NOVEMBER 2017 SOUTHERN AFRICAN EDITION
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CONTENTS
THE LOOP 06 RAVE RUN 10 November 2017
EDITOR’S LETTER 14
78
THE BEST (RW READER) TIPS EVER!
Do This, Not That: Who bet ter to ask than our readers?
Our most valuable contributors share their top-notch tips – to help you become a better runner. BY LISA ABDELLAH AND PENNY TREVENA
ON THE COVER Reader Tips.......................................78 When Did Running Get So Rad?........70 Shake Up Your Smoothie..................48 Perfect Your Form............................38 Injury-Proof Your Calves...................41 Sexy & Supportive Bras....................51
4 RUNNER’S WORLD NOVEMBER 2017
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66
70
BRA-VO!
END ON A HIGH NOTE
WE RUN THE STREETS
When it comes to buying a sports bra, you don’t have to choose style over comfort. Here are 11 of the best. BY RYAN SCOTT & KELLY BASTONE
It takes guts (and some preparation) to conquer the final kick to the finishing line. Follow these race-day tips to ensure you’ll have your strongest finish ever. BY KRISTEN DOLD
They’re edgy. They’re explorers. They’re misfits. What they are not is a club. Meet the urban running crews changing the culture of running. BY MATT GROSS & LISA ABDELLAH
PHOTOGRAPH BY FERDINAND VAN HUIZEN
CONTENTS
17
P H OTO G R A P H B Y A L E X A B D E L L A H
37
WE’RE ALWAYS RUNNING AT RUNNERSWORLD.CO.ZA
34
5 SWIMMING WORKOUTS FOR RUNNERS
38 HUMAN RACE 17
unning To Heal How a rape R survivor supports other victims around the world. 24 I Ran It Off! A persistent parent becomes a yummy mummy. 25 Social Living life to the full: a photographer who keeps it real. 27 Runner By The Numbers Can a celebrity buy an elite marathon time?
PERSONAL BEST 33 K eep Your Cool Training and fuelling tweaks to survive a sweltering summer. 37 Ready, Set, Snooze How to sleep like a baby – all the nights before your race. 38 Perfect Your Form Simple form cues will have you gliding like the pros. 40 Hot to Trot Only runner in the family? Not after you take them on a holiday 5-K fun run. 41 Body Shop Push your pace – by building your below-the-knee strength.
44 F lex Your Mental Muscle You can build willpower – it just takes training. 46 T he Sports Scientist Leaked: Eliud Kipchoge’s winning training programme. 47 T angled Up In Blue[berries] Chill out with this sweet superfood, Bob. 48 Smooth Move Go big with bowlsized smoothies.
RACES+PLACES 87 Racing Ahead
Hitting the pool is one of the best ways to cool down after a hot summer run. We’ll help you get the most out of it. Visit runnersworld.co.za/ swimming
ON THE COVER
NOVEMBER
2017
THE READER* SPECIAL TRAINING, EATING & MOTIVATION WISDOM
(*FROM OUR MOST VALUABLE CONTRIBUTORS)
COLUMNS 22 L ife and Times Finding Grace BY CHRISTOPHER MICHEL 26 The Road Scholar Outracing The Reaper BY PETER SAGAL 30 Running The World Mauritius BY PIERS STEPHENSON 90 B ack of the Pack The Ghost Of Running Past BY BRUCE PINNOCK
COOL DOWN, FUEL UP!
The Tastiest Way To Recover This Summer p47
FIX FORM INSTANTLY!
Try This Simple Trick TODAY p38
INJURY-PROOF YOUR CALVES
Here's How p41
BRA-VO!
11 Sexy Running Crops For Comfort & Support NOVEMBER 2017 SOUTHERN AFRICAN EDITION
RSA R40.00 (VAT INCL) NAMIBIA N$42.50
www.runnersworld.co.za 11281
Meet The Revolutionaries
9 771021 566004
Runners – Members of the Resident Runners run crew. From left: Rahsaan Rogers, Raymond Hailes, Eric Blevens. Photograph by Emiliano Granado
THE GALLERY
THE LOOP
#INSTARWRUN
THE INBOX
WINNING LETTER
RUNNERS CONNECT
My mom started running when she was in her 30s – I was around eight or nine years old at the time. I remember our Saturdayafternoon drives to measure the route she had run that morning. Mom also took up cycling. But sadly, a drunk driver killed her on one of her training rides, when I was 12. I decided to start running when I was 40, and ended up following many of the same routes my mom used to run on 30 years ago; only nowadays, you measure the distance using a pace watch! Not only do I get a lot of enjoyment out of running – it’s been a way to reconnect with my late mom. – JANET, DURBAN
July 2012) has gone from strength to strength since she shared her inspiring weight-loss story with your readers. Her proudest achievement is finishing the 2017 Two Oceans Ultra. And she’s not stopping there: now she’s registered for her first Comrades! “One step at a time,” Nicola encouraged us, her parents, when we entered our first marathon, aged 60 and 65 respectively. Her story is an inspiration to all runners who are training to live out their dreams.
We asked you to show off your running experiences. Here are four submissions that made us envious!
“I have to bribe and threaten her to try on sandals, but she freaks out about running shoes.” – @crazy_normal_me
“Water crossings are AWESOME! No tiptoeing. Let’s get right in!”
“A creature so well made for the mountains that he camouflages among rocks. Bailey, where’d you go? Bailey?” – @mountain_creatures
“VO2 Max test day!”
– @ingrids_on_the_trails
– CHARLOTTE WARD, ZIMBABWE
WHERE ARE THEY NOW? Our daughter Nicola Blignaut (Run It Off, RW
– @chantalberowsky
INSTA OF THE MONTH THE POLL
DO YOU PAUSE YOUR GPS WATCH WHEN YOU STOP DURING A RUN?
53% No, that’s cheating.
47% Yes, always.
This month’s winning letter will receive a pair of Budds By DJ Fresh Bluetooth Earbuds, valued at R699. Whether you’re road or trail running, hiking or at the gym, at home, at work or in between, BUDDS By DJ Fresh will give your life a soundtrack. Music and calls are transmitted to your earpiece wirelessly, allowing you freedom to move without the restrictions of being physically attached to your mobile. The rubber buds, ear-hoops and in-ear control panel all work together to give you a lightweight but firm in-ear grip. Write to: Runner’s World, PO Box 16368, Vlaeberg, 8018; Fax: 021 408 3811; or email: rwletters@media24.com (letters must be no longer than 100 words and must include your name, address and telephone number or email address).
“BACK IN DISNEYLAND. PSYCH IS HIGH AFTER A MORNING ON ONE OF MY FAVOURITE LAPS, IN A VALLEY THAT IS STARTING TO FEEL MORE AND MORE LIKE HOME.” – @KANEREILLY1
P H OTO G R A P H B Y M I TC H M A N D E L (G P S WATC H )
Runner’s World reserves the right to edit readers’ submissions. All readers’ submissions become the sole property of Runner’s World and may be published in any medium and for any use worldwide.
READER COMMENTS
WHAT GPS WATCH DO YOU USE (IF ANY)? P H OTO G R A P H B Y F E R D I N A N D VA N H U I Z E N ( R U N N E R W I T H WATC H )
“Fenix 5x for the ultimate navigation on topographic maps. Also, it’s packed with fitness-tracking and recovery features. Truly next generation.”
“TomTom Runner 3 + Cardio.The best thing ever!” – Lebohang Letsipa
“One that tells the time.” – Gary Victor Michael Ingram
– Bennie Roux
“My Nike watch is so old the band is falling apart; but I love it too much to part with it. I tape the band together so I can still run with it.”
“My Garmin 920xt has survived the last three Comrades, and it’s still going strong.” – Jason Hooper
– Teresa McCool Hovell
AUGUST 2017 RUNNER’S WORLD 7
RUNNER’S WORLD PROMOTION
SA’S BIGGEST ONLINE RUNNING PORTAL Training Programmes for Every Distance Complete Race Calendar Expert Tips, Workouts and Injury-Prevention Advice Everyday Motivation!
Southern African Edition. A joint venture between Rodale Press, Inc and Media24 Magazines.
EDITORIAL
What superstitious rituals do the RW staffers perform in races?
Editor MIKE FINCH (mike.finch@media24.com) Deputy Editor LISA ABDELLAH (lisa.abdellah@media24.com) Senior Designer MARK ARENDSE (mark.arendse@media24.com) Chief Sub/Managing Editor DAVE BUCHANAN (dave.buchanan@media24.com) Associate Editor ANDRÉ VALENTINE (andre.valentine@media24.com) Online Editor PENNY TREVENA (penny.trevena@media24.com) Digital Content Manager YENTL BARROS (yentl.barros@media24.com) Gear Editor RYAN SCOTT (madibapi@gmail.com) Scientific Editor DR ROSS TUCKER Editor-at-Large BRUCE FORDYCE CONTRIBUTORS Alex Abdellah, Larisa Armstrong, Tudor Caradoc-Davies, James Garaghty, Stuart Hendricks, Sean Laurénz, Jacques Marais, Glen Montgomery, Toby Murphy, Warren Papier, Bruce Pinnock, Neil Roberts, Ryan Sandes, Piers Stephenson, Ferdinand van Huizen, Kelly Bastone, Jonathan Beverly, Chris Cardoza, Stephen Cheetham, Amanda Derakhshan, Manan Dhuri, Kristen Dold, Jeff Galloway, Emiliano Granado, Matt Gross, Alex Hutchinson, Bee Johnson, Matthew Kadey, Cindy Kuzma, Chris Langer, Zohar Lazar, Yishane Lee, Mitch Mandel, Christopher Michel, Dale Edwin Murray, Andy Rementer, Matheus Rodrigues, Peter Sagal, Brad Stulberg, Brian Tarnowski, Barrett Washburne, Ryan Young, Claire Zulkey
PUBLISHING & MARKETING Mike Finch “Whether it’s a race or just a training run, a double espresso is always on the menu.” Mark Arendse “Visiting the porta-loo 10 times before a big race – well, it feels like 10...” Dave Buchanan “I have a security banana for ‘just in case’ that I carry to the end, but never eat. (Like a security blanket, but yellower...)” Lisa Abdellah “If you don’t cross the timing mat in a perfectly straight line, it doesn’t work. And... orange shoes are the fastest.” Yentl Barros “It’s bad luck to accept a medal and not smash a saucy burger straight after!”
Publishing & Production Manager GERDA ENGELBRECHT Publishing Manager FRANCOIS MALAN 021 408 1228 (francois.malan@media24.com) Marketing Manager LISE COETSEE 021 443 9833 (lise.coetsee@media24.com) Marketing Assistant KELYN DONOUGH 021 443 9866 (kelyn.donough@media24.com) Digital Campaign Coordinator LILITHA JOHNSON
ADVERTISING SALES TEAM Business Manager: Media24 Leisure Sales DANIE NELL 082 859 0542 (danie.nell@media24.com) JEANINE KRUGER (JHB) 082 342 2299 (jeanine.kruger@media24.com) KATHRYN MOLYNEAUX (JHB) 083 395 3442 (kathryn.molyneaux@media24.com) KYLEE ROBERTSON (JHB) 076 263 9114 (kylee.robertson@media24.com) MYLES KELSEY (CPT) 082 613 8498 (myles.kelsey@media24.com) LAMEEZ RAIZENBERG (CPT) 082 909 9696 (lameez.raizenberg@media24.com) HANNES BURGER (CPT) 076 152 4605 (hannes.burger@media24.com) MEDIA24 CENTRAL SALES DAVID HAY (General Manager: Advertising) 011 217 3034 (david.hay@media24.com) TAMMY HOLTSHAUSEN (Johannesburg) 011 217 3022 (tammy.holtshausen@media24.com) THERESA LAVERY (Durban) 031 566 2442 (theresa.lavery@media24.com)
CIRCULATION SALES & SOLUTIONS Circulation Manager RIAAN WEYERS 021 503 7179 Subscription Manager JENNY MARINUS Product Manager EBRAHIM JEFTHA 021 503 7169
SUBSCRIPTION ENQUIRIES TEL 087 740 1041 FAX 086 457 5945 E-MAIL: runnersworld_subs@media24.com SMS ‘RUNNERSWORLDSUBS’ TO 32361 (R1 PER SMS) WEB www.my-mags.com CALL CENTRE OPERATING HOURS: MON-FRI 08:00 TO 17:00 ALL SUBSCRIPTION PAYMENTS TO: RUNNER’S WORLD, PO BOX 16428, VLAEBERG, 8018
SHARED SERVICES Production Manager KERRY NASH
MEDIA24 MAGAZINES Head of Media24 Print Media ISHMET DAVIDSON General Manager – Lifestyle RAJ LALBAHADUR CFO Lifestyle JAMEELAH CONWAY General Manager Monthlies – NERISA COETZEE PUBLISHERS OF MEN’S HEALTH, WOMEN’S HEALTH, RUNNER’S WORLD, BICYCLING
Member of the Audit Bureau of Circulation
Penny Trevena “I can’t run without my polka dot running shorts...”
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@ runnersworldza
instagram.com/runnersworldza
Ryan Scott “Always scrunch the number up.”
REPRODUCTION MEDIA24 REPRO PRINTING PAARL MEDIA CAPE DISTRIBUTION ON THE DOT
CONTACT US WEB WWW.RUNNERSWORLD.CO.ZA; EMAIL RWLETTERS@MEDIA24.COM; TEL 021 443 9447, POST RUNNER’S WORLD (SA), PO BOX 16368, VLAEBERG 8018 RODALE INTERNATIONAL SVP, International Business Development and Partnerships ROBERT NOVICK Executive Director, Business Development and Global Licensing KEVIN LABONGE Editorial Director JOHN VILLE Director, Business Development and Global Licensing ANGELA KIM Director, Global Marketing TARA SWANSEN Deputy Editorial Director VERONIKA RUFF TAYLOR Senior Content Manager KARL ROZEMEYER International Finance Manager MICHELE MAUSSER Production Assistant DENISE WEAVER Editorial Assistant NATANYA SPIES Administrative Assistant SHOI GREAVES PUBLISHED BY RODALE PRESS, INC., 33E MINOR STREET, EMMAUS, PA, USA. TEL: 001-215-9675171. © COPYRIGHT 1993 BY RODALE PRESS, INC., AND TOUCHLINE MEDIA, (PTY) LTD. NO PART OF THIS PUBLICATION MAY BE REPRODUCED, STORED IN A RETRIEVAL SYSTEM OR TRANSMITTED IN ANY FORM OR BY ANY MEANS, ELECTRONIC OR MECHANICAL, WITHOUT PRIOR PERMISSION OF THE PUBLISHER. THE PUBLISHER ASSUMES NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR RETURN OF UNSOLICITED MANUSCRIPTS, ART, PHOTOS OR NEGATIVES. CONTRIBUTORS SHOULD INCLUDE A SELF-ADDRESSED AND STAMPED ENVELOPE. WELCOME TO THE EXCITING WORLD OF HOME OWNERSHIP, LISA.
RAVE RUN
GEORGE, WESTERN CAPE Photographs and words by… Jacques Marais
Runners…
Jacques Mouton, Theuns Botha, Stefan Oosthuizen, Frans-Erich Streicher and Zane Schmahl
GPS Location
-33°57’53.4”S 22°29’48.9”E
Grading
Advanced
Duration
Tierkop return: 1.5-2 hours. Full route: one day.
Best Time To Run
Expect lots of mud: the rainy season in George lasts for most of the year, because of its close proximity to the coast. It’s generally warm and pleasant in the summer; but in winter, temperatures are cold and it snows – especially higher up, close to George or Cradock Peaks.
