"Brittany Runs a Marathon" Review

I'm a bit late to the game, but I finally sat down to watch Brittany Runs a Marathon and I wanted to share my thoughts.

Brittany Runs a Marathon is about the titular Brittany, a financially struggling nearly-30 woman living in New York. She doesn't take great care of her body and sets out to make some healthy changes in her life, starting with losing weight. Too broke to join a gym, she picks up running. She decides, after completing a 5k, to run the NYC Marathon.
So, I mostly genuinely enjoyed this movie. Brittany's emotional/ mental journey is so relatable; I think most "late blooming" runners (including myself) can completely identify with the fear of the first run and the total exhilaration you feel at its completion. While I think the movie really skimmed the mechanics of early running (lots of walk breaks, your pace bouncing all over the place, lack of stamina), it did get a few things right.

For example, Brittany first wears sweats, Converse sneakers, and loose hair for her runs. Eventually, you start to see that she has learned how to dress appropriately as she figures out what she's doing.

When she completes her first 5k race, I teared up as she crossed the finish line. There is nothing like it! I laughed when her friend, upon hearing she was planning to run said 5k, says, "You're gonna run a marathon?!" We've all heard that from our non-runner friends.

One of the most nuanced plot lines in the movie is Brittany's relationship with her best friend Gretchen. As Brittany celebrates her weight loss progress and becomes more dedicated to her running and healthy lifestyle, Gretchen all but attempts to sabotage her; at the very least, she undermines Brittany's new life goals, tempting her with alcohol, junk food, and even drugs. I think most of us have dealt with someone in our lives who has seen us try to better ourselves and has responded by lashing out. I have a theory that those sorts of people feel defensive and perhaps even attacked for not also making different life choices; they are forced to reflect on their own choices and don't like what they see.

This plot line also gives Brittany a chance to act on the new confidence running gives her. I think the best thing about learning to run later in life is that you suddenly realize how much you're capable of. You realize you're stronger, braver, and more resilient than you ever expected. Suddenly, that newfound confidence spills over into everyday life. Running absolutely changes you, not just physically, but mentally as well. I thought the movie did a good job highlighting the complete transformation Brittany undergoes.

Brittany also makes new friends. At first, they're her running friends. Then they become real friends. Or, perhaps I should say, fuller friends. The relationships made through running together are truly special, and the movie spends time on that, which I appreciated.

There are, of course, bumps in the road. We learn that you have to be willing to internalize the changes you've made; you need to truly learn who this new you is in order to stick with it and succeed. You have to believe that you ARE the kind of person who can train for and run a marathon.

My biggest issue with the movie is that it generally skims over the work put into training for a marathon. Once it's established that Brittany is training, we don't see much more of it at all. She often mentions that she has "a run in the morning", but we never get to see her celebration as she follows her training plan and does the work. We never see her excitement in completing her first double-digit run, or her fear and determination in facing the last long run in her plan.

The thing about training for a marathon is that the training is what changes you. Yes, race day is totally something like you've never experienced. Yes, crossing that finish line is unlike anything else in the world. But any runner will tell you that you come face-to-face with yourself during the hard weeks of training, and it's a shame that that was completely left out of the movie.

Running helps you face your insecurities. As you feel stronger and accomplish your goals, your life changes. YOU change. By relegating the training to the background, we lose some insight into why Brittany has changed so much by the end of the film.

In the end, this is a movie more about how running can change you and impact the rest of your life than it is about running itself. Because of that, I can grudgingly forgive the egregious lack of major training milestones.

In short, Brittany Runs a Marathon got a lot of things right. I was rooting for Brittany to succeed and turn her life around. I was frustrated when she dealt poorly with setbacks. I was emotional when race day finally came around...and I cried when the movie title finally played out and we got to see her realize her dream.

I'd recommend this movie to runners, no matter what distance you prefer to run. You'll see yourself in Brittany and it will leave you feeling proud and motivated to lace up and hit the pavement.

ABK

Representation Matters

This week, Matt and I saw Love, Simon. A few weeks ago, we saw Black Panther, but as a white woman it's not really my place to speak to the power of a mainstream, popular, all-Black-cast film doing so well at the box-office or my delight in seeing it. I can't really speak to what it must have felt like as a Black person to experience that movie. (As a woman, though, it was incredibly powerful to see such strong, nuanced female characters on screen.)

I do urge you to read more on it. Here are some great articles: Black Panther let me see myself as a superhero for the first time; How the Black Panther Movie can Impact the Children of the Black Lives Matter Movement; The Cultural Impact of Black Panther; Black Panther is a gorgeous, groundbreaking celebration of Black Culture; and finally,  Black Panther is Not for Us, White People.

When it comes to Love, Simon, though, there was a specific way the inclusivity and representation impacted me as a Jewish woman, so I wanted to write this.

