When we sit down to talk two weeks into race day, I apologize to Ayumi Nagano that it’s so early – 8.30am in North Carolina, and 1.30pm for me, in London. Did not matter; She laughs – I have already woken up since four in the morning. As a mother with two young children, this is the only time she can fit in her fast workouts and long runs.
Ayumi holds her bruised hands to the camera in response to the ‘How was training’ editorial — in the past three weeks, she’s had a knee injury, bought a sore throat, and fallen and bruised a rib, but still excited. Here’s something I found out about Ayumi in our short chat – she’s not upset. When the streets got scared running alone at 5 a.m., she started a running group for local moms (the Highland Creek Club, which meets every Tuesday).
As a child, Iumi would miss sports, as she had to go to Japanese school every Saturday morning. She ran when a friend asked her to join the Cross Country team (“I didn’t even know what Cross Country was,” she laughs). And when dark times threatened to beat her, she used running as a weapon.
Ayumi is a survivor. She was the captain of the track team in high school when a coach made a comment about her weight. As a result, Ayumi struggled with eating disorder and depression, “I became obsessed with liking, well, if I want to get faster or faster, I have to lose weight.” She has also struggled with drug addiction, but has been sober for the past 10 years and is now running the New York City Marathon for the first time. Are you ready to feel inspired? Read on.
Ayumi, tell me about these four in the morning starts.
“I am a mother with two children. I have a three-and-a-half-year-old who is one and a half years old. My husband works West Coast hours [and] You don’t finish working until 7pm most days, so evening runs are non-existent.
I started a local running group because I was trying to find other people to run with early in the morning; Just as a woman, it would be much safer. We called the Highland Creek Operating Team, and we got started in May. We meet every Tuesday morning at 5 am. We’re all parents, so we get up at five in the morning and do a workout. But since my marathon sprint training takes about two hours, I get up at 4 a.m. every Tuesday and warm up for two miles, run fast with the set, and then cool down for two miles. Then I come home at six, shower as fast as I can, and then have to work at 6:45 in the morning. I don’t see it because that’s how many weeks I have until race day I’m counting how many Tuesdays I have to get up at 4am! “
How did you start running?
“All my childhood I used to go every Saturday in New York to a Japanese language school. That means I can’t do sports, because most sports meet on Saturdays, and also I had double homework during the week. When I was in seventh grade, I left The Japanese school and I was sitting on the school bus when a girl asked me, “Do you want to try with the Cross Country Team?” I had no idea about it but I said yes. The first day, I remember we were told to only run two miles. And I did. It was It hurts, and I remember having trouble going up and down the stairs the next day, but kind of fell in love with it.
After that, I ran to middle school. I loved the winter track coach in high school, but the cross country and spring coach was obsessed with winning. He almost treated his runners like a commodity. He wasn’t the nicest person. If you didn’t win for him, it looked like That he didn’t see the point of being on the team, and that kind of left a bitter taste in my mouth.
I remember my junior year in high school was very stressful. I was on the school dance team, I was playing sports, I was paying out of my own pocket for my LSAT teachers of English and Math, I was working as a cashier, and I was trying to keep my schoolwork load down. In spring track training, [my coach] I had mentioned that I needed to lose weight, and I remember taking that seriously and thinking, “Oh, I’m not going to do championships if I don’t lose weight.” And this obsession with liking became, well, if I wanted to get faster or faster, I had to lose weight. This ended up staying with me for nearly 10 years.”
You’re now a teacher, and you credit your decision to coach Cross Country as the reason you fell in love with running again.
“Yeah sure. It’s very difficult to run or play any sport in NYC. Some of my kids commute for an hour on the subway just to get to school. That means they get up around five or six in the morning, and then they try to study all day, and stay after school.” Trying to get their homework done, then they go to practice for about two hours, before taking the subway an hour home, and then do it again the next day.
The level of dedication it takes for them to stay on the team, and the desire to stay on the team is just a stunner. The fact that these kids loved running so much that they were willing to do it was a huge inspiration to me. I’ve been watching them work so hard every day for months and months and months, I just thought, “This is so beautiful. This is why you love to run. And that kind of allowed me to fall in love with running again.
This is very beautiful. This is why you love to run.
“I didn’t tell anyone, but I signed up for my first race about 13 years ago. It was the Cocoa Classic Five miller in Central Park where you get a cup of cocoa at the finish line. I went on my own, didn’t tell anyone, I went and ran it. The temperatures were lower. From scratch, but I remember having a lot of fun and feeling very exhilarated.”
What does it mean to be on the starting line for the New York City Marathon?
“It means a lot. I didn’t really see myself as an athlete for the past few years, even though I ran for a very long time. I think it has to do with being Asian and not seeing a lot of Asians in the running world. It wasn’t until the last few years that I thought, yeah, I’m a runner. Yes I’m strong. I ran a half marathon in April – it was my first postpartum and post-pandemic time, and I remember running and seeing spray, maybe four or five little Asian girls like the crowd cheering. I remember looking at them on purpose and smiling and waving at all Once, just to be like, yeah, you can run this too.
It was such a great feeling like we really existed, and we’re here just to show that you can. I think it’s the same with the New York City Marathon – yes, there are definitely more Asians than any other race to run, but we’re by no means almost any kind of majority, and I think it’s important for others to see Asian faces out there too. I think this is really important. Because I didn’t realize how important acting was until I realized how much it affected me and my perception of myself.”
How has your relationship with running changed over the years?
“After having kids, I’m more confident in running than ever. I don’t know if it’s hormones — I feel my hormones different, my body is different, my hips are wider, my rib cage is wider, but I honestly think it’s something else. The first time I ran After giving birth to my son in Brooklyn, a guy just walked past me very quickly, and I remember looking at him and thinking, “Oh, whatever, my body just had a baby.” I think that helped me build a lot of confidence, as well as a lot of respect for my body.
I am in the utmost confidence, comfort and happiness for my running.
“I’m so happy about postponing my marathon—I got pregnant when I was first supposed to run, then the pandemic happened, and then I got pregnant again. Physically, I’m more mature in my training, I can push myself harder than I did before. But then also on my easy runs, I’m a lot kinder to myself – I don’t care what anyone thinks! I’m like, ‘Oh, I’m going to run fast 20 minutes, who cares? It’s 105 degrees!’
“I am in the most confident, comfortable and happy running for me. I have more confidence in the process. The last few years have really challenged my body, in so many ways, and kind of showed me that it can do some really amazing things.”
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