Terrain
Forestry jeep tracks; berms; groomed MTB trails; technical, rocky trails
The Experience
George has long been considered the poor, brush-cut cousin of funky towns like Wilderness and Knysna. But a recent boom in eco-tourism has changed this; thanks to the forestry industry, the inland city is thriving. Endless gravel roads and footpaths – many of them linked to the legendary Outeniqua Hiking Trail system – now offer unfettered access to the rugged surrounding peaks, and to the indigenous forest that blankets the foothills. You can add to this a number of Blue Flag beaches literally just down the road, including the world-renowned surf break at Vic Bay. There are also dozens of fresh-water lakes, rivers and canyons.
Configuration
The climb up to and beyond
10 RUNNER’S WORLD NOVEMBER 2017
NOVEMBER 2017 RUNNER’S WORLD 11
RAVE RUN GEORGE, WESTERN CAPE Tierkop Hut is infamous. Local runner Jacques Mouton led us onto the singletrack beyond the hut, which ascends towards the base of Craddock Peak. The Tierkop Trail is traditionally a pan-handle run, accessed from either NMU’s Saasveld Campus or the Garden Route Dam trailhead. Follow the Hillbillies MTB Club signage through lower forests and plantations, towards the hut. Continue along the footpath to the right of the hut in an easterly direction, until you reach a trail that leads clockwise around Tierkop, and then links back to the road you took on the way up. From Saasveld, this makes for a 15km round trip. There’s also a one-way run, all the way to Herold Wines on the other side of the mountain, and a circular route that traverses the entire range. Once at the hut, follow the singletrack in a westerly direction – aim for the high peaks. At 16km, there’s a fork in the trail, which follows after the main trail forks at approximately 9km. Once you’re on the other side of the mountain, the vegetation changes to a mixture of dense riverine woodland, and there are fields of fynbos all the way down to Herold Wines (a further 5km). Should you choose to keep left, the route contours along the mountain, all the way to Montagu Pass, where you can connect to Cradock Pass, and back over the mountain to Witfontein Forest Station. It’s not recommended you tackle this monster ±30km run alone.
Refuel At
Krust Café (healthy breakfasts and good coffee, 044 887 0445); Robertson Brewery (ice-cold IPA and gourmet burgers, 071 781 8521); The Bench Eatery & Bar (a hipster hangout, 044 873 0566)
Getting There
Fly to George airport, or drive east from Cape Town on the N2 (approx 4.5 hours). For more information, visit georgetrails.org.za. The George Trail Festival covers much of the route and takes place in December (ecobound.co.za).
FOR DIRECTIONS, RESOURCE INFORMATION, AND DOWNLOADABLE WALLPAPER IMAGES, VISIT RUNNERSWORLD.CO.ZA / RAVERUN.
NOVEMBER 2017 RUNNER’S WORLD 13
EDITOR’S LETTER
THE NEW REVOLUTIONARIES
‘Crew’ or ‘cru’? We don’t care how you say it.
AROUND THE GLOBE, run crews are taking the sport of running and turning it into a cultural phenomenon – one that’s as much about the lifestyle that goes with it as it is about running. South Africa has a history of runners getting together in groups. Running clubs have been the lifeblood of the sport, and have driven its popularity for decades. So how are running crews different? In South Africa, starting a running crew is simply a way of establishing a less formal running club. A group of like-minded
way that running clubs can’t – and that can only be a good thing. On our cover this month, we’ve taken the decision to celebrate the rise – though embryonic – of run crews in South Africa. It’s inspiring to hear how they’re starting to pop up in urban areas, and are contributing to a healthy mindset among an audience of millennials. Suddenly, a healthy pastime has become a cool way to hang out. Just to be clear: we still love running clubs. They are the bastion of running in South Africa,
“ Suddenly, a healthy pastime has become a cool way to hang out.”
14 RUNNER’S WORLD NOVEMBER 2017
and loads of them have embraced new trends and attract a new generation of younger runners. But run crews are rad. They are the fringe players, the revolutionaries and the outliers, who see running differently. And if that means we get closer to banishing string vests forever… we think that’s a good thing! MIKE FINCH EDITOR-IN-CHIEF @MikeFinchSA
FOR MORE ON RUN CREWS, GO TO RUNNERSWORLD.CO.ZA /INTERSECTION
1 Find a group of runners with the same running philosophy. Anything more than three members is enough to be called a crew (or if you really want to be rad, a ‘cru’).
2 Give yourselves a name (preferably ignoring traditional spelling), and establish a weekly get-together schedule. These must never be called ‘runs’.
3 Set up a WhatsApp group and Instagram account. DO NOT set up a Facebook page.
4 Give each other nicknames.
5 When it comes to clothing, fashion beats function every time.
P H OTO G R A P H B Y WA R R E N PA P I E R (C R E W )
individuals get together, set up a WhatsApp group, and meet regularly for a run and some social elixing (is this a millennial word? – Sub Editor) afterwards. Running clubs tend to be more formal. They wear the same kit at races, have committees and chairpersons, charge club fees, put on organised events – and they’re a great support system for anyone from beginner to Comrades vet. But run crews have their place. They’re less intimidating, engender a closer sense of camaraderie, and are driving a new audience to see running as a means to an end. Health should always be trendy; but formal structures, while crucial for the development of the sport, are often seen as fuddy-duddy and old-school. Run crews open up the sport in a
How To Start A Run Crew – in 5 Easy Steps
RUNNER’S WORLD PROMOTION
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HUMAN RACE
News, Trends, and Regular Runners Doing Amazing Things
Running To Heal Johannesburg-born Claire McFarlane is currently running over 3 500km of beach, across 230 countries, in support of sexual violence survivors around the world. BY LISA ABDELLAH
PHOTOGRAPH BY LARISA ARMSTRONG
NOVEMBER 2017 RUNNER’S WORLD 17
HUMAN RACE
BEACH RUNNER
18 RUNNER’S WORLD NOVEMBER 2017
PHOTOGRAPH BY LARISA ARMSTRONG
T
n 1999, Joburg-born Claire McFarlane was was a 21-year-
old working part-time in a bar to fund her entry into L’Ecole des Beaux Arts, where she hoped to study fine art. One night, she left her workplace at 3am to take a taxi home – which was nothing out of the ordinary. Sadly, she never made it to the taxi. The man who grabbed and violently attacked her made sure of that. “I knew what was going to happen. Stealing my bag wasn’t his intention,” McFarlane recalls. “I fought hard to get away, but it didn’t help, because the attack became more violent.” Then, she remembered a self-defence course she’d attended at high school in Australia. A rape survivor had suggested other ways to escape a dangerous situation. “I started talking to him instead. I lied: I
told him I was terminally ill, and I was dying. Not only did it change the dynamic... I think that’s what ultimately saved my life.” Fast forward to 2014, and McFarlane finally shared the story of her brutal rape in a newspaper article. When she did, she realised she could have a positive impact on the lives of other survivors. Rape isn’t often discussed, because it tends to make people feel uncomfortable. But the fact is, more and more women are travelling alone – and some of them are runners. It’s important they know how to stay safe, and where to go for help and
“ S tealing my bag wasn’t his intention.”
Healing
During the legal process, McFarlane used running as a restorative and empowering tool – in particular, she found running on the beach a positive experience. And as she grew physically stronger, she felt safer. She also felt strong enough to share her story. “I wanted people to know what had happened to me in France, and how the justice system works there. The expectation is that France is a forward-thinking country, and that therefore, victims are treated well; but in my case, that couldn’t have been further from the truth.” McFarlane’s story ran in an Australian newspaper in 2014, and then spread to Africa, the UK and the US. It gave other survivors the courage to break the silence. They reached out to her, eager to share their own stories of sexual violence, whether through rape, assault or child abuse. McFarlane noticed that some of the taboos and shame that surround rape had shifted – and perhaps, she thought, these survivors would now be more likely to follow through with the criminal process. Inspired, she wondered how she might keep the conversation going. “Sexual violence and rape is a subject that’s difficult both to talk about and to listen to; but it’s a huge, silent epidemic that affects one in four women, and one in six men. Just talking about it wasn’t going to work. I had to find another way…” McFarlane thought about the role beach running had played in her own healing, and how she could use it as an example to others that there is life after trauma. In addition, sport has a way of uniting people – so why not use it to bring women together to talk about their experiences? As part of her initiative, Footsteps to Inspire, McFarlane aims to run 16km of beach in every coastal country of the world, in support of rape survivors: that’s 3 500km, 230-plus beaches, barefoot where possible, in under four years. She will be the first person – and woman – to do it. McFarlane began her journey in South Africa on 18 July 2016, and has so far run on 30 beaches in 29 countries, including New
NOVEMBER 2017 RUNNER’S WORLD 19
P H OTO G R A P H S U P P L I E D
what their rights are if something bad does happen. Due to the severity of her injuries, McFarlane had to stay in Paris for a further three months, her dream of studying fine art shattered in the aftermath of her harrowing ordeal. In an attempt to piece her life back together, she returned home to Australia, and filled every waking moment with something to do. She convinced herself everything was okay. But in 2009 the past came back to haunt her. Her attacker had reoffended, and a DNA match had been found. McFarlane was living in Europe at the time, and was called upon to return to Paris and identify him in a police line-up. Standing face-to-face with the man, she remembered him so clearly – and realised she hadn’t healed at all. “France’s legal system isn’t the same as South Africa’s,” McFarlane explains. “The victim is a civil party in criminal proceedings, as opposed to a witness for the state. That means you have to find your own lawyer; and if you’re a Before the Attack: foreigner, you have to pay for Claire McFarlane was the lawyer.” a promising fine ar ts student living in Paris. McFarlane’s legal battle cost
her AU$50 000 (around R530 000), and was a long, drawn-out process. Her case dragged painfully through the French justice system for six years, culminating 16 years after the attack itself. And in the end, her attacker only served three and a half years of his sentence. Sadly, she is now afraid to return to the city where she came of age, and where the artist in her blossomed.
HUMAN RACE
BEACH RUNNER
“ I ran as if charged with all the energy in the world.” ask questions about where is safe, and where isn’t – there are some places where you just can’t run alone, in which case I ask the locals to accompany me.” A learning curve
Besides running in each country she visits and sharing her story with survivors, McFarlane connects with NGOs, services and community groups. She aims to help governments to understand the issues faced by survivors all over the world.
20 RUNNER’S WORLD NOVEMBER 2017
Beachcombers: (Clock wise from top lef t) Ela Beach, Papua New Guinea; Kodi Bengre Beach, India; Monterrico, Guatemala; Nicarag ua; Singapore
“While there’s no doubt South Africa has one of the highest number of rape cases in the world, lots of other countries have the same rate of sexual violence,” McFarlane has observed. “In the UK, half a million people are sexually violated every year; and in the US, someone is assaulted every 90 seconds. “Rape culture perpetuates silence and shame: victims tend to blame themselves or feel guilty about what’s happened, and they don’t want to talk about it. In some countries, women are actually punished for opening up.” Adding to that, from her own personal experience McFarlane knows all too well that sometimes the law fails victims completely. It’s not all bad. In some countries, McFarlane has observed positive steps being taken to ensure survivors are supported. “Malaysia is a country that surprised me: they have one of the best one-stop crisis centres I have ever seen. Taiwan is equally progressive. “Over the next ten years, South Africa plans to roll out sexual violence courts across the country. Professionals will be trained to apply the law properly, so that
victims will have a better outcome. I hope that society will stop blaming the victim, and instead ask why someone would decide to harm another person.” McFarlane has been invited to speak at TEDx twice, and some of the countries and communities she has visited have pledged to hold an annual beach run to raise even more awareness about sexual violence. “This journey is about acknowledging the issues,” McFarlane says. “Once we know what’s really happening, we can find a solution.”
CLAIRE MCFARLANE SHARED HER INSPIRING STORY WITH RW. VIEW THE VIDEO AT RUNNERSWORLD.CO.ZA/ISURVIVEDRAPE AND TO FOLLOW HER JOURNEY, VISIT FOOTSTEPSTOINSPIRE.ORG
P H OTO G R A P H S CO U R T E SY O F S T E L L A M AG A Z I N E ( TO P L E F T ) ; B Y M A N A N D H U R I ( TO P R I G H T ) ; S U P P L I E D
Zealand, India, Japan, Scotland Namibia and Kenya. She’s planning a symbolic end to her journey, in France, on 18 July 2020. “I got food poisoning the night before I was supposed to run in Taiwan, and I thought it would be the hardest of the bunch,” she recalls. “It was a surfer beach – if you can imagine a Chinese surf town! The sand was beautiful, warm, soft and black, and I was running with lovely people. And I ran 16km, as if charged with all the energy in the world. “I’m a real example that it’s possible to run in remote areas alone, but safety is key. I make sure I know people on the ground, and
HUMAN RACE ASK THE TRAIL STAR
Ryan Sandes
The Singlet
Because running isn’t just about string vests. kitchen, and feel there is immense wastage at these events. They may even be flippin’ hungry themselves. You shouldn’t care if someone eats the food provided by whoever is bankrolling the race, as long as they leave some for you. THE KITE RUNNER
Is the runner’s high real? – JOY, MOSSEL BAY
RURAL RELATIONS
What’s the best way to find new running buddies in a rural town? – NATHANIEL, WELLINGTON
Most people think that if you choose to live in the country, you’re a pretty solitary creature. On the contrary, small towns breed close communities, because everyone knows each other’s business. If there’s a running club, join it. If there’s no running club, visit the town’s only coffee shop. At best, you’ll find another sweaty runner who’s filling up on caffeine – much to the tannie mafia’s disgust. At worst – like a junkie looking for a dealer – ask around. Join the local community Facebook page, and then post on Tweepofaddersmeteenmielieopnstoepfontein’s page about your search for
ILLUSTRATION BY ANDY REMENTER
fellow runners. The number of invites will surprise you. Last but not least: hit the road. In time, you’ll find the best routes – and on those routes, there will be runners. THE HUNGER GAMES
How should I deal with runners who grab armfuls of free post-race snacks like they’re grocery shopping? – BERNIE, EAST LONDON
If it’s that bad, then call them out on it with a passive-
If you haven’t yet hit it, the runner’s high may seem like a mythical Amazonian Ayahuasca trip that only the privileged few can access via special granola, rehydration drinks, and extra-tight shorts at altitude. Truth is, the euphoric feeling of the runner’s high is simply how your body responds to prolonged stress – also known as a great run! That means everyone can access it. It’s just a question of time and effort. But a gentle jog every now and then won’t cut it. You need to push yourself; and the fitter you become, the more you have to push yourself. Mix it up: if you run the same route, at the same pace, every day, your body – sneaky machine that it is – will get used to a routine.
What do you eat before a race? – JAMES, RANDBURG
I eat breakfast two to three hours before a race that starts in the morning, so that I don’t wind up feeling ‘heavy’. I find two slices of toast with nut butter, sliced banana and honey easy to eat – and when paired with a good cup of coffee, it gives me lots of energy. If the race starts in the afternoon or the evening, I follow my usual diet: a simple, carb-heavy meal, like avocado on rye toast drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with salt. In the past, I made the mistake of overeating before a race, and then spent the first few hours feeling uncomfortable, as my body struggled to digest the food. These days, I’d rather start a race having eaten less. I carry nutrition with me, so hunger is never an issue. To ensure I’m well hydrated, I also consume an electrolyte drink in the two to three hours leading up to the race. I travel to most race destinations with my moka pot, and I even take my own coffee beans with me; I guess I’m a coffee snob. But you can’t beat a good cuppa in the morning!
“…the runner’s high may seem like a mythical Amazonian Ayahuasca trip…” aggressive: “Thanks for leaving us some!” But bear in mind that the runner in question may run a soup
So run faster, run longer, run up, run down, run everything in between. You’ll be high as a kite in no time.
Ryan Sandes, a.k.a. ‘Hedgie’, is the 2017 Western States 100-Miler champion.