Love, Simon is a typical teenage romantic-comedy. That's one thing that makes it so wonderful. Lots of LGBTQ+ films are emotionally taxing to watch. This is because the very real, valid struggles of the LGBTQ+ community are heavy and emotionally fraught, and they're centered in these movies. There is a place and a reason for movies that deal with the discrimination the community faces and the danger of coming out.

It is so important, though, to see that the "genre" of LGBTQ+ films can transcend itself and fall easily into a family-friendly (generally...except for some language maybe), funny, lighthearted teen flick. Don't get me wrong, I was moved to tears multiple times while I watched Love, Simon, but I laughed more than I cried.

The nuance of Simon's character is brilliantly done, too. I appreciated that when Simon mishandles situations, he's called out on it. He's not a perfect person; he's human.

We get to see some lovely moments of humanity from even just supporting characters, but we also get to see the vicious side of prejudice that still exists today.

Mostly, I was very impressed by how effortlessly intersectional the film was. It was clearly intentional, but it did not feel forced. Not only were multiple protagonists POC, but we also saw a couple mixed-race families/relationships and Jewish characters. (This seems like a small detail, but as a Jewish woman I honed in on it immediately and was really moved to see the lighting of a menorah on the big screen. I can't think of a non-Jewish-centered film that mentions Hanukkah or Judaism even once.)

Basically, Love, Simon was a fun teen romantic-comedy that dealt with some incredibly important issues surrounding coming out and also did a stellar job of representing what the world and high school actually look like, filled with people of different races, backgrounds, families, and circumstances. I can only imagine the impact this movie's success will have on kids, whether they're out or not. The LGBTQ+ community and their stories should be mainstream and easily accessible; people of all sexual identities should be included in movies to the point where films featuring main characters anywhere on the spectrum aren't a big deal.

It's important that this movie be successful. It's important that more movies like this are made. The best way to make sure that happens is to buy a ticket..and really, it'll be well worth it, because at the end of the day, it was a good two hours of entertainment.

ABK

Winter Break Workouts & Stuff

It never fails that once I finally get into relaxation mode (meaning, the school-related dreams have ended and traveling for the holidays is mostly over), my immune system takes a break and I get sick. It's nothing major, but I've had headaches from the minute I wake up that last all day, I've been really lethargic, and my throat has been hurting.

I haven't been running because my energy level is just shot. But I have been doing some other workouts that I thought would be easier - meaning, no bouncing that will hurt my head. Not easy, because they definitely aren't!

The first is this workout from Blogilates that Helly linked on her blog a couple weeks ago. I thought this looked "easy" and about two minutes into it was like OMG NO. I didn't feel sore immediately after (I did during), but DOMS set in the next day and I'm still walking like a robot.

I also got myself Alexa Jean's workout "books" when they were on mega sale around Thanksgiving. (I don't usually pay for workouts but they were so cheap, I couldn't say no.)

My original plan was to do the 30 day challenge after the marathon (and put running on the back burner for awhile), so I've been doing these fairly diligently. I like that they're quick and seem easy, but then you really start to feel them after a couple days. And honestly, I do think I'm seeing results pretty quickly, too.

On the relaxation front, I decided to undertake the task of watching all six Star Wars movies before we went to see The Force Awakens. I've never seen them before! We watched all six over break and I wrote reviews/reactions on Facebook, which ended up being pretty fun.

I liked being able to discuss such culturally significant movies with my friends who are big fans; it was funny to see how many people told me to "just enjoy them." Like, the entire point of my watching them was to analyze, react, and review!

#EnglishMajorProblems, right? I keep trying to tell people that analyzing movies is how I enjoy them!

I have a ton of work-related stuff I need to get done before school starts again Monday. Midterms are the week we get back, so I need to get mine printed and copied. I have a PD I need to write and prepare for that week, too, and I still have tons of grading to finish. But I'm glad I took the first week of break to just relax and enjoy time with family and friends.

Sometimes we all need that mental break in order to come back sharp and be able to continue doing our jobs to the best of our ability. Teachers especially, since we work with kids and need to be compassionate and patient at work, need this time to just veg out.

Have you seen the Star Wars movies?
When you take a break from running, what kinds of workouts do you do?
Have you ever tried Blogilates?

ABK

This Weekend

This weekend was a good one, all things considered. I had my week post-op at the eye doctor; my right eye is 20/20 but my left eye seems to have regressed to 20/40 (it was 20/20 the day after surgery). They told me the patches of dryness on my left eye may be interfering with my vision, but that my vision would continue to crisp up and improve; I'm trying to be a lot more diligent about my artificial tears.

That evening, we went to our first wedding of 2015. Our friends Adam and Lila tied the knot in a gorgeous little beach wedding. It was such a beautiful ceremony; I was glad we went even though I had such an early day Saturday. We even had time for a few dances before we had to leave. 

Lila and her dad walking down the aisle.

It was a gorgeous (albeit windy) evening for a wedding!

