Professionals make time to train for sports

“I put it on my calendar, like an appointment,” said Bruce Adib-Yazdi, partner with architectural firm Butler, Rosenbury & Partners and an avid bicyclist. “Any time it takes for me to keep physically fit and mentally well goes hand-in-hand with all my goals.”

A passionate cyclist, Adib-Yazdi is part of a group called The Endorphins who compete in events and train together. This year, they will participate together in the White Rock Mountain Run on Feb. 2 and the Mark Twain Forest Adventure Race in June.

It will be the group’s fifth year to participate in the Springfield Half Marathon. Last year, the group placed sixth out of 90 teams. In addition, the group participated in the Ozark MS150 Bike Tour, raising more than $20,000 to fight multiple sclerosis in the 2000 event.

Adib-Yazdi began bicycling in 1990, initially mountain biking in his spare time. As he got more serious about the sport, he began training for the MS150. “In 1993, I rode in my first MS150 and I’ve done it every year since.”

He even met his wife, Joyce Eiken, on a bicycle. The couple are co-captains of the MS150 team and ride together for enjoyment. They have nine or 10 bikes between them. “The tandem bike is my favorite,” he said.

Keeping up with his favorite activity is much easier in the summer, said Adib-Yazdi. “Because of the weather, it’s more difficult this time of year. I ride one day out of the weekend and one day throughout the week.” He also keeps in shape teaching a spin class two times a week, a cycle fitness session, at Ozark Fitness Center. He also does half marathon runs to keep his legs in shape. “Running is what I consider long range aerobic conditioning,” he said.

Set back by a leg injury last year has slowed Adib-Yazdi down very little. “I try to find two to three events a year to target. My benchmark is to get in shape for the MS150 every year,” he said. He rides on farm roads surrounding Springfield, and his favorite trails include the Sac River Trail and Busiek State Conservation Area in Mark Twain National Forest. “One of the best biking trails is the Berryman Trail by Cuba. It’s one of the top places in the country.”

On occasion, Adib-Yazdi rides to work. “I will do it more after we move to our new office. The office we’re in now doesn’t have a shower so there’s no way to change and clean up,” he said. Another challenge in riding to work is getting to appointments during the day. A company car will also help remedy that barrier, he added.

Running is David Yaktine’s passion. Yaktine, who operates Yaktine Financial Group with Northwestern Mutual Financial Network, trains for marathons.

He stays motivated by running with friend Dr. Tom Prater. “We run at 5:30 a.m. four times a week,” said Yaktine. “I find it difficult to run if I don’t get it done in the morning. There’s sometimes three or four of us who run together and knowing that there is someone waiting is good motivation.”

The group has run together for more than three years, he said.

Yaktine has run three marathons: the April Boston Marathon, the Suzuki Rock & Roll Marathon in Cincinnati in 2003, and the Flying Pig race in San Diego.

“I like to run to stay fit and so I don’t have to worry about what I eat,” he said. “At times it’s more difficult to run than others. On cold mornings or when there’s rain, snow or single digit weather, it’s harder. In good weather, it’s enjoyable.”

Yaktine said it takes him 12 weeks to get marathon ready. “I try to build up weekly. One time a week I do a long run, 12 to 20 miles over 12 weeks. I get used to running a long time.”

Setting goals makes it easier to run, he added. “It’s easier for us to have some type of event in mind. We set a personal record and that makes it easier to reach our goals. We schedule so many miles on a given day and that takes the monotony out of it and keeps it from being boring.”

Yaktine said his 5:30 a.m. scheduled runs don’t interfere with family time or his career. “I’m usually done within an hour, maybe longer, and long before 8 in the morning,” he said.

Pam Sailors, head of the philosophy department at Southwest Missouri State University, is also a marathon runner. “I fell in with a bad crowd,” she said, laughing. She and friend Martha Wilkerson started running as a New Year’s resolution four years ago. “We ran on the little track at McDonald Arena. We’d walk a lap and run a lap. It made us feel better about ourselves.”

Soon, the pair moved outdoors as the weather improved. They began running with marathon runner Rosie Laughlin one morning a week. By last spring, Sailors ran her first 26-mile marathon.

To fit running into her schedule, Sailors rises early. “I’m usually on the road by 6 a.m. On cold mornings I use the treadmill. I get an hour’s run in and can be at work around 8 o’clock. I feel good about myself the rest of the day.”

To prepare for the 26-mile race, Sailors participated in several small races around town in the spring and fall. “There are races every weekend in Springfield,” she said.

The marathon was held in hilly Nashville, Tenn. Sailors traveled with a busload of area runners.

Sailors also ran a 13-mile half marathon in Houston.

“I constantly set goals,” she said. “My New Year’s resolution this year is to improve my 5k and 10k times. It’s not about beating anybody else. I compete with myself.”

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