Sean Casey- "Take the stairs"

Sean describes growing up as an athlete who disliked running until he developed Guillain-Barré syndrome at 13, rapidly progressing from numbness to full paralysis, ICU ventilation, and a 94-day hospital stay, followed by relearning movement and returning to football within months with a full recovery.

At 22, while teaching English in Korea, he joined an international run club and impulsively ran his first marathon with minimal training, which inspired him to learn and improve, leading to races like Miami, LA, Chicago, and Tokyo.

Drawn to trails and the outdoors, he entered ultrarunning through fundraising with First Descents and ran the Leadville 100, calling it life-changing, supported by his parents and pacers.

He discusses over-preparation, fueling with real foods, injury and cross-training, preferring trail culture, and his mantra “take the stairs,” emphasizing movement as a privilege.


Sean Casey - https://www.facebook.com/scaseyfitness


Races Mentioned
Korea Marathon
Leadville 100
Moab 240
Tokryo Marathon

Shout Outs
First Descents
Make-A-Wish

Transcript

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SPEAKER_00 0:15

Hi Runner Story family. This is Allison Gilliard with Runner Story where every story needs to be heard. And making sure that stories get heard this month are our friends from Rocket City Marathon, and they have a special message for all of us. Take it away, guys.

SPEAKER_01 0:30

50 years, five races, one incredible weekend. The Rocket City Marathon Race Weekend. Join thousands of runners December 11th through 13th in Huntsville, Alabama, as we celebrate the 50th anniversary of this iconic running tradition. Whether you're chasing a personal record, a Boston qualifier, or your very first finish line, there's a race for you, including the marathon. Half marathon, 10K, 5K, and one mile. Experience incredible race day energy, commemorative 50th anniversary medals, and a celebration 50 years in the making. Register now at irunrocketcity.com.

SPEAKER_00 1:14

Thanks, RCM. We cannot wait to celebrate your 50th anniversary this year. We'll see you in December. So excited. And guys, I'm so excited about you getting to hear this story as Sean Casey. Guys, get ready to be inspired. An absolute beast of a runner. He's in the ultra world. He's doing big things. Literally big things. Absolutely incredible. Wait until you hear his story of at 13 years old. He winds up in the hospital for 94 days because he became paralyzed. But his story doesn't stop there. That chapter could happen, but it didn't. Sean has a tenacity about himself that is absolutely incredible to watch. And he ran and started running internationally. Such a fun story. And that's where he met people and fell in love with running. And then just a few weeks later, he decided I'm gonna run a marathon. His first marathon was in Korea. Wow! Absolutely amazing. Sean, I believe there's nothing that you can't do. You are just absolutely phenomenal, my friend. And I'm so excited for what the future holds for you. And that you remind us that everybody starts somewhere. That we just have to start. So good. Oh, you guys are gonna love Sean. I'm so excited for you. I've been excited for this since his interview because I just left away so inspired and knowing that I'm gonna take the stairs every single time because that's what he tells us to do. All right, guys, with that being said, get ready, get set, and go run with my friend Sean and his run story. Well, Sean, thanks so much for being on the podcast. I am so excited because you are one busy guy jetting off from everywhere here and there and everywhere in between. So thank you for taking the time to be on the Run Your Story podcast.

SPEAKER_02 3:05

Yeah, thank you for having me. I'm really excited.

SPEAKER_00 3:07

So one of the things that I really appreciate about this podcast is that we see people where they are now, and we get to be in awe of what they do. In case, I mean, you've you've done a ultra, you've done some crazy running adventures, but that's not all that your story is. And in fact, you have a very hard chapter. So how did we get here, Sean? How does your run story begin?

SPEAKER_02 3:31

Yeah, so as you said there, I guess I'll start at the beginning of where everything started, I guess, for me, where my life began. I was always an athlete growing up, and so I had that background. And running wasn't one of those things that I was always excited about, but it was part of every sport I had to do. And as I think a lot of team sport athletes know, it's more of punishment in those sports than anything. You have to run if you do something wrong. So that was kind of the way I saw running at the time. So when I was 13, I was playing sports. I was in football. I was doing everything in seventh grade, and I woke up one day and my feet felt like they were asleep. And I didn't really think anything of it because it was, you know, my feet were asleep, but it wasn't that big of a deal. So I went to school and then they sent me home. The next day I woke up and it was a little bit higher. It was getting a bit up towards my knees, where it just kind of felt some numbness and tingling. And I just thought, man, this is kind of weird. And they told me I was dehydrated both times, which I just I just went with. I didn't really know any better.

