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January 16, 2004/Tevet 22 5764, Vol. 56, No.17
Marathon runner achieves personal goals
JENNIFER GOLDBERG
Staff Writer
At 4:45 in the morning, most of us are sound asleep in our beds, hours from waking up. The sun hasn't even risen. But at 4:45 in the morning in Tucson, Fran Katz is strapping on her Adidases for her daily six- to 10-mile run with her regular running buddy.
Two and a half years ago, 42-year-old Katz had never done much running. Today, she qualifies for (and completes) some of the top marathons in the country.
After a friend invited her on a morning run, Katz got the running bug and completed her first half-marathon in Tucson in December 2001.
"I loved it," she says, "and afterwards I decided I wanted to do a full marathon."
But why get up so early to run? "I've got two kids," she explains, "and I don't want anything to interfere with my being a mom." Fourteen-year-old Aimee and 13-year-old Adam are proud of their mom's running career but prefer their own athletic activities - basketball and softball for Aimee, and basketball and soccer for Adam.
Katz's first marathon was the Suzuki Rock 'n' Roll Marathon in San Diego in June 2002. Her finishing time at her second marathon in Tucson in December 2002, a remarkable 3:29:20, qualified her for the 2003 Boston and New York Marathons. Most recently, Katz ran the P.F. Chang's Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Marathon on Jan. 11.
In the weeks before a marathon, Katz increases the distance she usually runs from 35 miles per week to approaching 50 miles per week. She also adds one long weekend run - a 13- to 21-mile trek. Incidentally, she wears out a pair of running shoes every four months.
Marathon runners follow strict dietary regimens right before a race, and Katz is no different. On the eve of the marathon, Katz eats lots of pasta for carbohydrates: "I eat very plain, so I don't have any stomach problems." But the next morning, while the other runners are filling up on energy gel and other strange substances, Katz has her own special pre-race snack: Twinkies and Diet Coke. During the race, she'll snack on some energy gel, but she also keeps candy corn close at hand.
"I'm not your typical runner," she says.
Katz's most memorable marathon experience was running the New York Marathon in November 2003. She was born in New York before moving to Phoenix at the age of 9, and "to be back in New York, running through the boroughs was a real high for me," she says. Adding to her enjoyment was both the fact that her husband, Jeff, was there with their children, and that Katz achieved her best time ever - 3:28:08.
That's not to say, however, that the New York Marathon was problem-free for Katz. When the psychological and physical "wall" that many marathon runners hit around mile 20 struck her, she battled back to finish the race. "It was a very hot day, and I got to the point where I felt my feet weren't going to move. But I trained for it, and I had to keep going," she recalls. She says that encouragement from the crowd and the proximity to the finish line motivated her to keep running.
After a marathon, Katz looks for her family, who are waiting for her in the family greeting area. She carries a cell phone in her fanny pack (along with Advil, water, gummy bears and extra batteries for her MP3 player) in case she can't find them in the crowd, a lesson she learned after her first marathon.
Although Katz's busy schedule includes being a full-time wife and mother, working as national sales manager for Tucson Lifestyle magazine, and putting in many hours of volunteer work through her synagogue, Temple Or Chadash, Katz says she continues to set aside time to run because she loves it so much. "It's a huge balance, but I enjoy it. I have made the greatest friends, and it's the greatest feeling when you cross the finish line to say to yourself, 'I cannot believe I just accomplished that.' "
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