University of Silesia in Katowice

AGNIESZKA NOWAK-BRZEZIŃSKA, PhD, DSc, Associate Professor

Deputy Dean for Promotion and Cooperation

Dear everyone, On 22 June we celebrate the Physical Culture Day

Whose goal is to promote physical activity and healthy lifestyle. It is associated with the culture of society, which consists in care for one’s own well-being, mental and physical health. Physical activity impacts the health condition, increasing the organism’s resistance, so it is very important to remember about this sphere of our life.

What can I say in the subject of physical culture? I would only like to share my own experiences and thoughts. What are they like?

Nowadays, I can’t imagine not doing sports, not caring what I eat or how long I sleep after a working day. All these factors are of great importance for me. What is physical activity like for me? I’m a typical sport enthusiast. I try to spend my time actively at least several times a week, ideally each day, but we know that it is not always possible. However, I do try to eat a lot of vegetables and fruit. I prepare most meals myself, and I also bake bread made of rye flour sourdough 2000 with added grains (sunflower, pumpkin, nigella, lineseed). Simply speaking, I really like it. I do believe it all gives me incredible energy, immunity and joy of life.
It wasn’t always like this. I did not begin physical activity until the final year of my studies. I don’t remember how it happened, but it turned out that I received I a one-off scholarship during the last year of my studies, and bought a mountain bike for what was a considerable amount of money back then (Thank you @Roman Simiński). I began in the 5th year of my studies with 20 kg of overweight. I was feeling bad with myself back then, and I really wanted to change it. At that time I lived in Dąbrowa Górnicza, and made daily bike trips to Pogoria IV lake, well-known to everyone around there. In the winter or bad weather, I would replace the bike with the gym or yoga.
And finally the time came to start running. I decided to give it a try. That was more less 6 years ago.
I obviously started with march-run, humbly increasing the distance with more kilometres.
I took part in a number of organised runs, i.e. Harpagańska Dyszka (10 km) in Sosnowiec, then in Pómaraton Dąbrowski, and I’m still dreaming of marathon. Will I ever do it? I hope so. Obviously, one problem is I’m not ready to take up the distance of 42 km, but the other, not less important, is the fact that I don’t necessarily enjoy organised runs. Why? I avoid competition, this is not something that attracts me. Several organised runs (in my case the biggest one was Półmaraton Dąbrowski for 1,200 people) did not awake the competition spirit in me. I prefer the sense of freedom that running itself gives me. That I can wear my shoes at any time and go out running, not sticking to a defined route, not racing in a big crowd, not being upset by not being at the top of my form. I obviously salute those of us who need this competition and constantly achieve bigger success, because they are motivated by the other runners on the route. I’m not totally free from controlling my running, because I support myself with gadgets such as a pulse watch, but I do it for the curiosity of distance and pulse rate (especially after going through COVID-19 in December 2020), rather than to control my running speed. I pay no attention to that. However, the most important equipment element in running is shoes. When they are poorly chosen, you won’t move far beyond your good intentions. I went to a specialist running shop to pick my first shoes, and the expert helped me select the right shoe for my foot. Since then, I have always chosen my subsequent shoes myself, and I always have a number of pairs, both trail and road.

Why do I need all this running?

I love this feeling when I come back after running, sometimes less and sometimes more tired, and I sit down with a bottle of mineral water “to get back to myself”. I can listen to the increasingly smooth breathing and trillions of endorphins that keep flooding me. I am convinced that every runner will confirm: the best comes after running. No way the sense of tiredness/effort will overshadow the joy of training in your heart, right?
I was obviously very happy with my half-marathon result, but participating in charity runs, sometimes small-distance, like 6 km around Pogooria Lake in Dąbrowa Górnicza, gave me more fun. When we know that somebody will help someone else get over a difficult situation/disease thanks to our participation in the run, our satisfaction is double.
I much prefer running in the woods than on the road (I now live in the Lasy Murckowskie area).
The nature of my work often makes me spend 10 hours or more at the computer each day. With scientific and teaching work I need time to think about new research or materials for classes with my students. Therefore, running is most frequently the time for me to consider such things. One hour of running (or walking) is enough to clear my mind of what is unnecessary on the one hand, and put in order everything I plan to do after the run. On the other hand, running in company allows me to do a few kilometres in a very cool atmosphere, almost without noticing that I just made quite a distance and burnt some calories, equal to a bar of my favourite chocolate. Yes, I must admit: I often reward myself with my favourite titbits. When I finish running, I treat myself with pleasure to my favourite chocolate, pizza or freshly baked strawberry cake 😉
I love running both in the summer and in the winter. My most extreme run was in -30°C around Lake Paprocany in Tychy. After one hour of running, my eyelashes were completely frozen and white. A demanding experience, and I don’t think I want to do it again. The most beautiful time to run is in the spring, when everything comes to life, you hear the birds singing and admire the blooming trees and flowers.
When I don’t run (because the muscles need to relax sometimes), I choose a lighter form of practice, which is walking. This is a form of activity that anyone of us can do. World Health Organisation informs that healthy individuals should make approximately 6,000-8,000 thousand steps per day. Assuming that a single step has the length of approximately 60-80 cm, every day we should walk the distance of between 3.6 and 6.4 km. And so, at a quick pace this is about 40-70 minutes of walking.

