My name is Sandra Bonilla and I am from Costa Rica. I moved to the United States about 4 years ago, but have been running all my life.  Ever since I was a child, I have run short distance races, half Marathons, and Marathons. I love to run.

I ran the Baltimore Marathon and qualified for the Boston Marathon in 2009 and ran it the same year. I have also run the NCR Trail Marathon twice, both with successive better times and very good results. After each of these races my hips were always tight. I was also in pain because my Fascia Lata and my hamstrings were very tight.

On June 2, 2012 I ran The North Face Endurance Challenge, a trail race. I started training for this race three and a half months leading up to it and after taking the Chi Running workshop in Washington D.C with Danny Dreyer, the author of Chi Running. I always trained by following the directions of the Chi Running Marathon Book.

The North Face Endurance Challenge held in Great Falls, Virginia, was not an easy race. The course conditions were horrible due to the Mid Atlantic being hit by a line of storms the night before that brought tornadoes, wind, and torrential rain. The storm started at 2:30 Friday afternoon and did not clear until 3a.m. Saturday morning—the day of the race! The course was saturated with water and very muddy.

Spectators of the race could only see the racers at the beginning and ending 1/2 mile of the course. The rest of the race was in the wild.  Therefore, the audience could not see what the storms did to the course the night before. The storm added fallen trees and deep swampy mud to every step of the race, both the flat parts of the course and in the hills.

In order to get through the race with tact, I engaged my core muscles and was able to dance over the mud, passing every single person in front of me. I focused on my nephews, my friend Doreen, my family, and my husband. All these people are amazing fighters I know. They were my inspiration.

The last two miles of the race I felt the need for water. I did not have anymore water in the bottle I brought with me. I had to walk because my need for water became so great and because I knew an aid station was just in front of me. When I started walking I became disappointed, but then I told myself, "The race is not over because you are walking!" After getting water in my body, I started walking faster and faster until I was able to run again all the way to the finish line!

Later I found out that Wow!! I had won the race! I was the first woman to cross the line in my age group and in the general category! We made it, God!!

Today, Sunday Jun 3, 2012, my legs are tired but that is all. I don't feel pain in my hips, knees or ankles. I completed the race in 4h.35min running with a distance of 28 or 29 miles.
I am happy about it.

Thank you, Danny, for showing me how to use my Latino skills (my hips)!

Sandra

Search under last name “Bonilla” to see full results:  http://www.sportstats.ca/displayResults.xhtml?racecode=102117

See a few seconds of the last ½ mile at: http://youtu.be/jWOi6xTOpXA

My Chirunning in this story :

I started with a very cool pace and my pacer was a little bit confused by the fact I was the last man. He said nothing about it and kept folowing this «snail speed». After the first marathon, I saw the first runners slowing down. I tried to run without living any footprints…and I did… even if it’s easier on the road! After 15 miles of downhill, where I ran and walked, a terrible fog fell onto us and the temperature went down. I practiced my Chi focus during the race but more efficiently in the hard moments, during the night It was pleasant to have nothing to look at and I was just more concentrated on the good way of running. Chi helped me to take care of my running without pain…so I could run till the End line. Chirunning is really helpful to me for this kind of long race because it offers a good protection for ankles, knees, back and all of these areas that suffer a lot in long road races. My muscles weren’t sore and I re-started running four days later without any pain. I know I have a lot to learn and I’m sure my Chirunning techniques are not at top level but I’m sure it helped me to finish this race in quite good shape, with a lot of goods vibes. Will you be the first American runner to run this big one? I don’t know and I hope to see one of you next year…but what I know is that I was the first Chi-runner who finished this race and I’m proud of it!

Your frenchy,

Greg S.

I hope all is well with you and the family and the bigger Chi Living family in general. While I've put my official Chi Running instruction on hold for a bit, I'm writing to give you a brief update on what I've been doing in an eventful 2011 as I've learned a few lessons.

I wrote you last year that since I was turning 50 in 2010, I was able to participate in the California State Senior Games and was quite happy to win both the 5K & 10K road races for 2010. Since turning 50, I decided I'd celebrate by making 2011 the year of running different types of races and having fun. I'd start by trying to run my first 50K trail race in March, 2011 in Woodside, CA to be followed by the 2011 Boston Marathon in April, to then be followed by the National Senior Games (5K & 10K races) in June in Houston, TX.

The 50K race: I trained pretty well for the 50K race and using good Chi Running technique through LOTS of hills, I ended up coming in 2nd place for my age group, which I was happy with for my first attempt. The guy who came in 1st place in my age group (who I ran with for about 15 miles or so) was one of my former Chi Running students who told me that Chi Running had changed his life. Needless to say, I was happy all around.

