Pretty much everyone that knows me learns early on that I love to run. It is one of my favorite past times and biggest stress relievers. I am so used to being able to go out for long runs and not really worry about anything else. Here I have changed my mindset, partly because as a Peace Corps volunteer and foreigner we always need to keep our guard up, but also because exercise here is not that normal in a small pueblo.
About a year ago now I developed plantar fasciitis in my left heel. Finally once I stopped ignoring the pain, I had to take off from running in January until the inflammation decreased and the pain went away. After 7 months of rest and cross training I finally started to run again. I have begun to run in the early evening in my site and it has gone very well. I have to be vigilant with the people driving by on motos or in cars, but without headphones that is a pretty easy task. The biggest downside to running here is the catcalls. Catcalls are a common occurrence walking around town at any time of day. So you can assume seeing that same “Americana” running around on the streets would bring up more calls. To my surprise I usually get more while I walk instead of just running.
As annoying as the catcalls are, I have found some of the comments oddly positive and encouraging. I had one man say “eso, eso eso!” as I ran past. In English this would usually be someone telling the runner to keep it up. Another man yelled “Dale, Rubia” (Keep going, rubia) as he passed on his moto. I’m pretty sure I knew him, and as much as I hate when they call me rubia here, at least he was being encouraging. Catcalls are inevitable, and just as I do while walking around town, I ignore them while I run. The most calls I get are usual the hissing, or the “pssst-ing”. Oddly enough, these push me to run a little faster to get away from them. Other than the catcalls, a few men on motorcycles have driven slowly alongside me, only for a few seconds thankfully. I also had a boy on a bike try to keep up beside me, but I blew past him once I knew he was there. So maybe it isn’t so bad running in my site? My community members might actually help me get better in the months to come without even knowing it.
Although there are some aspects of running here that are uncomfortable, I have found a lot of joy spreading my love for running with the people here. It always makes me smile when I see one of my students on the side of the road waving and yelling profe or Alexandria with the biggest smile. I have even seen some fellow teachers watch me run past as their faces lit up with surprise and wonder as they realized who was running. I love seeing people I know and waving as I run past to also show them the joy in my face as I run. When I go back to school after a run so many of my students are spreading the word about how they saw me running and that I do exercise here.
I hope by seeing me run in the community is a start for my students and friends here to gain some exposure to the life of running and exercise. There is one gym in my site and is very well equipped for a small pueblito surrounded by rice fields. However, the exercise culture is very thin in my community and I would love more than anything to spread that around. Even if I just reach one joven (young adult) who could become my running buddy, I would still consider that a success.