Les Miles speaks to students running in Kentucky Derby Festival marathon

On Wednesday afternoons LSU students are literally racing to make the grade. They are students in Kinesiology 4501: Exercise Immunology and Endurance Sport. As part of the class, these students will be traveling to Louisville, Ky., to run in the Kentucky Derby Festival’s marathon on April 26, 2008.

LSU football coach, Les Miles, will be speaking to the class on Wednesday, April 23 from 3:30 to 4:00 p.m. in 133 Long Fieldhouse. After which, the students will make their final run together before the marathon on Saturday.

This class of 33 students contains both graduate and undergraduate, kinesiology students, and students from various disciplines across campus. Graduate students present lectures in their areas of exercise and immune function, assist the undergraduate students in collecting research data, and lead the class in weekend runs. Assistant Professor Laura Stewart with the College of Education Department of Kinesiology leads the class.

Endurance training is only part of the class. Every Monday the students learn the basics of the immune system and function and how exercise may alter it. They also study lab techniques used to evaluate immune status. The first 45 minutes of Wednesday classes discuss endurance training including nutrition, injury, training program design and much more.

“I thought it would be interesting to find out what my body is going through as I do this training, which is what we are learning through the lectures,” said Mallory Brooks, a junior in kinesiology studying human movement.

During the second half of class on Wednesdays, students hit the pavement, applying what they’ve learned to their own marathon training. Students run between 45 minutes and an hour. On weekends they are given the opportunity to meet with the class to complete longer runs, which last up to two or three hours. Their longest training run so far has been 22 miles.

“I wanted to teach this class because I feel that we can integrate research and teaching

into a class while providing the students with an opportunity to do something they otherwise might not have tried,” said Stewart. “Watching the students become more confident in themselves through running has been the most gratifying experience.”

Stewart motivates the students to take on challenges and believe in themselves. Courtney Chisholm, a sophomore in human movement, says she was never much of a runner. Running the LSU lakes was as far as she had gone. When she signed up for the class, she intended to run the half-marathon. After talking with Stewart one day, Chisholm was signed up for the full.

“When I left her office that day, I was signed up to run the whole and she convinced me that I could really do this,” said Chisholm. “She motivated me and pumped me up about it. After that, I was determined to run the marathon.”

“This class has given me a chance to reach a personal goal of mine, which is to run a marathon, with the guidance and support of Dr. Stewart and my classmates,” added Brooks. “It is more fun to train with people. We are all having a great time and becoming friends through training.”

 The class has hosted guest lecturers speaking on shoe fitting, the history of marathon training, and the medical concerns of marathon training. These lecturers have included Michelle Myer of Fleet Feet and Ryan Green and Jenni Peters from Varsity Sports in Baton Rouge and Mandeville. In addition, Conrad Earnest, Ph.D., and Timothy Church, M.D., M.P.H., Ph.D., from Pennington Biomedical Research Center offer training information and support to the class.

As part of the research component of the class, students analyze their body composition, performance, dietary, and immune functions before and after their marathon training. During their training, students track their illness and injury. At the end of the semester, students are required to submit a research report detailing how they responded to endurance training.

“I have learned how to push myself and not give up just because times get hard. I have definitely gained strength both physically and emotionally,” explained Chisholm. “A lot of running depends on your mental state. I have learned to believe in myself and have come a lot further than I ever thought I would.”

The students will be meeting with a marathon class from Purdue University led by Dr. Mike Flynn to run at the Kentucky Derby Festival. The students are anxious to put all their hard work to use. Brooks said, “I know that our training will pay off and we’re going to have a blast.”

This beamonesque experience will fuel the students as they continue their endurance training outside of class, not for a grade, but for life.