Martin Hehir Signs with Reebok!

Pretty sure he deferred med school for a year to try NAZ Elite, then when he couldn't defer another year, he had to make the choice to either have to apply all over again after his stint there was over or just move out there and do it, so he did the latter. Think he said so in a blog post that I am too lazy to look up right now. Doing pretty awesome since then. I'd chalk it up to med school keeping him in a strict routine.

Brendanr wrote:

I'm not sure what happened with NAZ Elite, but he has been running very well while in medical school. I'm not sure how he does it.

Why do people always act like it is impossible to balance running with life outside of running? School is even easier to balance than a job, because you are theoretically less restricted than a 9-5 job. Don't get me wrong, it's definitely impressive what he is doing, but is it really that outrageous to do your main workout before school and then get an afternoon shakeout/lift/massage?

I have a buddy in medical school (1st year, one of the best in his class.) who just studies all day. Tons of caffeine, lack of sleep, and stress is how he starts his day. I wouldn't be as amazed if it was a Master's program or something similar, but I'm just surprised he has enough time to study Medicine. Hopefully he'll do well in running as he advances further in medical school, but I wouldn't be surprised if he hits burn out towards the end of 2nd year while he studies for his first board exam.

Does this further the rumor of Chris Fox heading up a professional group for Reebok in Boston at end of year?

He was wearing a Reebok singlet at the Gate River Run last weekend.

I am impressed with his success since entering Med School.

hstrhrgremerg wrote:

Pretty sure he deferred med school for a year to try NAZ Elite, then when he couldn't defer another year, he had to make the choice to either have to apply all over again after his stint there was over or just move out there and do it, so he did the latter. Think he said so in a blog post that I am too lazy to look up right now. Doing pretty awesome since then. I'd chalk it up to med school keeping him in a strict routine.

This. He left NAZ because he wanted to go to med school more. And I think he posted about leaving the group on Instagram at the end of last year or sometime around there.

I'm more surprised he signed with Reebok since I didn't think they sponsored anyone outside of Amelia Boone

goodbye Orange wrote:

Does this further the rumor of Chris Fox heading up a professional group for Reebok in Boston at end of year?

NO. How many times do we have to tell you Fox is NOT leaving Syracuse

Reebok has the whole Zap fitness group. It’s not like they’ve never sponsored anyone before.

Matthew Basil wrote:

I have a buddy in medical school (1st year, one of the best in his class.) who just studies all day. Tons of caffeine, lack of sleep, and stress is how he starts his day. I wouldn't be as amazed if it was a Master's program or something similar, but I'm just surprised he has enough time to study Medicine. Hopefully he'll do well in running as he advances further in medical school, but I wouldn't be surprised if he hits burn out towards the end of 2nd year while he studies for his first board exam.

No, that's pretty much spot on for everyone. First 2 years: 7am-12am Monday through Saturday...10am-12am on Sunday.

3rd year: depends on rotation..surgery vs OB vs medicine vs whatever

4th year: finally you can breathe again

I forget that Reebok still existed.

Those are insane hrs, first two years.

knee deep in boards studying right now, basically from 9 AM - 11 PM everyday. First year isn't as demanding but I am still super impressed with Martin for maintaining his fitness. I could barely run 50-60 MPW (especially during exam weeks), have no idea how he's staying in such great shape

goodbye Orange wrote:

Does this further the rumor of Chris Fox heading up a professional group for Reebok in Boston at end of year?

Thank you I'm glad I'm not the only one that thinks this. I feel like this is one of the only reasonable explanations for a runner like Hehrir to choose to go there.

C Parker wrote:

knee deep in boards studying right now, basically from 9 AM - 11 PM everyday. First year isn't as demanding but I am still super impressed with Martin for maintaining his fitness. I could barely run 50-60 MPW (especially during exam weeks), have no idea how he's staying in such great shape

Hang in there. The first one is the hardest...until you take your respective oral/written boards. Get through it.

THANKYOUÛ wrote:

goodbye Orange wrote:

Does this further the rumor of Chris Fox heading up a professional group for Reebok in Boston at end of year?

Thank you I'm glad I'm not the only one that thinks this. I feel like this is one of the only reasonable explanations for a runner like Hehrir to choose to go there.

Marty is living in Philadelphia for at least the next couple of years and then he will move to wherever his residency is. I am surprised Hoka didn't keep him on their roster.

Kudos to anyone who can find the time to train at least semi-seriously while in med school. He's doing a great job here.

My son is a semi serious runner and in med school.

Medical school is hard work. I don't think some people realise how difficult it is.

There are lectures, sessions with tutors and once you reach the clinical stage - a lot of contact hours in the hospital. On top of that, there is a lot of study that happens at home out of class. You have to be pretty dedicated, hard working and disciplined to fit everything in. On top of that - it is a very stressful degree and you are put out of your comfort zone a lot.

He'll need to be very careful not to overtrain, as I know a few med students/semi serious runners who fell into a hole performance- wise because of all of the stress from school and training.

Once they figured out the balance, they all got back to their best. But it does take some figuring out.

post college runner with a job wrote:

Why do people always act like it is impossible to balance running with life outside of running? School is even easier to balance than a job, because you are theoretically less restricted than a 9-5 job. Don't get me wrong, it's definitely impressive what he is doing, but is it really that outrageous to do your main workout before school and then get an afternoon shakeout/lift/massage?

Yeah, as others have posted, you're assuming that all types of school are equivalent. Personally, I did a PhD in physical sciences, and ran extremely seriously (competed internationally) throughout that time. I worked hard on the school aspect, but it was flexible enough that it didn't interfere at all with training and racing.

My wife, on the other hand, went through medical school and residency and had to pretty much give up her serious training/racing goals. She was a many-time D1 All American, but when you're scheduled to work 90+ hours per week including multiple full day-and-night shifts (i.e. 26+ hours even if you leave on time the next morning, which you never do), something has got to give. The first year or two of med school isn't too bad, as it's mainly academic stuff, so you can be organized in your studying (or be smart and don't pull stupid inefficient late night study sessions). But once you start spending more and more time in the hospital on clinical rotations, you don't have any choice. If you're supposed to be in the hospital for 26 hours, there's no way to be "efficient" about it.

Of course, it's not impossible. One of my training partners back in the day was a med student (then resident) who ran 2:16 for the marathon during his medical training. I remember meeting him for hard workouts mid-morning when he was coming off overnight call shifts. I knew that was tough, but I had no idea how tough it was until my wife was going through the same thing several years later.

I have several friends currently in med schools at penn and several other schools. Most of them have endorsed having time to invest in activities like research, volunteerism and other extracurricular activities. When it comes near to exams every few months, they do end up missing sleep to cram and get the work done.

Third year will be toughest for Martin as the expectation is probably the greatest. My biggest concern for him would be that he isn't investing in his future as a doctor. it isn't enough anymore to just focus on getting by in class. you need letters of rec from faculty and extracurricular like research to earn your way to the best residency. Martin may end up having a thin application with less to talk about when it comes time to interview for residencies. Although he will be fine if he ends up just wanting to go into something like family medicine, or isn't concerned about the quality of his residency. Some people are happy just to be a doctor.

Can't wait for the Hehir fight kit.