interview time!

By ddfdss   6:34 PM   2 comments  

my expert... whom are they??

Anna Chiodo Ortiz is the expert I interviewed. She is a Wissahickon alumni who currently runs for Bucknell University's track team. She runs a really cool health/fitness/running/life account on instagram. 

it is she

Bucknell is a D1 school. Needless to say... they're pretty good. She was extremely excited and eager to answer some of the questions I had.

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Les Questions

At first I literally had no idea what to ask. She runs. There's not much else to it. But as I dug deeper into my own soul, I realized the reasons for me not going on distance runs, I didn't have much passion. So I posed the questions: "What struggles do you face as a runner?"; and "How do you find motivation in everyday life to go out and run?"

She said that one of the struggles she faced was weather, which is relatable, and also the fact that "somedays I feel like I could run a huge PR (personal record) or a million miles and others I feel the complete opposite. There are so many factors that play into how you feel." But ultimately, the big picture was that I should "try not to dwell on them," them being the struggle. I think she offered some important advice there.

In terms of motivation, she basically finds passion from both her teammates and herself. She is "really passionate about running, exercise, fitness, health, etc." because she "care[s] a lot about keeping my (her) body healthy and running contributes a lot, both for my (her) physical and mental well being." Additionally, another important factor to consider is that fact that "you get out what you put in" and that there "you can't have good days without the bad ones!"

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A lil' bit of life advice

I asked one question in specific that relates a lot to the original reason I started this project in the first place. That being I was considering running cross country (XC) next year. The question I posed was as follows: "I see you're running XC now as opposed to playing soccer in the fall, I was considering doing the same thing. How does the season differ from track. Was it a tough transition?"

her answer was very well thought out and very informative, as were all of the answers she provided me with. but this one was the most most thought out.

"During the fall we were thrown into one short xc race just for the training effect. I did pretty well, and that's when my coach told me I should consider doing xc. At that time xc was a complete nightmare to consider." 

just wanted to stop here to add a little bit of my own commentary... this is exactly how I feel lol. okay continue.

"However, as the year progressed I started to notice my speed stagnating and my strength increasing. I began to increase my training mileage and began to really like it too. So springtime rolled around and I made the decision to run xc!! I personally LOVE it... it's a lot on your legs. but it creates such an amazing base going into the track seasons and you find you're able to kick easier in races. Track is also different because the workouts are more on the track obviously! Cross country workouts at least for Bucknell are often on the fields and out on hilly courses to really be prepared for any type of race. If you like distance I think you should definitely try it!!!!!"

I'm really glad I chose Anna as my expert, as she seems like someone very similar to myself. Hell we even run the same events in track (for the most part). Reflecting on the advice she gave me, I have a slightly better understanding/appreciation of running. I'll definitely use what she gave me, and probably take up that suggestion to run XC!
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e-mail exchange

McD talked about linking the full email exchange in here, but I'm not really sure how to do that. If I figure it out tomorrow I'll definitely edit this, but for now, I just put all the questions and full responses on this google doc.