SPEAKER_03 4:38

Sure.

SPEAKER_02 4:38

So they sent me home and I woke up the next day and it was just getting worse and worse. And the feeling was getting less and less in my body, and what I could actually feel. And I had all this numbness and tingling going on, and I wasn't able to move the way I wanted to, and it I just I just felt really off. So I went back into the hospital, and I guess the moment where I knew something was wrong for sure, is I was in the hospital room and everyone had left, and I was by myself, and I went to go stand up to get someone come across the room, and I had a bit of trouble standing up, which was kind of normal at that point, but then I started to hear something, and it was I looked down and I was peeing myself, which looking it's kind of um which I didn't know was happening, I couldn't feel it, right? So I was just like, holy cow, something is very wrong. So that's when I knew something was very wrong. And about 72 hours later, I was in the ICU on an innovator, breathing through a tube, fully paralyzed, not able to move at all. So it was a full body paralysis, and I had what's called Guillain Baret syndrome, which is where your immune system shuts down your nervous system. So it's not a very common disease. There's a couple thousand in the US every year, so it's pretty rare. But I ended up getting that, and that's kind of where everything went downhill for me. It all happened really fast.

SPEAKER_00 6:15

Man, and that's terrifying because you were 13 years old.

SPEAKER_02 6:18

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 6:19

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 6:20

So after that, I go back through the whole recovery process, which was I was in the hospital for 94 days. I spent a ton of time doing physical therapy, so I went full paralysis. I got in a power chair, a wheelchair, and I was able to use crutches and walk on my own a little bit. And it was really just a full relearning of everything. And coming from being an athlete to going to that in just a couple days was pretty shocking for me. And it's a whole identity crisis of not knowing who I was anymore without the sports and and the athletics and all that, and just wanted to be a normal kid and do all that again. So coming back from that, I ended up recovering, and it was definitely a shaping chapter of my life and who I am and the way that I look at movement and running today.

SPEAKER_00 7:05

That is absolutely one. I'm so glad that your story is, you know, here you are doing ultra marathons. And that it didn't get worse, and that you didn't allow in that moment to be defined by that. That you were, as you said, you went through this kind of identity crisis, and it's now here you are. So you get out of the hospital. Then what does that journey look like?

SPEAKER_02 7:25

It was slow. It was a lot of slow recovery and not really seeing progress daily, but you know, zooming out a month or so, and you're able to do things you weren't able to do the months before, which it was hard, but I was getting better. And so the process of between getting home, I got home in the middle of July when I was 13, and then I was able to run. I was playing football again at a low level by late October. Wow. So I was able to move again and play sports and be outside with my friends, which is what I really wanted to do. So that was kind of the timeline there as far as bouncing back from that. And I don't feel any of the effects today that I know of. So, you know, it was a full recovery and everything, which I'm really lucky to be able to say.

SPEAKER_00 8:11

Absolutely. So, how do we go from that 13-year-old boy overcoming to you saying, I'm gonna run a marathon?

SPEAKER_02 8:21

Yeah, I started out as someone who really enjoyed the gym, which is kind of where the whole fitness journey outside of organized athletics started. So I really enjoyed going to the gym and I liked lifting weights and doing all that, but I didn't really feel like I was in very good shape. I looked like I was in good shape, but my heart wasn't. And I skipped cardio all the time. I never wanted to do it. I just wanted to lift. And I didn't feel great. So I took a gap year after I graduated college. So I was 22 and I was living in another country, and I didn't know anyone. And I was I was teaching English in Korea, so I didn't really have a huge social circle or anything to do all the time, but there was a run club, an international run club with a bunch of people from all over the world. And so I decided that'd be a good way to make friends. So I joined that, and a couple of them were running this marathon out there. I was, I think, eight weeks away from that, and I was probably running five to seven miles a week at that point, maybe two to three mile runs a week just to kind of see the city and have something else to do. There was a nice little river trail that I was able to run when I was out there close to my apartment. So I started running a little. And I said there's a marathon coming up, and I just thought, well, I'm an athlete, so I can do that. And I was just so couldn't be more wrong about that assumption. And it was really hard. It was really, really difficult. I did not prepare in really any way that I do now. I didn't do anything right as far as training or nutrition or anything. It's laughable how poorly I was prepared to run this marathon. But it did open my eyes to the fact that I was capable of doing it, which I think was really important for me to be able to see. And I just thought, well, if I don't know anything and I was able to do it, then what if I learned about it? And what if I got good at this and I got better? So that was kind of the start where I was like, it was really, it took the first race for me to be in that environment to really think that it was something I wanted to dive into fully.