NOVEMBER 2017 RUNNER’S WORLD 21
HUMAN RACE
THE OTHER DAY at lunch, I went out for a run, as I often do, with a group of friends and co-workers: my running buddies. They’re good runners, and they’re better than me. I started out with them, but at some point I began trailing behind. I could have pushed myself to keep up, but I don’t always want to, and so I let them get away. When they got far enough ahead of me, they stopped to wait. They always do this, and I always encourage them to keep going. “I know how to get back,” I said. They waited anyway. They are kind. When I first fell in love with running, I had only two goals: getting faster and going further. Completing a half marathon raised the question of running a full one. When I trained for a race, it was to PB. In this way, running became a maths problem: distance divided by time. But I was never very good at maths, and no one needs more problems. Over time, my outlook has changed. Here’s something I haven’t
22 RUNNER’S WORLD NOVEMBER 2017
LIFE AND TIMES
Finding Grace The most rewarding thing about running might be the most intangible. BY CHRISTOPHER MICHEL
figured out how to tell my running buddies: I’m not always interested in keeping up. I like running with them, and when I’m feeling good at a faster pace, I love the camaraderie. But when I’m feeling a little slow (which I don’t always know until I get out there), I’m okay with running slowly. Speed isn’t my goal. What is my goal? Grace. I run to find that feeling of slipping easily through the air, where my body and breath work in harmony to propel
A father of two, the author is a digital editor at runnersworld.com. When he’s not out hunting for grace, he’s baking bread and reading poetry.
me along, where it feels both like effortless loping and a little like flying – as if, should I cast my arms out, I might take off into the sky. Those runs are rare – as rare as PBs. Like all moments of grace, they tend to arrive as if by accident, and when they’re over, I’m left feeling elated and unsure it’ll ever happen again. In that way, too, they are like PBs. But those moments are my reason for running. Every time I lace up my shoes, I do it because it’s the only way I know of to make that feeling happen again. I run, and I wait, and I hope. I’ve run long enough to know that going out and pushing myself on every run won’t give me that experience. In fact, the only thing that brings me closer to grace is listening to myself. Pushing hard is enjoyable. And I’m proud of the achievements that pushing has yielded, whether it’s lowering my marathon time or completing a speedwork session at a faster-than-expected pace. These numbers are fun. But I try not to take them too seriously. I’ve learned that when I push too hard, too fast, too much, running becomes a gruelling, unpleasant labour. And no matter how fast I run, I won’t keep up with my own preconceived ideas about how much faster or stronger I should be. Then the numbers become nothing but indications of my own failure. That kind of running is the opposite of grace. I am trying to resist it, to let myself run what feels embarrassingly slowly at times in order to practise floating along, instead of pushing through. I’m not sure what my running buddies thought, watching me trundle slowly up the road towards them. When I got there, they started up again, and we all ran together briefly. But I kept running slowly, and they ended up peeling away again. They had paces to keep to, and time goals in mind – goals that were perhaps bringing them closer to their own sense of grace. Meanwhile, I did my thing, looking for an experience that I keep hoping finds me.
ILLUSTRATION BY BEE JOHNSON
Note8
Do bigger things
HUMAN RACE
RUN IT OFF CLUB
I RAN OFF 2 1 KG!
YUMMY MUMMY A persistent parent banished her baby weight.
The Wake-Up When I fell pregnant with my daughter four years ago, I was working in the Middle East. I decided to move back home to be closer to my family. Once I had returned, I took eating for two to a whole new level. Then I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism, which further accelerated my weight gain. Six months after the birth, I still hadn’t returned to my original dress size – which was horrifying! I hated the way I looked. The Shake-Up I cut down on processed foods, carbohydrates and sugar. Then, I started to
run. In the beginning I could barely manage a kilometre, and had to take regular walk breaks. My husband lives and works abroad, so I had to rely on my parents to look after my children while I ran. One of the symptoms of hypothyroidism is fatigue, and I often had to fight the urge to use it as an excuse not to bother. But I knew if I wanted to see results, I had to be consistent. So each day, I challenged myself to run further than I had the day before. After a year, I entered my first half marathon. The Reward My proudest running achievement is my backto-back Comrades medals. Like the iconic ultra, my weight-loss journey was full of ups and downs. Things didn’t always go as planned; but I also learned about tenacity, and how to be kind to myself and respect my body. With persistence, you too can reap the rewards of improved health. – AS TOLD TO LISA ABDELLAH
Julia Wykeham Age: 41 Home Town: Cape Town Height: 1.60m Occupation: Housewife Time Required: 18 Months Then: 76kg Now: 55kg
24
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PHOTOGRAPHS SUPPLIED
HUMAN RACE
SOCIAL
What phone do you use to take your Instagrams? LG G5 Where’s your favourite place to run? Welvanpas, close to Bainskloof. Tell us about your Insta name. My Instagram account is about the real me, and what makes me tick, rather than what society perceives me to be. Not everyone fits neatly into a box. What’s the story behind your top-three most-liked pics? Where did you take them, and why?
3 2
Welvanpas Wanderer
A real photographer, living life to the full BY PENNY TREVENA
1
Instagram 1: This picture was taken on our farm in the Karoo (close to Fraserburg and Sutherland), on the most beautiful morning. I believe you get the most enjoyment out of doing what you do by approaching it fulltilt: dare, explore, LIVE! Instagram 2: This was, and still is, my favourite place to run. I love the trails at Welvanpas, outside Wellington, and visit them frequently. There’s something for everyone there – you can let yourself go. Long climbs are followed by smile-inducing descents, on beautiful flowing trails. Instagram 3: An early-morning run in the foothills of Mount Taranaki in New Zealand. This was one of my bucket-list runs! New Zealand is a trail runner’s paradise – the tracks are well maintained, and ready to be explored.
NAME: Izak van der Merwe INSTA NAME: @therealizak AGE: 39 HOMETOWN: Centurion OCCUPATION: Manager – Systems
What inspires your running photography? Beautiful places, people – and the simple fact I’m able to run. How long have you been running? I’ve been trail running for around 18 months.
and Process Assurance, at software development firm Intenda
PHOTOGRAPHS SUPPLIED
What’s your favourite time to run? Early morning.
NOVEMBER 2017 RUNNER’S WORLD 25
HUMAN RACE
IT WAS APRIL of this year, and unlike young men in springtime, my thoughts turned to death. It is, after all, the season of Passover and Easter, both holidays that venerate death as a prerequisite for the creation of new (and/or eternal) life. Then there was adidas, bless its heart, which celebrated the completion of the most important event in running by emailing a message saying “Congratulations, you survived the Boston Marathon!” to everyone who had just run it, a message instantly condemned for its poor taste, coming just four years after the horrific bombings which some bystanders had not, in fact, survived. But I could understand the impulse behind the cheerful message: marathons have been associated with the risk of death ever since the event was (unwittingly and unwillingly) invented by the Greek runner Pheidippides, who came in first in a field of one and then promptly expired. Whether he existed (probably) or actually ran from Marathon to Athens to deliver news of military victory before giving up the ghost (probably not), the modern marathon, based on his 26 RUNNER’S WORLD NOVEMBER 2017
ROAD SCHOLAR
Outracing the Reaper
Yes, a few people die running marathons. But many, many more perish because they don’t. BY PETER SAGAL
legend, was born with the notion of sudden death wrapped inside it. Mortality comes standard. Anybody who has ever run a marathon, especially for the first time, has heard it: “Come back alive!” or “Man, if I tried to do that, I would die!” In fact, for most of its history, even training for a marathon was seen as a risk to one’s life. One of the ‘survivors’ of Boston in 2017 was Kathrine Switzer, who exactly 50 years before had run the race on the sly as K.V. Switzer, because organisers would not allow women to run it, for fear that they
Peter Sagal is a 3:09 marathoner and TV host.
would die when their uteruses spontaneously left their bodies, or something. I’ve been thinking about sudden death during marathons since I witnessed one near the finish of the 2011 Philadelphia Marathon, when I ran by the crumpled figure of Chris Gleason on the course, surrounded by EMTs. I’ve run four more marathons after that, and each time I could not completely banish the image of Chris from my mind. He was fit, young, with no history of heart disease, no undiscovered physical flaw that could explain his sudden departure. As his widow Jennyfer put it, he died happy, succeeding at something he loved; but what he loved – what we all love – had killed him. And if it could get an Ironman competitor like Chris, well... what waited for me just before the finish line, or just beyond? If death came for me, would I even know it? Would I welcome it? Would my last thought be – as Jennyfer believes Chris’s to have been – one of triumph? Would I say, “I’ve done it!” just as I was done in? How often does this happen? Not much. A recent study of race data from 2000 to 2010 (by the Division of Cardiology at Mass General and Harvard Medical School) shows that of the 10.9 million runners who ran a marathon or a half in those years, 59 experienced cardiac arrest, or a rate of about one per 200 000. Of those 59, 42 died, with many of the survivors saved by bystanders who instantly began CPR. And yet the study’s authors conclude that “marathons and half marathons are associated with a low overall risk of cardiac disease and sudden death.” You have a much higher risk of dying of cardiac arrest if you are obese, have high blood pressure or cholesterol, and/or are indolent... all of which factors can be alleviated or eliminated by – let me check, it’s here somewhere, oh, yes, here it is, what a surprise – running. The data is clear and reinforces common sense. People can die running marathons. It’s a significant stress on the system, and can strike down people who have no apparent vulnerability, like Chris Gleason. But many more die from not running marathons, from living lives of indolence and ease and even fear: ILLUSTRATION BY ZOHAR LAZAR
RUNNER BY THE NUMBERS
Celebrity Dash
fear of what might happen if they try something difficult or demanding or uncomfortable; or even, well, crazy. Still. There are countless ways to improve the outlook of your actuarial table other than running marathons, as many ways as there are types of exercise and methods of improving one’s diet. Marathoning remains special, because to do one goes far beyond what is merely required for good health or weight loss or an improved physique. To simply run makes sense. To run a marathon is to go beyond sense, to risk something, maybe to risk it all.
Hollywood celebrities are larger than life. They set trends and live the sort of glamorous lifestyles us ‘normal’ people can only dream about. Many of them run, and for the same reasons we do. Can it be that – if we strip away the glossy celebrity veneer – when it comes to running, they’re just as normal as the rest of us?
587km THE TOTAL DISTANCE FACEBOOK FOUNDER MARK ZUCKERBERG RAN IN 2016, AS PART OF HIS ‘A YEAR IN RUNNING’ INITIATIVE, IN WHICH HE PLEDGED TO RUN ONE MILE (1.6KM) A DAY FOR A CALENDAR YEAR.
“ You have a much higher risk of cardiac arrest if you are obese... ”
3: 56
P H OTO G R A P H B Y G A L LO I M AG E S /A F P ( Z U C K E R B E R G )
“Nothing in life is so exhilarating as to be shot at without result,” wrote Winston Churchill, and such a truth implies that people will tend to put themselves in situations where they might, in fact, be shot at, literally or figuratively. Indeed, even at my most exhausted, teeth chattering and mind blank from hypothermia (Boston ’07) or legs rigid with cramps (New York ’09), I was still, as I stumbled through the chute, exhilarated. I had tempted Fate. I had flirted with Pheidippides. I had dangled myself before the Grim Reaper and scampered away before he could catch me. I had survived. There’s a wonderful moment in The Sopranos in which Tony, depressed, is restored to his lust for life by two goons out to kill him. Now, the only thing I have in common with Tony is we’re both from New Jersey and have a tendency to be, let’s say, barrel-chested. Let him get his joie de vivre his way, and I’ll get mine my way. But still, with the risk of death – no matter how statistically insignificant – comes the appreciation of life. From the autumn, the spring. Without death, there is no life. This is what we celebrate on Easter and Passover, the day of the Boston Marathon. The snow has melted, the leaves emerge. We train, we run, we finish, or we don’t, and then we try again. We live for the challenge; and by doing so, live on.
6
The Boston Marathon finishing time of comedian and Talladega Nights star Will Ferrell.
The number of weeks Sean ‘P Diddy’ Combs took to prepare for the New York Marathon. He cut down on partying, adopted a low-carb/highprotein diet, and tapered after his first 32km run.
4:14.52 Combs’ time.
$2 million (around R27 million) How much Combs raised for New York Public Schools.
1993 THE YEAR GEORGE W BUSH BECAME THE ONLY US PRESIDENT TO FINISH A MARATHON.
500 metres The distance of the first SlowMo Marathon, set up by Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson to promote the 2017 film adaptation of Baywatch.
45KG
Roughly the amount of weight Whose Line Is It Anyway? host Drew Carey has lost since he took up running in 2010.
3:44.52
BUSH'S FINISHING TIME.
FORTY-SIX Bush's age when he ran the marathon.
NOVEMBER 2017 RUNNER’S WORLD 27
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Mauritius is phantasmagorical,
Piers Stephenson
each sight more magical than the last. Coming from SA, our winter moodiness emphasised this ethereal quality; a warmtemperate climate makes this island the perfect escape from our coldest months. If God was sparing with the Sahara, He threw the whole palette at Mauritius. Everything is thick with colour: rich, vivid, cloud-filled sunsets and sunrises, and dense, dark-green vegetation that extends from the mountaintops to within a few feet of the ocean. Beneath the turquoise surface, within a couple of flipper kicks from the water’s edge, there are vibrant coral formations abundant with luminescent life: angel, damsel, clown and butterfly fish, eels, and purple urchins with spines like porcupine quills. Travel gets the synapses firing and the brain excited; everything is new. Running is one of the best ways to open up the sensory conduits and absorb those first-time sights, sounds and smells.
Black River
We rent a self-catering villa overlooking La Gaulette, Rivière Noire (Black River) on the south-western side of the island, so named because it is the driest of the island’s Districts. The temperature remains constant
30 RUNNER’S WORLD NOVEMBER 2017
THE WORLD AGE
MAURITIUS
C O L O U R F U L , W A R M – A N D S U R P R I S I N G LY A F F O R D A B L E .
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around the mid-20s – ideal for the Dodo Trail (50km/25km/10km/5km), which takes place here every year in July. Renting a car allows us the freedom to explore. Black River is home to the equally-famed Tamarin Bay, for surfing, and One Eye at Le Morne, for kitesurfing; the surf ‘vibe’ is plentiful. There are surfing-themed ‘wrapped’ vehicles, surf shops and schools aplenty. The relaxed mood of the place sets the tone for our scenic jaunts; from La Gaulette beyond Black River Gorges National Park and on to Tamarin Bay, we run past natural ‘aid stations’ along the way – stalls sell street food that doubles up as trail-running snacks: dholl puri and gato frire. A few sharp blows with a machete, and we greedily draw fresh coconut water from a jagged hole, replacing lost electrolytes. Following the coast from Tamarin Bay, we wade through the Black River, then scramble over rocks, at times canopied by coastal forests, onto the white sands that eventually become Flic en Flac, reputed to be the longest and most beautiful beach in Mauritius. In Le Morne, south of La Gaulette, we tackle a variety of conditions underfoot. Smooth, straight and dark road becomes cobbled; we pass popular resorts; the road (now dirt) emerges at the lagoon, then on, towards the
Writer area’s famous namesake mountain. Le Morne Brabant itself is a peninsula that has its own microclimate, including a steady wind, and the beach is all-action; there are pop-up kite schools, and kitesurfers from around the world are here to learn or practise their sport. Postcard-pretty Le Morne Brabant Mountain creates a visual effect you won’t forget. Though small, at 576m, this hill is imposing in stature, and beckoning in its allure and legend. Escaped slaves are purported to have jumped to their deaths into the Valley of Bones, because they mistakenly thought the police were trying to recapture them. In fact, law enforcement was attempting to notify them that slavery had been abolished, and that as a result they were free. We half-run, half-hike to the top. From the summit you can see the ‘underwater waterfall’, an optical illusion created by a channel in the lagoon, only visible from the skies.
