COLUMN: Soreness and fatigue a normal occurence for runners
Jeffery Clifford doesn’t walk down the stairs backward as a joke, a form of holistic therapy or a cry for attention. He does this as a form of recovery, something common to marathon runners.
“It’s difficult to walk, soon after a marathon,” Clifford said. “You’re quads hurt a lot, and you feel like an old man, especially when you’re sitting down.”
Clifford, a senior studying biology, began running in the spring of 2007. He was living on campus on the honors-themed floor of the Living Learning Center building A and was encouraged by his peer mentor to participate in an upcoming local 5-kilometer run collecting proceeds for organ donations.
According to his calculation, he said his experience in long-distance running was “pretty much zero,” but in an effort to support a good cause, he accepted his mentor’s request.
After a time of training, learning and finally competing in the race, Clifford said he was incredibly shocked at how much he really enjoyed it. So much, in fact, that it soon became a regular and most relaxing hobby for him, he said.
“I really had a great time getting ready for it,” Clifford said. “It was funny, I honestly went from hating it to really enjoying it, and it just went from there.”
Things kept moving forward for the West Valley City native. Since that spring, Clifford has ran in two marathons and two long-distance relays, he said, along with an array of 5-kilometers, half-marathons and shorter races.
Though training and discipline can tend to be a bit of a drag, he said the experience on race days is what gives him the push to do more.
“I’ve just found I really like the feeling I have when I’m running,” he said. “It’s exhilarating running together with a huge group of people. The experience is really cool.”
After Clifford chooses to train for a race, he said he likes to give himself ample time to prepare. He said he signs up and pays for a race 6-7 months in advance. Then he starts out slow, he said, running short, brisk 3-mile legs during the week and longer expeditions — around 5-6 miles — on weekends.
As the months pass, Clifford said he adds mileage to his workout when he becomes more comfortable with the distances. He also adjusts his diet, increasing his intake of fruits and vegetables, while keeping a steady load of carbohydrates, he added.
Before long, Clifford said he’ll get up to 9-mile weekday runs and 20-mile weekend runs, until he eventually cools things down the week before race day.
Clifford said it’s difficult to balance training time around work, school, learning to teach LDS seminary and spend enough time with his long-time girlfriend MaryAnn Orton, but he reassures aspiring marathoners organization the key.
“In order for me to do it, I have to plan out my day so I can fit it in. It’s best for me to train in the morning, but it works best wherever it fits,” he said.
Clifford also said he loves running in the morning, because it gives him time away from the stress of everyday life.
“It’s a huge stress reliever,” he said. “If I have a lot of homework and am feeling really cooped up, it always feels better to run for a half an hour, cruise my mind and just think about whatever is weighing down on me.”
With another semester closer to the books and closer to graduation, Clifford is beginning to focus on his post-college plans, he said.
Regarding those plans, Clifford said he hopes to teach seminary or institute classes for the LDS Church Education System, if things work out. He said he’s also considered working in hospital management.
“I’ve always loved studying the human body and wouldn’t mind working there,” Clifford said, “we’ll just see where things go from here on out.”
As for the running, he said he’s considering another marathon and has plans to run another long-distance relay with his uncle soon. He said it isn’t something he plans to let go of.
“It may sound crazy to some people, but it is a lot of fun,” Clifford said. “It’s great to do something healthy and do it with people who are good people and love doing the same thing you are.”
– steve.schwartzman@aggiemail.usu.edu