When it came time to select our September Reckless Runner of the Month, it was a no brainer. This person truly embodies the Reckless Running logo and mentality and is an inspiration to many in and out of the sport. Sure, we maybe a little partial (he is our brand ambassador and co-founder), but we were so thrilled about his recent comeback to professional racing that we couldn’t wait to share his story with you.
”I crawled through hell to get to this race today; floated aimlessly through seemingly endless purgatory. My pertinacious nature carried me to the starting line. The finish line was heaven for me today & between the start & finish the entirety of my life.” Anthony Famiglietti following his 3:57.1 time at the 5th Ave Mile
We sat down with Anthony FAMiglietti at his new residence in Davidson, NC for this candid interview.
RR: First off, congratulations on your 3:57 mile the other day at the 5th Avenue mile, and your solid run at the USA 5k Champs in Providence, RI the other week. How does it feel to finally be racing again?
Fam: I feel very happy and fortunate having just raced a 3:57 mile in NYC this past weekend in front of close friends and family. I had a great time running, and though I did not win, my race was an enormous victory.
RR: Can you elaborate more on why this was such an ‘enormous’ victory for you?
FAM: I have been through some tough situations the last several months related to my running. In reality my troubles had been mounting for the last year and a half and just seemed to escalate more with each passing day. I did my best to keep the extent of my struggle out of the public eye for many reasons, the main reason being my private nature. I’ve now decided that I’d like to share and discuss what I’ve been through in an attempt to help other runners push through any of their own personal struggles.
We all face serious challenges in our lives at some point and we all do our best to push forward. The toughest part for most of us during these situations is that we seemingly lose all control and are at the mercy of whatever is ailing us. Sometimes the harder we work to overcome the obstacle in front of us the more it will pile on and roll over us with crushing pressure. When we try to charge forward we feel more stuck than ever, often feeling trapped indefinitely under an immovable force. As a steeplechaser who’s specialty is clearing obstacles, I find situations like this to be exceptionally frustrating and difficult. I’ve trained for decades with great discipline to approach my life as if there were no challenges I could not overcome. When life threw up a series of brick walls recently, I found myself digging deeper than ever to reach my goals and fulfill my dream. Inside of my struggle there is a lesson that any runner should not ignore. Living life on the edge as an endurance athlete can be very punishing at times. Pushing your body to the furthest physical limitations can come with a price. If you decide to cross the bridge of attrition to become a great athlete, you’re going have to pay the toll at some point. That is the place where most men and women quit.
RR: How did these challenges and struggles impact your running?
FAM: I’ve lived my life as a professional runner for the last eleven years and luckily had few problems over that time period. It wasn’t until the tenth year of my career that I started struggling with new issues I had not dealt with before. I battled with several different problems, any one of which could have ended my running career as they have ended the dreams of many other runners. At one point, things were so bleak for me, it looked as though I would never be able to run again, even for recreation. I experienced what I call an amalgamation of every runner’s worst nightmare. In the end, I refused to quit and came out stronger and healthier for having won the battles and regained control of my life.
RR: Without going into too much detail, can you explain some of these obstacles?
FAM: Some of the problems I worked through and the theories thrown around by experts to address them deal with issues that are starting to become more prevalent in the sport. Here is a quick breakdown of some of the scenarios and how I worked my way through them to get more clear answers for myself.
#1 Injury
I had been dealing with an ongoing injury issue for some time and sought out some the best experts to help specifically identify what was going on. Eventually I landed in Colorado Springs at the Olympic Training Center. With the help of bio-mechanics specialists, the head doctor at the OTC and his wonderful training staff, I was able to finally get more clear answers. The injury appeared as a result of a progression from a particular stimulus over time that was creating pain and arthritis. I made the decision to eliminate the stimulus and my pain subsided. The good news is that I stopped it in time to not cause further problems. The bad news is that I now may have what looks to be long term damage and pain at the first site of injury. I’m happy to say that with very diligent physiotherapy and massage I have been able to keep the pain and stiffness to a minimum, so far. However, the preparation on my foot pre race and pre workout is very extensive as well as the immediate post workout or post race therapy. I’ll have to do this extensive rehab for the rest of my running life. The running joke is that I now fully embody the Reckless Running logo.
#2 Asthma
As time passed and the injury started getting better I worked harder and was getting fitter. I worked very hard in training and made great strides in fitness and health until I finally hit another brick wall. I started having some breathing problems. One of the first times I had dealt with significant problems with breathing was at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. I ran a hard effort in the preliminary round of the steeplechase and made the final. Right after the race I was having problems breathing, and with each breath, I had chest pain. I went directly back to the Olympic Village after the race and met with the US team doctor. The doctor listened to my chest, checked my heart rate and asked if I had been diagnosed with asthma. At the time I had not been diagnosed and did not have a Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE) for medication so I could not get treatment of any kind (as of 2011, a TUE is no longer needed for many Asthma meds). I raced the Olympic final with chest pain and very difficult breathing. To make a long story short, when I started wheezing badly with labored breathing I tried to push through on pure guts, mind over matter. Lack of oxygen to my muscles shut my body down very quickly. The reality is that an engine will not run without fuel. Whether Beijing was the catalyst for my asthma I do not know. I do know that I struggled in many races and workouts afterwords. I still ran decent times in 2009 with a 13:17 5k, 27:39 10k, and a 1:03 half marathon in 2010 but the breathing trouble kept me from running the times my workouts were showing I was capable of.