Blue Bay
Our second week is spent at Pointe d’Esny, in the Grand Port District, on the southeastern side of the island. Once again, we choose to stay in a village between two of the better-known destinations in the area: the coastal town of Mahebourg, around which the District is centred, and Blue Bay, the
RUNNING THE WORLD Cross Training Warm water, iconic backdrop; Le Morne is ideal for learning a windspor t.
Local knowledge How to get there SAA flies to Mauritius direct from Cape Town, Johannesburg and Durban; from Cape Town, we found it cheaper to fly via Joburg (flysaa.com). Where to stay Black River: Sunset Mauritius – various options, depending on which village you choose to stay in (sunsetmauritius.com). Grand Port: Santosha Bay – described as an almost-private beach. Two villas, two bungalows, or an apartment to choose from (mauritiusguesthouse.com). Where to eat Ensõ Restaurant and Lounge Bar, La Gaulette, Black River. The food is good, the atmosphere relaxed, the staff friendly and the cocktail menu extensive (find them on Facebook). Blue Bamboo Restaurant, Pointe d’Esny, Grand Port. Italian, creole, fusion. Excellent pizzas. Try their home-made flavoured rums (blue-bamboo.restaurant.mu).
swimming beach famed for its clear, deep waters and Filao trees. Our house opens onto a narrow strip of white sand between us and glass-clear waters. An anchored wooden dhow bobs inside the reef by a shipwreck, where the Indian Ocean becomes dark and waves thunder. Our days are spent snorkelling, marvelling at the abundantly colourful sea life and diving for cowrie shells. The nights we spend either on the deck or on the beach, sipping Green Island rum, in Running slight disbelief at where we are and Nutrition The tabagie is how surprisingly accessible and a local store; and close Mauritius is to South Africa. a good place to Home to the airport and find Mauritian abundant with sugarcane fields, this cuisine. stretch of coastline is relatively flat. Further north, there are trails heading inland; but we choose to run on the local roads, beaches and coastal forest trails. First light is around 6:30am at this time of year; it’s tempting to sleep in when you are on holiday, but the depth of colour at sunrise is exquisite, and framed many of our memorable excursions. In the La Cambuse public beach forest we pass abandoned buildings only to stumble upon an armed National Coast Guard troop, hunched in the bushes during a training exercise – truly surreal. From Santosha we traverse basalt rocks that plunge into the lucent waters, slippery as marble when wet, and sharp as sharks’ teeth; past Preskil resort and its
PHOTOGRAPHS BY TOBY MURPHY
Must-do activities Kitesurfing at Le Morne; snorkelling in the Mahebourg region; hiking, wildlife viewing and rum tasting at Black River Gorges National Park; Mahebourg Market; The Ferney Trail race takes place in September (ferneytrail.com) Interesting fact Getting there, you’ll fly directly over Madagascar – at 588 000 square kilometres, it’s the fourthlargest island in the world.
chorus of birdsong, and onto Mahebourg market: at times an olfactory assault in the form of dried and salted seafood, at others a delight in the form of spices and fresh produce; never dull, and unforgettable.
In Plain Sight
The South African winter becomes a rapidly fading memory when you’re basking in the setting sun, barefooted, boardshort- and T-shirt-clad, sipping ice-cold Phoenix beer. Avoiding the ‘package’, ‘resort’ and ‘honeymoon’ approach to travel synonymous with Mauritius, we’ve found a holiday destination fit for the gods – with a pocket-friendly price. Mauritius’ reputation for being expensive belies the reality: we have an affordable, naturally bejewelled gem right on our doorstep, one that many of us miss by not considering it from an alternative perspective. As we ascend towards the heavens, homeward-bound, I fix my gaze wistfully on the fading island, soaking it in to the last. NOVEMBER 2017 RUNNER’S WORLD 31
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TRAINING 34 FUEL 47 GEAR 51
Chill out with this simple blueberr y ice ‘cream’ from chef and runner Chris Fischer, page 47.
With the right training and fueling tweaks, you don’t have to hide inside during the sweltering summer months. page 34 F O O D S T Y L I N G B Y BA R R E T T WA S H B U R N E
THIS MONTH PHOTOGRAPHS BY MITCH MANDEL
Keep Your Cool NOVEMBER 2017 RUNNER’S WORLD 33
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KEEP YOUR COOL
TAKE THE PLUNGE
Heat? Humidity? Be smart, and you can still work towards your goals. BY KRISTEN DOLD Beers, burgers, and food markets aren’t the only things that might weigh you down this summer: sweltering weather can make even a short run feel like a trudge through mud. As the sun beats down, your core temperature shoots up, sending blood away from muscles to the surface of skin to help heat dissipate. It’s uncomfortable, but science says training in the heat is worth the trouble: hot-weather workouts teach your body to sweat more (which keeps you cool), increase your bloodplasma volume (which benefits cardiovascular fitness), and lower your core body temp – all adaptations that help you perform better in any weather. But how hot is too hot? “I tell people to use caution when it’s more than 27 degrees out – or 32, if you’re heatacclimatised. And if the humidity is high, you need to make even more adjustments,” says Dr Douglas Casa, head of the University of Connecticut’s Korey Stringer Institute, which studies enhancing performance in heat. Follow these specific tweaks, depending on what you’re training for.
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P H OTO G R A P H B Y ?? ?
Tr y RW US Ar t Director Erin Benner’s workout for steamy days: g rab a noodle, jog 10 to 15 minutes to your local pool, then remove your shoes and jump in. Spend 15 to 20 minutes aqua-jog ging with the noodle looped under your ’pits, then put your shoes on and jog home. Apply antichafing balm pre -run to avoid post-pool discomfor t.
When it ’s humid, fewer sweat droplets can evaporate and cool you, which means your internal temp stays hig h – unless you stop for a dip mid-run.
GOAL
Autumn marathon
If you’ve pencilled in a long run and starting at 4 or 5am isn’t an option, make sure you’ve had a solid night’s rest, which enhances heat tolerance, says Casa. Avoid outand-back routes (which don’t give you the option to bail), and tweak your expectations: “Many of us are around 10 per cent slower in the heat,” says Casa. Try running for time instead of distance on super-hot days: if a 30km normally takes you three hours, run for three hours at the same effort level. GOAL
Summer evening 5-K series
P H OTO G R A P H B Y ?? ?
Prep for post-work races by packing hydrating fruit and veggie snacks (like carrots, cucumbers, strawberries, and spanspek) to nosh on throughout the day. And chill a buff to wrap around your neck during the run: a recent study found that such cooling tactics during a race are more effective than pre-cooling strategies when it comes to boosting performance in the heat. You’ll also want to halve your standard warm-up to avoid overheating, says running coach Ben Rosario. So if you typically jog for 10 minutes and do dynamic stretches for 10 minutes pre-race, do each for five instead – your muscles warm up more quickly in hot conditions. Set goals depending on how the elements look that day.
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One idea is to focus on place instead of time: if you know you’re among the top 50 in a given race on a cooler day, shoot for the same approximate place when it’s hot. GOAL
Sprint triathlon
Stay flexible as you cross off your two or three swimming, cycling, and running workouts per week: “We ensure we’re swimming in the heat of the day and running and biking when it’s cooler, and we’ll pick cycling routes that pass petrol stations for ice to put in jerseys and sports bras,” says Jeff Bowman, owner and coach at Rev Tri Coaching. During warm workouts, experiment with hydration to find the right balance of fluids and electrolytes for your needs,
KEEP YOUR COOL
and practise drinking on the bike and on the run. When there’s a heat advisory, Bowman’s athletes move running and cycling workouts indoors, where they can put in an intense effort with workouts such as the compound brick: “It’s pretty common for us to have to train inside – we’ll do run/bike/run/bike/ run/bike (or vice versa) and increase the intensity each subsequent run/ bike block,” he says. “But we make sure there’s air conditioning, fans directed at your face and body, and cool fluids.” GOAL
Running for fun and fitness
Class Up Your ’Mill Visit runnersworld.co.za/treadmill for three on-demand workouts that make running indoors on hot days fun.
36 RUNNER’S WORLD NOVEMBER 2017
P H OTO G R A P H B Y S E A N L AU R É N Z ( H Y D R AT I O N )
If the weather’s taking the life out of your workout, change plans: join a spinning class, pop in a workout DVD, or go for an aqua-jog. As long as you’re clocking at least three moderate to tough runs weekly (inside or outside), for at least half of your usual weekly volume, you’ll maintain base fitness and be able to ease back into your normal schedule as the days become more tolerable. When you’re enduring hot temps, trade heat-radiating roads and pavements for dirt or grass; run shaded loops where you can replenish water and ice; and go by feel instead of pace.
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SLEEP BETTER... Rehearse your rest.
Winter suggests practising sleeping in difficult situations in the weeks before race day. Try napping on a plane or in a parked car, dozing off while your partner still has a reading light on, or incorporating a subtle but irritating background noise (a dripping tap, a snoring dog) as you go to sleep. The better you adapt to these challenging conditions in training, the more
chance you’ll have of overcoming nerves to rest well pre-race.
Don’t overcompensate.
Treat the night before the race like any other, Winter says – that is, don’t turn in crazy early. “I often hear, ‘I want to PB tomorrow, so I’ll go to bed at 9.’ Well, are you sleepy at 9?” he says. You’re more likely to nod off easily if you adhere to your usual routine instead of trying to force a few extra hours.
...OR MAKE THE BEST OF SUB-PAR REST Frame it right.
READY, SET, SNOOZE
A good night’s sleep does wonders for race day – but what if it just doesn’t happen? BY CLAIRE ZULKEY If you’re tossing and turning the night before your race, you may know not to worry: it’s the sleep two nights prior to race day that really matters, right? Believe that, and you’ll truly freak out if something keeps you up (or wakes you) during that supposedly critical time. Instead of stressing, throw everything you think you know about pre-race Z’s out the window, and replace it with this: “While sleep is incredibly important, tonight’s slumber is largely irrelevant,” says Dr W. Chris Winter, a neurologist and author of The Sleep Solution. Winter encourages athletes to remember all the consistent, proper sleep that carried them through their training, rather than angsting over an isolated bad night near the end. “All is not lost if an athlete has a tough night right before the competition,” he says. Here’s how to snooze better – and failing that, how to respond to a bad night to maximise your performance potential.
PHOTOGRAPH BY MITCH MANDEL
An inability to sleep may mean that you are well-rested and you have energy to spare. Remind yourself of this, and use your awake time to prep for the race. Winter recommends the following script: “I’ve been sleeping well for weeks, and tonight I still have four hours to sleep, which is plenty. I’m going to spend the next 10 minutes visualising how I’m going to approach the back half of the race, where it gets hilly.” And take solace in the fact that even if you’re still conscious, spending time lying in bed itself can be helpful. “Resting holds a tremendous amount of restoration,”
says Winter. According to the National Sleep Foundation, while it’s not as valuable as sleep, “quiet wakefulness” is still good in terms of calming your mind and letting your muscles and organs relax.
Don’t reach for drugs.
Av o i d p o p p i n g a n antihis tamine or a sedative in order to sleep, says Winter. “There has never been a [sleeping] pill that has been shown to improve performance in any way,” he says. What does help is all the sleep you’ve banked throughout your months of training – focus on that, and you’ll find peace of mind that may help you drift off.
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FAST LANE
PERFECT YOUR FORM
To get from Point A to Point B as efficiently as possible, remember these simple cues. BY JONATHAN BEVERLY
38 RUNNER’S WORLD NOVEMBER 2017
WHENEVER I’M SPECTATING AT A RACE,
I always find myself marvelling at the leaders’ gaits. Their feet barely touch the ground – and their strides are so long! Seeing that beauty in motion may make you want to try emulating them on your next run. But you shouldn’t. Willing yourself to run differently to what comes naturally – like actively trying to land on your forefoot or midfoot, decreasing your ground contact time, or changing your stride length – can lead to injury and make you less efficient. Instead, it’s important to make the way you run work for you. How? Start by following proper form cues, which are universally accepted among coaches, scientists, and sports-medicine
professionals. Their simplicity is what makes them winners: they’re straightforward enough that you can perform them correctly; and when implemented, they can create changes that enhance your form without altering it. Of course, there’s a catch. Like many South Africans, you probably sit at a desk all day, slumped over a computer screen – and that does nothing good for your hip and shoulder mobility, or your posture. Which is why, to reap the full benefits of form cues, you’ll need to develop strength and flexibility first; both will help correct the constraints your form takes on from your day-to-day habits. Here are the best cues that all the pros – and their coaches – use to pump out a better run.
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THINK ABOUT BEING ON A SKATEBOARD A cue I’ve heard from coach Tom Miller and 2004 Olympian Grant Robison is to visualise riding a skateboard or scooter, and using your foot to propel you. The key is that you would never plant your foot in front and brake. Instead, you bring your leg through in a swinging motion, touching down beneath you and then driving straight back. If you do the same when running, you’ll cue a landing closer to the body in front, and a long stride out the back using your glutes. Both are essential for a powerful, effective stride.
Run Tall
Adapted from Runner’s World Your Best Stride: How to Optimise Your Natural Running Form to Run Easier, Further, and Faster – With Fewer Injuries, by Jonathan Beverly (R345, takealot.com).
PHOTOGRAPHS BY MITCH MANDEL
On a track, I watched coach Andrew Kastor conduct a morning speed workout for his club members. As the intervals took their toll, Kastor implored each athlete to “Run tall!” If there is one cue that stands above all, this is it. Running tall simply means being as upright and balanced as possible. It starts with the hips: pull your butt in, rotate your hips back, straighten your spine, and lift your c h e s t u p . Yo u r shoulders should be pulled back and down. Your head is stacked directly over a straight spine and neck. Imagine a string attached to your head, lifting you up and gently pulling you forward at the same time.
Keep Your Elbows Back
Physical therapist Abby Douek cues runners to touch their waistband with each stride, as it ensures that the arm drives back and opens up behind the body. It also cues the legs to drive backward – which is key later in a run or race, when you tend to lose power. Driving your elbows back ward also shif ts your balance upright and forward, so your feet land closer beneath your body and push backward to propel you forward. This arm position also helps ensure that your movement and force all travel in a for ward and backward direction. If your arms only stay in front of your b o d y, t h e y t e n d to swing across your midsec tion, misdirecting motion and wasting energy in sideways and rotational movements.
Run Softly and Quietly
This cue has scientific backing: in a 2011 study from the Universit y of Delaware’s Motion Analysis Laboratory, runners who were told to run softly and more quietly were able to reduce their foot impact – that means less stress on bones, joints, and muscles. After eight sessions, the subjects retained the change for at least a month. O th e r c o a c h e s confirm what I have seen: runners are able to run more smoothly simply by trying to make less noise. Coach Bobby McGee says, “Avoid ‘muscling’ the run. Think about running on thin ice.” He can tell when a runner is getting better, because her stride is quieter and he can’t pick her out from among a group.
Do 10-Second Striders
It may not make much sense at first, but when you feel tired, that’s not the time to slow down. Douek says distance runners think they need to do that to cover more mileage, but she says it ’s better to speed up for 10 -second bursts every five to seven minutes once fatigue has set in. You don’t want to sprint – just pick up the cadence and the speed slightly. It changes the muscle groups you call on, and can make running feel easier and more natural. Then you can focus on holding that form as you return to your slower, longer-run speed.
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KEEP YOUR COOL
Forget About Your PB: Fun runs are no-pressure events.