SPEAKER_00 10:24

I'm just trying to rule back from when you said you joined the run club and they were getting ready for a marathon in eight weeks. And you were like, okay.

SPEAKER_02 10:32

Yeah, and like I said, it was naive and and incorrect. And I was I'm not proud of that, but it did happen, and you know, it was it was a good experience overall looking back, but it was painful. It was a painful race for sure. But it was fun.

SPEAKER_00 10:46

Wow, that's very I'm super impressed with that. And that was your first race, was a marathon in Korea.

SPEAKER_02 10:51

Yeah, that was my first organized race there, which was a great one to start. I mean, I I look back on it fondly, but I know at the time I was struggling.

SPEAKER_00 10:59

Wow. So then when you come back to the States, is that where you started looking at, okay, what about doing trails? What about this ultra marathon? What does that look like? How did you transition into that?

SPEAKER_02 11:12

Yeah, so after I ran Korea, I decided to try to actually transfer a race and do better. So I did that and I ran a couple more road races. I ran Miami, LA, I ran Chicago. So I ran a few of the cool races here. And I was thinking that I really like to run, but I wasn't sure that this was exactly the type of running I like to do. I always grew up hiking and camping and being outside. And I think that a lot of ultra runners know that ultra running is pretty close to just hiking and camping and being outside and all the stuff that I like to do. And it's really not that far off from doing those things. It's just a bit more organized and it's a little bit harder. You just move a little faster. But it was a lot of stuff that I already really like to do. So I had the running base for sure because I had done multiple 16-week training blocks, like true training blocks that were organized and structured. So I had a pretty good running base. And then there is a race called the Ledville 100 that I was familiar with vaguely just because it's one of the more popular ultras. And there's an organization that is called First Ascents, and they are somewhat similar to Make a Wit. They work with an older population, so it's it's young adults instead of kids, and they focus on providing outdoor activities for the young adults who are facing critical illness. So I resonated greatly with this organization because first make-a-wish I was very close to. I got granted a wish when I was sick, and I was able to get really close to a lot of people there. So I found this other organization that was similar and they focused a lot on the outdoors, and they were a partner of the Leadville 100. So when I found that out, I reached out and I said, Hey, I don't know what this is, but I want to be a part of it. And I know I resonated greatly with your guys' mission here, and I want to help out and do whatever I can. And they were like, Well, we're doing this race in Colorado, it's a hundred miles. And I was like, Okay, well, that's I didn't even that's far. I didn't really know what it meant at first, honestly. I didn't couldn't even really process what that would look like. But I said, Yeah, you can send us in this application, and if we want you to join the team, you can join the team. And so I sent it in and I filled it out with my story and all the reasons why I wanted to run for them, and I wasn't actually expecting them to say yes. And then when they said yes, you can be on the team, I was kind of stalked and scared because I was like, Well, now I actually have to do this. I don't even I didn't expect them to agree to me joining this team, but now I'm in it and I can't say no because it's such a hard race to get into. I mean, the the lottery, there's only a couple ways to get in. And I got the opportunity to do it. So I was thinking that if this was gonna be my only time, then I'm just gonna have to go for it. So that was the way I got introduced to the race. So that was really my first I started trail running because I had to, because I got into Leadville and there was no other way to prepare for something like that. But thank goodness, because it's been really good to me. So that was kind of my origin story with the ultras.

SPEAKER_00 14:20

Sean, that's absolutely crazy. I got into ultra running because I had to.

SPEAKER_02 14:25

I know, yeah, I know I don't know how.

SPEAKER_00 14:29

So obviously, there have been some lessons that you've learned from running. Do you mind sharing some of those?

