Authors: Matt Christopher
“Always,” Theo replied, grinning.
The food was great. Theo managed to gobble a hamburger, a hot dog, a bunch of ribs, some fantastic potato salad, and a couple
of glasses of soda.
As Mrs. Baskin dished out ice cream, Mr. Baskin said, “Ready to talk, Theo?”
“Sure,” answered Theo, hoping he sounded more eager than he felt.
“Just a minute,” Paul’s dad said. “I want to get
something.” He went inside as Mrs. Baskin handed Theo a bowl of ice cream.
Theo dug right in. “Thanks, Mrs. B.”
A minute later, Mr. Baskin returned, carrying a large leather-bound photo album. “Before we talk, I wanted you to have a look
at some old pictures. Paul gave me the idea that you had some doubts about getting into running.”
Theo wasn’t sure what to say. “Well…,” he began.
Paul’s dad held up a hand. “I imagine you may have been thinking, ‘Oh, sure, it’s fine for Paul and his father to run. They’re
natural athletes, they’re thin. But
me
… I don’t think so.’”
Theo was a little startled, because that was pretty much exactly what was on his mind. He smiled and said, “Uh, yeah, I guess.”
Mr. Baskin sat down next to Theo, opened the album, and began leafing through it. “Sure. That’s why I want you to look at
some old family snapshots.” He found what he was looking for and handed it to Theo.
“These are pictures of me when I was your age.”
Theo stared at the old photos. No doubt about it, they were of Mr. Baskin as a boy.
And, as a boy, Mr. Baskin had been
fat!
It looked
like he’d weighed even more than Theo did now. His face had been round, and he’d had a double chin.
“Wow,” Theo whispered, looking up at Mr. Baskin.
Paul’s dad grinned. “Yeah, wow. That was me when I was thirteen. Surprised?”
“Yeah! I mean, I just figured that you were always, you know…”
“That I’d always been skinny,” Mr. Baskin finished for him. “Well, I wasn’t. Far from it, as you can see. I was heavy until
I turned fourteen, when I got into running.”
Theo was still trying to absorb the notion of a pudgy Mr. Baskin. “How come? What made you decide to change?”
Mr. Baskin smiled. “Not
what
— it was more a matter of
who.
A girl named Charlene Kramer, with big, blue eyes and dimples made me change. I was crazy about her.
“I figured, no way a cute girl like Charlene would pay attention to me unless I did something about how I looked. Maybe I
was wrong to think that, but I did. Then and there, I made up my mind to do something about it.”
“So you started running,” said Theo.
“That’s right,” Mr. Baskin said. He looked at the photos of himself and shook his head. “Funny thing is, even after I lost
weight, Charlene never did pay attention to me. But I’ve been running ever since. If I ever see Charlene again, I’ll thank
her. She changed my life for the better, and she never even knew it.”
“And you really found you liked running?” Theo asked.
“Yes! It took me maybe three weeks. One day I discovered that I was enjoying myself. And I still do.”
He closed the album. “Let me make my pitch about what you can get out of running. Number one, I think you’ll like it, like
I did.”
“And like I’m doing now,” added Paul.
“Number two, if you do this regularly, you’ll lose weight — like I did. It’s simple. Think of the food you eat as fuel. If
you take in more fuel than you burn in activity, you have to store what you don’t use. Your body stores it as fat. If you
burn up more fuel than you take in, your body burns up fat to make up the difference.
“And, number three, you may become more interested in other sports and do better in them. You’ll
also feel better about yourself, which is probably the best thing of all.”
Theo felt a sudden surge of hope. “Mr. Baskin, this five-K race is in about three months. You think I could be ready for that?”
Mr. Baskin studied Theo for a moment. “Could you run a five-K race in three months? I think you could enter and probably finish
it. That isn’t to say that you’d
win.
But you could be running that distance in three months, yes.”
Theo felt excited by the thought. He could imagine how Aunt Marj would react if she knew he was going to do this for her.
If there was a chance he could really do it…
“I’d like to try,” he said suddenly. “I mean, that’d be great, if I could run that race.”
“I’ll be happy to help get you started,” Mr. Baskin said. “Whether you stick with it is up to you. You have to make a serious
commitment to running. Are you willing to do that?”
Theo was surprised to find himself saying, “I think so. When can I start?”
