I recently had the honor of being featured on the @diversewerun Instagram account. Created by Taiwanese-American Carolyn Su, @diversewerun is where she shares inspiring stories from runners from different backgrounds, races, and cultures as a way of advocating for more diversity and representation within the running community. If you want to find out more about how Carolyn is creating a more accurate representation of diversity in the running community, check out her recent interview on episode 33 of The Run Duo Podcast (Soundcloud, iTunes, Google).
Below is the text from my @Diversewerun feature:
“Feature 34, Eric Logan. I’m African American. Often, I’m one of 2-3 minorities running local races, and it can feel very isolating. When I first started participating in duathlons, not only was I usually the only African-American competing, but there were very few Black spectators too, which made me question whether I belonged at all. I constantly had to work through the intimidation of starting something new, while also trying to fit in.
I started running at age 41. I had a standard life: juggled roles of being a good Husband + Father, and commuted to work as an IT professional; however, my sedentary lifestyle caught up with me, and I gained weight. At 250 lbs, I felt slow and sluggish and couldn’t even walk a flight of stairs without getting out of breath. Seeing many friends and family increasing their medications year after year, I decided to make changes.
I started slow, just walking everyday. Getting up from my cubicle to walk around the building a few times eventually evolved into walking laps around the local track after work, and then finally into running. Over time, I lost over 60 pounds! Soon after, I gained the courage to participate in my first 5k. Then my first 10k. Then my first half-marathon. I was hooked! A few years later, at the age of 46, I signed up for my first duathlon and immediately fell in love with the run-bike-run format! Now I’m working to qualify for the ITU Multisport World Championships!
One of the greatest lessons that I’ve learned is to not compare yourself to others. Doing so fuels fear and uncertainty and leads to frustration, and ultimately doubt in yourself. Instead, learn to compete with yourself to become better but still maintain humility. Performance is limited only by the mind. Our bodies are capable of more than we think!
I want to make an impact by increasing diversity within the multisports of duathlons and triathlons, where African-Americans make up only 0.5 percent. I want to show that we aren’t limited to participating in certain events, and I also want to show that even if you start running later in life, like I did, you can still accomplish amazing things.”