SPEAKER_02 14:35

Yeah, totally. And I think there is the reason why I like to tell that story because I'm not sick anymore, right? I'm healthy, but it's really relevant to all the stuff that I'm doing now because there's just no way that I would be doing it otherwise. It's a huge part of what shaped me and what made me appreciate what I'm able to do and make me inspired and motivated, and have the discipline to actually go do those things because at one point I was not able to do any of them. I was completely unable to move. And now I have a completely different view on why I should do hard things and what types of things I should pursue and how I should spend my time. And it really did completely change my perspective on life entirely, but movement and running specifically, I was able to really become appreciative of all of it and the hard days, even when a training run is really hard or a race doesn't go your way, you still got to the start line and you're healthy enough to be there and you recovered enough. So it really helped me take a step back and zoom out and think, wow, I am so lucky to be here all the time. And I think it helps with performance too. When you have that mindset, when you're able to not get down on yourself, you had a bad run. You can always bounce back because I'll always be out there. I'll always get to the start line and try because I wasn't always able to. So that was something that I think works to my advantage now on the performance side. That I don't necessarily struggle with the discipline of getting out there and actually doing the work. That's not my issue. I love it. I love doing all of it because I wasn't able to at first. And I think I've learned a lot from running in that way. I think I take a lot of the things that I learned, like what I said earlier about not seeing progress day to day, but you zoom out and in a month, look how much better your time's got. In five years, look how much better your time's got. I mean, I ran my first race in Korea in 2022 and it was miserable. And then a couple years later, I did better and I was better and better, and I ran a hundred. And it's zooming out when I was not even talking about being sick, but just before I started running all the time, I couldn't even imagine running a 5K. And then now it's the warm-up to the beginning of the long run that I'm gonna be out there all day for, and the perspective shift of doing all the hard stuff and just seeing it compound over time. Everything in life just takes a lot of time, anything worthwhile, it takes a lot of time to pursue and get better at. I think running is a great example and a great parallel to a lot of other things that happen in life.

SPEAKER_00 16:56

Wow, that is a great lesson and a great perspective. And I appreciate how you said it comes together. You just got to be patient with it. You know, right now we have started in the deep south of the heat and humidity, and we're trying to all remind ourselves don't worry about your pace. It's too hot, it's too humid, you can barely breathe. So that is such a great reminder that what we're doing now is preparing us for what's to come. And I appreciate you sharing that.

SPEAKER_02 17:20

Yeah, totally. I think flipping the perspective a little of you guys get heat training all year and you guys get to do all that, and then you come out to another race that's the weather's more favorable and you're able to have an advantage to everyone else who didn't have all that, you know, super brutal training all year and just trying your best, even when it's difficult to flip the perspective of all right, this is a good thing, then it could be beneficial.

SPEAKER_00 17:42

Oh, that's so good. I'm gonna take that with me the next time and be like, this is a good thing to do.

SPEAKER_02 17:48

Hard to tell yourself in the moment, but you can try.

SPEAKER_00 17:50

I love that. It was such a great perspective. Now, let me ask you this do you mix it up? Are you doing road racing too, or are you like, meh, I really like the trails?

SPEAKER_02 17:59

So I ran Tokyo on March 1st.

SPEAKER_00 18:02

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 18:03

That was my last road run that I've done. And that may be the last road run that I do ever. I think it might be time. So I go back and forth because I wanted to run a sub-3 in Tokyo and I ran a 308. So I didn't hit my goal of running a sub-three, which I feel I can't move on from until I do. I have this weird attachment to this random goal that I set. And so I'm not sure that's true that it's my last road race, but really my passion and what I think I could be better at and pursue more is the trail running.

SPEAKER_03 18:40

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 18:40

It's always more fun for me. I enjoy it. I love being outside all day. I love the 30-mile Sunday morning long run where you just go out there all day and you're not really looking at your pace. You're just trying to find some new mountains to go up, and you're just out there having fun. Where I think a lot of times when I'm in the road training, I get really bogged down on my paces and my splits. And I'm just so I I feel I kind of lose sight of why I'm doing it. And I I have the competitive nature of, you know, wanting to do well and having all the good times, but really I just being healthy and going outside. I think those are really what I want to do. And the intensity of road racing and the way that I want to do it, I think I struggle with keeping up with health-wise. I got hurt pretty bad in Tokyo and it has kept me off the trails for I started running again this week. I was off completely for 12 weeks. Wow. Which was just completely not worth it. I mean, I I don't even really care about this time when I think about it a lot. I'd rather just be able to go climb a mountain on a Saturday rather than hitting my tempo pace at this exact heart rate. And it's just it's not really why I'm out there. So I lean a lot more towards the culture of trail running that I think I align a lot more with is just kind of going out there, and it's a pleasure to be there, and you're smiling and talking on the trails and meeting people, and it's it's a lot more my speed, I think.

