Running helps researcher focus
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When he's training to run
the LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon, Mike Ladisch puts in about
50 miles of roadwork a week, mostly on or around Purdue's West
Lafayette campus.
Photo by Tom Campbell
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By Tom Campbell
It may be one of those "chicken or the egg" questions that
Mike Ladisch, MS '74, PhD '77, may want to ponder on one of his long
training runs. Is he a better researcher because he runs, or is he a
better runner because he can focus on key research issues while pounding
through one of those monotonous 6 a.m., 10-mile training runs?
"I run to clear my head and to get my mind off work, but sometimes
I think about my research. Often I enjoy the weather, fresh air and
countryside, as well as the chance to visit with friends who are fellow
runners. But sometimes I try not to think about anything at all,"
says Ladisch, Purdue distinguished professor of agricultural, biological
and biomedical engineering who recently completed his fourth consecutive
Chicago Marathon.
"Regardless, I usually feel better on days that I run."
Ladisch finished the Oct. 13 race in 4:18:12, missing his goal of breaking
the four-hour barrier for the 26-mile race.
"It's quite an event," says Ladisch. "There are 32,000
runners and about a million spectators along the way. It's a beautiful
course, starting and finishing along the lakefront, and there are bands
playing on many of the street corners along the route."
But what makes the LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon one of the most popular
running events in the world also makes it a difficult one for runners.
"You're constantly changing your pace, either slowing down or
speeding up to make adjustments for all of those runners," says
Howard Zelaznik, a professor of health, kinesiology and leisure studies
at Purdue who is Ladisch's unofficial running coach. "It's difficult
to find your stride with so many runners."
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