A few weeks ago, I realized that Kenyan’s are fast at running. Like, goddamn fantastic at being the fastest runners. Since 1988, 20 out of the first 25 to finish at the Boston Marathon have been Kenyan. Their domination is complete, and incredible. I’ve read the first 20 results on Google for “Why are Kenyan’s so fast?”. It’s not a formula. It’s not “3 things you can do today to take 3 minutes off your 5k.” It’s a full-blown lifestyle. It’s as different from American running as driving a car is from looking at a kitchen funnel.

I’m going to write about running like a Kenyan. I want to explore the [enormous] set of conditions, and the way they live, to achieve their athletic prowess. This is the introduction post. For starters: I hate running with a fierce passion. I could blame it on a miserable year of freshman cross-country, but to be true to myself…I just hate it period. I love running as an intellectual fascination. I also love running for a purpose. Put me in a game of soccer or ultimate frisbee, or a hike with friends, I will outrun anyone to get the ball/disc/top of the hill. Anyone. I love it. Running around 10 city blocks to knock off 3.1 miles, on the flipside, makes me feel like a steaming pile of elephant shit. I love people that run, that can push their bodies to the limit in the oldest sport/activity ever, and enjoy doing so.

However, I’m saddened by American Running. I’m not talking like, Olympic level competition. I’m talking about Molly Johnson, 33 year old first time mother who decides to trim 10lbs. She goes out, buys a pair of ultra-supportive Asic’s, jogs twice a week, and tears the shit out of some foot muscle a month later. She never returns to the glorious rapture that is running. The barefoot movement is starting to overturn this, but I still see so many chubby people heel-toeing around my town trying to lose weight and train for a 5K, and I cry inside every time I see it. It’s not the right way.

Running like a Kenyan is not just running in toe-shoes. It’s not just mid-foot strikes. It’s not just running further, and at higher altitudes. It’s a different life. If you want to make a 94′ Camry fast, you don’t slam a 225HP German-engineered 1.8T engine under the hood. Because if you do, the transmission will fail under the power. So you put a new transmission in. Transmission swap complete, you go to the nearest curvy pavement and floor it. The suspension fails, you fly into an alfalfa field.However, if you completely re-fit the car with performance parts, it works beautifully and synergistically with its new high-spec components. American runners try to replace their engine, expecting the rest of the car to just work. That’s not how it goes down. RLAK is about re-fitting your life to make not just your running better, but your entire life. You, Healthier, Stronger, more Flexible. Less prone to injury.

It’s possible. They do it. And I’m going to explore all the components that work together to make them so good at running.