.
3. Running clothes don’t have to be skin tight.
“I like running gear to be on the looser side for freedom of arms and shoulder movement, as well as the flexibility of adding a thicker layer over a shirt beneath my coat,” says Pidhoresky, who also dovetails us into an interesting conversation: whether or not to wear running underwear beneath your tights or running shorts. Many running shorts contain their own lined “runderwear,” and Dayna’s elite racing shorts are somewhat akin to swimsuit bottoms. However, with running tights, the choice whether or not to wear underwear is up to the individual. She and her partner, running coach Josh Seifarth, don’t wear underwear beneath their tights; I do—though I’m willing to experiment. “The main thing is you want technical fabric,” says Pidhoresky, as modelled above by Malindi Elmore, the fastest female Canadian runner of all-time. “You can decide for yourself on your underwear.”
2. Bra fit is essential.
Pidhoresky finds two pieces of equipment vital: her sneakers and her running bra. “Especially when you’re starting out, you really need something designed for higher impact,” she says, adding that bras designed for yoga or gym workouts will not suffice for the impact of running. “Running is a more intensive activity,” says Pidhoresky. Often mentioned as an industry leader is the Brooks brand, and there are also many companies that offer in-depth virtual fittings, like Knix. Lululemon, who Pidhoresky works with, is also known for their exceptional fitting bras.
1. A little money goes a long way.
You will never in your life go on a run and regret it and what you wear can have an impact on how your run feels. Odds are, you can get an entire outfit—socks, tights, shirt, and coat—for $300, which is basically five months at a GoodLife gym (or the time it can take you to become an experienced runner). It’s excellent that lots of new people are taking to running, but without the right clothing it will be hard to stick with the sport. Especially as the temperature drops. So spend a few dollars on your latest adventure. Like Dayna, pictured above, says: “Getting off the couch watching Netflix—priceless.”
To subscribe to iRun magazine, and enter our new Running is Awesome portal, designed to help new runners enter our sport, please click here.
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