Interview with Apolo Ohno
I had the opportunity to interview 8-time Olympic medalist and Dancing with The Stars champion, Apolo Ohno, about his training for the 2011 ING New York City Marathon (held on Sunday, Nov. 6, 2011).
Here are some of the highlights:
- Apolo hasn’t skated since the 2010 Winter Olympics. He’s been pursuing acting, broadcasting, and promotional opportunities since then.
- He has run between 600-700 miles in training since being challenged by Subway’s Jared Fogle to attempt the marathon.
- Apolo travels more than 20 days a month, making speeches and promotional appearances.
- His trainer, Todd Rushworth, custom-designed a marathon program to fit Apolo’s hectic travel schedule and often travels with him to help him train.
- Apolo ran the Chicago Half Marathon in just over 1:40. He hopes to finish the ING New York City Marathon in about 3:30. He also said that he wants to “beat Mario Lopez”, who is also running the marathon.
- If Apolo runs the marathon in less than 4:00, Subway will donate $26,200 to the Special Olympics.
- Since starting to train for the marathon, Apolo’s body has changed. His famously large thighs are now “50% smaller” and he is now able to buy jeans off the rack, rather than having them custom-made.
- One of the biggest adjustments Apolo had to make for marathon training was to not go “all out” in his workouts, like he did when he was training for short track speed skating.
- Apolo’s coach, Todd Rushworth, says that it’s important to eat portion-controlled meals every 2-3 hours to maintain blood sugar levels and prevent long-term fat storage.
- Apolo’s favorite Subway sandwich is a 12 inch, double meat, turkey sub on honey wheat bread with lettuce, banana peppers, and oil & vinegar dressing.
- Apolo likes to drink coconut water and low-fat chocolate milk after his runs to help with his recovery.
- One of the foods that Apolo says works well for him is brown rice pasta. It provides slow-digesting carbohydrates to fuel his running.
- When he first started running longer distances, Apolo had a big problem with tightness in his right iliotibial (IT) band. He was able to work it out with acupuncture, using a foam roll and a tennis ball on his IT band, and using a golf ball to massage his feet.
- Apolo used to train exclusively on the treadmill when he was a skater, because he didn’t want to risk “rolling an ankle” on an inconsistent road surface. Despite his hectic travel schedule, he hasn’t used the treadmill at all while training for the marathon. He wants to get as much experience running on the roads as possible before the race.
- In training for the marathon, Apolo and Todd Rushworth emphasized that it’s important to be consistent and “don’t miss the long runs”. Rest is also very important.
- One of Apolo’s father’s sayings is “Champions are made when no one is watching”. This philosophy has guided Apolo throughout his athletic career.
- Apolo’s personal philosophy (and the name of his book) is Zero Regrets.
- For people who say they “don’t have time to exercise”, Apolo suggests that they start with something small. Even a small amount of exercise “makes a big difference”.
- Apolo plans eat some oatmeal for breakfast before the marathon and some gels during the race.
- Apolo says that running a marathon is “so ridiculously hard”. He admires anyone who completes one.
- Immediately after the ING NYC Marathon, Apolo is scheduled to fly 17 hours to Hong Kong. Ouch!
If you are in NYC and would like to meet Apolo Ohno, he will be appearing with Subway’s Jared Fogle at ING Booth (#318) at the ING New York City Marathon Expo at the Javits Center on Friday, Nov. 4, at 1:00 PM.
Update: Apolo Ohno finished the ING NYC Marathon in 3:25:12.
What do you think of athletes like Apolo Ohno or Lance Armstrong who are able to take up running and compete in marathons. Tell me in the comments.
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Highlights from 2011 ING NYC Marathon Expo
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