Surgeon hopes to run marathons in all 50 states

Ronald S. Dubin, MD, has completed more than 20 marathons in five years; he helps educate health professionals about the benefits of running.

Issue: March 2004

Ronald S. Dubin, MD [photo]

Ronald S. Dubin, MD,
is an American Medical Athletic Association board member and has run in 21 marathons.

Just a few years ago, Ronald S. Dubin, MD, had a daily routine not unlike many busy orthopedic surgeons: getting up early, working 10 to 12 hours in the office, coming home late, going to bed, and then waking up early the next morning to do it all over again.

Eventually, this “marathon” schedule caught up with him, and Dubin decided that he needed to do something to improve his energy level and state of mind. Little did he know that this decision would lead him to another type of marathon.

In 1998, he took up walking and began to notice small benefits. Although he was apprehensive about it, he decided to try running. He had never really run before, other than the mandatory runs that everyone remembers from grade school. “I couldn’t even finish the 600-yard run. I’d get winded and have to stop,” he recalled.

Starting off slow

So he started off slowly, running just two blocks at first. But two blocks became a half mile, and after about a month, he was able to run one mile. “That’s when I first started feeling what they call the runner’s high,” he said. “After a while, I also found that I had more energy, was quicker on my feet, could work longer and harder, and was able to handle stress a lot better,” he added.

Around this time Dubin met a friend with whom he started running. “He used to be a track coach, and he sort of pushed me along. When I felt like I wanted to give up, he kept encouraging me. It was his influence that got me started running three and four miles.” The two still run together regularly.

Dubin entered a 5K race (3.1 miles) in 1998. He completed it, feeling elated with his newfound hobby. He was hooked. “The next thing you know, I was on the Internet trying to find other races that I could enter,” Dubin said.

About three months after the 5K, he entered his second race. But as race day approached, he could not help feeling that he was in over his head and not yet up to the task (he had skipped the 10K and gone right for the 15K).

“I’ll never forget that day. I woke up and it was raining, and I was looking for any excuse not to race, but I couldn’t come up with anything so I went,” he recalled. He finished the race strong, and his confidence grew as a result.

First marathon

Shortly thereafter, he received a phone call from a friend who was planning to run in the New York City marathon, and he asked if Dubin was interested. His initial response was “There’s absolutely no way. Don’t even think about it!”

He hung up the phone and started thinking about it. It wasn’t long before he called his friend back and agreed to give the marathon a try.

In 1999, Dubin completed the New York City marathon, which he still counts as his most memorable. In a span of about two years, he had gone from someone who did not exercise at all to a marathon runner. Since then, Dubin has run in 21 marathons and counting, including running the New York and Boston marathons multiple times and participating in two ultra marathons (50K). In 2003 alone, he ran seven marathons.

American Medical Athletic Association

“All you need is a good pair of running shoes, so it’s a sport everyone can afford. And you’re never too old. I’ve run marathons with 80-year-old men.”
— Ronald S. Dubin

Dubin is a board member of the American Medical Athletic Association (AMAA). The AMAA encourages its members (physicians and other health care professionals) to become active and provides information on training, diet, injury prevention and sports medicine to assist them in motivating their patients to become active and lead healthy lives.

The AMAA holds CME courses twice a year, preceding both the Boston marathon in April and the Marine Corp marathon, held in Washington, D.C. in October. During these meetings, Dubin has given talks on orthopedic injuries associated with running and techniques of running with various handicaps.

Results of a recent study on hyponatremia presented at the 2003 meeting in Boston have helped to change what is now done in medical tents. Dubin encourages anyone who is interested in joining the AMAA to contact him for more information.

Dubin also belongs to the “50 State Marathon Club,” an organization that encourages its members to run a marathon in each state of the union and Washington, D.C. So far, he has run marathons in 11 states.

Dubin is quick to tout the benefits of running. “I like to run early in the morning, so the feeling stays with me through the day.” He also believes running is an activity in which everyone can participate. “All you need is a good pair of running shoes, so it’s a sport everyone can afford. And you’re never too old. I’ve run marathons with 80-year-old men.”

“I think it’s important that people who want to take up running find friends or others to run with,” he said. A good source of finding running partners is through running clubs or even the running store in your local town. “Just call them up. They always have a fun run.”