MINI FEATURE | Emma Kertesz
Emma Kertesz lives in Boulder, Colorado, and trains with the Boulder Underground group based there. She is an academic interventionist, a 2-time Olympic trials qualifier and the author of the book The Boy Behind The Door.
How did you get into running?
During my junior year of high school, I was a varsity soccer player who was told I probably wasn’t going to get a D1 scholarship for soccer. My track coach, who was also the cross country coach, said I should try cross country my senior year instead. He really brought me along in a way so that I would have future success. I had no idea what I was doing, and he took that head on and maximized my small training window of ability, ha! I probably ran 20 miles a week in high school, and did one 20-minute “tempo” a week and raced twice a week. Dave Carpenter made running fun, and focused on long-term development. I’m really grateful for him, and he helped develop my love of running.
What are your biggest accomplishments and proudest PRs?
My two biggest accomplishments are being a 2xOlympic Trials Qualifier in the marathon (2016, 2020) and then representing Team USA at the 2012 Chiba Ekiden World Relays where we earned a bronze medal. My proudest PR is when I broke 16:00 minutes for the 5k for the first time. I ran 18:57 for 5k coming out of high school, so breaking 16:00 was seemingly unfathomable to me. It was a really special moment when I did it.
What’s your favorite running route?
In Colorado, it’s a tie between Rollinsville and Poorman’s Loop. My most memorable route is running the dirt roads in Moab, Utah a couple summers ago. It’s beautiful there.
What’s your favorite early running memory?
As mentioned earlier, I played soccer in high school, and we did the “Beep Test” (upon hearing each beep, athletes must run between two sets of cones that are 20 meters apart, and the beeps come faster each time) and I did pretty well at it whenever we did it at practice. There was a moment of self-reflection where I thought to myself, “maybe I’m better at running than actual soccer” but I shrugged it off and played a couple more seasons of soccer, ha!
What’s your favorite thing about running?
Everything is objective. I really appreciate that there aren’t a lot of nuances in terms of results, and even if it’s at times a double-edged sword, I appreciate that results are in black and white. Sure, there’s some grey area now with super shoes, etc., but I love that it’s truly a foot race. “How fast can you run?” is a question everyone can relate to. Some just do it much faster than others.
How had training been during the pandemic, in general?
A lot of runners took the time off races to get into phenomenal shape, and I went the opposite direction. With no races on the schedule, I actually took about ~6 months off running, and then started back up running about 30-40 miles a week with just running 5 or 6 miles a day. I honestly wasn’t quite sure if I wanted to continue to run, and I think I just needed some serious downtime for my mind and my body. So all in all, I essentially hung out, walked my dogs a lot, and ran when I felt like it. It was very exciting to see people race so well, and crush time trials, but I knew that wasn’t for me at that moment, and I told myself my time will come when and if it’s supposed to.
What’s been the biggest challenge of training during the pandemic?
I’ve had a really hard time not being able to see my friends and family as much as I’d like to (in person). I’m quite extroverted, so it’s been a challenge. I’ve also been just quite frankly sad about all the lives lost this past year. It’s been really challenging to hear about an incredible amount of death and how people’s lives have been so radically changed from it.
What’s been positive for your training during the pandemic?
Joining Boulder Underground!
What accomplishment during the pandemic are you most proud of?
I’m really proud of myself for recognizing I needed to take a much-needed break, and didn’t put a time limit on it. I honestly wasn’t sure if I would try to run competitively again, and I felt at peace with that decision. I needed to reevaluate my relationship with running, and unpack a few things with how my training was serving me and my overall health and quality of life. While I certainly missed the day-to-day training, it was really good for me to put running on the backburner, and focus on other things in my life that were giving me joy. Reexamining my relationship with running brought me to a much healthier place, and made me much happier training day to day.
What are you looking forward to in training over the next couple of months?
I’m excited to build back into racing shape, and see what my body can do. I’ve reached a point in my career where I’m really just out here to improve, have fun, and enjoy the process. I’ve always raced and trained with more of an “outcome” oriented attitude, so I’m enjoying the process much more and looking forward to seeing how things play out.
What are you looking forward to in training for the rest of this year?
More track work! Or at least that’s what I’m telling myself.
What small things—that will become big things—are you working right now in your training?
I’m really working on consistently doing strides throughout the week, and doing my hip exercises. The former seems like a pretty easy goal, but before BU I had fallen into the habit of just doing mileage and workouts, and essentially no strides. So it’s a small thing that I’ve already seen some benefit from, so I want to keep plugging away with that consistency.
How did you find Boulder Underground?
Matt and I have been in the same Boulder runner community circle for the last couple of years, and I’ve been “keeping tabs” on how the group has been doing since Bria had joined. I was down in Chandler, AZ for the Marathon Project, and Matt’s group had been on my radar. When I saw how happy Bria was crossing the finish line in 2:29, and how happy Matt was for her, that sealed the deal. I wanted to be a part of that kind of running joy.
What are your top three favorite things about being part of Boulder Underground?
The team GroupMe chat
Running our long runs in a different location every Sunday
The contagious energy and incredible support everyone gives to each other
Is there anything else you would like to add?
I’m a proud Ohio ex-pat, born and raised in Toledo, Ohio.
My favorite non-running quote that I apply to running:
“If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them.” - Henry David Thoreau
You can follow Emma’s running on her Instagram @em_kertesz.