BEGINNERS
HOT TO TROT Only runner in the family? Not this year, after a holiday race! BY JEFF GALLOWAY
There’s good reason to run while you’re on a family holiday: nothing fires up the appetite quite like a morning run, and starting the day with a dose of sweat helps you feel a little bit better about post-run indulgences. (Plus, a rush of endorphins can help deter any family drama!) But if your family isn’t full of runners, it can be a schlep to head out on your own. That’s why, this year, I suggest everyone pins on a race number. You can start the day together, and crossing the finish line as a fam will streng then your bond. Not sure how to convince them to lace up? Try these tricks.
1. Give Notice When you’re five to eight weeks from race day, plant the idea. Say something like, “Hey, I’m going to do the [insert name of race] Fun Run on the first Saturday of our holiday. It’d be awesome if you came too.” That lets relatives know you don’t consider this to be ‘me’ time, but it doesn’t put a ton of pressure on them if they’re really not comfortable. Be sure to check the race website to see if it’s walker-friendly (if it’s a 5-K and the cut-off time is an hour or longer, it probably is). That may be all you need to get them to join you.
The Problem I feel queasy after I race, and I don’t want that to happen on holiday before a big braai.
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2. Offer Your Expertise If you’re relatively new to running, you’re uniquely positioned to give advice to other newbies – after all, your first kays are probably still fresh in your mind. Share things you wish you’d known when you started. Promise to stop and take selfies. (It’s a guilt-free break, during a casual holiday 5-K.) And pass along a plan to practise, like this one: walk or run/ walk for 20 to 30 minutes twice during the week; then do a longer, slower outing each weekend. Begin with 2 or 3km; add 1km each week until you’ve reached 6km the weekend prior to the race.
3. Share The Load It’s true: the time you spend running that morning is time you won’t be contributing to prepping for an indulgent holiday feast – did anyone say ‘braai’? So if you want everyone on board, help as much as you can with shopping or other preparations the day before. On the day, if someone has to stay behind, then volunteer to set the table when you get back, or promise to pack away (or, um, eat) leftovers, or offer to do the dishes. Then everyone’s done their fair share of not-such-fun stuff, regardless of how many kilometres they’ve logged.
4. Make It Fun Fun runs are meant to be no-pressure events, so don’t worry about crushing a PB. If it’s a themed race, challenge the family to dress up in their finest fancy dress, and stick with the first-timers so someone’s there to motivate them. If they want you to go ahead, park off at the finish line and high-five the crew as they run in. And don’t forget to host post-race awards: e.g. the one with the best costume doesn’t wash up, or – better yet – gets to choose what to watch when you’re all dozing in front of the TV after you’ve eaten. Jeff Galloway is a 10 000-metre Olympian and well-known coach who promotes the run-walk method.
The Fix It’s called a fun run for a reason – you’re not supposed to push until you puke. Instead, take it easy: chat with the people who’ve joined you, and insert walk breaks if you start huffing and puffing. You’ll still get to soak in the atmosphere and feeling of exertion, without sacrificing the enjoyment of your feast later.
PHOTOGRAPH BY FERDINAND VAN HUIZEN
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BODY SHOP
GET A LEG UP
Your quads and hamstrings aren’t the only muscles in need of attention. Push your pace by building your below-the-knee strength and power. BY CINDY KUZMA
You probably know that improving your stride calls for targeting three major lowerbody muscle groups – quads, glutes, and hamstrings. But they’re not the only players in the game. Despite their smaller size, your calf and ankle muscles are just as important for improving stride and pushing pace. Just think about how much you actually use those muscles. You activate them each time you stand or walk. When you run, your gastrocnemius and soleus – the muscles that make up most of your calf – produce the majority of that final push you need to propel upward and forward, says
PHOTOGRAPHS BY MITCH MANDEL
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Dr Paul DeVita, director of the Biomechanics Laboratory at East Carolina University in North Carolina. And that thrust partially determines your pace and stride length. Which means ignoring those muscles can slow you down – and worse, contribute to a higher risk of injury. Scientists have some idea of why this may happen. A recent Finnish study hooked runners up to 3-D motion-capture systems and found that the overall effort required of the calf muscles was actually 25 per cent greater than that of the quads. That makes them more prone to fatigue over a long run or race, pumping the brakes on your pace. DeVita also found that ankle and calf muscles tend to change and atrophy as we age. He tested the biomechanics in runners as young as 20 and as old as 60, and found that older runners had about one-fifth to one-third less ankle power – which correlated with a 10 per cent slower pace and shorter stride. Runners can slow down this muscle decline with exercise that improves calf function and their ability to produce force, says Dr Max Paquette, assistant professor of biomechanics at the University of Memphis. Which means it’s never too late to start showing those smaller muscles a hefty amount of love. And no, you shouldn’t simply run more or faster to try to reap the strengthening rewards. Paquette says doing so can boost your injury risk, especially if your body isn’t trained to handle the increase. Instead, incorporate these routines he designed into your schedule two or three times a week. Each exercise will help protect your leg muscles as you dial up the volume or intensity of your training.
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WARM UP
Before you run, do these exercises as part of a dynamic warm-up.
Skips 1 Forward
Skips 2 High
Jumps 3 Toe
Box Jumps 4 Double-Leg
Skip, bringing your front knee to waist height and your opposite arm forward. Keep your back leg straight and focus on pushing off and landing on your toes, always engaging the calves. Continue for about 30 metres, walk back, and repeat twice for a total of 3 sets of skips.
Repeat the same motion as a forward skip, but explode upward each time your foot leaves the ground. Continue for about 30 metres, walk back, and repeat twice for a total of 3 sets of skips.
Stand with feet hipwidth apart; rise to the balls of your feet. Keeping knees stiff (but not locked), quickly hop up and down. Do 3 sets of 20 jumps. More advanced: Stand on your right leg with left leg bent behind you. Hop on your right leg. Do 5 jumps and switch legs for 1 set. Do 3 sets.
Stand with feet hip-width apart; rise to the balls of your feet. Jump clockwise in a box shape – first about 30cm forward, then to the right, then backward, then to the left. Repeat 5 times. Reverse direction and repeat for 1 set. Do 3 sets.
PHOTOGRAPHS BY MITCH MANDEL
STRENGTH-TRAIN
with Calf Raises 1 Lunges
Calf Raises 2 Seated
Stand with feet hip- width apart. Step forward with your right leg and lower into a lunge. Lift and lower your right heel for 10 to 12 reps, keeping your spine straight and weight over your big toe. Push off your front foot to return to standing. Switch legs and repeat for 1 set. Do 3 or 4 sets.
Sit on a bench or chair, resting the balls of your feet on a block about 30cm in front of you. Place a weight plate, dumbbells, or a heavy object (like a box with books in it) on your thighs, about 8cm above your knees. Lift your heels as high as possible, squeezing your calves. Slowly drop your heels
as low as possible, until you feel a stretch in your calves. Do 10 to 12 reps for 1 set. Do 3 or 4 sets. More advanced: While seated, shift the weight to your right thigh and place your left foot on the floor. Repeat the same exercise, raising and lowering right heel. Do 10 to 12 reps; switch legs and repeat for 1 set. Do 3 or 4 sets.
Perform these moves two or three times per week to build stability and strength.
Raises 3 Calf Stand on the edge of a step, letting your heels hang slightly lower than your toes. (If you’re a first-timer, ease into this exercise by standing on the edge of a slanted surface, like a raised wooden plank.) Rise onto the balls of your feet, engaging your calves. Keeping knees straight but not locked, lower
down until you feel a stretch in your calves. Do 10 to 12 reps for 1 set. Do 3 or 4 sets. For an added challenge, hold a dumbbell in one or both hands. More advanced: stand on your right leg with your left leg bent (there should be no weight on it). Repeat the same exercise as above. Do 10 to 12 reps; switch legs and repeat for 1 set. Do 3 or 4 sets.
Walks 4 Toe Stand with feet hip- width apart; rise to the balls of your feet. Walk forward 10 metres, about the width of a tennis court. (Or walk in a circle for 30 seconds.) Relax for a few seconds, then turn around and repeat in other direction. To make it harder, carry a dumbbell in each hand. Repeat 3 or 4 times.
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MIND & BODY
FLEX YOUR MENTAL MUSCLE Just like strengthening any part of your body, building your willpower takes training. BY BRAD STULBERG
44 RUNNER’S WORLD NOVEMBER 2017
KEEP YOUR COOL
You see it all the time on social media: quotes like “You
are stronger than you realise” and “Your body can stand almost anything – it’s your mind that you have to convince”. As cliché as they may sound, there’s truth in those mantras. Science shows that we may give up during a workout because we think our bodies can’t handle it. It’s that moment when your muscles are burning and your lungs feel like they’re on fire. You tell yourself, “I just need a quick break,” allowing your legs to slow and heart rate to drop. Only afterwards do you realise that you probably could have pushed through the doubts. That right there is proof that your willpower muscle could benefit from additional training. It’s just like any physical muscle – neglecting to use it causes atrophy, which makes it that much harder to call
upon when you actually need it. “Willpower needs to be trained. The more you have, the more you can overcome mental fatigue and psychological challenges to become a better runner,” says Dr Nathan DeWall, a professor of psychology at the University of Kentucky, who studies selfregulation. A hard interval workout isn’t the only time willpower starts to wane, either. It can happen when your late-night snack choice is cake over carrots, or when you decide to binge on a new Netflix show instead of getting the sleep you so desperately need to recover. The good news is, boosting willpower is easier than you think. The following simple tactics will help train your brain to say, “Yes, go!” when your body starts screaming, “Nooo.”
ASK THE COACH
Lindsey Parry
What’s the deal with Tabata? – LIZL, MILNERTON
GO MINIMAL
W brush off everyone hile it’s easy to
who’s decluttering their cupboards, people who follow the minimalism movement are actually onto something. It’s really hard to be über-focused on everything at once, says Dr Michael Joyner, an expert on human performance at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota. “In order to be a maximalist, you’ve got to be a
I L LU S T R AT I O N S B Y S T E P H E N C H E E T H A M
TAKE BABY STEPS
T building any muscle he science behind
applies to willpower, too – the more you use it, the stronger it becomes. But also like a muscle, if you exert too much too soon, you’re likely to run out of fuel. Case in point: before
minimalist.” In other words, if you’re tackling a big goal that you know requires a lot of willpower, do what you can to automate some of your smaller decisions. “Every choice takes mental energy,” says Joyner. “The fewer there are, the better.” Go after the low- hanging fruit first. If it’s a running goal, designate a specific time to sweat every day so you don’t need to think about it. Then, make getting out of the door easy – lay out your gear the night before, and create a
training schedule (or hire a coach) to eliminate questions about your workout. That way, all you have to do is execute. Last, rig your environment to cut the need to make hard decisions. Can’t resist those biscuits you baked? Give them away. Scrolling through Twitter instead of sleeping? Stash your phone across the room. “You can deliberately design your environment so that it’s not battling against you,” says DeWall. “When it works in your favour, you can accomplish more.”
DeWall was racing 100-milers (160km), he was overweight and out of shape. “I used to eat highsugar cereal all the time,” he says. “But when I set a goal to run a marathon, my first challenge was to walk past the sweets aisle. Over time, I incrementally took on harder obstacles.” Had DeWall tried to revamp his entire diet and start training regularly all at once, he says there’s a higher probability he would have failed. That’s why he suggests
creating a three-prong plan: define your goal, identify the obstacles to achieve it, and strategise how to overcome those obstacles – and then do so gradually. “Start with the smallest challenges, as those will help build your confidence and willpower to take on tougher obstacles,” says DeWall. “Eventually, what once seemed hard won’t anymore, and you’ll be ready to move on to more difficult things.”
Tabata is a high-intensity interval training (HIIT) system that combines short-duration work (20 seconds) with short rest periods (10 seconds). One set lasts four minutes in total. Research conducted in 1996 by Tabata and his colleagues showed that when compared to moderate-intensity exercise, of moderate duration, there was a similar improvement in aerobic function (11%), but a much bigger improvement in anaerobic function (28%), over a five- (moderate) and six(HIIT) week programme. The ‘aerobic’ test was a VO2Max protocol that showed improved oxygen consumption; while in theory that leads to better aerobic potential , it doesn’t measure your aerobic endurance. This is a consistent flaw in many research projects – a test of sustained endurance, such as a half marathon, would be a more appropriate measure. Tabata includes lots of heavy strength training, which will complement your running – provided you don’t do it too often, approach it sensibly, and carefully monitor how tired the extra work makes you feel. During the first two to three weeks, you may struggle to cope. Pulling back on the rest of your training will allow you to adapt to the new stimulus.
Lindsey Parry is a qualified biokineticist, Two Oceans and Comrades silver medallist, and 2:47 marathoner. Email him at lindsey@ coachparry.com.
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THE SPORT SCIENTIST
BALANCING ACT
Training secrets from the world’s fastest marathoner. Eliud Kipchoge may not hold
the official marathon world record, but with a little help from Nike and Tesla, he has run the fastest marathon ever – 2:00.25, in a staged (and thus ineligible) event in Monza, Italy. Kipchoge’s attempts at breaking the world record (2:02.57) have been undermined by rain (most recently in Berlin, in September), shoe malfunctions (also in Berlin), and tactical race situations. Just before the 2017 Berlin marathon, his training programme found its way onto the internet. We could see what went into producing his 2:03.34 performance, in wet, unfavourable conditions. While his brutal regime is beyond the reach of pretty much everyone in the world, it’s the principles that are valuable. Whether you’re running a 2:03.34 marathon or a 2:03.34 half marathon, there are lessons you can
BE CONSISTENT
Kipchoge is remarkably consistent – about 10 sessions a week, and 170 to 190km a week. Often you hear coaches and athletes advising that you should train hard for two weeks, then have a week with less training. Sometimes it’s three weeks on, and a fourth for recovery. Not so for Kipchoge – the ‘uniformity’ of his training is striking. The principle we can learn from this is consistency. I’ve often said that ‘physiology rewards consistency’, in that our bodies adapt to the stress of training, and that the adaptation is better when we are consistent. ‘Yo-yo’ training, or chopping and changing the approach regularly, does a disservice to your physiology.
VARIETY IS GREAT!
That’s not to say you should just
KNOW YOUR LIMITS
Kipchoge has earned that right by being supremely fit, but his training illustrates the value of understanding what we can call the relativity of RW Scientific Editor rest. Most of us need a complete Dr Ross Tucker has day off – perhaps weekly, or every a BSc (Med) (Hons) Exercise Science ten days, or every two weeks. Some Degree and PhD need two days off a week, or maybe from the Sports one complete rest day and one day Science Institute. of swimming, or walking, or some Visit him at www. other training. sportsscientists.com. The point is: learn your body’s limits. And when you’re about to cross that threshold of overdoing it, either rest, or vary the training enough to avoid crossing it. But appreciate that one person’s rest day is another’s training Kipchoge’s – and that your life outside training of training is also stressful. shows balance. Rest means rest! Learning where to Finally, Kipchoge’s put yourself on that training teaches us about balance is key. simplicity: you don’t see any gimmicks. There are long, hard efforts near marathon pace, steady runs slower than pace, and speedwork faster than pace. It’s really easy to get preoccupied with ‘tricks’ and strategies to amplify training effects. But running is a fundamental activity, and its base principle is that you train for specific goals. So if the world’s best marathon runner doesn’t need to tinker and fidget, and can succeed with basic sessions like 18 x three minutes hard, one minute easy… then we all can.
P H OTO G R A P H B Y G A L LO I M AG E S /G E T T Y I M AG E S
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learn from the best.
repeat the same thing over and over again – there’s lots of evidence that ‘monotony’ is a big predictor of overtraining and injury. Variety is great: yo-yoing is not. One of the key lessons you learn through experience and awareness is how much to change, and how much to consolidate and repeat. The same applies to Kipchoge’s training within a week. Contrary to much of what you’ve no doubt read, he has no weekly rest days. His ‘rest day’ is simply an easy run of an hour. By ‘easy’, we’re talking incredibly slow speeds at the start – 5.45/km to 6.00/ km – and even though he speeds up at the end and covers about 18km in the hour, he’s allowing his body to recover actively.
