I’ve titled this week’s newsletter with the one line I jotted down from President Biden’s inauguration. In a well-written speech that at times felt pretty lifeless, the line seemed to come straight from Biden, not his speechwriters: “Hear me out as we move forward. Take a measure of me and my heart. If you still disagree, so be it. That’s democracy. That’s America.”
I don’t think it’s a sign of cooperation and unity to come, but a good line nonetheless. And a reminder that maybe – just maybe – we might someday have a president who can appeal to their country in a positive way and be heard. I wasn’t alive at the time, so I have no way of knowing how these words were actually received, but I’d like to think that JFK’s famous “ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country” actually stirred up some sense of civic duty in America. It would be awesome to have a leader do that again in my lifetime.
Otherwise, the week has been filled with entreaties to the new president and his party. Ezra Klein wrote a piece in the NYT titled Democrats, Here’s How to Lose in 2022. And Deserve It. Yikes. Can’t the media just give us a few days? I’m sure the first weeks of any new President’s term are typically filled with these kind of pieces, but it sure feels like a bummer after a hopeful inauguration ceremony.
Anyway, I’d write about what I hope to see happen in Biden’s first six months, but then I’d just be piling on with the rest of them. Besides, none of you deserve to be subjected to my policy opinions. I’ll wait til I’ve built your trust a little in this New Year before I go down that road.
Build? Road? Maybe Biden should start with infrastructure…
Also – Peggy Noonan absolutely roasted China this week in her inauguration piece and I have no idea how they’ll recover:
“China, you have penetrated every data cloud and downloaded every invention, you have discipline and determination and believe the future is yours, but you don’t have Lady Gaga.”
Cool Running
For a while now I have been wanting to write about running in the cold, but each week the temperature has broken and it hasn’t felt cold enough. Strange, I know, but without fresh memories of achy bones and numb cheeks I’ve felt like too much of a fraud to write about it – who wants to hear about last season’s cold spell from someone who hasn’t yet gone out in sub-freezing weather?
The third week of December brought snow to Brooklyn and it seemed like my chance. I pulled out my homemade ice shoes (pictured below + instructions) for a handful of runs, but by the time I made it outside each day, the temperature was in the high 30s and the snow had turned to slush. One morning I ended up cutting a run short because I was sweating through my thick hoodie and gloves. Another morning I came home with wet, gray shoes, having splashed through dozens of crosswalk slush puddles.
This was not the winter running I look forward to each year.
Then, finally, this past week brought temperatures in the high twenties and windchill much lower than that. I went for a run on Thursday and my temples hurt and my headphones actually started creaking in my ears. The wind along the East River stung my eyes and cut straight through my tights, but the view of lower Manhattan was as crisp as ever. It was awesome.
Because here’s the thing about cold weather running: It flips the whole reward system on its head. On hot days, it feels great to stand outside in a t-shirt when I’m preparing to head out, and it’s not until a few miles in, drenched in sweat and unable to breathe, that I start to suffer. On cold days, it’s the reverse – it’s those first few minutes that are the most painful. I’m outside in fewer layers than I’d like and icy air is whipping my exposed wrists and blowing under my shirt. Only after I’ve warmed up for a few miles does my body temperature rise enough to banish those chills.
And I run much faster in the cold. I don’t sweat, I can breathe easier, and my muscles feel better. My pace is 30 seconds faster – at least – per mile than in warmer months, and the change feels effortless. So it’s a bit of an ego boost, even if there’s not much difference in my overall fitness level, and zero difference in the work I put in.
The pain in the cold is also all surface level (assuming, of course, you aren’t out there in a wet t-shirt, at which point your pain is very, very much beneath the surface). My cheeks, fingers and the tip of my nose may sting, but my lungs and legs feel great. The parts that matter on a run.
So all of that makes for an interesting dynamic. When I run on winter mornings, I have a much larger hurdle to getting out there – it’s freezing and uncomfortable – but the payoff is huge: a faster and more enjoyable run than on warmer days and, even more important, the feeling that comes with toughing it out. With reminding myself that a little discomfort early on is worth the sensation of finishing up, lungs alive from the crisp air, and being perfectly at home in the same weather that an hour before felt intolerable.
Paul Flannery articulates this well in his newsletter Running Probably: “Winter running makes me slow down and appreciate the natural beauty of my environment.” In New York, this means that the buildings seem taller; the windows shinier. Everything is quieter.
Not everyone will enjoy running in the cold. I get it. December through February are generally great months to take your workouts indoors and hold out for warmer days, and my tolerance for winter running certainly didn’t happen overnight – last winter I spent a handful of days each week inside, on the treadmill, happily watching episodes of Jack Ryan in a sweat-drenched t-shirt.
But it’s an evolution. Flannery also writes that “my cold weather conversion mirrored my training habits. It’s not like I had the aerobic capacity to run a marathon when I started training. I had to build the base.”
So with the pandemic pushing most workouts outdoors, and a couple of winter months remaining, don’t worry if you’re not feeling it. Those first few minutes in the cold really suck. But if you make it past the pain, enjoy the feeling. And let me know if that run tastes just a little bit sweeter.
– Emmett
What I’m Reading:
I Saw the World on Cruise Ships – Devin Murphy, Outside Magazine
“On my night rounds, I often saw the northern lights or heard the sounds of whales surfacing in the dark. While the world slept, I had this. My ego began to make me feel special for having these moments of solitude and grace.”
Now Is the Time to Have a Civic Backbone – Ryan Holiday
“This is a moment to decide what side you are on. A moment to be heroic. To think about others. To serve. To prepare. To keep calm. To reassure. To protect. This is a time to reevaluate our priorities. To ask ourselves what’s important, what are we working toward, how can we turn all of this into an opportunity?“
What I’m Listening To: Three songs on repeat
River – Leon Bridges
Gynmopédie No. 1 – Erik Satie
Nights On Broadway – Bee Gees