SPEAKER_00 20:01

I love that. Okay. Do you have a favorite race?

SPEAKER_02 20:05

Leadville 100, for sure. It is not really close. It was, I mean, I I have all the road races I've done, but it was truly the hardest chosen thing I've ever done. It was the hardest thing I've ever decided to do. Obviously, hard things happen all the time, and you know, real life happens, and it's much harder than running in the mountains. But the hardest thing I've decided to do was the Leadville 100. And it was just a life-changing day where I I saw what I'm actually capable of when things got really hard, and I was able to think about it for 28 and a half hours about all the hard things I've done and be able to. It was really special. It was a fantastic day for me. And I feel so much came together for me on that day where I was like, wow, I've it was really the one race I finished where I'm like, I did it. I was genuinely proud of my effort and then I pushed through because the race is hard. I think what people don't understand about the long races, and what I definitely didn't understand either, is that it's hard the whole time. It's not like it's not in a you know, in a 5k where it's 5k is really hard. It's a really hard distance to run. And the last couple, you know, maybe the last mile is really teeth gritting difficult. I feel like in this race, it's not a linear progression of pain. I had a hard time at mile 10 of a hundred-mile race. I was like, dang, this is hard. I don't know if I'm gonna be able to do this. I have 90 miles to go and I'm already out of breath here. What am I doing? But then you get to mile 85 and I ran some of my best splits there. It was not a linear progression of pain at all. It got easy and there's highs and lows, and it felt like I lived an entire year in that day. And it was just it was really special. I'm running it again this year. I well, the first day after, I was like, I'm never doing anything like that again, which I think is common. And then on the flight home, you're like, how. I get in next year. I needed I need this again. So it was it was, you know, a huge wave of emotion. I experienced every emotion you could, and it was just it was fantastic.

SPEAKER_00 22:10

So, what was it like coming across and getting that buckle?

SPEAKER_02 22:14

Man, I didn't even really believe it. I I thought I was gonna be out there forever. I thought the day was going to last forever, and it really did feel good because the paces are just slower. I'm not an incredibly fast ultra runner. I was running at the end of the race 18 minute miles. I was essentially power hiking the last 15 miles of the race, which when you look and you see, oh, I only have 15 miles left, I'm 85% done. It it sounds good, but you're gonna be out there for four more hours. It's a long time. It's a whole thing where it was hard to grasp. But when I finally saw there are so many false summit, false finish lines at the end of that race where you finally think you're gonna be there. And I'm like, when is it? Because my watch had already hit 100 miles, and I'm like, I've done a hundred. Can I please stop? I can't do another step. I have no desire to just I want to sit right here on the street and I'm not gonna finish. I'm gonna DNF this race because I don't want to go anymore. And it's just miserable. But one of the really cool parts of it was the last mile of the race, you get an unlimited amount of pacers. So you can only have one pacer throughout the race at a time, but at the end, you can have as many as you want. So the last mile of the race, all three of my pacers came down and they did the last mile with me, which was just so cool. They had all seen because they each paced me for about 13 miles throughout the race, each. And so they all saw a different headspace that I was in. And each they all experienced a lot of different emotions with me. And for them to all be there together and all of us going across, and you know, I was two of my closest friends and my dad who were pacing me. So it was really special to be able to cross with them. And you know, my mom was at the finish line, she crewed the whole thing. So just being there and and finally getting across, I was just I don't even know what to do or what to think. I mean, I was happy it was done, I was relieved it was over. I almost didn't know what to do anymore once I finished because my whole nine months leading up to that was just ultra running and preparing for this race. And now that it was over, I was like, well, what am I gonna do this weekend? I I don't have a long run, I don't have anything. I had nothing, I've completely built my life around this thing, and now I don't know what to do. So it was every emotion again, but overall it was positive.

SPEAKER_00 24:23

Wow.

