ShareThisMy request for a sit-down interview with ultra marathoner Dean Karnazes was summarily rejected by Karnazes himself.
The dude preferred to stand and talk.
"I'm tired of sitting," he said.
Dean Karnazes, 46, certainly doesn't do much of that. He is constantly on the move, tackling new ultra-running challenges and promoting fitness to kids. Among Karnazes' feats of the feet: 50 marathons in 50 days in 50 states in 2006; winning the Badwater Ultramarathon in Death Valley in 2004 and the Four Desert Challenge (Atacama desert in Chile, Gobi Desert in China, Sahara in Egypt, and Antarctica) in 2008. (He'll compete in his 12th Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run in June.)
I stood up with Karnazes and grilled him with questions to see if I could get his resting heart rate above his incredible 39 beats per minute.
Q. You're 46. Do you have some deal with the devil in which you never get hurt?
A. Knock wood. I've never had a running-related injury. But now, I'll probably walk outside and trip on the curb. All the miles I've had and nothing.
Q. That's got to be more than luck. Is it physiology?
A. It's physiology and good biomechanics. You know what they say: The best thing you can do as a runner is to choose your parents well. I'm 100 percent Greek. My dad's from the same village as Phidippides.
Q. Didn't Phidippides die, though?
A. Yeah, right. But, seriously, I cross-train a lot.
Q. What sports?
A. I'm a California guy, so it's mountain bike, surf, windsurf, rock climbing. I have a routine that a friend showed me, a Navy SEAL. It's of push-ups, sit-ups and pull-ups that I do throughout the day.
Q. So it's not an hour core session?
A. No. Too many people compartimentalize fitness. They say, I gotta get my hour in at the gym. In my office (he runs a marketing firm), I've got my sit-up mat, a pull-up bar. In between calls and e-mails, when I'm starting to bonk, I'll do (a set).
Q. I guess core work doesn't seem so daunting if you spread it out.
A. That, and physiologically you engage your muscles more frequently. I've had my desk modified to waist level, and I never sit throughout the day. I'm on my toes doing toe-ups. It strengthens all the micro-muscles in your legs.
Q. Your running style seems so natural. Are you a midfoot striker? Could that be another reason why you may not get hurt?
A. I've been a midfoot striker my whole life. Now, they've looked at the science of it, and I've been lucky that's always been my natural gait.
Q. Of all the challenges you've done, which has been the toughest?
A. When I endeavored to do 50 marathons in 50 states in 50 days, that was probably the most grueling event. Not just the running but the logistics of travel. It was hard to maintain electrolyte balance. And there were multiple climates: Hawaii, Mississippi, 90 degrees and 100 percent humidity; Arizona, 105, zero humidity; Alaska the next day, snowing. But the most rewarding? Running a 10K with my daughter (Alexandria) on her 10th birthday (three years ago).
Q. Does she have the running bug, too?
A. Oh, yeah. But I haven't pushed it on her. I'm afraid of that backlash. She runs cross-country (in eighth grade).
Q. You do a lot of work with kids, promoting fitness. Is the state of fitness among children as bad as we hear?
A. It's horrible. I'll never forget. I went to a middle school in Mississippi, and I had to go to the bathroom. So I walk in and there's a sharp container -- you know, a metal box -- with needles in there. I'm thinking, what in the world? Seven and 8-year-olds are injecting themselves with insulin. There are quality of life and self-esteem issues to address. My foundation's tag line is, "No Child Left Inside."
Q. Do you think your average Joe and Jane runner can relate to you, because you're so far beyond the norm?
A. What I've been able to do is break through to people and issue a wake-up call. Almost universally, the message I get from people is, "You've inspired me and energized me to do the best I can." The message I send to people is "Do your own personal best. You don't have to finish a marathon. Do what you can. Your sense of well being is the most important part of your life."
E-mail Sam McManis can be reached at smcmanis(at)sacbee.com)
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)
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