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May 02, 2017

Runcoach Success Story: Matt Vulanich

Written by Jennifer Van Allen
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Matt Vulanichrc_2mattvulanich

Favorite sport: running

Major milestone: My first milestone was deciding to start running nearly 15 years ago at age 45.  I started with 20 minutes, three time per week on a treadmill as a stress reducer.  Since then, I have run enough miles to go nearly halfway around the world.  In terms of racing, it was completing Leg 5 of the Hood-to-Coast relay last August, as I approached my 60th birthday.  Leg 5 is widely recognized as the most challenging of the race.

What is the secret to your success? There’s no secret.  Just dedication, commitment, the challenge to get better and doing so as the clock ticks.  Father Time is the only undefeated opponent known to humankind.  I won't beat him either, but I'm going to make it tough for him to win!

What is the biggest obstacle to reaching your goals and how do you get over it? At age 60, the biggest obstacle is staying fit, staying healthy and knowing how hard it will become to maintain my current levels of achievement as I get older. I try overcoming it by making sure that I focus on training, not exercise.  Training is making sure that the workouts, fueling, diet and sleep needed to perform are all in complete balance.  Doing so keeps me physically fit and mentally prepared.

What is the most rewarding part of training? To me, it is rewarding to enter a race and compete at a level that is competitive with a few age groups lower than me. When I compete, I look to see how I performed overall and against anyone, say, 20 years  younger.  So far, I've done well and hope that it continues for a while longer.

What advice would you give to other members of the runcoach community? It's never too late to start. Be committed to an overall training regime.  It's the best way to stay healthy and compete at a high level. And have fun! I All the running plans and programs I've used over the years, I truly appreciate runcoach.  The ability to have a dynamic plan that adjusts along the way to my performance has been great.

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Last modified on June 14, 2017
Jennifer Van Allen

Jennifer Van Allen

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