Any running engineers out there??

Bob Kempanien won the olympic trials while he was in medical school. I don't know if he had a wife or child though. He probably had access to many performance enhancing drugs also.

not an engineer, but Tony Sandoval also won the trials while in medical school.

Dean of M.I.T. wrote:

Bob Kempanien won the olympic trials while he was in medical school. I don't know if he had a wife or child though. He probably had access to many performance enhancing drugs also.

For what it's worth, I'm an electrical engineer. Actually, I'm a professor of such. College professors don't have the same sort of schedule as industrial folks so my experience is perhaps atypical of many engineers. I have the time to run and still do other things (my wife and I kayak half the year, hike, and xc ski in the winter). Don't have any kids though. That's a serious time impact. I will say that I wasn't able to juggle running into the mix while I was a student and had to quit XC as a freshman. It was just too much for me, and well, I was there primarily to get a degree and not to run. Thus, I became a recreational runner through those years and the remainder of my 20's (as I spent most of my time working on my career). Now in my 40's, I look back wondering how far I could have taken my running if I was able to stick with the competitive side, but at the same time knowing that if I hadn't focused on my studies and early career, I most likely would be in a less favorable position now. At the same, I find that as things stabilized in my 30's, I was able to return to competitive running (at least at the local level). In spite of being past my physiological peak, I can still train hard, push myself, and try to set PRs as a master.

I think the real question you have to ask yourself is how much you like engineering and the things/rewards it brings versus what running brings you. This is a serious question with long-term implications. You don't want to just chuck a promising and otherwise enjoyable career out the window because you fear that it might not allow you to run as much as you'd prefer. The portrait of the "starving artist" might play well to the romantic in us, but no one finds living off of Ramen noodles a particularly attractive lifestyle.

I've got kids and a job. I've managed ok.

i'm currently a Mech. E. still in school and i find that the combination of running for a D1 school and being a student under a top engineering program is difficult. good luck is all i have to say.

I think the majority of careers nowadays involve lots of overtime or travel or both.

I'm not putting running the the balance against a good job, I'm just merely saying that I want to be able to have a good job, be a good fam. man, and STILL have some sort of free time....not run 100+ miles/week and win the trials. Just needed to clear that up. Working 80 hours a week and making 90 grand is a step backward than working 40 hours and pulling 40 grand, in my own opinion. Just trying to weigh the options between $$ and happiness.

Thanks for the input

ran a 2:35 at Boston a couple years ago(15:37 5k PR)--- Work only 45 or so hours a week-- It's definitely doable if you make it a priority, otherwise forget about it.

can anyone who has experience tell me how to get a job in this rough IT market? Give a runner some love y'all.

you will have a lot more time to work, study, run, sleep, etc. if you don't spend too much time on the message boards.

i am a mech e and know a lot of other m e's and chem e's. i really don't know any that work crazy hours (maybe putting in 50 hours once in awhile). some of them have to be on call (which just means they need to carry a beeper usually).

although i did have a field engineer job at one point in time that had me working crazy hours (80 hours per week). that was just a temporary job, though, and i wasn't running at the time.

As an undergrad (EE) I was able to manage running 80-100 mi/wk, racing well and doing well in school. After graduating, I worked for 7 or 8 years as a circuit designer and ran well for myself (4:06 mile). However, now I am now back at grad school, with two children, and I have absolutely no time for running. I had to move running down my list of priorities and settle for running for mediocre fitness if I wanted to do well in school and spend time with my family. Hopefully I will be able to come back to running later...

I'm a full time undergrad, work about 25 or so hours a week, and have easily been running 50 miles a week. I've got plans to bump it up over time.

Its always doable if you want it.

jeff jacobs is a full time engineer with a family. he's had a solid running career, 2:13 marathoner and all. run on your lunch breaks, in the morning, whatever.

If you don't mind, can I ask what kind of $$ you guys make and what hours you work??

If you want to train through a marriage and job and kids you've got to be willing to compromise. My biggest problem usually stems from the wife complaining if it has been a busy week. If you can get out of bed and run early in the morning, that helps. The other thing I would suggest is dont make your lives wait for your running, unless she knows that going in, it will cause problems.

American distance running is largely a sport populated by people who simultaneously work full time and run competitively. DeHaven has a (nearly) full time job and a family. LeMay worked full-time while running 2:11. Scuadmore was in medical school when he won the national championships. Kempanien was in the midst of medical school but I actually think that he was on leave of absence (for half a year?) while he pursued his last shot in the marathon. It is not easy to do it all simultaneously family, running, serious career) but it is definitely doable for discrete periods of time if you are focused. I have a six month old son and am manager at a start-up, but I manage to fit in 90 miles a week. Ran 2:21 last year and I'm not oozing with talent (31:30 10k). I dont try to run at a top-level year-around but every year or two I usually try a focused six-to-eight month sequence. Couple that episodic training with a patient wife/boss and early, early starts (5 am). First dibs on the day's energy: never any heat, a good chunk of time is available, and the mind is usually clear. Lunch and post-work runs are either too short or I've got nothing left in the tank. Get in one hard run during the week then nail one or two early in the mornings on the weekends.

getting up early is good -- especially in the summer when it is the best time to train anyways. and going for a medium-long run in the morning tends to be more invisible to the wife.

Regardless of what you do, you will probably find people with similar educational backgrounds and job titles who work somewhat less than 40 hours per week and people who work much more than 80 hours per week. Also, it is generally believed that engineers are well educated, smart people. If you major in electrical engineering as an undergraduate, that doesn't mean your only career option is electrical engineering.

I am a petroleum engineer (7-years working for oil & gas companies). I typically work ~45 hours per week and make $65,000 per year. I have a wife and two kids under 2yo and have plenty of time to spend with them even while training myself from a 3:04 marathon to hopefully a 2:39 over the past 2-years.

My salary is low in my profession because I have purposefully chosen a job that is not very demanding time-wise. I could be working overseas on a drilling rig making almost double but have chosen lifestyle over $$$$. My wife stays home with the kids so that makes a big difference too!

You can be in EE and not have to work the long hours if you plan correctly. Most entry-level jobs will put you on the path to "climb the ladder" and thus will be very demanding. If you're not married yet, this is a good time to pay your dues and work the hours. After you get a little experience, check out and work for a smaller, family-oriented company that lets you choose how much to work. As an engineer, you'll do well even at 40 hrs/wk. It amazes me how many people I see that work 90 hours per week for the big bucks just to have enough money to have a big house and nice cars. It's their wives (who usually resent them for not being around enough) who are spending all the cash while they're at work!

IMHO, get the good degree and then choose your career wisely to fit what you want out of life.