The Boston Marathon: However, I then made a mistake. By thinking I had such a great "base" in my 50K training, I thought I could back off and ran just once or twice in the 3 weeks before Boston. I decided right at start time that I'd try for a personal best (under 3 hours). I figured I'd try to stick with a group who was shooting for under 3 hours and see if I could hang with them. Well, I was more worried about sticking with that group next to me then about my technique. We reached the 10-mile marker with a nice fast pace, but I was already feeling some tension. By the halfway point, they were pulling away from me. I was barely on pace (1:29 for the first half), but I was already in bad shape and it was too late. I thought to myself, just hang on and see what happens. At about 18 miles, something that's never happened to me did happen. My legs completely seized up and I had to stop and try to stretch them out. At this point my mind was melting down and I was really not sure if I'd be able to finish. The only thing I could do was to ask myself what can I do differently? That's when I thought of focusing purely on the Chi Running technique. I realized I could combine ChiWalking with ChiRunning and alternate back and forth. I told myself I would finish no matter what. With that new attitude, I managed to make it across the line in 3:37, which was bittersweet. I missed my qualifying time for next year by 2 minutes, but just finishing was my new joy.

National Senior Games in Houston: Returning home from Boston, I felt a bit "broken." Knowing I had the National Senior games coming up in 2 months, I realized I could take one of two paths. Either feel sorry for myself, or "get back up" and focus on quality training and technique. I'm happy to say I picked the latter approach. Houston, TX was pretty darn HOT and HUMID in June. The 5K race was on a Saturday morning and the 10K race was the next day on Sunday morning. I'm happy to report that I won both races and am the official 2011 National Senior Games Champion for both the 5K and 10K (Age group: 50-54).

Moral of the story: As always, I owe a big part of my success to Chi Running and wanted to mention that even us old-time Chi Runners can have "lapses" every now and then. The question isn't whether we are perfect, it's more about what we do when a problem does pop up and how we learn from it and move forward. I don't consider my Boston experience a failure. Rather, I consider it a very valuable learning experience that helped me to grow!  

I hope all is well. I wanted to give you a little update. As you know, I have been  a Chi Running devotee for the last few years. I continue to "hold my butterflies", "peel my postage stamps" and "ride my unicycle."

I turned 61 this year and enjoy terrific health and maintain a very high level of fitness. Through my involvement with endurance events, Total Immersion, and Chi Running I have become fascinated with one's ability to maintain a high level of fitness as they age. Dating back to my third Ironman in July, 2010, I have PRed in every race I have entered.

On Saturday I finished second in my age group in a local 5K going under 26 minutes for the first time in a long, long time. I remember writing you a couple of years ago and telling you of my goal to run a sub-nine minute mile. You were both supportive and encouraging. Imagine my delight on Saturday as I passed the one-mile mark and heard my time-7:54!

Thank you again for all you do for so many,

Michael

PS-
Next month I'll be side by side with my wife Nancy, another Chi Running devotee, as she competes in her first half marathon. Next year I'll be back in Lake Placid for my forth Ironman - this time with our 18 year old daughter, Jane.

I’ve practiced Chi Running through books for 4 years now. As you know, we don’t have any instructors in France. This year, I had a goal and it was to do my best at the 72 hours of the French Ultra Festival in Antibes (Côte deAzur) in June. It was my first experience after my first 48 hours last year. I’m an average runner of ultras for 7 years now. I considered myself as a rookie; in the way I’m always in training for running.

During the 72 hour race, I did my best to think about focusing the mind and doing a Body Scan for a long time. Those Focuses really helped me finish in quite good shape. I ran my best in the last hours at a very good pace for me. Chi Running helped me to feel more relaxed before the race and during for several reasons. First, the long moments alone (night and hot hours during the day in the south of France) were always times I used to think about my posture, the way I breathe, and how to be as relaxed as I can be. I took moments to talk with friends just to clear my mind. As you know, it’s impossible to think about your posture for a full 72 hours, but I was surprised to see that my way of running was always in Chi Running. Something very natural came into me, something very calm and resting. I slept 2 hours each night between 2 am to 4 am. Each time after a stop, I took several minutes to stretch and warm up and especially think about what exactly I was going to do during my runs. Chi Running had an affect on my running and also on the way I managed the race. It creates a certain discipline for your body and your mind. This discipline is not stiff, but controlled with all the elements that composed the race. Sleeping, eating, resting as not separate from Chi Running because I was always thinking of what was the best for me, and what my body needs, what my mind needs, just to feel good when running. With Chi Running, everything is important and everything works together. When you have good posture, you feel stronger, relaxed, and you breathe well -- so you are less tired, you eat well, you sleep well so you have more energy to last a long time at a good pace.

