Editor’s Note: Our intention was to publish this story in an earlier print edition but election coverage took precedence so it’s in our latest print edition dated Nov. 23-Dec. 6, 2023. Part II will run in our next print edition, out Dec. 7, and will be published online thereafter.

 

Among the 51,402 finishers in the 2023 TCS New York City Marathon on Sunday, Nov. 5, were two local runners and members of Norwood-based running group, Bronx Nomads. We spoke to both runners ahead of, and on, race day about their reasons for running, among other topics, as they joined what New York Road Runners said was the world’s largest marathon of 2023, and the third-largest edition of the race in the event’s history.

 

Motivation

Running in her third marathon, this week, we asked Amity Lui, 26, what motivated her to want to run again. “I think after running the first and second, they weren’t such great experiences because I was injured,” she said. “So, hopefully this time will be a much better experience just to see what our bodies are capable of, especially after putting in the training for so many months.”

 

We asked what injuries she incurred. “The first time I had a knee injury,” she said. “The second year was not running-related. I had a traumatic electric scooter accident. Unfortunately, it took me out for much longer than my actual running injury. For the first year, I was out for about two months, because that’s all I had left. I got injured pretty close to race day and I had to stop training and ended up having to run/walk the marathon. It took me a little under four-and-a-half hours.” Lui said the experience was miserable.

 

She said the second time she had been on vacation and had an accident. “I didn’t actually get to start my training block until very late because I was in so much pain,” Lui said. “I did go to PT [physical therapy] and I did everything I could, but due to the trauma, you really can’t rush the process. So, for that one, I only had two months to train from basically nothing because I was out for so long. That was also very miserable.”

Lui said on top of that, it was about 80 degrees when she ran with very high humidity [in 2022]. “It was just awful,” she said. Asked if her training plan was going better this time around, she said, “I wouldn’t say definitely better. I’ve had some other scares come up.” Lui talked about plantar fasciitis, an inflammation of the plantar fascia tissue in the foot used during walking and foot movement.

 

“You get a lot of heel pain, and it’s a lot worse in the morning when you first wake up,” she said. “It’s just chronic inflammation.” She said her training had been going pretty well up until about three weeks before race day. “So, I thought I was lucky and nope…could not escape the cycle with no injury,” she said.

 

To address the situation, Lui said rolling her foot on a frozen water bottle helped but added it didn’t treat the injury. “It’s just more for pain management,” she said. She also did physical therapy, strengthening her feet and ankles through rehab exercises, and cutting down on mileage.

 

Preparation

We asked her how she got into running, and what made her want to run a marathon in the first place. “I have always been active my entire life. I started dancing when I was three years old. Then I took taekwondo, kickboxing. I was a swimmer, and in college I would just lift weights. I lifted weights in high school for fun, and then in college again.”

Lui attended Hunter College and was right by Central Park, so would go for leisurely runs in between classes. “One day, one of my friends said, ‘Hey! There’s a 4-mile race in Central Park. Let me know if you’re interested, because I know you kind of like running.’ That got me hooked into running races,” she said. “I signed up for a half marathon that year and it’s all been a lot of fun since then.” She said now her training is a lot more structured.

 

Asked how she amended her diet in preparation for the marathon, she said she liked to think her nutrition was pretty good. “I am a sports dietitian,” she said. “I also have a private practice where I work with runners to optimize nutrition for performance and for recovery, and I try to apply as many of those principles to my own life as well.”

 

Lui said this involved a lot of carbs, of which she said a lot of runners don’t take enough. “There’s still this stigma that carbohydrates cause weight gain or fat gain and that they want runners to adapt to being able to oxidize fat as fuel,” she said. “So, then they tell you to train, fasted.” Lui said she prefers working with runners to foster a healthy relationship with food. “I believe you should fuel your body through food so that you can run,” she said. “It’s not a punishment. You don’t have to earn your food by burning more calories in order to eat something.”

 

Mindset

We asked about the mental preparation involved in running 26.2 miles. “Yeah, the mind is a very powerful thing. You know, having doubts is definitely part of the training process, and having some impostor syndrome, but I think throughout the training cycle, most people train 16 to 20 weeks for a marathon if you haven’t already a base, especially if you come from Spring half-marathon season. I think continuing to show up for yourself, and throughout the training program you don’t rely so much on motivation. It’s dedication that will get you where you want to be when you continue putting in the work.”

 

Asked how she balanced her training regime with the rest of her life, Lui said, “It’s definitely a challenge, a lot of 5/6 a.m. runs or in the morning which are very difficult, especially as the weather gets cold and the sun rises later and sets earlier. I also work a lot. It’s not that easy [and] it takes a lot of planning ahead.” She said this means all her clothes are ready, as well as all her “pre-run fuel” to ensure she’s on “autopilot” in the morning. “I don’t have time to contemplate,” she said. “I get ready in less than 15 minutes.”

 

Recently, she said her scheduling work got a lot busier so she invested in a treadmill, which helped a lot as she could train when she wanted without having to worry about safety. “A lot of times I end up breaking up my run,” she said. “So, sometimes I can’t always get all my mileage in at once, so I’ll split it half in the morning and half in the evening, wherever it fits.” She said it was important to be ok with knowing that everything can’t always be perfect.

Support

We asked what it was like being part of a running group like Bronx Nomads. “Bronx Nomads is an amazing community,” she said. Lui is from New York City, having lived previously in Brooklyn and on Staten Island, but said when she first moved to The Bronx, she had zero running friends.

 

She said she stumbled upon the group on social media where she saw they met on Mondays in the Williamsbridge Oval, and admits she was a little skeptical at first. “I was nervous. I was like – I don’t know anybody,” she said. “What if they’re not friendly? What if you don’t run fast enough?” Lui continued, “But they were very welcoming, and I stuck with them ever since. We train together, we eat together, we hang out together, and we really kind of developed a second running family.”

 

She said sometimes when they run locally in groups, residents cheer and clap. “They’re like, ‘Keep going!’ or ‘You’re so inspiring!’” she said. We asked Lui if she felt it would be good to amend the marathon route to take in more of The Bronx, given it currently only takes in its southern tip. She agreed, saying before she lived here, she didn’t know much about it, and believes other non-Bronxites can have a negative image of it, sometimes saying the marathon would be their first and last time in the borough.

 

She said afterwards, however, she saw videos in which some runners said The Bronx had the loudest cheer squads and were cheering for everybody and not just their own teams.

We caught up with Lui after she crossed the finish line on the big day, and asked her how it went. “I feel much better now that it’s done! I would do it all over again for sure no matter how much pain it was!” she said, smiling. Asked what the toughest part of the route had been she said, “I got sick on Thursday, so I’ve been trying to hold liquids down. I was really dreading the Queensborough [bridge]. It wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. I just kind of told myself no matter how slow I go I just cannot stop. I ran with my friend, Wilken, over there who held me accountable and said, ‘You just cannot stop’.”

 

Asked if the support had been good in The Bronx, she said, “It was amazing! I may be biased but I would say it’s the best support group out there!” Summing up the day, she said, “I would just say if you’re interested in running, the New York Marathon is a great experience!”

 

Running group, Bronx Nomads, generally meets at the Bainbridge Avenue entrance to the Williamsbridge Oval in Norwood on Mondays at 6.30 p.m. to run together safely. Founded 5 years ago, the group caters to those with different levels of fitness. You can follow Bronx Nomads on Instagram and Facebook or email the group at bronxnomads@gmail.com.