PERSONAL BEST
KEEP YOUR COOL
FUEL
One cup has just 355 kilojoules, and reg ular consumption has been linked to brain benefits.
TANGLED UP IN BLUE[BERRIES] Chef, farmer, and five-time marathoner Chris Fischer’s favourite ways to cool off with this sweet superfood. BY YISHANE LEE
1. Easy snack
Cool off post-run with a small bowl of frozen berries. 2. Pancakes
Fold in 1 tablespoon fresh or frozen berries per quarter cup of pancake batter.
F O O D S T Y L I N G B Y BA R R E T T WA S H B U R N E
3. Mint Topping Whether fresh, frozen, or dehydrated,
blueberries are loaded with nutrients and anthocyanin antioxidants that reduce inflammation, and boost heart health and immunity. “We eat as many as we can, right off the bush, like bears,” says Fischer, author of The Beetlebung Farm Cookbook . For more, see beetlebungfarm.com.
PHOTOGRAPHS BY MITCH MANDEL
Toss fresh blueberries in a bowl with a sprinkling of sugar, whole mint leaves, and a small splash of water. Freeze in a single layer on
a baking sheet, 1 to 2 hours. Remove from freezer and mash with a fork. Serve atop yoghurt or granola. 4. Salsa
Mix chopped red onion and coriander with pumpkin or sunflower seeds and fresh whole blueberries. Toss over seafood wraps. 5. Smoothie
Puree 1 part coconut oil with
3 parts fresh or frozen blueberries until emulsified, then add a banana, frozen strawberries, water, cacao, and plain yoghurt. Blend till smooth, adding more water as needed. 6. Salad
Toss dried berries into a spinach and feta salad with cracked pepper and lemon vinaigrette. 7. Sauce
Cook a handful
of dried berries in 1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar for 5 to 8 minutes. Add water as necessary. Chop a spring onion and add to sauce; remove from heat and serve over duck or lamb. 8. Ice ‘cream’
Freeze peeled, sliced bananas overnight; blend in blender or food processor with fresh or frozen berries and a dash of sea salt.
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PERSONAL BEST
KEEP YOUR COOL
SMOOTH MOVE Grab a spoon (yes, a spoon!) and dig into these hydrating, one-serving smoothie bowls.
1
BY REGISTERED DIETICIAN MATTHEW KADEY
2
5
4
F O O D S T Y L I N G B Y BA R R E T T WA S H B U R N E
These recipes mix high-fibre fruit with yoghur t or milk, which adds fat and protein to keep you feeling full.
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3
1. Lean, Green, and Mean
4. Chocolate Fudge
Basil is refreshing, and cottage cheese is high in muscle-building protein.
Avocado is high in healthy fat.
2 ¹⁄2 ¹⁄2 ¹⁄2 ¹⁄3 2 1 1 1 2
cups baby spinach cup cottage cheese cup frozen cubed pineapple frozen banana, chopped cup orange juice large basil leaves tsp. lemon zest tsp. chia seeds Tbsp. sliced almonds sliced strawberries
Blend together spinach, cottage cheese, pineapple, banana, orange juice, basil, and lemon zest. Pour into chilled bowl and top with chia, almonds, and strawberries.
¹⁄2 cup milk 1 small frozen banana, chopped ¹⁄2 avocado 1 pitted date 1 scoop vanilla protein powder 1 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder 1 tsp. peanut butter ¹⁄4 tsp. ground cinnamon 2 Tbsp. fresh raspberries 1 Tbsp. unsweetened coconut flakes Blend together milk, banana, avocado, date, protein powder, cocoa powder, peanut butter, and cinnamon. Pour into chilled bowl and top with raspberries and coconut.
2. Orange Crush Kefir has gut-friendly probiotics. ¹⁄2 orange, zested, peeled, and chopped ¹⁄2 frozen banana, chopped ¹⁄2 cup grated carrot ¹⁄2 cup plain kefir 1 Tbsp. almond butter 1 tsp. orange zest ¹⁄2 tsp. vanilla extract 2 Tbsp. muesli 2 Tbsp. frozen blueberries 1 tsp. honey
Show us your smoothie bowls, using #RWSmoothieBowl. We’ll share the ones we like best!
Blend together orange, banana, carrot, kefir, almond butter, orange zest, and vanilla extract. Pour into chilled bowl and top with muesli, blueberries, and honey.
Watermelon is 90 per cent water and high in potassium for hydration and muscle function. 1 1 3⁄4 2 1 1 2 1 1
cup cubed watermelon cup frozen raspberries cup plain Greek yoghurt tsp. fresh lime juice tsp. honey tsp. fresh ginger mint leaves Tbsp. chopped pistachios Tbsp. cacao nibs
3. Red Velvet Cheesecake
Blend together watermelon, raspberries, yoghurt, lime juice, honey, ginger, and mint. Pour into chilled bowl and top with pistachios and cacao nibs.
Nitrates in beetroot may improve endurance.
6. Mango Tango
¹⁄2 cup reduced-fat ricotta cheese ¹⁄2 cup unsweetened frozen cherries ¹⁄2 frozen banana, chopped ¹⁄3 cup milk 1 small cooked beetroot 1 tsp. orange zest ¹⁄4 tsp. ground cinnamon 1 Tbsp. dark chocolate chips 1 Tbsp. chopped walnuts Mint leaves
6
5. Berry Melon
Blend together ricotta, cherries, banana, milk, beetroot, orange zest, and cinnamon. Pour into chilled bowl and top with chocolate chips, walnuts, and mint.
Mango is packed with immune-boosting vitamin C. ¹⁄2 cup frozen chopped mango ¹⁄2 frozen banana, chopped ¹⁄3 cup almond milk ¹⁄2 cup tofu 1 tsp. lime zest ¹⁄8 tsp. cayenne 1 Tbsp. chopped roasted cashews 1 sliced kiwi 1 tsp. honey Blend together mango, banana, almond milk, tofu, lime zest, and cayenne. Pour into chilled bowl and top with cashews, kiwi, and honey.
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PROMOTION
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We’ve selected 11
PERSONAL BEST
GEAR
SPORTS BRAS
that deliver reliable stability with comfort, breathability and flair. adidas CMMTTD Racer-Back Bra R1 299 Testers enjoyed superior support, thanks to moulded cups that secure breasts close to the body but don’t flatten curves entirely – there’s enough separation to ensure a feminine silhouette. It also manages moisture better than most moulded designs, thanks to a fabric coating that cools the skin, and a ribbed band at the bottom that wicks sweat. A racer-back design gives your arms full range of motion. adidas Concept Stores
BY RYAN SCOTT AND KELLY BASTONE
BRA-VO! PHOTOGRAPHS
BY JAMES GARAGHTY
NOVEMBER 2017 RUNNER’S WORLD 51
Puma PWRShape Clash R999 Larger-breasted testers were impressed: double straps, and a front zip with auto-lock, stabilise the breasts and minimise bounce. Testers reported neither pressure points nor any part of the bra digging into their skin; just soft support that allowed them to breathe fully and deeply. Moulded cups flatter fuller figures, and are thin enough to prevent clamminess. Puma Stores
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Double Straps: Of fer ex tra stabilisation.
PERSONAL BEST
GEAR
Anita Active Momentum Sport BH R1 220 Bras that truly support D-cup+ runners rarely breathe well; but this marvel combats bounce and sweat. Wide, padded straps offer support and comfort, and an inner lining of hydrophilic towelling mops up moisture like a bath towel. Bonus: each individual cup encapsulates the breast, to control bounce and flatter the silhouette. One tester said she used to wear a similar style to nightclubs in the 90s! Anita Active Stockists 011 616 5226
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PERSONAL BEST
GEAR
adidas Halter Bra R799 A chic looker, with a striking high neckline, that ticks all the boxes: it’s comfortable, cute and supportive. It doesn’t create any hotspots, despite its elaborate crossover straps and soft bands. Breathable Climalite fabric kept testers reasonably cool during steamy runs. adidas Concept Stores
Comfor table, cute and suppor tive.
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Lorna Jane Fierce Sports Bra R1 099 Comfort made cute. Four-way stretch fabric supports the weight of the breasts, and can be adjusted for a custom fit. A high neckline and a thick, oversized band around the bottom increase coverage and reduce hotspots. lornajane.co.za
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PERSONAL BEST
GEAR
Great Fit! Feels like a second skin.
Nike Classic Swoosh R500 A minimal V-back design allows a full range of movement, and feels like a second skin. DriFIT technology wicks sweat away from your skin, keeping you dry on short runs; on long runs, it doesn’t dry as quickly. “This is my go-to bra,” said one tester, who loved its simplicity. Totalsports
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Move Pretty Powerful Runner R580 Designed and made in South Africa, this bra doesn’t look out of place among those offered by bigger brands; but on closer inspection, its stitching is a little crude. Soft, four-way stretch fabric is breathable and moisture-wicking. A great design, which can be layered with the rest of your running outfit. movepretty.co.za
NOVEMBER 2017 RUNNER’S WORLD 57
PERSONAL BEST
GEAR
Von Scher Sports Bra R580 “Zero bounce!” declared a D-cup runner, who praised the bra’s support. It’s made from relatively thin, breathable fabric, an open-back design offers good ventilation, and an X-shaped panel takes the pressure off areas where the straps are thinner. Want the best support? Testers advise adjusting the slider on the strap at the back between the shoulder blades, as opposed to on the shoulder. zando.co.za
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No Frills: A terrific back-to basics bra.
Falke Sports Bra R160 Though not as goodlooking as the other bras tested, this no-frills bra functions well during speed work and marathon training. Mesh panels – on the back and between the breasts – effectively ‘dump’ heat, and two-ply fabric facilitates extraquick drying. Sportsmans Warehouse
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Nike Pro Zip R750 When it comes to sports bras, style often comes at the expense of function. Not with this one, testers raved. A double-strapping system joins a racer back with shoulder straps at the front, and there are built-in stabilisers. At the front, a convenient zipper locks when the zip is pointing downwards. Soft elastic – around the neck, arms and chest strap – makes this a firm favourite. Sportsmans Warehouse
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Full Marks! St yle doesn’t compromise function.
PERSONAL BEST
GEAR
New Balance Pace Bra R550 Testers enjoyed this pullover-style bra, which features racer-back straps with vents, and a lightweight fabric that dries faster than any other bra tested. A wide band holds everything in place, and a keyhole cut-out in the middle of the back complements style and function. New Balance Stores
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SALOMON SENSE RIDE R2 200 • 275 GRAMS SALOMON STORES
From the top trail brand, a top trail shoe – for roadies. BY RYAN SCOTT
The Vibe Running brands put a lot of research into new products, often predicting what you need before you even know you need it yourself. The latest item to come out of the creative think tank is Salomon’s trailrunning shoe with a twist – designed for road runners who are looking to try trail running for the first time.
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Salomon have used Vibe technology in the Ride. Two layers – Opal, and EnergyCell+, each of which has a different density and composition – are connected at the midsole to dampen the vibration caused by the impact of running. In the long term, this will delay muscle fatigue, and may even help you avoid injury.
Heritage design
The ride looks and feels like a traditional road-running shoe, which is nothing new – big brands like Asics and Nike also make trail-running shoes that are similar to their road shoes. But seldom do we see a brand so entrenched in trail running reaching out to road runners.
PHOTOGRAPHS BY JAMES GARAGHTY
GEAR
Scuff it up
THE SHOE TEST
When he wore the Ride on a group run, tester Mike Watson from Tamboerskloof wondered if the grip would provide enough traction on rocky, steep downhill sections. In general, the Salomon Contragrip tread does perform well, but the consensus among his group was that it’s not up to scratch when it’s wet, and the rocks are covered with dust left behind by previous runners. A tip: scuff the shoe up a bit before your first outing, because the outsole feels greasy straight off the production line.
The first
Salomon were the first to introduce the no-need-to-tie lacing system. Those who are new to Salomon trailrunning shoes will enjoy the quick-lace drawstring, which can be securely fastened in one tug, and then tucked away into a storage pocket.
Not your average
Though the Ride weighs the same as a minimalist racing shoe, it’s suitable for the masses: it has an 8mm heelto-toe drop profile, the forefoot upper is made of mesh to accommodate movement, and the design is smooth and uncomplicated. The result is a shoe suitable for both long training runs at the weekend, and short, sharp sessions during the week.
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PERSONAL BEST
NEW GEAR ASK THE GEAR GUY
Ryan Scott
1
Why do my running shoes get changed every year? – ALEXA, EAST LONDON
1. Fifth Element Iceberg Compression Tights R490 A new local brand. These white, grey and black camouflage-print compression tights for men are made of a mixture of spandex and polyester. A thick, elastic waist holds the tights in place during your activities. myfifthelement. co.za
2
2. Move Pretty Geometric Leggings R640 Fashionable, fulllength women’s tights, from another new local brand, based in Stellenbosch. The extended waistband features an inner pocket. movepretty.co.za
Tights and shoes are the most popular athleisure items, for their good looks, versatilit y, and function.
3. Freddy Tights R600 Dubbed ‘the supersexy push-up bra for buttocks’, these tights continue the Freddy revolution. The design around the body’s largest muscle is unique, but a tight fit ensures you don’t have to sacrifice style for comfort. freddy.co.za
3
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The technology used in running shoes is evolving faster than ever before, in response to consumer demands for constant improvement. To remain relevant and attractive, big brands have to plug a lot of resources into research and development. Your favourite model of shoe has to make way for the latest – even if the majority of wearers secretly think there’s nothing wrong with the previous version. That’s because brands have no way of knowing how the market will respond to their products until it’s too late. Simply keeping a successful iteration in production is too risky, so they have to back their upgrades and new inventions. You might see small tweaks to the previous version, or a regression to an earlier model. Regardless of how little your running shoe changes, the shoe is never quite the same. Want my advice? Buy two of your favourite pair – maybe even three. Neither the foam nor the mechanical aspects of the shoe will be compromised over time, provided you keep them covered, in a box.
RW Gear Editor Ryan Scott is comfortable running on the road and mountain trails alike, and is seldom seen wearing the same pair of shoes twice.
PHOTOGRAPH BY JAMES GARAGHTY
END ON A HIGH 66 RUNNER’S WORLD NOVEMBER 2017
It takes a lot more than a picture-perfect smile to nail crossing that finish line. Here’s how to make sure you conquer it in Instaworthy fashion. BY KRISTEN DOLD ILLUSTRATIONS BY DALE EDWIN MURRAY
It doesn’t matter whether your race
NOTE
is just a 5-K or a whopping 42.2km – every runner craves that triumphant, arms-in-the-air photo finish. (Because looking like a slumpedover, sweaty mess isn’t cute.) If only a grand finale were as easy as throwing your hands up: “Runners often have a lot of misconceptions about what it takes to finish strong – it involves planning, proper pacing, and some surreal mental and physical fortitude to keep going when your body wants to slow down,” says Ryan Warrenburg, head coach for ZAP Fitness Coaching. And while a lot has to go right to feel good at the end of a race, it only takes a few missteps (sometimes in the first few minutes or kilometres) to throw your body and brain off track, torpedoing your dreams of crushing a PB or dominating a new-to-you distance. Achieve your goals – and snag that victorious finish-line photo – with a smart race-day plan of attack.
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At the Starting Line It’s tough not getting swept up in the excitement of a starting line (music pumping, crowds roaring, legs feeling fresh AF), but gunning it out of the gate – especially if you’re running a half or full marathon – will almost always add extra time to the clock later on, cautions Jason Fitzgerald, a 2:39 marathoner, and founder and head coach of Strength Running. “You can’t win a race in those first few minutes, but you can lose one – speeding up too early wastes precious carbs you’re going to need during the last leg of the race, and it creates muscle damage that will cause a slowdown as you try to recover.” These simple strategies will help you simmer, so you can hit a full boil later.
