Our Runner’s Body

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A friend of mine, who is an experienced triathlon athlete, recently told me, “Vladimir, you are starting to look like a runner!” My ego got pumped but my curiosity got a boost. What does a runner’s body look like? Certainly, our bodies shape into the discipline we practice, but, what makes this possible? What are the inner workings of adaptation? How do our bodies transform?

My curiosity, as in many other cases, took me to do a little research. I found this excellent book published by Rodale Runner’s World precisely called The Runner's Body. The book explains how all five distinct functional systems – musculoskeletal, cardiorespiratory, metabolic, nervous, and immune – “cooperate in an exquisitely choreographed dance of chemical, electrical, and magnetic interaction.” It provides many suggestions to improve your endurance, performance, and speed based on the premise that all systems work in cooperation, unison orchestration, and healthy interaction.

Along my reading, I could not stop thinking about Paul’s metaphor in his first letter to the church in Corinth:

“The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it”
(NIV: 1 Corinthians 12:12, 27).

The body of believers is not just a body. It is our runner’s body. It is a body in movement. It is the body that exercises good works and builds up character. It is the body that competes in the race of faith. It is the body that carries the baton of the good news, and has done so for the past two thousand years. It is a body designed to run in the cooperation, unison orchestration, and healthy interaction of all its members.

The eye cannot say to the hand, "I will run by myself!" A running eye may be caused by a condition known as dacryocystitis, or tear sac infection. And the nose cannot say to the chest, "I will run ahead of you!" In any human race, nobody wins by a nose; haven't you notice the winner breaks the finish line with his or her chest in an all-out effort? A running nose is another condition known as rhinorrhea, a symptom of the common cold we all very familiar with, especially during the flu season. And the ear cannot say to the feet, "I will run faster than you do!" A running ear is yet another condition known as otorrhoea, or suppurative otitis. And the intestine cannot say to the head, "I will run the Boston marathon without you!" A running intestine... well, it's a nasty thing.

Hopefully you get the point. The emphasis of our culture on self-sufficiency, self-reliance, and self-help is ill, infectious, and sometimes even nasty. It is an abnormal "condition," and as such, needs to be cured. It requires special treatment, medication, rest, and time to recover. If your desire is to stay, strive, and survive in your race of faith, then you need to do the following to avoid dismay, discouragement, and disqualification:

Recognize
…that we need others. We cannot grow in forgiveness, acceptance, purpose, integrity, and reputation without the help of others.

Recover
…from your injuries. We cannot let our old wounds keep us from winning our new races.

Restore
…the broken relationships. We cannot hold others back from fulfilling their God-given dreams neither blame their successes on our losses.

Reconnect
…with the local congregation. We cannot deny the running body from our feet, our hands, our heads, or… our intestines for that matter.

“You must always remember that although we organize the body into pieces, these individual pieces always function in unison and are mutually exclusive - that is, if one of them is compromised, the body will cope for a period of time but eventually will not survive.”
– The Runner's Body

A running body part is an anomaly, but a runner’s body is awesome.

Vladimir Lugo
vlugo@race-of-faith.com

We Need Others

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The lone rider from the Netherlands had taken the lead over the peloton by more than 20 minutes. A small group of riders followed closely, but even on a highly technical descent down the narrow mountain road leading to Cordoba, his slim legs pedaling with great form, and with only a few kilometers left to the finish line, he seemed unstoppable.

That cyclist’s name is Lars Boom, and he made headlines by winning stage 15 of the 2009 Vuelta a España (cycling tour of Spain), considered one of the most difficult cycling events in the world. As I watched a replay of that stage on TV a few days ago, the commentator noted that “…not a single one of the riders that had won a stage in this year’s Vuelta was among the top ten in the general classification.” What does that say about being successful in a sport that places so much importance on individual achievement?

We have grown accustomed to hearing about the triumphs of individual athletes. The story of the wildly successful self-made man/woman in America has permeated sports and popular culture from its beginnings. The media often focuses on individual talent even when covering team sports like cycling. Many athletes today are self-centered, glorifying the “I-don’t-need-anyone-else” concept that reflects on other areas of society [though that is clearly the subject of another article]. When that athlete wins continuously and overwhelmingly (the likes of Lance Armstrong or Michael Phelps), we may hear her/his story more in-depth because 20-20 presents an interview in which she or he thanks mom, or perhaps a coach or a sibling, for “being there”. The interviewee then explains how that person became his inspiration.

“As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another”
NIV: Proverbs 27:17.

For the majority of famous athletes, however, we won’t usually hear about the person that convinced them to join their first running club; or their current role models; or the contribution that training partners have offered on the road to reaching the top of their game. Talent and being driven are unquestionably important elements of competing. But the athlete cannot grow in their character, become mature in a sport, or train nearly as effectively, without someone on their side. Since our youth we are led to believe that it is raw talent, a “can-do” attitude, hard-work, genetics, or a combination of those elements that gets you to the top. But that is not the whole truth.

We are made to grow in character and strength via what others teach us, what is modeled before us, and through a guidance that can only be accomplished through others. God also uses others for those times we need to recover from failures. And the Bible is filled with examples of “spiritual athletes” that grew in their character, matured and completed the course with aid from role models, mentors and friends: Moses and Joshua; Elijah and Elisha; David and Jonathan.

“Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective” NIV: James 5:16.

Lars Boom finished 55th in the 2009 Vuelta. While there’s a myriad of reasons for his place in the general classification – maybe he’s more a sprinter; or, he gave all his effort in one day of glory – the point remains that Lars probably did not win that stage without the help of his teammates. And if he was a rider of the same maturity as Lance Armstrong or Alberto Contador, he’d understand that he has little chance of completing any course without the help of others.

Jairo Ospina
jospina@race-of-faith.com