1 hr 12 min
Alison Staples: Healing Can't Happen Without a Breakdown of What's Been Ignored The Running for Real Podcast
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- Running
Who is Alison Staples? Alison is a physical therapy assistant, Crew leader at Riot Squad Running, run ambassador at Under Armor, and coach at Formula Running Center.
What was it like starting running age 30, did any part of you feel behind? I had no idea about anything running. I ran in what we're getting to how I started running, but I had no idea about the right community.
I didn't know the distance around a track. All I knew was that I just ran down the street and came back and it was, like, the most exhilarating fill in the world. I had no knowledge of anything else. The first time, I had to go for a run. It was awful, but I kind of just stuck with it because it was hard. And I was like, "Oh, this is hard. I think I like it." I was more of an elliptical person up until I started running.
What made you decide to want to try running after being an "elliptical person"? I really wanted to run someday, but I didn't understand how people liked it. I went to the gym three days a week. I had my elliptical routine, the 25 or 35 minutes. And then I just did, like some squats and stuff and that was it. I was good. I worked at the time. Well, I still do. I work for a pediatric hospital, I work with kids and adults with spinal cord injuries. And in 2008, we decided to put together a team, a charity team for the Baltimore running festival. One of our co-workers had gone up to Boston and just fallen in love with the Boston Marathon, especially the hand cycle division and thought it would be a good idea to bring that back to Baltimore, especially to our patients who are paralyzed and can't walk.
We put together a team for the Baltimore running festival, and I had a girlfriend, a Black woman who I really admired, there aren't a lot of Black therapists, so I looked up to her in that regards, and then she loved running, and I didn't see a lot of black women running at the time, so she was just like this magical unicorn, and I teased her about it all the time. But I secretly admired her tenacity when it came to like running how dedicated she was. When this charity team came around, she was like, "You know what? I think this would be good for you to do. You can meet so many people like this. Who knows? Maybe you'll meet your husband." That's how I met my husband. I'm, like, sign me up, so I was like, yeah, you know, whatever I'm doing 5k. And she told me I could not do a 5k. She wasn't paying the race fee for 5k. We had to do a half and I was like, I don't know what a half is, but it's not full so fine, and that that is how I got coerced into my first race
It is really important to have people in our lives who believe in us a little bit more than we believe in ourselves, those role models, how could someone find a mentor like that? I think it's doing the things that you're most scared of, all the things that take you out of your comfort zone, and then you'll find someone who continuously pushes you out of your comfort zone and continuously sets the bar higher for you than you will ever set the ball for yourself. So, you know I was content on the elliptical, and she's like No, no, no, you have to do a half marathon now.
Granted that's a huge job, and no one has to do that job, but that goes for anyone. So maybe you're like a solo runner and you really want to run with the group But you're really intimidated by your pace or just groups in general. So, maybe you find a group with less people, but, yeah, just stepping out of your comfort zone and finding things to do that you are scared off. We generally put you around people who will push you out of your comfort zone and really tap into potential that you have for sure. I don't know about you, but I've found with the mask situation that I find it easier to do things like that right now. I don't, I don't know why, maybe it's like I feel protected by the mask or something.
But I've done quite a few things lately on my own where I'm taking in groups because I don't know, I feel like that s
Who is Alison Staples? Alison is a physical therapy assistant, Crew leader at Riot Squad Running, run ambassador at Under Armor, and coach at Formula Running Center.
What was it like starting running age 30, did any part of you feel behind? I had no idea about anything running. I ran in what we're getting to how I started running, but I had no idea about the right community.
I didn't know the distance around a track. All I knew was that I just ran down the street and came back and it was, like, the most exhilarating fill in the world. I had no knowledge of anything else. The first time, I had to go for a run. It was awful, but I kind of just stuck with it because it was hard. And I was like, "Oh, this is hard. I think I like it." I was more of an elliptical person up until I started running.
What made you decide to want to try running after being an "elliptical person"? I really wanted to run someday, but I didn't understand how people liked it. I went to the gym three days a week. I had my elliptical routine, the 25 or 35 minutes. And then I just did, like some squats and stuff and that was it. I was good. I worked at the time. Well, I still do. I work for a pediatric hospital, I work with kids and adults with spinal cord injuries. And in 2008, we decided to put together a team, a charity team for the Baltimore running festival. One of our co-workers had gone up to Boston and just fallen in love with the Boston Marathon, especially the hand cycle division and thought it would be a good idea to bring that back to Baltimore, especially to our patients who are paralyzed and can't walk.
We put together a team for the Baltimore running festival, and I had a girlfriend, a Black woman who I really admired, there aren't a lot of Black therapists, so I looked up to her in that regards, and then she loved running, and I didn't see a lot of black women running at the time, so she was just like this magical unicorn, and I teased her about it all the time. But I secretly admired her tenacity when it came to like running how dedicated she was. When this charity team came around, she was like, "You know what? I think this would be good for you to do. You can meet so many people like this. Who knows? Maybe you'll meet your husband." That's how I met my husband. I'm, like, sign me up, so I was like, yeah, you know, whatever I'm doing 5k. And she told me I could not do a 5k. She wasn't paying the race fee for 5k. We had to do a half and I was like, I don't know what a half is, but it's not full so fine, and that that is how I got coerced into my first race
It is really important to have people in our lives who believe in us a little bit more than we believe in ourselves, those role models, how could someone find a mentor like that? I think it's doing the things that you're most scared of, all the things that take you out of your comfort zone, and then you'll find someone who continuously pushes you out of your comfort zone and continuously sets the bar higher for you than you will ever set the ball for yourself. So, you know I was content on the elliptical, and she's like No, no, no, you have to do a half marathon now.
Granted that's a huge job, and no one has to do that job, but that goes for anyone. So maybe you're like a solo runner and you really want to run with the group But you're really intimidated by your pace or just groups in general. So, maybe you find a group with less people, but, yeah, just stepping out of your comfort zone and finding things to do that you are scared off. We generally put you around people who will push you out of your comfort zone and really tap into potential that you have for sure. I don't know about you, but I've found with the mask situation that I find it easier to do things like that right now. I don't, I don't know why, maybe it's like I feel protected by the mask or something.
But I've done quite a few things lately on my own where I'm taking in groups because I don't know, I feel like that s
1 hr 12 min