The Science of Running vs. The Philosophy of Running

Running has an odd dichotomy of the mental rewards and the physical challenge. They aren’t always at odds, but I think at some point that conflict arises as it happens for every runner. There are countless of books and websites that will provide invaluable guidance on how to properly train, things to do and things you shouldn’t do. There are doctors who specialize in treating runners and endurance athletes that can give you a range of advice. Our watches can manage to measure every possible metric. All of this data that can help guide you, but the one over arching theme with injuries is listen to your body and listen carefully. It can be sneaky because there are aches and pains that you can push through and other ones that are serious warnings to back off.
My history is as follows:

• 2012- Stress Fracture in my left leg after my first six months of running. That was my one serious injury that was the cautionary tale of listening to people who said you needed to be careful about abusing your body despite falling in love with running.
• 2014- Tendinitis in my right and left ankle. Once again an overuse injury and the lesson that I wasn’t going to be beyond stretching.
• 2016- A minor case of compartment syndrome and tendinitis. More overuse but also the lesson that after a certain amount of rest, the body needs to be pushed to learn how to break up the scar tissue.

The first injury was the most significant. After two months of progressively worse and worse pain, I went to the doctor to reveal what was essentially a hole in my leg. He told me to take a month off…at least. That is the other side of the dichotomy. Training lets you feed the reliance and the desire. I have my schedule, my plan and my goals that let me run, day after day. The greatest fear for a runner is losing that next day. Something out of your control that takes away the ability to run. All of my injuries have been a matter of overuse, so it always comes down to rest. And that interminable rest that reminds me that beyond the physical needs, I have an emotional dependence.

Usually, by this point in my training (about nine weeks out) I have a clear goal. I have an idea of what is realistic for time and what I need to do in the last two months to get there. This year will be different. I have been struggling with a leg injury. Some IT band issue and piriformis syndrome. I have listened to my body and rested, lowering my mileage and avoiding speed sessions. I still run next to the track on my most mornings, so I yearn for those important sessions, but I know the tightness in my leg is my body telling me something.

The key about listening to my body is that I won’t let it break my spirit. I may not have a clear idea of what will happen in November, but the truth is that it doesn’t matter. The New York City Marathon is spiritual for me. That sounds extraordinarily corny, but in the dark times that we live in now, the New York City Marathon is not about a number or a medal or any of the cool ancillary things that go along with it. The New York City Marathon is a day when people get reminded of all the coolness of this City. And not the coolness that flows from our clothes, music or restaurants, but the implicit kindness and inclusion that make this place that is my home so special. And I know some people may think this is the classic coddling of focusing on participation versus competitiveness. It’s not. Trust me; my time will matter to me. But I won’t back down from showing up in Staten Island and I sure as hell won’t miss running through the streets of New York City with a million people cheering me.

This week was going to be a turning point, the moment of truth for me to measure how I should tackle the next two months. I can’t say it went perfectly, but it was better than the week before. And it was enough to show me I can push forward to make next week even better. It is the understanding that my body may be telling something but it definitely didn’t tell me to quit. Eight weeks of full fledged training is not great but its better than nothing. And it is definitely worth it.