Journalism No, not the kind of journalism that journalists used to practice: the Who, What, When, and Where kind of objective reporting of an event. In the strange, twisted linguistics of today where a word like “scrapbooking” is constructed from a noun, what we’re talking about is referred to as “journaling,” as in keeping a journal or writing in a journal. Not the kind of journaling that you see people doing on laptop computers while laying a sixhour siege to a seat in a coffee shop. Just the facts. The facts of your running. With appropriate commentary. I bring this subject up because so few runners today are making use of a daily journal of their running, yet a journal can be as valuable to a runner’s fitness, health, and progress as the correct pair of running shoes. The subject of journal keeping as it pertains to your running comes up every time runners want to discuss either how they earned their latest injury or what they need to do to re-create the terrific performance they had in their last good marathon. “All you need to do is consult your running journal,” I naively say. “My running journal?” they naively answer. “Sure. Running injuries, unless they are traumatic, like tripping on a curb, are usually injuries of overuse, so they can usually be traced back to within two

weeks of when they occurred, and then you can make sure that you don’t repeat the steps that caused the injury. It’s all right there in your running journal.” “My running journal?” they naively answer. Commercial running journals are available. For years after Jim Fixx died, the author John Jerome filled in to keep Fixx’s annual spiral-bound running journal alive. Many old-line runners have been keeping a running journal for decades. A few of them I know of have whole bookshelves lined with matching threering binders, each binder a history of one year’s worth of running. I’ve kept a journal since returning to running on June 13, 1977. I started with a three-ring binder but, inspired by Joe Henderson’s creative and wideranging use of 3-by-5 cards at the office of Runner’s World, I changed over to them. (This was before personal computers; Joe kept records of every sub-3:00 marathon in the United States back in those days, each runner having his very own 3-by-5 card.) They’re small, convenient, they travel well, and at the end of the year, you can sort them out like a deck of cards, tie them up with some twine, and store them away in a box. A running journal needn’t be complicated, but it does need a space where the runner can jot down some notes,

some observations on the day’s run. It is usually in those observations where the danger or the magic lies. The basic elements of the running journal are the distance you ran, the elapsed time of your run, the surface you ran on, and the temperature and weather conditions. If you are able to estimate the pace of your run, that’s also good to know. If you did some auxiliary exercise, such as stretching or sit-ups, that’s also good to know. If you have a heart rate monitor, that’s worth noting. But you don’t need much more— except for the space reserved for your observations. Felt sluggish throughout the run. Started too fast but then settled into an easy 8:30 pace. Outside of right knee again sore until I warmed up; sore again after I stopped. Stepped off the track halfway through the fourth mile repeat; just couldn’t face another lap. Did the Vine Hill course, and it went as smooth as butter. Didn’t sleep well last night, and it showed in my five-mile downtown loop today. Last 20-miler before the marathon; went better than expected. Each of these observations of a workout is embedded with precious information that will help decode successes or failures in your subsequent running. If you suffered an injury, by reviewing the previous two weeks’ worth of information in your running journal, you will very likely be able to evaluate just what combination of workouts precipitated the injury.

In a similar manner, if you had a particularly good result at a race, by reviewing the month leading up to it, you will be able to see what combination of workouts contributed to your success, and you can then begin incorporating those combinations in future training toward repeating your success. Of course the journal entries can be expanded to indicate what besides running you did on a specific day. Once you have amassed a decade’s worth of journals, it can be fun to review your life from seven or eight years ago. It is particularly fun to compare your memories of a specific day or event with what you actually wrote down about that day or event in your journal. It is fascinating—and sometimes frightening—how the brain will modify and edit the memory of events over a long period of time. These little commentaries are especially valuable for capturing races you have run. Immediately after finishing a race, jot down the high and low points of the race in your running journal. Then check it five years from now and see if your memory and the journal entry match. John J. Kelley, who won the 1957 Boston Marathon, can relive that day by going back to his running journal: “12 noon: B.A.A. Marathon: won by 2 minutes, 45 seconds over Karvonen. Ran easily behind group of 8 to 10 until Natick, then accelerated pace with Lin (Korea) and Karvonen until Route 128 overpass (16 miles), pushed pace to build up 1 minute, 40 second lead by BC. Felt good, straining

at finish. Weather fair and warm (71 degrees, fresh SW wind).” There is an enormous amount of information in a very compact journal entry that would not quite fill one side of a 3-by-5 card. Besides, should you ever get on the wrong side of the law, you can immediately consult your running journal to establish your alibi. Of course, the opposing lawyer will then petition the court to see all of your journals, and that might be too much to let out to a panting public, especially if you’re in the habit of embellishing your day’s exploits. Just keep it to the facts, man, only the facts. * * * We did want to say a few words about the next two issues of Marathon & Beyond. Our November/December issue will be heavily slanted toward introducing our readers to interesting and accomplished people who run long. You will meet John Wallace, who ran solo across the United States from west to east. You’ll also meet George Crandell. One of our favorite writers, Tim Martin, returns to our pages to tell George’s story. Tito Morales will introduce you to super-ultrarunner Scott Jurek, and Ed Mayhew will take you on a run with Kiddy & Trapp—which is not a law firm. We’ll also help you get caught up with Steve Jones, one of the world’s most accomplished marathoners. And our favorite diarist, John J. Kelley, will introduce you to Frankie &

Vonnie as we get a preview of Johnny’s in-progress autobiography, where the information was gleaned from a combination of Johnny’s journals and his memories. The November/December issue will also put aside some space in the Editorial to report on some of the interesting running books that have crossed our desk in 2006. Our January/February 2007 issue will be our third sports medicine special. The two previous sportsmed specials (volumes 2.6 and 7.3) are among the hardest-to-find back issues of M&B, and for good reason: they are stuffed with cutting-edge information that presents numerous opportunities

for runners to improve their running. Already in-house and eager to go to press are an extensive piece on the physiology of marathon running by Jake Emmett; a report by Bill Pierce on the FIRST method of training; “Imagery for Marathoners” from Joe Weber; a four-section study from the famed Comrades Marathon in South Africa by Lindsay Weight; a pair of stories from Jason Karp (“On Science and Running” and “The Top Three Marathon Workouts”); as well as a piece enticingly titled “Three Days a Week to Faster Running” by Bill Pierce, Ray Moss, Scott Murr, and Mickey McCauley. We’ve solicited additional pieces from our Science Advisory Board. The special sportsmed issue is shaping up to be another issue for the ages. —Rich Benyo