PAUSE THE PUMP-UP JAMS Whether it’s a new course or one you’ve run time and time again, your tunes at the starting line matter. Adjust your playlist so the first few songs promote control rather than highenergy frenzy, says Boston Marathon psychologist Dr Jeffrey Brown, author of The Racer’s Brain. You can even choose ones with a slower tempo – science shows we often match our stride to the beat of the music, so playing a song with a slower pace can help keep
you from going hard like a beast. SEED YOURSELF CORRECTLY While it’s exciting to start near the front of the pack, slower runners risk getting pulled along at too fast a pace, says Lisa Reichmann, a running coach. If your event doesn’t have pens or signs that instruct where to line up according to your expected pace, try to gauge where you should be based on your usual finishing place. (If the course around you tends to be jammed from beginning to end,
you’re probably a mid-packer – line up there.) Chronic fast starters should err on the side of beginning further back, to force a firstkilometre slowdown. START SLOWLY Tech addicts, this is where your watch can be crazy helpful. Run six to 12 seconds slower than your target pace per kilometre for anywhere from a few minutes (if you’re running a 5-K or 10-K) to a few kilometres (if it’s a half or full marathon) before easing into your goal pace, says Reichmann.
When You Crush That Halfway Mark Getting to the middle of
a race can stir feelings of badassness for making it this far, coupled with a hit of exhaustion because, damn, you still have a long way to go. “When you’re starting to tire but the finish is still far away, ask yourself what you need. More fuel? A different pace? A mental boost?” suggests running coach Julie Sapper. The answer is probably one of those three – but a fuel check is a good place to start. “A common mistake in longer races is to skip water or gels because you don’t feel like you need it,” says dietician Dr Kelly Pritchett, assistant professor of nutrition and exercise science at Central Washington University. “But it then becomes impossible to catch up on fuel, and you’ll feel wasted by the end of the race.” Make sure that isn’t you, with these tweaks.
NAIL A FAST FINISH Sail across the finish line by strategically ramping up your pace.
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“
THE SAFETY OF A SWIFT KICK
When you’re starting to tire but the finish is still far away, ask yourself what you need. More fuel? A different pace? A mental boost? FUEL UP EARLY Many 5-K and 10-K runners can get away with drinking just water, but if it’s hot, you’re a salty sweater, or you tend to cramp up, sip a sports drink mid-race, says Pritchett. Half- and full-marathoners should practise their fuelling plan several times before race day to avoid tummy trauma. “We suggest 30 to 60 grams of carbs (from energy gels, chews, or bars) per hour, starting 15 to 30 minutes into the race,” says Pritchett. “Bring a variety of options, and save your favourite for last as extra motivation.” PACE LIKE A PRO “If you’re running a flat course, focus on even pacing with a kick at the end,” says Reichmann. “If the race starts downhill and then
5-K
moves uphill, plan for a positive split, taking extra time for the incline so you don’t burn out before the final leg.” And while it may sound obvious, don’t forget to revise your strategy depending on the weather: if it’s an unseasonably warm day, slow your pace or you may not finish at all, says Reichmann. FIND PRODUCTIVE DISTRACTIONS When exhaustion hits and pain’s on the brain, Nikki Reiter (biomechanist and coach for The Run SMART Project) tells her runners to focus on form cues for a reset. “If your turnover is slowing down and you’re starting to hunch over, think Run tall, Faster feet, or Push from the toes, to distract yourself and get your form back.”
Pick up the pace by a couple of seconds per kilometre every couple of minutes.
10-K
Is it smart to sprint across the finish line? Here’s what the experts say.
We love a dramatic ending as much as the next runner, but are finishing kicks – those final sprints to the line – a good idea? “If you’re not fighting for a place in the Olympics, I tell middle-aged runners to skip the sprint and put that extra fuel towards a sustained increase earlier in the race,” says Dr Paul Thompson, chief of cardiology at Hartford Hospital in Connecticut. Sudden acceleration causes a surge in heart rate, and if you have a pre-existing condition, the strain may put you at increased risk for a heart attack or cardiac arrest. (Keep in mind that these events are still super-rare.) If you’re young and healthy and have been training consistently with lots of speedwork, you can sprint the last 100 metres, says Thompson.
After 6km, pick it up by a couple of seconds per kilometre every 3 or 4 minutes, for as long as the pace feels manageable.
For the Grand Finale With most of the race behind you, it’s finally safe to max out your engine. “For both short and long races, I suggest following the two-thirds rule – if you’re controlled and have some extra fuel left in the tank with just a third of the race left, it’s okay to pick up your speed,” says Warrenburg. Sound like you? Here’s how to kick it into high gear.
TAP YOUR PERFORMANCEENHANCERS The last leg of the race is the time to blast the moodboosting tunes, feed off the energy of the crowd, and visualise yourself finishing with power and strength. “At this point, a lot of runners will think I’m hitting the wall; so imagine it’s made of Styrofoam instead of bricks –
HALF MARATHON
From kilometres 14 to 18, drop the pace by 3 to 6 seconds each kilometre as it feels sustainable. Speed up more after kilometre 18.
you can just push right through it,” says Brown. ADD SPEED GRADUALLY “I’ve seen people decide to throw the kitchen sink at the race with too much course left, and it can go horribly wrong,” says Warrenburg. A better approach: ease into a quicker pace using the conservative guidelines below.
FULL MARATHON
Same as a half, but speed up between kilometres 30 and 35, and consider bringing it in faster if you feel good after that. NOVEMBER 2017 RUNNER’S WORLD 69
WE RUN THE
They’re edgy. They’re explorers. They’re misfits. What they are NOT is a club. Meet the urban running crews who are changing the culture of running, block by block, city by city, beer by hard-earned beer. By Matt Gross and Lisa Abdellah
PHOTOGRAPH BY EMILIANO GRANADO
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STREETS A
s far back as I can remember, I hated runners. Not running – running was fine, it was fun, it was what my dad did every morning. But runners? They were popular. They were disciplined, had coaches, wore skimpy outfits. They were – ugh – athletes. Me? In high school, I was an asthmatic, four-eyed, rebel skateboarder. The cultural chasm between us could not be bridged. Then, in my mid-20s, I started running to stay in shape. I’d leave my flat in a singlet, my sensitive bits slathered in anti-chafing gunge, an interval workout on my mind. Except… except that when I looked around at members of running clubs (and around the country), I did not see myself – a nerdy skater. I saw the clean-cut, hyper-organised, mainstream athletes I’d always resented. Where were the weirdos, the misfits, the eccentric explorers who wanted more from their running lives than to train like Wayde van Niekerk? As it turns out, they were there – but not in running clubs. They were in running crews. Such a tiny distinction – three letters! – but crews and clubs are worlds apart. The idea of a crew began in the US, around 2004, when a
New Yorker named Mike Saes organised night-time runs that began in town and ranged over the East River into Brooklyn and back. They were unstructured, with exploration and communitybuilding as important as the actual exercise. The group called themselves the Bridge Runners. Soon after, crews began popping up elsewhere. London, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, and Paris all saw crews arrive and thrive. In South Africa too, nowwell-known running crews arose: The Nine Four in Cape Town, and Thesis Run Cru in Soweto. As the movement grew, what differentiated crews from clubs wasn’t just where, or when, or how they ran (everywhere, often at night, uncoached), but who was doing the running. Frequently, these were men and women who didn’t fit the traditional runner profile, though many were damn serious about running and would crush you in a race. They were skaters, DJs, street artists. They had tattoos and piercings well before everyone had tattoos and piercings. They were not necessarily white, not necessarily skinny, and not necessarily straight. They were, although few probably understood it at the time, the future of running. Today, urban running crews are proliferating at a mad pace, each with its own theme (diversity, intensity, wackiness), each organising and drawing in new members via social media (Instagram in particular), but all united across thousands of kilometres by their love of running, their defiant independence, and their bonedeep respect for individuality. Here are four from SA (and two from the US) that we’re dying to run (and party) with.
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OUR PHILOSOPHY “Our T-shirts are emblazoned with the Bridge The Gap (BTG, a movement that connects run crews from around the world) motto: ‘Run. Party. Repeat.’ The message is that you can have fun while running,” says member Stuart Hendricks. OUR EXPERTISE “We have a few accomplished runners, some of whom have run the Comrades in under eight hours. Among our members are physiotherapists and biokineticists,” says Ngwenya. BESIDES RUNNING The crew is involved in community outreach – one event was a charity drive for a shelter in Yeoville.
BRAAMFIE RUNNERS // BRAAMFONTEIN, GAUTENG
OUR INSTAGRAM STORY “Our photography is aimed at a young, fun-loving, urban audience.” FOLLOW US: On Instagram @braamfierunners
Braamfie Runners began in 2012 as an invite-only club for influencers and celebrities. But as more and more ordinary people became inspired by the club’s running posts on social media, it expanded into a fully-fledged running crew, which now has in excess of 50 members. The crew has no chairman, AGM or licensing fees. Rather, it’s an informal group with stacks of personality: artists, medical students, hockey players and DJs – you name it. “Our members are young, fashionable people who love to express themselves in the way that they dress for a run,” explains member Netswa Ngwenya. “They’re more concerned with socialising than smashing a PB.”
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The crew runs from their base in a popular hub in Braamfontein, where there are funky, trendy spaces like the Neighbourgoods Market and the Bannister Hotel. Many of Braamfie’s urban runs are connected to events, and to spaces such as museums and stadiums. In August – Women’s Month – the crew hosted a series of womenspecific events, which included yoga and training sessions with wellknown fitness experts. Members are treated to a braai on the first Thursday of every month. Braamfie Runners train in large groups, which makes the streets safer for women runners – and they’re free to wear any gear they like, without fear of heckling or negative comments.
PHOTOGRAPHS BY STUART HENDRICKS
RUNSL // CAPE TOWN AND JOHANNESBURG In August 2016, SA sneaker and streetwear store Shelflife opened a new shop in Johannesburg. To mark the occasion, co-founder Nick Herbert and general manager David Davey created a platform where a group of likeminded individuals interested in fashion – particularly sneakers – could run, hang
out and bond. Why running? “We wanted to demonstrate that fashion and running aren’t mutually exclusive,” explains Davey. “Running is hungry for this ‘cool’ aspect, and people want to look good when they’re doing it. But it’s also not all about how you look – through healthy exercise, we acknowledge there’s more to life.”
RUNSL has around 15 core members, who use the Shelflife stores in Cape Town and Johannesburg as meeting points. At each store, they talk about what’s on the shelves. Then, they run in a pack through the city streets at night. If there are enough members out running, they split into a faster and a slower group.
Each member pledges to run a certain number of kilometres per month, and follows a training schedule. They all have similar interests, and hang out together at weekends. “You don’t need to be a member, though,” Davey points out. “Anyone and everyone can come and run with us.”
OUR USP: “RUNSL is the only South African running crew to operate out of two cities: Cape Town and Johannesburg.” OUR TRAINING WEEK: “On Mondays, the crew runs 8km from the store, and on Wednesdays either a 6km run, or we’ll hit the stairs or do some sprinting. On Saturdays we run between 10 and 12km.”
PHOTOGRAPH SUPPLIED
FOLLOW US: On Instagram @shelflifestore WATCH THIS SPACE: “RUNSL will introduce its own Instagram page fairly soon. We have a massive following on Shelflife’s page, but we realise we need to separate ourselves: not everyone interested in sneakers wants to see posts about running.”
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THESIS RUN CREW // SOWETO, GAUTENG Thesis (in this case, ‘research to illustrate a new point of view about street culture’) began as a streetwear and lifestyle brand – with a small store in the Sowetan township of Mofolo Village, selling T-shirts and bucket hats inspired by youth culture in the streets: art, graffiti, music. Founder Wandile Zondo used the shop as a base for his training runs – and as more people living in his neighbourhood noticed, they wanted to join him. The group hang out at the store after their runs, and even have braais at each other’s houses. The crew prides itself on being beginner-friendly. “Londiwe was a complete beginner when we first saw her, running in Pimville,” Zondo remembers.”She was overweight and had a long way to go; but we helped her to improve by sharing our knowledge of nutrition and training. This year, she’s training for her first marathon.”
OUR PHILOSOPHY: “Anyone can run, from high school to tertiary students, and from bankers to creative souls. As long as you’re passionate about running, you will be accepted into our
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movement,” says Zondo. A LEARNING CURVE: “There’s always someone in our crew who’s more experienced than you, and who’s more than happy to share their expertise.”
WE LOOK OUT FOR EACH OTHER: “When I sustained a calf injury, my friends encouraged me to forget about achieving a silver medal in the Soweto Marathon, and instead focus on healing and rest. If I
hadn’t listened to the advice my crew shared, I might still be carrying that injury with me today.” FOLLOW US: On Instagram @thesisruncru
PHOTOGRAPHS BY LINDA NKOSI
WHO THEY ARE: “My friends and I are a group of creative people: artists, illustrators, designers, sneaker-shop owners, models and bloggers,” Ward says. “We come from all over the city: Bishop Lavis, Tamboerskloof, the city centre and the southern suburbs.” WHAT THEY WEAR: Black T-shirts and reversed peak caps, emblazoned with a white rabbit logo – which symbolises an animal that you can chase, but you can’t catch. HOW THEY CONNECT: The Nine Four is part of the Bridge The Gap movement (search #bridgethegap #btg on Instagram), which connects running crews from around the world. FOLLOW US: On Instagram @theninefour
THE NINE FOUR // CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA In 2014, Paul Ward founded The Nine Four – a name inspired by the year South Africa became free, and symbolising the freedom for mixed groups of people to run together, in any area. They’re a group of
PHOTOGRAPHS BY WARREN PAPIER
people aged 20 to 30 who are creative, listen to the same music, and party together. The crew run through the urban streets at night, and afterwards, they hang out together at their base – a clubhouse called The Burrow, in the
heart of Cape Town. Half of it is lockers and showers and the other half is a living room with couches, table tennis and an X-box. Sometimes, events are hosted at The Burrow – it’s a platform for DJs, cooks and the odd sneaker-head
to collaborate. “Although running is the core, building a family that supports each other is vital – not just in running, but in all aspects of life,” says Ward. “That’s why we’ve limited our number of members to 30.”
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RESIDENT RUNNERS // NEW YORK CITY To run in New York is to run through chaos – to time the lights, to hurdle fetid puddles, to piss off cyclists. To do it alone is a burden. But to do it alongside 25 others, all of you swarming past pedestrians over the Williamsburg Bridge at dusk on a Thursday, marking your progress by graffiti and strange smells (fried fish? dope?), pushing yourself faster than you
thought you could – well, that’s the challenge and joy of Resident Runners. “Yeah, it’s a little reckless,” says Rahsaan Rogers, who leads the crew (founded in 2013), along with his friends Eric Blevens and Raymond Hailes. “But it’s part of running in this city. That’s how we do it.” How they do it is this: they run fast – tempo pace,
whatever that speed is for each runner. “We tell people to chase whoever’s a bit faster than you,” Blevens says. They don’t wait for stragglers. They don’t talk much. And yet, despite the aggro façade, they keep the mood light. Because the run is the prelude to a party. Even if you get left behind, Blevens says. “We’re gonna be there at the end, and we’re gonna hang out and get beers.”
Or tacos. Resident may be most famous for its monthly Taco Runs, chilled five-milers (8km) that end with 40 to 60 runners cramming into Güeros, a Brooklyn hangout, for the Fried Avocado and Jalapeño speciality. Frozen margaritas, however, are “the underlying theme”, Blevens says. “They’re quite large, quite strong, and we have quite a few.”
