Running - iameven.com

Sunday, October 19, 2025 at 12:28 GMT+2

I have somehow gotten into running and this year I even finished a half marathon. Now I’m preparing for another one.

Ancient history

In secondary school we did a running exercise called the Cooper test where you check how far you can run in 12 minutes. I can’t really remember how well I did at the time, but probably not better than average, which is 2500 meters for the age group 17-19. At the time I don’t think I ever expected to run that far in one go ever again. This was in 2005.

After that my focus on exercise was sporadic at best. I did join a gym for some time periods, did some group sessions, or lifted weights with friends. Occasionally we’d warm up with a run, but rarely more than a couple of minutes on a treadmill. I was way more interested in doing casual sports like squash, but it can be hard to coordinate those sessions on a regular basis. It is also costly.

Classical antiquity

After university I started working at an ad agency in 2011 where I met Eivind. He was, and probably still is, really into running, He managed to drag me up to Sørmarka for a run around Ullandshaugtårnet. It was hard and put me off running at the time. I’m pretty sure a seed for running got planted in my brain, though. Eivind talked about how quickly you improve if you just keep at it and how satisfying that is.

Post classical history

In 2014 I moved to Oslo with Ingvild, Sam was born, and with a baby long walks with a stroller became a thing. I got really into putting on a podcast and going for long walks while he slept in the wagon. For the next couple of years I never focused much on exercise, but did a couple of rounds of weight loss as I knew my health wasn’t great.

In 2018 Videxio signed up for the Holmenkollen relay race. I decided to join and selected a 600 meter section. I didn’t have long to prepare and was just barely able to run that distance in one go. But I completed it.

In 2019 I had some more time to prepare and used a gym room at the office to prepare. Eventually I got outside for some test runs to confirm that I could do the race again. For some reason I never tried again, other than completing my section of the race.

Modern history

In 2020 covid happened. Yeah, as I’ve said before, not really a great time. However, a couple of global trends spread, like sourdough^[1] baking, gardening, and running. Social distancing was important and one of the easy and safe things we could do was go for walks or run. The first time was painful. I hadn’t run properly in years. I was too heavy. I don’t think I lasted a full kilometer. But somehow I got out a couple of days later and did it again. This time I got further. Within a couple of weeks I was able to run for 3-4 kilometers in one go. I continued pushing myself every week, after doing a couple of shorter sessions I would try for another record. Within half a year I ran 14 kilometers in one go.

I kept running, but couldn’t really beat my record. I stagnated and eventually lost motivation. But at least I knew I was able to run for a while if I pushed myself.

I did join the Holmenkollen relay race again for Pexip and was able to warm up by running from Stabekk to Frognerparken (about 6.5 km) before going to my start position.

Contemporary history

My step father Frank suddenly challenged me around Christmas last year. He was planning to run the Farsund half marathon and asked if I wanted to join. I was sceptical at first, but got around to the idea. It also got me motivated to lose some weight. In February I got Mycoplasma pneumonia which set me back a bit, but I got right back on my goals in March. Through April and May I was able to push myself to a single 16km run and was hoping that I had prepared enough. I bought new running shoes and a belt to carry some energy gel in the marathon.

May 31st, Frank, my brother Adrian, sister Dina, and myself completed the half marathon. I was so tired after that. But I'm also really happy with myself for doing it. The new shoes were maybe a mistake as I got quite sore feet. I mean, I needed new shoes, but maybe I should have bought them earlier to get my feet adjusted to them.

I completed in 2:12:32

Future Speculation

Been there, done that. Or so I thought. I felt it wasn’t worth the pain and strain on my body to run for that long again. But my motivation for running started dwindling, so I signed up for 3sjøers, a half marathon around Stavanger’s 3 lakes, Stokkavannet, Hålandsvannet, and Mosvannet. This time I’m not starting completely from scratch and I still have a couple of weeks until the race. I’ve done a session for 17.5km just to see how I fare, and that was OK. I know I have room for improvement, though. Wish me luck!

Gear

I found my way to löplabbet, and bought some really nice shoes in 2020. They let you do a running test, and based on your style they’ll recommend some shoes that you get to try running in. I ended up buying a brand called Topo. They have thick soles which makes them fairly comfortable when running on asphalt. The new pair I bought right before the marathon was also Topo. I was hoping to get the exact same model but there are slight variations to form and feel. I’m used to those now.

I bought a Garmin Fenix 8, one month before the Farsund half marathon. It’s a really good watch and it helps me keep track of pace and pulse while running. It comes with a built-in GPS and music apps, so I can sync my headset to the watch and can go running without my phone. Which is really freeing in some sense. The GPS is also really accurate compared to my phone.

I currently use some Sony WF-1000XM5 Wireless In-ear headphones. They are quite good, but I liked Jabra better, however they stopped making that type of headset. I never seem to keep a full headset for more than a year so I get to test a new type eventually I suppose.

I’ll usually wear shorts and loose t-shirts during the summer. During spring and fall I wear running tights, loose t-shirts, and probably a wind jacket. The times I’ve tried running during winter I’ll wear long wool underwear under the tights and wind jacket, along with mittens and a beanie.