How Slow Can You Go?

I found this RunnersWorld.com today and I thought it was perfect. There have been so many times I've had this question myself. Most times I manage to keep the mindset that as long as I'm not walking (or crawling - there are times I want to do that!), I'm running, no matter how slow...but other times, it's hard to NOT get down on myself for my speed - or lack thereof.

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October 07, 2009

When Is a Runner a Runner?

Dear John, I'd like your honest opinion about something, not the "politically correct" answer. How slowly do you think it is possible to actually "run" by the accepted definition of running? Although I know there are extreme possibilities, I am talking about the most likely scenario for an average person. To be more specific, do you think it is possible that a person can "run" a 20-minute mile? If so, have you ever actually witnessed someone running that slowly with both feet coming off the ground?

I hear the politically correct answer all the time: that anyone who says they are running is really running, even when it's obvious that they aren't. However, with all due respect to the folks who make that claim, I just don't think it is true anymore than a 6-year-old who jumps off a table and says he's "flying" is really flying. Honestly, John, what do you think? - Mary

Hi, Mary. Thanks for giving me a chance to address this issue. It comes up all the time and, to be honest as you request, the answer also changes all the time.

First, a little history. If you go back to the late 1970s or early '80s, most of the training books talked about running as a 7-minute-per-mile pace or better. Anything slower was considered jogging. So, joggers were all of those who didn’t run at a 7-minute pace. Runners knew who they were by their pace.

Somewhere, as the first signs of the second running boom began to appear, running came to be defined as anything faster than a 9-minute pace. Again, joggers were defined as those who went slower than that. And, again, runners defined themselves by their pace and finish times.
About 10 years ago, however, runners stopped being defined by their times and were instead defined by their activity. So, runners ran. Walkers walked. Cyclists cycled. Triathletes triathaleted. You get the idea.

These days, I don’t think anyone can define anyone else by any objective criteria.
One of my favorite stories is of being in the late stages of a marathon and a volunteer asking me if I wanted an orange slice. I said “no,” that I had to stay focused on running. He said “That’s OK, I’ll just walk along with you.” In my mind I was running, and running hard. The truth was that I was moving at an easy walking pace.

So, who runs? At what pace? I don’t think anyone can say. What’s running for me today may not be running tomorrow. What’s running for someone at 25 years old will be very different when they’re 45.

Why worry? Only you can decide for you. And you can’t decide for anyone else.

Waddle on,

John

John “the Penguin” Bingham, Runner’s World columnist