A Chi Running Testimony

Posted by Doug Dapo on Mon Oct 17th, 2011, 4 comments

On July 30, 2011, I completed my first trail marathon. I ran the Grand Island Trail Marathon in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. This was not my first marathon but one of the most challenging with hills and diverse terrain.

I prepared for this marathon using the Chi Running technique that I have been practicing. It was very enlightening to reflect on my experience of running this trail marathon. After the run, I felt fine. The Chi Running focuses helped me to run efficiently and to not get injured. In fact, the day after this marathon, while visiting the Grand Sable Dunes in Michigan, my son and I had a blast going down a steep sand dune to the shores of Lake Superior. This is a trek that few people take because the climb back up is not easy. You have to climb up on all fours slipping and sliding trying to get back to the top. So, one day after running my first trail marathon, I was climbing back up a steep sand dune with no problems. No aches and no pains. I also went bike riding with my son 2 days after the marathon with no problems.

This experience of feeling fine after the Grand Island Trail Marathon made me think back to when I ran my first marathon in 1998. It was 13 years ago at the Air Force Marathon in Dayton. This was my pre-Chi Running days. After that marathon, I remember going to my friend’s house near-by where I had stayed the previous night. I was going up the stairs to the guest room and recalled what a painful experience that was. I took one step at a time. I groaned with each step. My whole body ached. It seemed like it took forever to get to the top.

Wow, 13 years later, what a difference! After running a trail marathon, there I was climbing up a steep sand dune having a great time. I keep proving to myself that it was worth it to change my running form to learn Chi Running. I want to keep running my whole life long and Chi Running is helping me to do that and to enjoy the rest of my life when I am not running.