“Tomorrow is Saturday,” said Paul’s father. “I can
meet you in the park tomorrow morning, if that works for you.”
Theo grinned. “Yeah, that’d be great! I really appreciate this, Mr. Baskin.”
The man replied, “No problem. You remind me of me at your age. How does eleven o’clock sound?”
“Okay,” Theo replied. “Uh, do I need any equipment? Anything special?”
“For tomorrow,” said Mr. Baskin, “you need a pair of sneakers, comfortable clothes to work out in, and a wristwatch.”
“I’d like to come, too,” said Paul, “if it’s all right with Theo.”
“Sure,” Theo said. It was hard to believe. But he was going to do it! After all, what did he have to lose? Except maybe some
fat?
D
ressed in shorts, a T-shirt, and sneakers and wearing an old wristwatch of his father’s, Theo walked to the park the next
morning. It was a warm, sunny day, and he passed a number of runners of different ages. He thought that soon he might be one
of them.
His parents had been delighted when Theo told them of his plan. They suggested that he telephone Aunt Marj. Theo had hesitated,
reluctant to disappoint her if he didn’t meet his goal. But the temptation had proved too strong.
Marj had sounded weak on the phone, but there was no mistaking the pleasure she had felt. “That’s wonderful news, hon. It’s
the best medicine I could have!”
“I might not be able to do it,” Theo had cautioned her.
“I’ll bet you will. And just knowing that you care enough to try is wonderful. Good luck, hon, and let me know how it’s going.”
Theo caught sight of Paul and Mr. Baskin waiting near a path under some trees. He waved to them, and they waved back.
“Hi, Theo,” Mr. Baskin said. “You ready?”
“I guess,” Theo said. “So, do we just, like, start running?”
“Not yet,” said Paul’s dad. “The first thing we begin with is stretching. You’re going to begin and end every workout by doing
some stretches. They’ll protect you from injuries like pulled muscles.”
Mr. Baskin went over to a nearby building and said, “First, I’ll do each stretch, and then you do it. This one is for your
calf muscles.”
Mr. Baskin stood a few feet from the wall and stepped forward on his right foot. He leaned forward and rested his forearms
against the wall so that his left leg was straight and the heel of his left foot was off the ground.
He looked back to Theo. “Now I’m going to push against the wall and, at the same time, press my left heel down toward the
ground — not too hard,
gently
— to stretch the left calf muscle. Then I’ll hold that position while I count slowly to ten.”
After this, Mr. Baskin switched legs and stretched the calf of his right leg. Then he gestured to Theo. “Let’s see you try
it.”
Theo got into position and pushed down with his left heel.
“Careful, not too hard,” cautioned Paul’s father. “Can you feel the stretch?”
“Yeah,” Theo said.
“Hold it for a ten count, then switch legs,” Mr. Baskin said.
After Theo had finished, Mr. Baskin said, “Okay. Paul, your turn.”
Once his son had finished, Mr. Baskin said, “Now for the thigh muscles.”
Theo learned ten stretches in all, for his legs, arms, and back. When they were finished, he said, “I don’t think I can remember
all this.”
“Don’t worry,” Mr. Baskin replied. “I have pictures and instructions for everything in the car. When we’re finished, I’ll
give them to you. Once you’ve been doing this awhile, you won’t need the instructions, you’ll have it all memorized.”
“Okay,” said Theo.
“Once you’ve been working out for a while, you’ll be more flexible, and then you may want to repeat each stretch two or three
times instead of just once.”
Theo nodded. “So, now do we run?”
Mr. Baskin shook his head. “Not right away. First, we’re going to walk.”
Theo was startled. “Walk?”
“You don’t want to try to do too much all at once,” said Paul.
“Right,” his father agreed. “So first, we’re going to walk for ten minutes. Then, we’ll run a little. Ready?”
Theo nodded and the three set off, fairly fast, but not fast enough to exhaust Theo. As they walked, Mr. Baskin explained
the schedule he wanted Theo to use.
“What you’re doing today is the pattern for your first week. You walk the first ten minutes. For the second ten minutes, you’ll
run until you have to slow down. Then you’ll walk for a minute and start running again, and so on, until the second ten minutes
is over. Finally, you’ll walk for ten minutes more, do your stretches, and that’s it.”
