Thanks for sharing these hacks! One of the things I’ve been working through as I get older and less competitive in races (or not racing at all), is the question of why I run every day. It comes down to the fact that I enjoy it, but that realization has also made me less likely to go on runs I don’t enjoy. Reading your description of the goal of your training and all the ways you fit in runs helped me reframe my thinking. Perhaps I can set aside one or two days a week for runs that I will really enjoy (luckily bad weather doesn’t bother me that much) and then approach the other runs as training for those days. And on those training days, it’s just about getting it done within the context of the rest of my day regardless of the conditions.
Awesome. Yes, this is exactly the way I think about it. On days that I don't want to run, I consider it something close to a Stoic duty that helps set me up for success in whatever else I need to do that day. To have run during a day is at least to have done that.
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What running books, fiction and non-fiction, are your favorites? Are there any you re-read?
Endure, by Alex Hutchinson The Examined Run, by Sabrina Little Why We Run, by Bernd Heinrich
Once a Runner, by John Parker The Science of Running, by Steve Magness Running, by Lindsay Freeman Corbitt, by John Chodes
I also love "Born to Run" as a masterpiece of storytelling, though I'm obviously not a fan of barefoot running. And there are parts of Murakami's book that I love of course.
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If you were sending a kid to school to run today, which school would you favor?
I definitely follow pro running more, though I do follow the Stanford men's team quite a bit. And sometimes it's useful! I remember about ten years ago, when I worked at the New Yorker and a young product manager came in and said "Hello, my name is Nef Araia" and I was like "NO WAY, YOU'RE NEF ARAIA?" which kind of surprised the rest of the company.
I don't know enough about different college programs, but I would certainly suggest to my kids that they choose the school based on academics first and athletics second. I'm going to go through this soon with my 15-year-old son who is an excellent soccer player and student. I've started to talk a bit with soccer coaches and we're going to a showcase this weekend. So this will soon be my life.
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I run with a little pack around my waist that has my wallet, keys, and phone. And I usually do workouts in the morning. The timing is a little more predictable, and I try not to schedule any meetings on Tuesdays and Thursdays before 9:30am.
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Nick, has there been moments of promoting your book that you’ve really enjoyed? Have you enjoyed the entire promotion or has it just been exhausting? I ask cause a lot of runners seem introverted, including myself, and I wonder how you manage it all including professional success. I have enjoyed all your content! And previous running content over the years.
I'm still connected to a bunch. My closest friend while on the team was a guy named Andy Cowgill who sort of disappeared for years. I finally tracked him down and he's living entirely off the grid as part of a socialist workers alliance near Atlantic City. I went and visited him last year and had a lovely time. I keep in touch too with Greg Jimmerson and hear, from time to time, with others including Amanda White, Leila Burr, Monal Chokshi, and Gil Serrano. The superb novelist Mikel Jollet was also on that team, but a year older, and we keep in touch as well. I interviewed Chris Lundstrom, who is a year younger, for the book. That guy is awesome and obviously killing it as a coach. And my closest friend from that cohort Lawshandra Pace, who went into public health became one of Biden's Covid advisors.
Hello Nick, Thank you for answering people's questions, I love The Atlantic and think it addresses the problems society faces and the ones on the horizon a lot more seriously and with a lot more curiosity than other publications.
I would love to ask you about how you would advise a young aspiring writer today, of either fiction or journalism, particularly somebody lacking in the Ivy League sort of credentials and relationships.
Do you have any idea what you might do if you yourself were a young person trying to build a career in writing today?
I'm worried that it might be almost entirely hopeless to get published as a young male fiction writer these days, and that the doors of journalism might be essentially closed to me unless I can somehow dredge up a following on Substack and social media.
And that sounds like a fairly miserable undertaking to me. But maybe it's just necessary and I need to get over it.
Sorry for all the rambling, would love any advice if you have a minute, no need for nearly as lengthy of a response!
I definitely follow pro running more, though I do follow the Stanford men's team quite a bit. And sometimes it's useful! I remember about ten years ago, when I worked at the New Yorker and a young product manager came in and said "Hello, my name is Nef Araia" and I was like "NO WAY, YOU'RE NEF ARAIA?" which kind of surprised the rest of the company.
I don't know enough about different college programs, but I would certainly suggest to my kids that they choose the school based on academics first and athletics second. I'm going to go through this soon with my 15-year-old son who is an excellent soccer player and student. I've started to talk a bit with soccer coaches and we're going to a showcase this weekend. So this will soon be my life.
Great time then to argue to the Atlantic that they need you in Europe for a few years so your son can play with much higher level soccer teams. Just playing at school and with much lower level teams was useful for mine over the past year in Germany.
Thanks for doing this. Do you do any strength work or other supplemental exercises?
How do you normally structure your meals?
I don't do a lot but I do wrestle with my kids a lot! And I'll go to the gym or play baseball/soccer/basketball with them. I think that actually covers a lot of what you most need in supplemental exercise. It's a lot of mobility work without injury or overuse risk.
(Nick would be great if you used the quote button so we know what question you are responding to.)
Is there anyone in the running/sports/journalism world who you admire and think looks at the world in a fundamentally healthy way?
Yes! I need to start doing that. (And Wejo, feel free to go back and edit the quote button so it appears.)