PS. Last but not least, I say hello to my students – those who already run, and we do sometimes have a nice chat about it and keep motivating one another (please see Kamil’s blog: https://biegajacyprogramista.pl/), but also those who are thinking of taking up running. My answer is: Yes, you’ll find out that it’s worth it.

My dear ones – movement is healthy!
And a sound mind in a sound body! Therefore, let’s celebrate as often as possible, and especially today.

KAMIL ZEMCZAK, MSc, Eng

graduate of Computer Science

Why did I choose running?

I began my adventure with running back in 2013, and for one simple reason: I wanted to put down weight. When I started to run, I did not realise that I was just about to awaken one of the most important passions in my life. The beginnings were not easy. My feet hurt, I did not feel any endorphins, and after running two kilometres it was as if I’d run a marathon. For a long time I did nothing about it, I would only run to put down some weight, often getting angry and thinking that it was not for me – until one day. One sunny day I was overtaken by an elderly man (he was 70+ to my eye), who was in better shape than me. And that was when I thought to myself: with all respect to that man, it can’t go on like this. I invested in some decent running shoes, I became more regular and determined, so running began to give me more and more pleasure.

When it comes to my weight, I’ve achieved my goal, so if I were to ask myself the question: why do I run? The answer would be as follows: because this is the time which is for me only. No distraction or unexpected duties during a training session – only myself and the run I’d planned. This is what I appreciate the most during training, because nowadays it is difficult to part with your mobile phone and computer, especially if you work as a programmer. Another reason why I run is to keep the healthy lifestyle and move. Because I run, I feel great both from the physical and mental point of view. Last but not least, I want to overcome my own limits and achieve the set goals. This additionally motivates me to go out and move.

I run at least once a week, and not more than six times – it all depends on the stage of my preparation for a particular goal. Apart from running, I try to go regularly to the gym, to strengthen specific parts of my body.

The longest distance I’ve ever done was marathon (42.195 km). I ran it in 3 hours and 34 minutes. Looking from the perspective of my whole adventure with running, I think that it was my greatest achievement. Although I did not manage to reach the specified goal, i.e. run below 3 hours and 30 minutes, I was feeling very good after the run, and in comparison with my first marathon, I was not exhausted.

When it comes to results, my biggest achievement was the third place in Bytomski Charytatywny Bieg Godności (Bytom Charity Dignity Run) „GONItwa”. I did 5 km in 19 minutes and 23 seconds, and took the 3rd place. The feeling was amazing, and I showed that amateur running does not necessarily mean a lack of tangible success.

I often hear: “what’s the use of amateur running, you finish 200th in big events and have no chance to compete with the best”. Obviously, there is some truth in this thesis, because if you’re an amateur, it’s really hard to reach the podium of the most popular competitions. However, I really think that’s not what this is all about. It’s a very good feeling to set yourself a specific goal and achieve it in the competition. The audience, organisation, the medal… these are things you don’t forget, and the memories remain with us for the rest of our lives.

My example shows that you don’t have to run from the youngest age to achieve good results in running. It’s never too late to do something for yourself, improving both your physical and mental health at the same time. Endorphins do not necessarily come with the first run – sometimes you simply need some patience. When running no longer gives you any pleasure after a while, perhaps you should change its form rather than give up on physical activity. There is also a gym, swimming pool, bicycle… many options. And a sound mind in a sound body!

Finally, I would like to invite everyone to visit my blog: www.biegajacyprogramista.pl – you will find there different interesting materials on software and running.

Dlaczego wybrałem bieganie?