It wasn’t until winter 2010/2011 that I received medicinal treatment for exercise induced asthma. The impetus for finally checking into the asthma was that a new advisor I had started working with had been to a workout and heard the labored breathing and wheezing. I also later found out that the town I was living in is ranked #2 in the US for new asthma cases every year and is also ranked #1 as the allergy capital of the US. That was when I put my home up for sale and decided to leave town.
#3 Overtraining
As a collegiate and post collegiate runner my workouts and racing choices were selected based on personal trial and error. I kept workouts or buildups that worked when I tried them and discarded what did not. It was a good way of fine tuning training to my specific needs. The downside to that running style was that I lost a lot of time and a lot of good races to over training. I’ve always believed in high effort workout intensities, but there is a fine line of working hard enough to be the best in the world and running yourself into the ground. An example of this would be my 2009 racing season, where I ran too many races in a short period of time. I ran the gamut of distances, making it difficult to zero in and train properly for any particular event. I was either overtrained or undertrained for each race. The schedule looked like this: XC, then 4 weeks later 15k, 2 weeks later Road 5k 13:27, 1 week later 1500m 3:40, 1 week later 5k 13:17, 6 days later 10k 27.39, 2 weeks later Road 10k, 4 weeks later 5k, 6 days later Road 10k 28:15, 1 week later 5k 13:22, 1 week later Road 7Mile, 6 weeks later Road5k, 2 weeks later Road 10Mile. That is a whole lot of fast racing in a short amount of time.
At the end of 2010, I decided to find a new training advisor with a training style that was different from what I had done in the past. My idea for a new advisor was based on examining what I had done in the past with a new set of eyes and a new perspective. I wanted someone with a degree in exercise science who could examine my workouts and develop a very solid and regimented game plan based on the newest and best ideas in training. I had more or less interviewed a few names and top coaches to see how they might fit. After much deliberation I selected a coach based on the recommendation of a fellow elite athlete. The advisor also helped in addressing what was causing my injury.
Once I was healthy enough to run I dove into the new training. The workout sessions were laid out and I started training in ways I was not used to. I was used to running high intensity workouts sessions with very light recovery days and relatively low weekly mileage compared to most elite runners. My new format included doing things like three workout sessions a week, intense weight lifting sessions after track workouts, “reverse periodization,” and pushing the limits of my speed. The intensities and volume of training were higher than I was accustomed to and the workouts were very tough at times. At this same time a lot of stress had also been building from outside influences.
Initially the asthma medication seemed to help and my training was getting back on track. By this time eight months had passed since my last race. It was already February of 2011 and I was very hungry to race and perform well. As I got closer to 100% I decided to head to high altitude for a four week training session to prepare for my first race since getting injured. I decided to prepare for the US 15k championship, a race I had won in 2009. Like my other training protocols, the altitude schedule was also modified. I started training tougher than I ever had before at altitude. Not only were my workout sessions more intense, but the volume of training during the workout days as well as recovery days were much higher than usual. My weekly long run days had also significantly increased in mileage.
It wasn’t long before my body started responding negatively. My legs seemed to just shut down the last week of training before the scheduled race. I stopped training all together at that point and took a few days break from running. Super fit and determined to race I decided to travel to the competition. I received some positive encouragement from my roommate at altitude, Ryan Hall, who said he would sometimes feel this way before races and end up performing well (he cited a page in his book, Running With Joy, for support). I took another three days of easy running. My legs seemed OK so I decided I’d try to race. Less than half a mile into the race something felt very off. I kept running anyway. I battled to stay in the race and just finish. I finished defeated in every way. It was by far the worst race of my life. In the following days, I could barely get around. After a four day break I tried to jog and barely made it a quarter mile before I had to stop and walk home. It was all over for me. Mentally, physically, emotionally I was defeated, done.
#4 Examining the Thyroid
Days had gone by and my body was still not responding. I could barley make it out of bed in the mornings to get downstairs onto the couch. Even simple tasks like making something to eat were laborious. During this time my advisor had suggested that I see a top endocrinologist. My endocrinologist performed a routine check-up with blood tests. After two weeks had passed the doctor decided to put me on a thyroid medication. At this time we decided to try to run a little each day to see if there was any change in how I felt. Each day I would run anywhere from two to four miles. Sometimes I’d get my shoes on and get to the front door and stop there. Other days I’d feel decent, but not right. One day I tried to do a long run and made it to a very slow 5 miles. Every two weeks my doctor would check in and request more blood work. We would discuss the situation and tweak the medication as needed per the results. Overtime things changed little, I never felt quite right. Eventually I decided to take another full break off from training hoping things would change and the medication would do its thing. Weeks passed and I was feeling more ill, frustrated and worn out.
