Cairo Runners on Finding Your Path in the City's Chaos

By Menna Fahiem Once again, New Year's Day has come and gone. Perhaps you've stuck to your goal of accomplishing five things on your bucket list or going to the gym three times a week, but, regardless, we don't need January 1 to be the only day of the year we decide to turn our lives around. Egypt Today talks to Cairo Runners Co-Founder and Board Member Abdullah Hussein, as well as Cairo Runners Social Media Team member Engi Hassaan, about ways you can stay healthy in the city and kick start a new running habit. Egypt Today: Do you think Cairo is a healthy city? If not, what kind of suggestions would you give so that Cairenes can improve their health? Abdullah Hussein: Unfortunately, we have one main challenge in Cairo: air pollution. Egypt ranks among the highest in the world with regards to its pollution levels. I suggest that Cairenes cooperate with the government to decrease air pollution and increase the green areas to improve the surrounding environment. Other than that, Cairenes should eat healthy food and exercise continuously. The continuity of the exercise is more important than the toughness of it. Not only that, but also getting a good night's sleep is essential to enable the human body to recover and benefit from any good exercise and healthy meal. ET: Which Cairo Runners event had the highest attendance and why do you think that is? Do people tend to run during certain seasons compared to others? Hussein: The weekly run with the highest number of runners in attendance was the New Cairo run in our first season, which started from a school track and attracted 4,000 runners. But the highest participation ever was for Cairo's second half marathon, on February 28, 2014, with 4,500 runners enjoying Cairo in the early morning. ET: What advice would you give to Cairenes who want to start running as their daily exercise? Particularly, what advice would you give to hopeful women runners? Hussein: First, you have to learn how to enjoy running, its way more than a way to be fit and lose fats. It as an influential enjoyable lifestyle that will have a great impact on your life. So look for a motivation, support, something that will make you stick to the routine, find a group of friends and let them join you. And of course you must avoid overload and injury by making sure of the following: If you are running periodically, you must run on soft land, track or grass, all of which are better than street asphalts, especially if you are running more than twice a month. If you are running for a definite target you must run with the customized program you need. Running too much is not necessarily always the best idea. Engi Hassaan: To all the hopeful women runners, patience is key! So are a good pair of running shoes. Remember: comfort over cuteness! Runners weren't built over night, so don't get discouraged if you feel like you're slow at first. If you're just starting out running, a good routine would be to begin with a 20-minute run/walk program a few times per week and build slowly from there, increasing it by no more than 10 percent every two weeks. Stick to this for at least six months before you start speeding to make sure your body has adapted to running for long distances. It's very important to strengthen those leg muscles, too. So make sure you incorporate regular flexibility and strength work into your training to help you run farther and stronger (building muscle also makes it easier to lose weight so that's a bonus). Finally, it's tempting to want to compete with other runners but every runner has a different routine that's best for their body, so remember to always listen closely to yours and don't push it too hard to avoid injury. ET: Do you have any running locations you would recommend to new runners? Hussein: Start with your neighborhood. It's naturally close and you know the area well so it will encourage you to create a running plan and stick to it. You can think of a certain end point to your route and add appropriate distance as your training progresses. You may even motivate your neighbors to do the same. That being said, generally, our motto is run to know your city well. Try out new routes in new places you may have never thought of visiting. Running in touristic and old cultural places is highly recommended; you will love the run because of the beauty of the place. ET: What are Cairo Runners' 2015 plans? Hussein: Besides our regular biweekly runs that prepare the runners for the biggest running event of the city, we are going to host Cairo's half-marathon for the third year in a row in April. We are also organizing a few adventure camps and exciting events like a trip to Dahab for an adventure run on February 5 where we'll be running a 10K route. We're also preparing for an all new type of run that will take place after Dahab's adventure run, but that's a surprise. Our 2015 new program was introduced on January which is a mid-week evening run in various neighborhoods in Cairo. It is meant to encourage runners who can't keep up with our 7 a.m. Friday runs to run in the evening after school and work. Everyone can stay fit now and train for the half marathon - no excuses! You can learn more about Cairo Runners by visiting their Facebook page or contacting them via email at info@cairorunners.com. Be sure to ask about their upcoming Dahab 10k run, scheduled for February 5-7.