The Slow AF Run Club by Martinus Evans
Review by Jamie Quinn, Manager, Bibliographic Services and Collections, Central Library
Martinus Evans, author and organizer of Slow AF Run Club, says “anyone can run in the body they have right now.” Evans was determined to better his health after his doctor told him to lose weight or he’d die. As a by-product, he created a club for running underdogs where tackling your self-worth is paramount to tackling a marathon. A club where bodies of all sizes and colours show up, and where a loving running community flourishes.
It can be daunting to browse books that suggest rigid and aggressive performance plans to meet running goals which assume a high level of fitness already exists for the reader. As a very new and inexperienced runner (#humblebrag), Evans’ 256-page primer on running felt fresh and supportive compared to other offerings. While personal anecdotes inspire, Evans doesn’t skimp on practical advice and training suggestions – to run at a “sexy pace” (i.e. slow enough to maintain a conversation) most of the time, how to avoid injury, how to pace yourself over 12 weeks starting with just 15 seconds of running and, most important of all, to have a “delusional level of self-belief."
Online one can find discourse from traditional (white and skinny) runners who think running 5Ks are a joke, who think that being called a jogger is offensive, who discuss what a runner’s body should look like and other false beliefs that can easily dismay a beginner. Evans, on the other hand, brings running back down to earth. Humour and candid self-acceptance inspire a beginning runner to believe in themselves foremost, and to run for fun, not for speed or weight loss.
Running can be hard and takes time to build, yet the benefits are indisputable. Running leads to widespread improved health metrics, functional fitness and quality of life. Another indisputable factor of running is improved mental health – not only the release of endorphins (“runner’s high”) that calm the mind and body, but pride in the fact that hard things can be done with mind over matter and persistence. When in doubt, Evans looks upon the tattoo on his wrist that reads, “no struggle, no progress”, picks up his shoes and continues to run slow AF for us all.