Our place-cards were little beach chair picture frames! So cute.

It was nice to have a reason to get all dressed up!

Saturday, I woke up at 4:45 and Kristin and I drove up to Venice for the Shark's Tooth 10k. It was a really hard race this year, as I knew it would be, but I'm so glad I went and beyond grateful that I had a friend there to cheer me on and make the drive enjoyable. I'll put up a full race report shortly!

Spoiler: I finished the race, but it took me about four minutes longer than last year.

While I was at my race, Matt drove down to Miami for his first paddle race since getting injured. (He bruised a rib during a surf-session about six weeks ago and had to take time off to heal). The race had both 5k and 10k options, and he chose to race the 5k. It was the perfect comeback for him - he was able to go all-out without any pain and came in first overall for the 5k. 

We decided to spend Saturday evening relaxing. We watched Transcendence, which I really enjoyed except for one major plot-point: the terrorists who cause the main conflict of the story end up being accepted by the "good guys", and no one ever tells them, "None of this would have happened in in the first place if..." Otherwise, I found the movie interesting and entertaining.

I liked the moral questions this movie raised about AI, technology, and our treatment of the earth, but it wasn't pedantic or preachy at all. Plus, Johnny Depp!

After the excitement of Friday and Saturday, it was nice to relax most of Sunday. I'll be starting my run-streak tomorrow, and I hope to start making the transition back to running in the mornings. That means an early bedtime and a 4am alarm...Gotta love this summer weather!

What did you do this weekend?

Do you change your running routine when hot weather arrives?

Would you want your brain copied into a computer so you could live forever?

ABK

First, Running Saved Him

Matt and I spent last Friday enjoying a legitimate date night. We had dinner at one of our favorite Thai/sushi restaurants, spent some time browsing Barnes & Noble, and then saw Unbroken.

I was looking for a running calendar and found the most perfect one EVER.

I have the book on Kindle and have started reading it (FYI - it's AMAZING), but this post is about the events of Louis Zamperini's life as depicted in the film. (I'm not going to review the film itself in depth, so I'll just say this: while I felt some of the scenes and transitions were a little awkward, the movie was successful in creating poignant, intense moments. It kept me engaged and was definitely enjoyable and inspiring.)

Obviously Zamperini's story isn't all about running, but the role that running plays is integral to the story's outcome.

...in a nutshell.

First, running saved him. Zamperini was the child of Italian immigrants who struggled to find his place in America. He was stealing, drinking, and getting into fights at a young age. His older brother introduced him to running. Pete saw it as a way to save Louis from himself, to make him more than he was, to harness some of that destructive power and energy to turn it into something good.

So many of us have turned to running for a similar reason. It was a way to test ourselves and find our limits; it's a way to learn what we're really made of. Zamperini learned he was made of better stuff; running pulled him off a destructive path and onto a better one.

Running made him strong. Zamperini learned to dig deep the way runners must. You can't run a 4:xx mile without growing through pain. Running gives us a mental and emotional strength that transcends the sport itself, and when Zamperini was stranded in the ocean for 47 days, we see that strength. When he was captured by the Japanese and endures torture and starvation in POW camps, that strength kept him alive. 

(In the ocean scenes, we also see another aspect of running: the spirit of camaraderie and teamwork. Part of that may be his military training; I can't help but think that his treatment of Mac on the raft exemplifies the best part of a runner's spirit.)

So, running saved him from a life of crime. It made him strong and gave him the knowledge that pain is temporary and can be conquered. And that knowledge saved him again when he faced the brutalities of POW camps.

Throughout the movie, you see glimpses of Zamperini's running career and you see, through the memories, that running sustained him. It taught him his value, his true strength, moral fiber, and resilience. It prepared him for a future he could never had imagined. The other soldiers in the POW camps needed something to keep them going - most of them seem to be holding onto memories of family or hope that the Allies will win the war - but it's clear that running lit a fire in Zamperini that kept him moving forward even when it seemed all hope was lost.

This movie truly captures the indomitable spirit that makes runners great. It shows what runners are made of, even though the majority of the movie isn't about running, and even though most of us will never have to endure even a fraction of what Zamperini lived through. It shows us, through his amazing ability to overcome without ever losing his integrity or his identity, what a runner's heart truly is.

If Pete had never encouraged Louis to run, would he have survived? Would he have developed the mental skills and bravery that kept him going? Beginning to run turned Zamperini's life around, and I have to credit it (at least partially) for the courageous man he turned out to be.

In 1998, Zamperini returned to Japan and carried the Olympic torch past one of the prisons where he had been held captive.

Watching greatness in running translate into strength and greatness in near-death, real-life experiences was more moving and inspiring than I had expected, and I left the theater filled with awe and more than a little teary-eyed.

Have you seen Unbroken or read the novel?

Which runners do you look to for real-life inspiration?

ABK