Run With Nike

Running has been at Nike’s core since its days as a two-person operation named “Blue Ribbon Sports.” Over the last 59 years, the Oregon-based institution has revolutionized the sport on local and global stages, empowering athletes of all levels to do more.
 
I, a five-foot-six-inch 29-year-old weighing roughly [redacted] pounds, am one of those athletes. But I didn’t consider myself one for a long time.
 
Like countless others, I thought I was only allowed to call myself “runner” if I ran fast and far. I failed to realize that there are as many expressions of runners and running as there are people. So, when my running journey began in June 2020, I was a roughly 14-minute miler – slower than others in my demographic, but a runner nonetheless.
 
I wish I could take all of the credit for my running progress, but I don’t like to lie. Besides, the title of this story already gave away my secret: Nike Running.

In the midst of a global pandemic that brought forth episodes of depression and weight gain, I decided to change my life. By chance, I remembered the Nike Run Club app existed and downloaded it on a Friday afternoon three years ago. After work, I laced up some old non-running sneakers and walked about 10 minutes, trying to reassure any doubts that popped up along the way. My starting line would be the corner of East Fordham Road and Belmont Avenue in the Bronx; my route would take me down Southern Boulevard to enjoy the greenery found between both Fordham University and the Bronx Botanical Garden after another day indoors. The run was all-but-enjoyable, however, as I made the rookie mistake of running faster than what my body was prepared for.
 
I covered .97 miles in 9 minutes.
 
Out of breath, I don’t remember how I felt after that first run, but as the NRC app reveals, I didn’t show up to another starting line until two days later. The rest of June only saw me complete three more sessions by run-walking – my average pace fluctuated between 15 and 14 minutes. I’d take a break from the last week of June until the second week of July, which is when everything changed.

“Welcome to the Nike Plus Run Club app. I’m Coach Bennett.”
 
I didn’t know it on July 9, 2020, but those 10 words would help me build a better relationship with running. Before then, I simply hit “Start” within the NRC app, fending for myself. On that Thursday evening, however, I saw a tab titled “Guided Runs” and decided to launch the “First Run.” Coach Bennett, Nike Running Global Head Coach, filled up both left and right sides of my Apple EarPods, introducing himself and the 20-minute session I had just initiated. I finished the session having covered 1.83 miles at a 10-minute-55-second average pace – an accomplishment made possible by a complete stranger’s on-the-fly coaching.
 
When I got back home, I scrolled through the seemingly-endless “Guided Run” options, coming across words like “fartlek” (Swedish term which means “speed play) that I hadn’t seen or heard before. Excited, I ended my day ready to run again the next one.
 
According to the NRC app, I went on a 12-day running streak. Coach Bennett guided me through the start, middle, and end of each of those sessions. Some runs were tougher than others – I ran/walked during the first few ones – but I gradually noticed progress in my average pace, breathing, and running form. Throughout that initial almost-two-week-stretch, I began to live what Coach Bennett said about being a better coach and athlete to myself, not only during runs but especially outside of them. (Everything’s about running, but it’s also not about running.)

I ended 2020 having logged 166.7 miles in the Nike Run Club app. Each minute spent out running (I dislike treadmills) was a minute spent getting better. Cold mornings and rainy afternoons tested my discipline – and sometimes won – but I often latched on to what I knew I’d feel after running at least a mile when I didn’t want to; the “‘Don’t Wanna Run’ Run” came in handy more times than I can remember.
 
As with a lot of runners, I became an evangelist of the sport. Most people were happy I had gotten into running, but considered the sport wasn’t for them. Some friends began to incorporate more cardio into their workout routines, even getting onboard with a couple of month-long challenges within the NRC app. Our relationships with running are all different, but the sport united us in a special way.
 
The next two years saw my running discipline wane. I covered 227.7 miles over the course of 103 runs in 2021. I showed up to only 40 starting lines to run 71.4 miles in 2022.

Like countless people that’ve either given up on the sport or never bothered to try it, I’ve struggled with feeling good about running. The idea of going faster and farther can be motivating, but not when manifested as an incessant pressure. I’ve set myself up for failure when I’ve wanted to see results without proper preparation (this is about running, but this is also not about running). I wish I could write that I’m not guilty of still doing so from time to time, but I can at least share that I’ve gotten better.
 
My running journey came full-circle on April 24th, the day I met Coach Bennett.
 
Nine weeks earlier, after several brutally cold runs and a push from my brother, Aldair, I signed up for a 16-week marathon training program. I had no race in mind, but wanted the challenge as well as to have a companion. And the Nike Studio: NYC platform has been perfect. With its guidance, I’ve logged 180 miles since February 27th, including my first 10K and half-marathon races.