Racing around a 0.6 mile loop, around a stadium, for 3 days may be boring but it’s not. Chi Running taught me patience and helped me to think about my running. It’s kind of a dream, 3 days without thinking about your job, house cleaning -- only running. When you think of it that way, and when you like running very much, it look like a runner’s paradise. People talked about running but not just running. They also talked about politics, fun experiences, and came to share together the bad and the good moments.

More technically, Chi Running helped to protect my body. When I felt that fatigue was coming, I slowed down a little bit, relaxed my legs and my body in general. Quickly, my feet became more parallel, my back less stiff, my neck (with the tripod technic) became in line with the rest of my body. Soon, things got better and fatigue disappeared? Sure, it came back after a while but I wasn’t stressed too much about it, because I knew I could do something to try to run without pain. As a real good runner told me one day, “If you think you run slow, don’t forget to slow down a little bit.”

To sum up, I had a great run and I lived a wonderful experience during 3 days. 200 miles was more than a hope before the race, but the pleasure was more important than this distance. In fact, Chi Running really helped me complete this race, but I became a new runner with less injuries, less pain and more pleasure for my long runs.

Run happy
Scotta G., France
 

Best,
Andrea C.

Danny, I can't thank you enough for developing the ChiRunning Technique and Program.

Run on!
Scott M.

Well, here I am again thanking you for the gift of running pain free - I ran the American River 50 mile run this weekend and had an absolute blast. I'm pretty sure I had a big grin on my face at every single mile. The only post-race pain I felt was from a pulled groin (which happened when I lost my footing going down a wet/muddy, steep downhill and strained it to keep my footing, so that doesn't count) and massive blisters (I was using hydropel but may not have put enough on, my toes cross over each other anyway, so it's a constant problem).

Anyway, it was a magnificent run and I made some new friends along the way. At the end, one of the race volunteers said "You look like you could keep going!" and I said "Yup, Chi Running!" Same thing when I got a quick post-race massage, the therapist was surprised at how not-tight my legs were. I mean, I just ran 50 MILES, and I'm NOT in pain - unbelievable!!! There's no way I could have had so much fun if I had been struggling at any point. Honestly, the hardest part was keeping myself from getting hungry, recognizing when I needed salt, or water, or a walking break, etc. In fact, the hills were really not that steep and I was able to run some of them without getting fatigued. One of my new running buddies tried the "side-stepping" when it got steep and she really liked it, too.

Many, many thanks for helping me and sharing this practice with me, there's no way I could have enjoyed those 50 miles if I had been suffering through it.

Best,

Rebecca E.

Pat was running in the lead the last 4 miles and we were slammed by a tremendous thunderstorm during most of that. This was made even more dangerous by the fact that we were running along the C & O Canal next to the Potomac River and lightning was everywhere. There were places where we had to be extremely careful about a misstep because of our close proximity to the river bank. My gosh, the exhilaration of doing the 50 capped by the finish in a storm is something you have to experience to understand the reason for doing it. In 2011 we will be doing a 100 mile segment for our part of the Relay.

Needless to say that with my very gimpy knee, I wouldn't have been able to participate if it weren't for the lessons taught to me in Chi Running. My stamina and gliding "heel and peel" stride have taken me to running heights that I never anticipated. I've been practicing Chi Running for about 2 years and have even helped introduce it to numerous people at my gym as well as the running group that Pat and I share. She is a neophyte Chi Runner who has been running for years, including the Marine Corp marathon, but is adapting rapidly to Chi.

I also completed my fourth Michaux Team Challenge (MTeC) in the Michaux National Forest, PA this past October. It is an adventure race of 4 person teams that includes mountain biking, orienteering, team paddling, bouldering, trail running, single strand cable river crossings, creek trailing and rock climbing among other things. Our team finished in 8 1/2 hours, and yes, I was still going. Pat and I also do numerous 5Ks, and I love to do duathlons.

As I told you before, I always have one of the Chi Running CDs in the player of my truck. I drive 40 miles to work each day and listen to the same CD or parts of it time after time and then I'll go out on my run and practice what I heard that day. Yet, there are days when I don't listen to it but still find myself practicing the various forms in my daily routines.

Thanks very much to ChiRunning.

Sincerely,
S.K. and Pat S.

Rebecca B.