I love Rich Roll. He's smart, wise and kind. I also think that Alex Hutchinson is as smart as they come when it comes to analyzing studies and news about the sport. Steve Magness is brilliant. And Brett Kirby at Nike is one of the most thoughtful and insightful people I've ever met.
I definitely follow pro running more, though I do follow the Stanford men's team quite a bit. And sometimes it's useful! I remember about ten years ago, when I worked at the New Yorker and a young product manager came in and said "Hello, my name is Nef Araia" and I was like "NO WAY, YOU'RE NEF ARAIA?" which kind of surprised the rest of the company.
I don't know enough about different college programs, but I would certainly suggest to my kids that they choose the school based on academics first and athletics second. I'm going to go through this soon with my 15-year-old son who is an excellent soccer player and student. I've started to talk a bit with soccer coaches and we're going to a showcase this weekend. So this will soon be my life.
Great time then to argue to the Atlantic that they need you in Europe for a few years so your son can play with much higher level soccer teams. Just playing at school and with much lower level teams was useful for mine over the past year in Germany.
Lol, I agree! My two younger boys have actually spent some time the last two years playing with the academy teams at FC Cadiz in Spain, which has been awesome for them.
Hello Nick, Thank you for answering people's questions, I love The Atlantic and think it addresses the problems society faces and the ones on the horizon a lot more seriously and with a lot more curiosity than other publications.
I would love to ask you about how you would advise a young aspiring writer today, of either fiction or journalism, particularly somebody lacking in the Ivy League sort of credentials and relationships.
Do you have any idea what you might do if you yourself were a young person trying to build a career in writing today?
I'm worried that it might be almost entirely hopeless to get published as a young male fiction writer these days, and that the doors of journalism might be essentially closed to me unless I can somehow dredge up a following on Substack and social media.
And that sounds like a fairly miserable undertaking to me. But maybe it's just necessary and I need to get over it.
Sorry for all the rambling, would love any advice if you have a minute, no need for nearly as lengthy of a response!
Don't be discouraged or defeatist. Journalism is under a lot of pressure today. The business model is challenged. Public trust is low. AI might be a disaster for us. But here's the thing: it's still absolutely one of the most meritocratic businesses there is. You don't need a credential or a degree. To get published, all you need is //an awesome story idea.// It's very hard to find the right one, but if you can get out there and write great stories, people will see. You'll get assignments and things will work out.
One of the things I love about running is that it's just you. People can say whatever they want about me. But they can't say I didn't run a 2:29 marathon or set the record in the 50k. In a team sport, it's different. In most of life, it's different. And journalism is similar to running in this regard. If you write a f'in amazing story and it appears on the Internet, that's you.
I have pretty simple rules. At breakfast, I eat the same thing: Bob's Red Mill muesli with fruit. I drink AG1 and beet juice. At lunch, I tend to eat whatever the healthiest thing we have on offer at the office lunch. At dinner, we rotate a set of family meals and I just try to add in a bit of protein to make sure I've got that covered. I try to stay hydrated. At night, I take a bit of protein and l-citruline. I also have creatine at breakfast unless it's right before a race.
I loved when Nick and Malcolm Gladwell used to write a blog during the World Championships and Olympics. Any chance of reviving this in the future? Or perhaps inviting them to join some of the live editions of the Track Talk pod during the champs?
I loved doing those with Malcolm too! It was easier though when we both worked at The New Yorker. I don't think his bosses there would be too excited with him doing something at The Atlantic. And I don't think folks here would be too happy if I started posting with him over there. But he's a joy --- as a writer and a person --- and I'm sure he'd be game to do something here.
Great time then to argue to the Atlantic that they need you in Europe for a few years so your son can play with much higher level soccer teams. Just playing at school and with much lower level teams was useful for mine over the past year in Germany.
Lol, I agree! My two younger boys have actually spent some time the last two years playing with the academy teams at FC Cadiz in Spain, which has been awesome for them.
Wow. Congrats.
1) I'm curious how they got into it and what other sports they played and how you keep it fun.
2) I'm sure your familiar with David Epstein's view that everyone overspecializes in sports these days. But I only have a 5 year old and I'm hearing stories from slightly older parents its crazy. You can only influence the system you are a part of so much. If my daughter enjoys something and is good at it I'll encourage that.
3) I'd still like to ask David Epstein if not everyone is going to a superstar does specialization lead to better outcomes in high school sports? Most people aren't playing in college or pros.
4) Can they access a European passport? Isn't that advantage?
5) Settle the debate for me and Jon: Brighton Hove Albion or Crystal Palace
I loved when Nick and Malcolm Gladwell used to write a blog during the World Championships and Olympics. Any chance of reviving this in the future? Or perhaps inviting them to join some of the live editions of the Track Talk pod during the champs?
I loved doing those with Malcolm too! It was easier though when we both worked at The New Yorker. I don't think his bosses there would be too excited with him doing something at The Atlantic. And I don't think folks here would be too happy if I started posting with him over there. But he's a joy --- as a writer and a person --- and I'm sure he'd be game to do something here.
You all are both welcome to meet in the middle and do them for free on LetsRun :)
Or we could just do a yearly Q&A with you all or podcast on your running takes.
Related to such, the 10,000 hours vs don't specialize debate, it's not one or the other necessarily is it?