Running Down a Dream

Fiction’s Place in Encouraging Young Athletes to Learn About Their Sport

When I was in high school—about a million years ago—a few of my friends and I decided to get fit by taking up running. We had t-shirts and shorts, tube socks and sneakers. Some of us even had a pair of shoes made by Adidas called the “Cross-Country”. Armed with not much more than said gear and our youth, we plotted a 3 or so mile route close to school, and headed out. As these were pre-internet days, none of us had much information on running other than, well, hitting the road. Some of us had played sports, so we had had coaches who extolled the virtues of drinking water and not exercising on a full stomach, but we really didn’t know much more about running than that. Needless to say, over time and runs, all of us suffered aches and pains, like: stomach and shoulder cramps, shin splints and (for me at least) headaches.

Post high school I continued to run, learning more about what I needed to do to feel good while pounding road or trail by poring through the advice of health and running magazines. Then came the power of the internet. Today, anyone of any age simply has to key in their circumstances and conditions, and google or whatever will spit out as much advice about running (or any other topic) as the searcher desires. That said, to my view the actual act of running hasn’t changed much from when I began back in my teens.

It was in that paradoxical crucible of endlessly updating internet information and gear, and the unchanging nature of running that I placed Kat Baker, the 14 yro main character of my young teen lit novel Kat’s Greek Summer. In the novel, Kat makes a popularity plan to spend the summer after eighth grade training with the high school cross-country team so as to become the running goddess-of-life when she starts high school. Her plan goes sideways when her Greek mom whisks the family to a rustic fishing village in Greece to spend the summer connecting with the Greek side of the family. Along with cultural clashes, family mayhem and a little bit of swoony, forbidden romance, Kat remains determined to keep her running dream alive. She attempts to run in the super dry, super hot Greek summer weather and, well, that plan does not pan out—cue above-mentioned family mayhem, cultural clashes and forbidden romance.

To be sure, Kat goes into her Greek running adventure with running shoes, tank tops, sport bras and Lycra, along with a head full of the internet homework she’s done about running, including hydration and stretching. All of that still doesn’t prepare her for the challenge of running in heat as intense as Greek summer heat. Average Greek temperatures in July are 84 degrees Farenheit, though can exceed 100 degrees. With an average humidity of 57 %, Greek summers are likely to feel incredibly hot, too. Adding to Kat’s challenges, there is no internet where she is, so she has a lot of trial and error to deal with as she navigates her running efforts.

Though Kat’s story required her to be a novice at running, and thus not have loads of information about hot weather running, as I wrote her story, I found I wanted to know more about what she was facing. I delved into research, learning just how serious Kat’s Greek heat-intensive running challenge would be, and I was amazed to learn just how difficult and possibly dangerous running in super-hot weather is. My amazement at what I learned about hot weather running is the prime reason I’ve come to understand that fiction has an important place on a young athlete’s bookshelf. By diving into a story focusing on the ups and downs, victories and challenges of their sport of interest, that story has a good chance of sparking questions and conversations that will inspire young athletes to dig more deeply into their sport and, not only gain more knowledge about their sport, but also encourage safe practices.

As for me and my character Kat, I’m glad to have learned many tips to make a hot running experience positive (or not, as the fictional case may be), and am relieved to know that today’s young athletes have a lot of well-researched material available to them around probably any sport of interest. For any runners out there, I’ve shared below the top tips I learned about best practices for hot weather running as well as adding tips for running at night, too. Stay safe everyone!

Some top tips for hot weather running:

--start slow, and let yourself acclimate to the hot environment.

--stay hydrated by drinking fluids before during and after your hot run.

--choose light colored, loose-fitting running clothes

--run early or late, avoiding the hottest part of the day between 10AM and 4PM

--wear sunscreen and choose a brand for the face that won’t melt into the eyes

--If you feel faint, dizzy, disoriented, have stopped sweating, or your skin is cool and clammy, slow down or stop running, and get some fluids. If symptoms continue, sit or lie down in the shade and seek help.

I compounded Kat’s running challenge by having her deal with the daytime Greek heat by experimenting with running at night. That choice prompted me to research safety tips for running in the dark.

Here are top tips for running in the dark

--run against traffic

--Choose a well-lit route that preferably is not remote

--Stay visible with light-colored reflective clothing/wear a headlamp

--have ID on you.

--run with a buddy

--vary routes and routines to avoid attackers

--carry a cell phone (if you have service)

--ditch music to stay alert

Information from verywellfit.com website.

“10 Safety Tips for Running in the Dark” by Christine Luff, ACE, CPT Christine Many Luff is a personal trainer, fitness nutrition specialist, and Road Runners Club of America Certified Coach. June 23, 2021.

“11 Tips for Running in heat, according to experts” by Jenn Sinrich is a Boston-based freelance editor, writer, and content strategist. She received her BA in journalism from Northeastern University and has more than a decade of experience working as an on-staff editor for various publications. July 19, 2023.

Both of these articles were reviewed by John Honerkamp. He is an RRCA and USATF-certified running coach, celebrity marathon pacer, and recognized leader in the New York City running community.