RunningTimes : The rise, fall and rebirth of Josh McDougal

"Honestly, people can say it's the mileage that killed me, but they don't know the half of it. I was doing dumb stuff. I was lifting, doing core--just pointless lifting. I probably added 5 pounds of muscle. I built a lot of poor motor patterns. And if you build a poor motor pattern and go run a mile after it, that's one thing. But if you're going to go out and run 18, 20 miles a day, think of how many successive steps that is. It's going to add up."

I'm sorry but running singles - 18, 20 miles a day - is what did him in. I'm disappointed that he said

"But at this point in my life I just feel like if I spent another year or two to get completely healthy, and that was my only focus, and I ran 13:10, 27:35, or whatever, and that was all I did for two years, that would be a complete waste of my life. I've spent too much of my life the past few years just focusing on running."

I take this as an insult to those of us who are putting in a lot of time - even for small gains.

It actually sounds like a very mature point of view that I'm sure even he isn't entirely comfortable accepting.

Sounds like he has hung in the towel.

Truth Sayer wrote:

I take this as an insult to those of us who are putting in a lot of time - even for small gains.

Are you focusing on running alone? He said "just focusing on running," not "putting in a lot of time."

If you care only about running and you are not an international threat, something is wrong with your life. It is a sad, sad existence. Running is a great activity. A great passion, even, but don't make it out to be more than it is.

cool story

Prediction: This is the fate of Ryan Hall. Both are drunk with the love of their lord and savior. Both squander natural talent with dithering and craziness.

Kakapoian wrote:

Prediction: This is the fate of Ryan Hall. Both are drunk with the love of their lord and savior. Both squander natural talent with dithering and craziness.

How can you say Josh has squandered natural talent. Look at how much success he has had and how hard he has worked to get there. His training logs were legendary. It seems like at least at the moment, his body has given out on him and he can't train the way he used to. Maybe his body eventually can do that again, but mentally he is not ready to go through the same grind again. What is wrong with that? He has had a ton of success, more than 99% of us on this board have had. If he chooses to come back great, if not I wish him the best of luck.

Truth Sayer wrote:

I'm sorry but running singles - 18, 20 miles a day - is what did him in.

You know this how?

Yeah, my beef with it is that he couldn't keep it enjoyable. I tend to enjoy things I'm decent at, too. If he can't think well of himself running in the low 13s, then I'm not sure how he's ever going to think well in anything he does in life, because apparently the top 1 percentile isn't fun to him.

Truth Sayer wrote:"But at this point in my life I just feel like if I spent another year or two to get completely healthy, and that was my only focus, and I ran 13:10, 27:35, or whatever, and that was all I did for two years, that would be a complete waste of my life. I've spent too much of my life the past few years just focusing on running."

I take this as an insult to those of us who are putting in a lot of time - even for small gains.

Wow someone else has different priorities/views so you take this as an insult. The guy just sees things differently than you. Relax. If you don't think what you're doing is a waste of your life, then do it. He's not knockin' ya.

Shoebacca wrote:

Yeah, my beef with it is that he couldn't keep it enjoyable. I tend to enjoy things I'm decent at, too. If he can't think well of himself running in the low 13s, then I'm not sure how he's ever going to think well in anything he does in life, because apparently the top 1 percentile isn't fun to him.

Josh put in an incredible amount of time and dedication to reach the top (at least at the NCAA level) and then at least for awhile his body gave out on him. He no longer feels running at the highest level is as important to him as it used to be. Based on his past history, I see him being successful in anything else that he does in life. Not sure why people think it is so bad if he decides running 140 miles a week is no longer worth it, especially not knowing if he will even be able to do that for an extended period of time.

people change, people move on. El G was the best guy in the world and walked away young, at his peak, at 30. Things don't stay enjoyable for evermore for everybody.

benoit still runs, Salazar doesn't. Rogers still runs, Moorcroft doesn't. I think.

lade da wrote:

Sounds like he has hung in the towel.

If you "Hang in your towel", do you "Throw up your shoes"?

Doesn't Salazar still run a little? The New Yorker profile of Ritzenhein mentioned Salazar running.

I am a huge Josh Mcdougal fan but I think the problem with his thinking is that he is thinking in terms of the 5k/10k and not the marathon.

If he got his injury under control, with his endurance and speed he could run under 2:10 soon.

Kakapoian wrote:

Prediction: This is the fate of Ryan Hall. Both are drunk with the love of their lord and savior. Both squander natural talent with dithering and craziness.

Trying to compare Hall and McDougal is absolutely ridiculous. I'm not a huge Hall fan, but the guy has an AR, been to the Olympics, and most importantly, unlike Josh, turned running into a very lucrative career.

That article stirs all kinds of emotions ... feel kind of sad for his struggles, but he does seem like he's really growing up and evaluating what's most important to him. I just really hope he's happy, however he plays it out.

Im sad to say this but it really sounds like he just feels sorry for himself, and although he may think he is doing what will make him most happy, I bet you 20 years down the road he will regret it, you can't just walk away from one of the biggest upsides in your life that easily.

He sounds like such a downer in this article. Very depressed. Unanimated. You get the idea.