Swoją przygodę z bieganiem rozpocząłem w roku 2013 – a powód był jeden i prosty: chciałem schudnąć. Kiedy zaczynałem biegać, nie zdawałem sobie sprawy z tego, że właśnie rozbudzam w sobie jedną z moich najważniejszych pasji w życiu. Początki nie były łatwe. Obcierały mnie buty, nie czułem endorfin, a po przebiegnięciu dwóch kilometrów czułem się, jakbym przebiegł maraton. Przez długi czas nic z tym nie robiłem, biegałem tylko i wyłącznie dlatego, by zrzucić zbędne kilogramy, często denerwując się i myśląc, że to nie jest dla mnie – aż do pewnego dnia. W pewny słoneczny dzień wyprzedził mnie Pan w podeszłym wieku (na moje oko – 70+ lat), który miał lepszą sylwetkę oraz wydolność ode mnie. Powiedziałem sobie wtedy: z całym szacunkiem dla tego Pana, ale tak nie może być. Od tamtej chwili zainwestowałem w porządne buty do biegania, byłem bardziej regularny i zdeterminowany, czego efektem było to, że bieganie zaczęło przynosić coraz więcej przyjemności.

Jeśli chodzi o wagę, swój cel osiągnąłem, więc jakbym miał zadać sobie obecnie pytanie – dlaczego biegam? To odpowiedź byłaby następująca: biegam, ponieważ jest to czas jedynie dla mnie. Zero rozpraszaczy czy niespodziewanych obowiązków podczas treningu – tylko ja i zaplanowany bieg. To właśnie najbardziej doceniam podczas treningu, ponieważ w dzisiejszych czasach trudno jest się rozstać z telefonem i komputerem, tym bardziej, jeżeli pracuje się jako programista. Kolejnym powodem, dla którego biegam, jest chęć utrzymywania zdrowego trybu życia i pozostawania w ruchu. Dzięki temu, że biegam, świetnie czuję się fizycznie i psychicznie. Ostatnim, ale nie najmniej ważnym, powodem jest pragnienie przełamywania swoich granic i osiągania wyznaczonych celów. To dodatkowo motywuje, aby wyjść i się poruszać.

Biegam minimum raz w tygodniu, a maksymalnie sześć razy – to zależy od etapu przygotowań do konkretnego celu. Poza bieganiem staram się regularnie chodzić na siłownie, by wzmocnić poszczególne partie swojego ciała.

Mój najdłuższy dystans, który pokonałem to maraton (42,195 km). Przebiegłem go w czasie 3h 34 minuty. I patrząc przez pryzmat całości mojej przygody z bieganiem, uważam, że to moje największe osiągnięcie. Co prawda nie udało się zrealizować określonego celu – czyli przebiec poniżej 3h i 30 minut, ale czułem się po tym biegu bardzo dobrze, a w porównaniu do mojego pierwszego maratonu nie byłem bardzo wycieńczony.

Największe osiągnięcie, jeśli chodzi o wynik, to trzecie miejsce w II Bytomskim Charytatywnym Biegu Godności „GONItwa”. Pokonałem wtedy 5 km w 19 minut i 23 sekund i stanąłem na ostatnim miejscu podium. Niesamowite uczucie i pokazanie, że bieganie amatorskie wcale nie musi wiązać się z brakiem namacalnych sukcesów.

Często spotykam się z tezą „po co biegać amatorsko, skoro w dużych imprezach jest się dwusetnym i nie da się realizować z najlepszymi”. Oczywiście w tej tezie jest trochę prawdy, bowiem biegając amatorsko naprawdę ciężko stanąć na podium tych najpopularniejszych imprez. Niemniej jednak uważam, że to nie o to w tym wszystkim chodzi. Bardzo dobrym uczuciem jest założenie sobie określonego celu i zrealizowanie go w zawodach. Kibice, organizacja, medal…takich rzeczy się nie zapomina, a wspomnienia zostaną z nami do końca życia.

Mój przykład pokazuje, że nie trzeba biegać od najmłodszych lat, by osiągać dobre wyniki w bieganiu. Nigdy nie jest za późno, by zrobić coś dla siebie, poprawiając przy tym swoje zdrowie psychiczne oraz fizyczne. Endorfiny wcale nie muszą przyjść wraz z pierwszym biegiem – czasami trzeba po prostu cierpliwości. Kiedy po dłuższym czasie bieganie nie przynosi żadnej przyjemności może zamiast porzucać aktywność warto pomyśleć o innej jego formie. Jest jeszcze siłownia, basen, rower… możliwości jest wiele. W zdrowym ciele, zdrowy duch 😊

Na koniec chciałbym zaprosić wszystkich chętnych do odwiedzenia mojego bloga: www.biegajacyprogramista.pl – znajdziecie tam różne ciekawe materiały na temat programowania i biegania