Fed up, I decided to make the decision to end the madness and fully regain control of my life. I would either quit running and never look back or would dedicate my life to fulfilling my highest potential. I called and thanked my advisor for the help and commitment and made the decision to work on my own moving forward. I also contacted my doctor and after much discussion and deliberation made the decision to end all medications. I was cleaning house and literally starting over from scratch with training, diet, health choices, everything.
#5 Hypoglycemia
Prior to all of this going on I was also struggling with another condition I could not identify. Certain days I would head out to run and barely get a mile into the run when I’d start getting dizzy, faint, and weak. I would have to stop and walk home. When this happened, the walk back home seemed to take an eternity. The feeling was akin to being drained and felt as though I had not eaten for days despite having just eaten breakfast and several nutritious meals the prior day. Relief seemed to come if I immediately ate a large meal with heavy carbs. It took a very long time to pinpoint what was happening to me. The answer came after a long period of extensive research. The good news was that the problem was easily fixed when I precisely timed my meals and made specific nutritious food choices before runs.
RR: How did you get from there to running a sub 4 mile?
FAM: I stopped the easy jogging in April and did not run again until late June. When I started back I did a about ten days of easy running 4-6 miles a day. When I felt I was back on my feet I did an easy fartlek run in Blowing Rock NC. I wanted to see how my body would react and if it was ready to train again. The run went well and after a few days break I did another test run, a four mile easy progressive tempo with the Zap Fitness team. I was elated at the end of the run. My body finally felt ready to start training again.
I sat down and wrote myself a twelve week buildup with workouts starting in the last 6 weeks of running. The schedule would gradually build to some fun, mid distance, low pressure races. The Caremark CVS 5k was the first planned race. The 5th Ave Mile was the second. I had to keep my weekly mileage very low as I moved forward as to make sure I would build properly and not reintroduce any fatigue. My average weekly mileage came out to be under 48 miles per week. The length and intensity of workouts also had to be capped at paces slower than normal. Using a quality over quantity based model, I managed to develop a style of training grounded in hyper efficiency. I have to say it worked well as I raced a 14:03 on a hilly 5k course. That time was just twenty seconds off my best on that course when I won in 2008 coming off of the Olympic games at my fittest. I also recovered very well and ran a 3:57 mile in New York. That time was just 2.5 seconds off my best mile on that course. Showing up to the starting line itself felt incredible. I can’t begin to explain the joy and accomplishment I experienced crossing the finish line of each race. The universe had humbled me and in doing so gave my running more purpose and meaning than ever before.
I have struggled through an amazing array of issues this past year. I have had to deal with things that would make some of the toughest athletes throw in the towel out of exhaustion and frustration. Winning over each of those problems was a long and arduous process.
RR: Any lessons or advice to help others get through similar struggles?
FAM: The lesson here is that no matter how dark things get for you there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. As they say, the further and deeper you get into the tunnel, the darker it gets. I’m happy to say that I feel I have traversed through my tunnel and moved past all of this as a much healthier and stronger person. To put it succinctly, I’ve embraced a holistic approach to my life, health and running. I’ve let go of the pervasive reductionist view of health and wellness that treats the symptoms of problems without identifying and reigning in the root cause.
I decided to get to the root of my problems and in the process gained an incredible amount of knowledge and information. When I made the decision to take control of my life and live healthier I also made the decision (under the guidance of a physician) to stop taking medication. I’m proud to say that I have not used any asthma medication in over six months. I have also not used any thyroid medication in almost four months. I have made the best efforts possible to structure my life and training to get the most optimal results from my body. The difficult part of approaching health and wellness this way is that I had to stop all activity and just sit out for months. Most of us do not have the patience to put our lives on hold like that. We’re all looking for instant gratification despite living in a running world based on delayed gratification. I know plenty of runners who hate taking just one day off. What about you?
To perform at your best you have to prioritize what will ultimately make you a faster in the long run. Being a successful runner can sometimes mean running one less mile when your not feeling right, or taking extra time off when you’re stressed or feel an injury coming on. Most importantly there is no doubt we can all stand to take control of our nutrition and eat better.
RR: What is the most important thing you want people to take from this interview?
FAM: The bottom line, sometimes it’s best to leave contemporary or pre-conceived notions of what makes a great runner behind. Use your instincts to make the right decisions about what YOU need to be doing to be the best runner you can. Personally, I feel that I gave the over examined, under researched, scientific approach to running a try. Despite many “top” elite coaches shouting praises for this approach to training, I’ve found it to be disingenuous. I believe in walking the middle path and having balance when it comes to running and training ideas. For now, I’ve gone back to and will stick with what has always worked for me, basic purist running. For me, that is where the soul of athletics will always reside. That is where I will find my highest level of potential and success. I’ve seen all the gimmicks, tried the best new equipment, and I’ve come to understand all of the “groundbreaking” new techniques. I’ve pushed aside all the BS and hearsay. I know what I want to achieve with my running and I have no doubt I’ll get there by embracing good, old fashioned running with guts and heart.
The idea is to show up healthy and race with reckless abandon, not to live recklessly and run yourself into the ground.
…forget about september…i vote you runner of all times…congrats on your self-directed career…looking forward to more…frankiebonz