The Run Remembers When

I'm listening to a podcast and the guest says there's a huge spike in physical and mental fitness the year before people hit a milestone birthday. That the 29, 39, 49, and 59 years see an increase in gym membership and therapy sessions. That you clearly see a spike in marathon runners at 29, 39, and 49 years old.

I remember when I was 29 and at home bored. I was alone at that point and not really wanting to be alone. I was in pretty good shape from playing basketball three days a week. I decided to go for a run. It was 100F degrees out. I flew down Concord Blvd thinking I would cut back on Ygnacio but was feeling so good I kept going. It was in the direction of a house where a woman I liked but shouldn't like lived. I'm sure it helped with my pace. I cut over to Clayton road and headed back. I felt I could push my body to a near sprint. I ran in a few for-fun races that year and it was the fastest I would ever run seven miles. I signed up for some half marathons.

The summer of my 39th year, I was living in Beijing with my wife and two kids. I was willfully unemployed. My day consisted of an hour at Starbucks every morning reading fiction, a daily run, and a lot of baijiu dinners. For the baijiu dinners, I learned portion control for the food and the alcohol and that combined with the running saw my weight drop to high school levels. My long run that hot summer was starting from my apartment heading west on Chaoyangmenwai street which eventually took me to the back of Forbidden city. I'd run to the west end of the palace, turn left and run to Changanjie street and then make another left. My run would then split Tiananmen and the promenade where Mao welcomed the country in 1949. Then past more modern Beijing including Oriental Plaza and the ring road which had replaced the old city wall. Those 7.5 miler was the most memorable of my runs. I signed up and ran the Beijing half marathon.

The summer of my 49th year found me back in that same Chaowai apartment but this time alone. Most nights. I was still running but not as often, as far, or as fast as when I was 29 or 39. I wanted to repeat those iconic runs of a decade prior so on one Sunday morning, I took off. The run was familiar but lacked a certain joy. Running past Tiananmen, I had to run in the bike lane and it felt overly crowded and less immersive. I was glad I was able to complete the run that day and a few more times that summer. At 49, I wasn't as fleet as 39 but I was still pretty strong. I signed up for the Beijing half marathon. Got sick the day prior to the race. Decided not to skip it. Changed my mind and ran it anyway. Was the hardest 13.1 miles. I slept 15 hours after.

Now it's the summer of my 57th year. In January, Sabrina and I moved back to the Chaowai apartment. Our daughter Amanda was born. I took a month off work. Babies sleep a lot. I had time for runs while she slept. But I'm not ready for that iconic run. My body didn't feel so much differant in my 40s than my 30s. Not so for the 50s. The 50s sucked physically. My upper body has become jello. My feet are sore when I awake. My knees are weak. Three miles could be a chore. But I still like to run. The feeling of doing something without doing anything. So, I set out on a short version of the iconic run. 4.25 miles instead of 7.5. Minutes slower per mile pace. I'm able to do it three times a week for the weeks I'm home. I'm not signing up for the half marathon but I will tackle the 7.5 miler. Soon. This summer.

What struck me about that podcast guests is he specially called out 29, 39. 49, and 59 as life focus years. What about 69, 79, 89? And he silently dropped 59 for the spike in marathon sign-ups. It makes sense. It doesn't need to be said. Does it?