Author Lisa Jhung restores her mental balance and her happiness quotient on the trail
In this Trail Running 101 episode, Dimity and Sarah are joined by mother trail runner Lisa Jhung to talk all about off-road running. A mom of two sons, Lisa is the author of Trailhead: The Dirt on All Things Trail Running, and she freely admits she “craves” dirt, crunchy rocks, grass, sand, and any natural surface. As in her easy-to-read book, on this show, Lisa makes clear trail running does not equal ultra-running. From how to react to bears and bobcats to how to find local trails, the three gals break down the intimidation factor of hitting the ground running. Lisa talks about the importance of having “all senses on” while on the trail, as well as the mental benefits of this approach.
In the intro, learn why Sarah and her younger daughter are $7.56 richer. And, as promised, here is the Eventbrite listing for Nashville mother runner party on November 5, 2015, as well as a link to all AMR events.
So excited to see trail running here!
There are some organized trail races that offer shorter ‘beginner friendly’ courses in addition to their more technical ones. My first official trail run was an organized event. It took a lot of my nervousness away since I knew that: a) I’d be with a group b) there would be an aid station midway and c) in additon to trail markers there would also be flags marking the route.
It’s also worth researching the difficulty level of a route before you go as well. I’ve seen star ratings (the higher the more techincal/difficult), number ratings and different color symbols. Trail running on a towpath is far different from ending up on a highly technical route!
I just hope the dismissive way ultrarunning was touched on doesn’t discourage anyone, who may be considering it, from giving it a try. Not all ultrarunning slams you with 12,000ft elevation gain and 100 miles of trails. 50Ks are less of a jump from 26.2 than the leap you made from half-marathon to marathon. They’re not only for the super-elite or the hardest of core. They just require you to believe that you can keep putting one foot in front of the other….for just a little bit longer : )
Again, excited to see both topics mentioned here. I’m a road-trail runner hybrid. I enjoy road racing, but the trail running community has a whole different vibe to it, which I absolutely love!
Susan, I totally agree with you. I have been running trails for as long as I remember (way before it became popular in these last few years), and have enjoyed seeing more female trail runners. There are more trail events each year now and I get excited about WHERE I will run that I don’t really need to run the same trail races every year. I’m in my 50s, ran numerous dirt trail 10ks, 10 milers, HMs, 25ks and 30ks, with various technicalities and elevations. I ran my first ultra, a 50k this past July. I loved it and didn’t get one thought of not finishing or psyching myself out prior to the event. I trusted my training. The trail running community is so supportive and encouraging of each other especially on the course. The sense of mindfulness to our well-being is extended to the environment of where we tread in the trail running community. I respect any distance whether road or dirt trail, just get out there and run.
I ran my first half-marathon on October 17, on a trail. I didn’t take the “trail” aspect seriously because it wasn’t a truly wild trail. But it was still gravel and rock, with a few good hills for good measure. I was mildly disappointed in my finishing time (2:07:38) because I thought I would race a bit faster than I trained, but after listening to this episode, I have more respect for what I accomplished. Thank you!