Team Playmakers’ Coach Anna Zang on Staying in the Moment During a Difficult Run and How Community Fuels Performance

After her first year of college, Anna Zang started rollerblading to counter the notorious “freshman 15.” She was putting in so many miles that her ankle became infected where the rollerblade insole rubbed against her skin.

Unsure of what to replace the activity with, she laced up her shoes and went for a run. After a mile of pushing her legs and lungs, she experienced something magical.

“I’ll never forget, the sun was setting, I was on a dirt road, and fireflies were just kind of doming the road. I felt like a Disney princess,” Anna shares. “It was the moment that I had caught my breath, and realized this doesn’t hurt anymore. I’m enjoying it as a challenge!”

The memory of that first run continues to anchor her approach to the sport, focusing on the experiences provided through the journey of being a runner.

Anna has completed races spanning 5Ks to ultras. She’s also qualified for the Boston Marathon, which she’s run several times. When reflecting on the race medals that hang on her wall, she says she doesn’t necessarily remember her finish times. Instead, she remembers details about her training runs, the friends she ran with, and the new people she met along the way.

Creating a Community Around Movement

In 2021, after being furloughed from her job during the pandemic, Anna joined Playmakers, a running specialty store just east of Lansing, Michigan. Today, she’s the program manager and volunteer coordinator for Playmakers Foundation, the nonprofit extension of the company, and manager and head coach for Team Playmakers.

Working with Playmakers Foundation, Anna shares her love for running and the experiences it brings through family-friendly community races, kids running programs with partnering schools and townships, and free weekly good form running and walking classes.

“I’ve really enjoyed getting out there with the community outreach that we do, and helping people move more and move better,” Anna notes.

As a coach for Team Playmakers, she shares with her athletes how important it is to enjoy what they’re doing. Pulling from her own journey, Anna regularly explains that it’s less about the finish line of a race and more about the experiences that get you to the start line.

Below, Anna shares how community fuels our running experience and performance, and her advice for runners on staying connected to the moment in training and racing.

When did you first find community in your running journey?

Anna Zang: My best friend was training for the Chicago Marathon, and I was a music major, so I didn’t really have much time to do anything. If we were going to hang out, I was going to have to join her for these runs. I ended up training with her, and I remember running in the rain, the sleet, the snow, the heat — every beautiful thing Michigan has to offer.

And I realized I loved running with a buddy.
I loved running by myself, too.

Being in those elements, I learned how to appreciate the challenge and also embrace and enjoy the beauty that came behind every run, because it was always a learning experience. There was always something new, and I just absolutely loved soaking it in. Running became my ‘me time.’ It became meditation time. It became my time to connect with people, and that’s why I loved it.

My friend ended up running a marathon. The longest distance I ran with her was 17 miles, and I was like, ‘Well, I might as well do a marathon.’ The first registered race I did was a marathon, and I absolutely fell in love with that and the journey. The more races I went to, the more I just fell in love with that incredible community. This is home.

What I loved about it is that I can make new and different friends at every race. I would start to recognize people from previous races, and every race had a different experience.

The sport is so individual, but it’s so community, too. I cannot say the word ‘community’ enough, because that is the heartbeat of everything.

How does Team Playmakers cultivate an inclusive community?

Anna Zang: During the summertime, I’m the head run coach for the triathlon team. Team Run-Walk and the Triathlon Team will combine on Wednesdays to do speed and endurance training for all abilities.

You’re just doing it at your capacity, where you’re at, and you’re going to get gains, just like everybody else. We have a lot of fun with that, and I think that being one team, you’re connecting with even more people in the community.

That is something that I love about Team Playmakers, and I’ve seen it in many groups that I’ve been a part of. Somebody breaks a 30-minute 5K, and it’s the most incredible thing! Somebody qualifies for the Boston Marathon, and it’s the most incredible thing!

Each journey is so incredibly unique, and we all have a story to tell. When we start sharing it with each other, we all learn, and we all take those practices, those ideas, those insights, those inspirations, and apply them to ourselves and with each other.

Be individual, because everything you do is going to touch somebody differently. And if your intentions are there for the right reason…people will recognize you and your passion and want to be a part of that. They’ll want to continue to be a part of that experience in that community and celebrate their own unique individual journey, too.

Does running with a community help fuel performance?

Anna Zang: You’ll find that with the team camaraderie, peer pressure is a big thing. So you’ll have somebody running their first 5K, which everyone’s excited about. They’re like, ‘Well, why don’t you run a 10K next?’ And then that ripple effect happens.

The first marathon that I did was in the 5:30s …. I never thought about pace or anything like that.

The more that I was out there, getting excited about the community, and just getting miles on my feet, I became faster and faster. It happens. When you get out there and do it, it gets easier.

I ended up getting a 3:45 marathon. People were like, ‘Oh my gosh, you should try to go for Boston.’ I was like, ‘I don’t know. I don’t want to do any speed training or anything like that, because I don’t want it to not be fun’ …. I know I want to enjoy what I’m doing.

I did try some speed training, and I found ways to kind of trick the brain with different exercises to help make it fun. I learned that a little bit goes a long way. You add that with a little bit of strength training, and miracles are going to happen.

I just added a little more. I dug a little deeper. I thought, ‘Why not me?’

I ended up hitting those Boston Marathon-qualifying times. I’ve gone a few times, but love that experience as well.

Anything is possible. It just takes time. It takes training. It takes consistency. It’s what you train for.

We all have bad days, and that’s okay …. If you’re able to push through that and you’ve got friends to back you up on your next run, your next walk, it’s going to be a little bit easier.

What is your advice for runners on staying focused on the experience, even through difficult training runs and races?

Anna Zang: I think the most important thing is to enjoy what you’re doing and also not to quit before the miracle happens. It takes a little work and a little effort to catch your breath, if you will. But if you show up and you’re consistent, and you know you’ve got a whole team behind you who is encouraging you and supporting you, that camaraderie often will bring people back the next day.

To go into different runs, especially when it gets hard, is to think about things that are bigger than you, or moments where you can have some gratitude. Whether you’re recognizing the trees that are around you, you can hear the water that’s going by, the wildlife that’s across from you, discovering these new places, these new possibilities.

If you can get through those challenges, it kind of applies to life, too. If you can get through a 20-mile run in the sleet and snow, you can handle your tough workday. If you can go out there and appreciate the sun, you can appreciate the grass, you’re going to see gratitude in your daily life.

Again, it’s that mind, body, soul experience. I mean, you’re getting out there, you’re moving. It doesn’t matter if you’re walking or running. Things are happening on a cellular level. You are building your cardiovascular health. You are promoting health for your joints, your muscles, everything.

You have this beautiful community. You have time to yourself.

It’s whatever you want it to be. I just encourage people to shape it into their own experience.

Stay consistent, keep an open mind…and embrace the journey, because you learn so much through your own personal journey, whatever it might be. When you run a marathon, the race is the victory dance. It’s all the training that you went through, the blood, the sweat, the tears.

Run with your heart, and it will lead to amazing outcomes.

“Each journey is so incredibly unique, and we all have a story to tell. When we start sharing it with each other, we all learn, and we all take those practices, those ideas, those insights, those inspirations, and apply them to ourselves and with each other.” – Anna Zang