“That’s all?” Theo was relieved. “That doesn’t sound too bad.”
“It isn’t too bad,” Paul said. “You see? I
told
you.”
“The idea is to build yourself up, a little at a time,” explained Mr. Baskin. “During the next eight weeks, you’ll do more
and more running and less walking. Also, the walking you do will be faster. The idea is to build up your endurance without
exhausting you.
“Little by little, you build up your muscles, including your heart. At the same time, you build up your oxygen intake, which
will give you more energy. You’ll start to feel a difference — not right away, but pretty soon.”
“And you think I’ll be able to run three miles in three months?” Theo asked.
“I think so,” answered Paul’s dad. “Along with the stretching instructions, I’ll give you a timetable to use. Every week for
the next eight weeks, you’ll increase your running time and cut down your walking time.”
Mr. Baskin’s watch suddenly beeped. “Time to do a little running,” he said. “Now remember — don’t push too hard. This is only
your first day.”
Theo had to stop and walk three times during the ten minutes. He felt embarrassed, like he’d done a pathetic workout. As they
started walking the last
ten minutes, Theo muttered, “That was totally lame, huh?”
“Lighten up,” Paul said. “It was your first time. You’ll get better.”
“Paul’s right,” said his father. “I think I had even more trouble my first time. Don’t get down on yourself so quickly.”
As they walked, Mr. Baskin began talking about running. “I love this sport. You can do it anywhere, anytime. You don’t have
to have a lot of expensive equipment. You can compete in races, or you can just run for the heck of it. Every time I run,
I feel great afterward — like my body is full of energy. I know I’m healthier than I would be if I didn’t run.” He grinned.
“And if I ever see Charlene Kramer, boy, will
she
be impressed.”
Paul said, “I’ve only been doing it for a month now, but I really like it, too. Once you’ve worked at it a little more, we
can run together.”
Theo felt a little better.
Mr. Baskin’s watch beeped. “Let’s do those stretches.”
After the three had stretched, Paul asked, “How do you feel? Ready to do it again tomorrow?”
Theo thought about it for a moment. “Yeah,” he said. “I am. You were right to get me into this.”
“Want a ride home?” Mr. Baskin asked, after he’d given Theo the stretching instructions and running schedule.
“No, I guess I’ll walk,” Theo said.
Mr. Baskin started the car. “Suit yourself. And call me if you have any questions. I’ll probably check with you now and then
to see how it’s going.”
“See you, Gee,” Paul said.
Theo waved as the car moved away. He’d be back tomorrow, and he’d do the same routine.
Except maybe just a little better.
T
he following day was Sunday, and Theo worked out by himself, using Mr. Baskin’s charts to help him remember the stretches.
As he started out, he felt a little nervous, but soon relaxed and just got into the rhythm of moving. Without Mr. Baskin along,
Theo wasn’t sure how fast he was going. But he thought he might be walking a little faster than the previous day.
He wondered if it would be a good idea to do his walking and running on the school track at least once a week, so that he’d
know how far he was going and at what speed. That way, he’d know how much progress he was making.
The first ten minutes went by surprisingly fast, and Theo began to run. One of the pointers Mr. Baskin had given him yesterday
concerned breathing. He
should keep his breathing steady and rhythmical. He focused on that. When he had to slow down to a walk, Theo was pleasantly
surprised. He had run for almost three minutes! That was better than he had done the day before. He resolved to try not to
walk more than one more time during the middle ten minutes today.
And he did it! Determined not to walk, Theo did have to slow down during his last run, looking at his watch every few seconds
to see when the ten minutes was over. He forgot about keeping his breathing even and steady and was happy to keep breathing
at all. When the second hand of the watch finally showed that he could stop, he was panting and sweating heavily.
But during the whole ten minutes, Theo had only walked for two. In other words, he had run for eight minutes. No doubt about
it, he’d made progress!
As he walked the last ten minutes, Theo realized he must have had a big grin on his face, because people coming his way grinned
back. But he felt good. Maybe he’d reach his goal, after all. It began to seem possible to him.
He finished the last walk and did his stretches,
feeling really great. Theo wasn’t sure whether he felt great because he’d done better today or because running did that for
you, like the Baskins said. But it didn’t really matter. It was nice to feel so good, whatever the reason.