Running saved teacher’s life twice; now he will tackle New York City Marathon
Jefferson Academy Secondary School teacher Ken Kain said running saved his life.
In 2013, Kain was training for the annual Bolder Boulder. Before heading out on his morning run, he said that something didn’t feel right.
“I didn’t feel like myself,” Kain said. “I was tired, and it felt like an elephant was sitting on my chest. My wife drove me to the emergency room, and within a few minutes I was in a helicopter headed to another hospital for surgery.”
Kain had had a heart attack at 54 and said he was very fortunate that day compared with others who have gone through a similar experience.
Without running, he said there’s a chance he may not have survived.
“I’ve been asthmatic my whole life,” Kain said. “I was incredibly overweight, I never wanted to run. After the attack, it was explained to me at the time that the thing that probably saved me was the running.
“I knew at that moment that I would have to continue this journey for the rest of my life.”
Since his heart attack, Kain has competed 5K runs, 10Ks, half marathons and other races.
Now he will be running in the 2021 New York City Marathon.
Kain has been selected to be a part of the Team TCS Teachers program, through which he will gain entry to the marathon, preand post-race hospitality, a virtual training program, and access to resources from TCS’ flagship programs such as Ignite My Future in School and goit.
According to a release, Kain was one of 50 top teachers selected from across the nation to be part of the team.
“A marathon in New York City is kind of one of those ultimate events,” said Kain. “It’s like a bucket list kind of thing. From
that standpoint, it’s very exciting to have that bucket list trip and participate in such a great event.”
The marathon is scheduled to take place Nov. 7.
Looking toward the event, Kain said the No. 1 goal for him is to finish.
“As a young person growing up with pretty serious asthma and who really hated to run, I would have never seen myself as a runner of any kind, especially not a marathon runner,” Kain said. “A lot of people don’t think they can do things that they really can do, and I want them to know that I would have never dreamed of being able to do this.”
Kain is an eighth-grade math teacher who is teaching makerspace classes. According to a webpage from Jefferson Academy, his goal is to help every student reach their full potential, regardless of their background and skill level.
Beginning his journey in running and getting healthier, Kain said it was his wife who motivated him.
The first event he participated in was a Thanksgiving “Turkey Trot,” where he set his first goal to run a couple of miles. He said he and his wife would spend most days training for the event.
“The first day out was terrible,” Kain said. “I tried to run downhill for a block and I couldn’t do it, but eventually I worked my way up to running that first mile. Then 2 miles, and eventually before the Turkey Trot happened in November
I was able to run a full 3.1 miles. Once I finished, I kind of got hooked.”
Kain said the best part about running a race is the challenge, mentally and physically.
He said it requires a lot of discipline and work to prepare and being able to cross the finish line is an incredible feeling.
“The challenge of a marathon is really what keeps me going,” Kain said. “There are many parts of the race where you begin to doubt yourself, and I think that’s what drives me is getting over the mental hurdle.”
Before this year’s marathon, Kain had participated in the 2020 New York City Marathon remotely in Westminster. Two weeks later, he had a stroke but made a
quick recovery.
“Running saved my life twice because if I had not done the things I did to improve my physical health, I believe the heart attack might have taken my life and I believe the same thing with the stroke,” Kain said. “I believe that if I had not done that I probably wouldn’t be here today to tell that story.”
Looking forward to this year’s race, Kain said he will be participating with his wife. He hopes that in the future, we will be able to work his way up to participate in the Boston Marathon.
“I will finish,” Kain said. “I’ll finish New York, and I’ll be really proud when that moment happens. I’ll look back and be proud of my journey.”