WORDS WE LIVE BY: “There’s nothing better than getting lost in New York when you’re running – it’s how you figure everything out,” Blevens says. OUR NEMESIS: “The biggest issue, honestly, isn’t even with the cars or traffic – it’s cyclists who hate us,” says Rogers. “There are a lot of times when we’re running in the bike lanes, and some guy will heckle us. It’s a non-stop battle.” FOLLOW US: On Instagram @residentrunners
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PHOTOGRAPH BY EMILIANO GRANADO
UNNAMED RUN CREW // BOSTON The Unnamed Run Crew (UNMD for short) was created as “an act of defiance”, its founder, Leandrew Belnavis, says jokingly. He wanted to promote the diversity and friendliness he felt were missing from Boston’s hyper-competitive, traditionally preppy running clubs. Today, the UNMD’s group runs of five to eight kays, which start at a high-end sneaker boutique called Laced near the city’s Back Bay neighbourhood, are energetic and loud – designed to attract attention in whichever neighbourhood the 30plus members (“of every possible colour”, Belnavis says) are passing through. ‘What the #*@% is this?’ Belnavis wants observers to say. Followed by, ‘You know what, I’m gonna drop what I’m doing and join you.’ And people do. Over the summer, two random women visiting from New York spotted the UNMD doing track relays, and demanded to join right then and there. It was raining, and they didn’t have running gear, but that didn’t matter. They ran. Which is exactly why the crew was created. Belnavis wants everyone to join weekly rambles through the city’s different neighbourhoods: the fast, the slow (“sexypace runners”, Belnavis calls them), and everyone in between. “I want them all to feel like rock stars at the end of the session, every time.”
PHOTOGRAPHS BY CHRIS CARDOZA
WE DRESS TO: Impress. What you put on your feet matters to Belnavis, who plans the runs out of the sneaker shop Laced to reflect his sneaker obsession.
He appreciates “any type of collaboration between fashion and function.” DON’T RUN WITH US IF: “You have derogatory things to say about
the LGBT community, find racial remarks appropriate in normal conversation, believe feminism is a joke,” Belnavis says. “But if you care about community,
celebrating diversity, and getting fit, there’s a place in this crew for you.” FOLLOW US: On Instagram @unnamedruncrew
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The Best
(RW Reader)
TIPS
EVER! P H OTO G R A P H B Y S E A N L AU R É N Z
This month, we’ve done things a little differently – we’re handing over the reins to our loyal and knowledgeable readers, to share their running expertise: top-notch tips on training, nutrition, motivation, injury prevention and gear, garnered from years of experience, expert advice – and a few hard-won lessons. By Lisa Abdellah and Penny Trevena
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Bide Your Time: A strong finish can only be achieved by star ting your race slowly.
Training “First run far. Then run fast.” – Louis Lategan “If you want to improve, don’t repeat the same training regime week-in, week-out.” – Michael Mbatha “Developed an annoying stitch on the run? Here’s how to get rid of it: inhale while you push your stomach out, and pull your stomach inward while you exhale. Do this a few times until the stitch is gone. Works a treat!” – Sandra Radovanovic Buckingham
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“Ryan Sandes once told me to stop looking down at my watch so often, and enjoy my run. Best advice I’ve ever received.” – Tiaan van Zyl “Breathe: your legs will get you there.” – Janet Hofman “Your body can go further than your mind suggests.” – Celeste Smit “Results are never achieved in a rush. Consistency is crucial.” – Awonke Jongi Tini “In distance running, run the
kilometre you’re in.” – Margo Baltera
including hill sprints and fartleks, my times improved quickly.
“Start off your race slowly, and finish strong.” – Jacques Liebenberg
“If you’re new to fartleks, take it easy at first – pick a tree or a lamppost, run hard until you reach it, and then resume an easy pace. Repeat once or twice every kilometre.”
“You won’t die: you’ll pass out first.” – Denise Beukes “I once read a quote: ‘Speed kills. In road running, it will kill you if you don’t have it’. No matter what your running ability, speedwork is the main ingredient to healthy and successful running. When I incorporated a couple of sessions into my weekly routine,
– Paul Norris
PHOTOGRAPH BY SEAN LAURÉNZ
Injury Prevention “Keep doing what works; stop doing what hurts.” – Erik Salamon “Listen to your body.” – Linda Wu
“Make sure you stretch before – and, most importantly, after – a run.” – Portia Gee
“I rest two days a week. And if I have a niggle, or didn’t have a good night’s sleep, I won’t attempt a run the next morning.” – Zaheera Mulla “Always build up your training gradually. Too much running, too soon, could equal no running for a while.” – Erza Sher “Rest when you’re injured.” – Rialine Steyn “Regular speedwork makes your legs stronger, and therefore more resistant to injury.” – Paul Norris “I avoid risky behaviour, like running too close to traffic, or in a dark or poorly lit area.” – UA Dyasopi “I watch where I put my feet, dodging things like branches, bricks and cracks. I’m aware of my surroundings.” – Keren Buttrum
P H OTO G R A P H B Y N E I L R O B E R T S ( S T R E TC H I N G )
“Besides running, I work out at the gym three times a week.” – Karen Bente Holmgaard
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Motivation “Whether we come first or last, we all run the same distance and achieve the same thing.” – Amanda Liebenberg “Running is a privilege. If you’re able to do it, then by all means enjoy it!” – Andrew Porter “Running isn’t one-size-fits-all. Listen to your body, believe in yourself and your strengths, and don’t let others pressure you into doing anything you don’t feel comfortable with.” – Eliza Botha “Someone once told me I was too old to run. ‘You’re too young to sit on the couch,’ I replied. Doing something is better than doing nothing.” – Laura DiGioia Beaver “I never used to train in winter – but now I’m the proud owner of my first Comrades medal.
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Knowing I overcame a huge challenge sparked something.” – Lee-Ann Freeland Hughes “Amazing views make up for any discomfort you experience.” – Fabio Caldeira “Fear of a potbelly!” – Lucky Plam “Set a goal: I’m training for my first half marathon.” – Hannah Truter
“Knowing the hard graft I’m putting in will ensure I’m on top form when marathon season starts.” – KhosiQueen Sekano “Join a club. That way, you’ll have people to hold you accountable for showing up.” – Elizabeth Farrell-Webley
“Run if you can, walk if you have to, crawl if you must – but never give up!” – Henry Cannabist Mngomezulu NOVEMBER 2017 RUNNER’S WORLD 83
An Apple A Day: RW readers eat a consistent, healthy and balanced diet.
Nutrition “A cup of hot water with lemon juice. Every. Single. Morning.” – Roelien Siebrits
“Plain Bulgarian yoghurt in the morning and in the evening.” – Suzarne Ally van Jaarsveld
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“Lots of leafy green vegetables.” – Shirwa Hume
“We train almost the same distance as we race, with only two water stops. I have a banana, and maybe some peanut butter on toast, around 90 minutes before my race – and that’s it.” – Gary Victor Michael Ingram
“Hot milk and honey before bed.” – Becky Louise de Swardt
“Oats with skimmed milk and a banana, and I drink lots of electrolytes in the three days
– Janine Fokkens
leading up to a race.” – Karen Bente Holmgaard “Two slices of white bread, smeared with Marmite, and a coffee; two hours before the race.” – Irma Parker “I ate a muffin before my last race, and noticed a drop in my performance. I shan’t be doing that again!” – Marutia Mahlafora
P H OTO G R A P H B Y G L E N M O N TG O M E R Y
“Mangoes are a miracle fruit: they have all the vitamins you need, and protect your skin from the sun’s harmful rays.” – Vivian Staffen
“When I run less than 10km, a glass of water is sufficient.”
Gear “The best running shoe is the one that works for you.” – Louis Lategan
“I realised my black toenails were due to wearing ill-fitting shoes and socks. But the Asics 19 running shoe is a perfect fit, and has banished dodgy toenails for good.” – Zaheera Mulla “Nike runner’s underwear. It’s like a pair of girl’s tights; only it’s made to wear under your running shorts. No chafing, no wobbling, just divine support. And it’s the most pretty shade of pink – neon, to be exact!” – Lee-Ann Freeland Hughes “Going bra-less is not an option!” – Tracy Cockcroft “A wrist band is useful for soaking up sweat – and you can blow your nose on it on cold days.” – Troy Bulford “I always considered myself an I’m-not-runningin-tights kind of guy, until one Saturday morning the chafe got me real bad. Nowadays, if I can’t find my tights, I don’t run.” – Erik Salamon “Sunglasses keep the dust, wind and sun out of my eyes.” – Mark Brandstetter “Definitely my GPS watch. I need to see those kilometres.” – Lindie Denny
In conclusion “Want the best advice ever? Buy Runner’s World magazine. It will change your life!” – Cwaita Wendy Madikizela
PHOTOGRAPH BY FERDINAND VAN HUIZEN
NOVEMBER 2017 RUNNER’S WORLD 85
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STADIUM DASH: Under, over and inside the arenas where spor ting legends have made histor y.
ED’S CHOICE
KWAZULU-NATAL SATURDAY 25 NOVEMBER
7 9 Stadium Dash Durban powered by Peri People’s Park, Moses Mabhida Stadium, 44 Isaiah Ntshangase Road, Durban; Various start times between 7am and 11am Race Organisers 060 966 8061 jumpcitychallenge.com An urban obstacle course featuring 22 awesome challenges. From the dizzying heights of the iconic Moses Mabhida stadium to Kingspark stadium, and from Kingspark swimming pool to the Durban beachfront.
PHOTOGRAPHS COURTESY OF RACE ORGANISERS
SEARCH THE COMPLETE LIST OF RACES IN SOUTH AFRICA: RUNNERSWORLD.CO.ZA/ RACE-CALENDAR
NOVEMBER 2017 RUNNER’S WORLD 87
RACING AHEAD
ED’S CHOICE
TRAIL RUNNING SATURDAY 4 NOVEMBER
6 14 21 The Encounter EG Trail Run Challenge Cedarberg Farm, Cedarville, Eastern Cape; 21km: 7:50am; 14km: 8am; 6km: 8:20am Sonja 079 335 1807
The Encounter EG Trail Run Challenge: Forms par t of a countr y festival: food, music, flowers and fine ar t.
P H OTO G R A P H S CO U R T E SY O F R AC E O R G A N I S E R S
An epic adventure into East Griqualand’s back country, where there are rolling hills, grasslands, wild flowers, and trails along the Umzimvubu that overlook the unique Cedarville Flats. Single- and farm-track trails present a technical challenge for intermediate runners. After your race, take a hot shower, and then tuck into free-range steak and a cold craft beer, by the dam. It’s a family affair: a fully-equipped children’s area comes complete with child minders.
ED’S CHOICE
SATURDAY 18 NOVEMBER
5 15 Klaas Maffa Road Race Huguenot Monument, 13 Lambrechts Rd, Franschhoek; Start time 15km: 7am; 5km: 7.15am Nolan 072 785 6529 entrytime.com
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The 15km is predominantly flat, except for 4km of dirt road and a short climb close to the finish. Walkers and wheelchair users are welcome. Franschhoek AC lies in one of the most beautiful valleys in the world, where there are stunning views of mountains and vineyards, and a plethora of things to do – worth a weekend getaway.
P H OTO G R A P H CO U R T E S Y O F R AC E O R G A N I S E R S
WESTERN CAPE
The Beast Challenge: A thrilling obstacle course, ideal for a family day out.
ED’S CHOICE
ADVENTURE RACING & MULTISPORT SATURDAY 11 NOVEMBER The Beast Challenge #13 Beyers Naudé Drive, Muldersdrift: Savage Beast 12km, 8km & 5km: 8:30am (staggered start); Kids’ Mini: 10:30am Race Organiser 012 667 2074 thebeastchallenge.co.za Trail run, climb, crawl and slide across various obstacles designed by professional athletes. This is more than just an obstacle race: it’s about getting dirty, having fun, and making memories in the great outdoors. And anyone can join in: family, friends, work colleagues and SA’s toughest athletes alike.
P H OTO G R A P H C O U R T E SY O F R AC E O R G A N I S E R S
ED’S CHOICE
GAUTENG THURSDAY 2 NOVEMBER
5 B2Run South Africa Riversands Farm Village, Riversands Commercial Park, Rose Road, Knopjeslaagte, Midrand; 5km: 5pm Areesh 082 897 9211 tembisamile.co.za
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Running five flat, easy kilometres together is a great way to boost team spirit and motivation. After this fun-filled corporate event, there’s a market on the rustic grounds of the famous old farm, where participants can relax and absorb their beautiful surrounds.
SEARCH THE COMPLETE LIST OF RACES IN SOUTH AFRICA: RUNNERSWORLD.CO.ZA/ RACE-CALENDAR
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P H OTO G R A P H S CO U R T E SY O F R AC E O R G A N I S E R S
5 8 12
BACK OF THE PACK is simple: you need to de-clutter your emotional lives, before it’s too late!” “Why?” asked Ferdie. (Ferdie is still young and inexperienced in the ways of the world – which means he doesn’t know when to shut up and duck off, unnoticed, like the rest of us were trying to do.) “Why?” she repeated, incredulously. “It’s because your mind is overloaded with inhibitions caused by negative running experiences in the past. Do what I do: cut the umbilical cord of your neurotic attachment to your negative emotions.” Bizarrely, Agatha mimed hauling out her own umbilical cord and sawing it off. Then she pulled out the attached entrails, hand over hand, and cast them at Ferdie’s feet, prompting him to jump back in horror. It wasn’t for sensitive viewers. Quite unabashed, Agatha continued: “Let us start by identifying what needs to be hauled out and cast
The Ghost Of Running Past Did you struggle to get out of bed this morning? Here’s why… BY BRUCE PINNOCK
90 RUNNER’S WORLD NOVEMBER 2017
“…you need to de-clutter your emotional lives, before it’s too late!”
Bruce Pinnock Devotes his writing to the much-neglected art of running slowly.
aside. For example, you struggle to force yourself to run. Admit it!” “No.” “You’re in denial. Admit that because of your past running experiences, you struggled to get out of bed this morning.” “No,” he said. “The moment I woke up, my wife said something that had me out of bed, into my running togs and on the road in no time at all.” Agatha was sceptical. “I find that hard to believe. What did she say?” “The baby’s nappy needs to be changed.” For once, Agatha looked nonplussed. Perhaps it had occurred to her that bad experiences encompass more than just running. And when she became aware the rest of us were trying to sneak off quietly, perhaps she realised life’s not just about eliminating bad experiences; it’s also about not being the cause of them.
I L L U S T R AT I O N B Y G A L LO I M AG E S /G E T T Y I M AG E S
DID YOU KNOW THAT 80% OF RUNNERS hated running, initially? Neither did I. So I conducted some research – not rigorously scientific, mind you – by asking five of the back of the pack to recall their first long-distance running experience. Four of them agreed: “It was very bad.” Only Kosie said: “Mine was good.” Which at first was hard to believe – until he revealed that the reason it had been so awesome was that he’d
run less than 100 metres of his first cross-country race before ducking off to join 10 other skivers, skulking behind the bike sheds. By comparison, his second distance-running experience was dreadful. Kosie and his fellow absentees were caught out – and made to run the course twice. “I nearly died!” Kosie admitted. It was at this point that one of our members – Agatha Primm, who had been listening unnoticed – spoke up. (Agatha Primm is one of those ‘gurus’ who does motivational talks and writes books on how to improve your emotional life. I don’t know about you, but those who take it upon themselves to tell you how to improve your life really, really piss me off. They act like they know it all. And they assume that once they’ve worn you down to their way of thinking, you’ll be forever in their debt. If you see Agatha, run in the opposite direction as fast as you can!) But before we’d had a chance to scatter for shelter, Agatha had already begun. “I’ve been listening to your whingeing,” she said, in her best prison-warden voice. “You all have negative emotional connections with the runs of your past. And the solution
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