Forward Motion
This week I was just minding my own damn business, when I got an email from 23andMe about my “unread Muscle Composition report.” I clicked into it immediately.
23andMe is a “DNA insights” company. You send them your spit (as I did a few years ago, thanks to a free kit offered to me as press) and forever after they send you reports about the secrets of your genes. There are parts of it that are pretty cool. (For example, I know now that 50% of my genes can be traced back to London.) But most of the time the reports just tell you stuff you can already glean from the simple observation of living in your body, day after day. This report, on my muscle composition, was one of those. The first line, emphasis theirs: “Amelia, your genetic muscle composition is uncommon in elite power athletes.” (lol.)
Womp, womp, Sad trombone noise, etc. This is just a funny anecdote, but I am also bringing it up because it was yet another indignity in what was a terrible running week for me. On Monday, I stayed inside due to the blizzard that blanketed New York City in 18 inches of snow. I tried to run Tuesday—total disaster. I made it about a mile of running/climbing over snowbanks and through slush, and turned around. Wednesday, I found a nicely shoveled block around a school with wide, clear sidewalks. I actually finished my workout (4x4-minute moderate tempo intervals), but it didn’t feel great. It’s supposed to snow again today, and the Brooklyn Half was just canceled officially. The list goes on.
It was definitely one of those weeks where I was like, why do I like running again? And why am I forcing myself to do this in the middle of what feels like an interminable snow-hell, against the backdrop of a horrific pandemic? I don’t mean to kick this newsletter off with such negativity, but I think it offers a lesson. Running just sucks sometimes. And it’s always, always hard—often in unpredictable ways—no matter how many races you’ve run or how long you’ve been at it.
I feel like a lot of beginning runners misunderstand this. They get discouraged when they feel that it will never get easier. They start to think maybe my body is just not meant to run. I’ll go back to the horrors of the elliptical or just do hot yoga. But I think what’s key is to know going in that it never gets easier, it only gets easier to tolerate. And that’s where the beauty lies: When you learn how much you can tolerate and still keep going, you become, maybe not an elite power athlete, but I like to think you become a better human being. Other things in your life start to seem easier. You have just a touch more confidence—and a lot more humility. You sleep better, and you have more endorphins. Endorphins make people happy, as Elle Woods would tell you.
So, yeah, I had a bad week. But I got through it, and there’s always next week. I’ll never be an elite power athlete, and that’s fine. Because that’s not the point. The point is I am moving forward in running and in life, even when it doesn’t feel like it, with the imperfect tools I have at my disposal in an imperfect time.
Other things to think about while running this week...
This photo of Harry Styles. Or this one. The fact that Harry is one of us is maybe my favorite thing in the world. Fine Line is also perfect listen for an easy run.
The new Britney documentary 👀 👀 👀
This piece on the diminishing returns of productivity by Anne Helen Petersen.
The End & a few requests…
Thanks for reading! Easy Pace is a labor of love and a work in progress. I have some parting requests:
I’m in the process of commissioning some logo art. If you’re a designer or know one, let me know. Paying gig.
Did you like (or dislike) this issue? Please let me know your thoughts! I’m also interested to know: Where you’re at in your running ~journey~, and what you’d like to see here. Got any burning running/training/health q’s? I’d love to find an answer for them! Want to see someone in the running/wellness community highlighted. I’d love to interview them!
Know someone who would like this kind of thing? Please do share this newsletter with them.
Reach out to me with any or all of the above anytime: ameliafaith@gmail.com.