SPEAKER_02 24:23

You know, I was I was happy to be there.

SPEAKER_00 24:25

Wow. Well, I wanna, because you said that your mom was there crewing, that your dad was one of your pacers. What was that experience like for them? Did they talk about this at all? Seeing how far you had come and crossing that finish line?

SPEAKER_02 24:38

Yeah, for sure. They were more supportive and there for me than I could even put into words throughout the entire time I was sick. I mean, they were as good as they could have been in any of those moments. You know, they crushed it. I mean, they were so supportive, they were by my side 24 hours a day, truly. I could not ever thank them enough for that. So they saw it, they know what I went through, they lived it with me. I mean, it was their kid. So they were there with me and they know they had their own struggles throughout the eye. So I think for them it was really special. And one thing that really did help me was knowing that they didn't care if I finished the race. They, you know, they were happy I was there, you know. They were they wanted me to do it, they loved for just seeing me achieve my goals and stuff, but that's not why they loved me. They just wanted to be there to support me and they they didn't really care what I did. And having them there, I could tell they were really proud of me. So it was really special.

SPEAKER_00 25:25

Oh wow, that's amazing. Oh my goodness. I love how in your and it was for such a great cause, and I love how it just all came together. As you said earlier, it was meant to be. It was just everything worked out the way it should have.

SPEAKER_02 25:37

Absolutely. Yeah, I it did.

SPEAKER_00 25:40

Beautiful. Oh man. Okay, I want to shift a little bit to routine and race day and and leading up to that. So, how do you prep for race? What does that look like for you?

SPEAKER_02 25:51

Yeah, I'm completely over the top in my preparation. I have the Excel spreadsheet, color coding, the whole, especially for Leadville. I watched probably close to a hundred hours of content on the Leadville 100. Okay. The exact race, the what you need to do, the gear you need to have in each section, how many calories. I mean, I had the calorie breakdown per hour, the exact foods to be in each pocket of the vest. I was a psycho about my preparation for this because I there I was so much pressure that I put on myself to actually do it. I didn't want to tell people at fundraise that I was doing this thing, and then I go out there and just and don't perform. So I had, and this was all on myself. I mean, no one was doing this but me. But I wanted to finish, I wanted to do well. So I was completely just nuts about it. And it was also my first race longer than a marathon. So I knew that it was gonna look a lot different and I needed to be kind of ready for anything. I think that not having done one before, it's good and bad because I didn't really know what I was getting myself into. I didn't know how hard it was gonna be out there. So it was almost an advantage that I didn't really realize what was gonna happen. Now, going into 100, I know how bad it's gonna hurt and how much I'm gonna want quit. So it's it's gonna be a little bit tougher going forward, I think. But I do have the experience of knowing what I need. And I totally overpacked for most of it. I had my best was way too heavy because I just was prepared for every single possible situation that could have happened, which probably doesn't need to be done anymore. And I think going forward, I'll be able to go a lot more based off of feel and just kind of going with the flow, not so tied down to my pace and things like that, and trying to really just run off of feel because that's when I think I do my best, and I'm just kind of out there enjoying it and not so worried about everything. So I've done both, trying to, I mean, in my first marathon, I was completely unprepared. And I that was the other side of the spectrum of not knowing anything. And then I did the super overprep. But now I think I have I'm in a situation where I know my body, I know the runs I need to hit, where instead of doing all these exact paces and tempos and intervals in my runs, I'll go out for a trail and I'll just say, okay, today I'm gonna run a few times, I'm gonna run a little bit faster. And every time I get to the hill, I'm gonna run up that hill as hard as I can. And that's gonna be my interval workout. That's gonna be how I get that time and really try to take a more lax approach to it because I don't think I need to do the other stuff anymore. I'm not exactly optimizing for performance here. I want to be out there and have fun and enjoy it. So I think it's good to have that background and and have all those things. I mean, I've years of experience now where in my head I know the workouts I can do. You know, I know I can do a six by six out there. So if I run for six minutes on and pull back for six minutes, and I have that stuff kind of in my head, but I'm not gonna be staring at my watch and tying it each to such a specific day and building every single thing I do around it and just kind of trying to be a little bit more type B about it and prepare that way for the races.

SPEAKER_00 28:49

I love that. That's such a great, again, another great perspective. So, Sean, you cross the finish line. What does post-race look like? How do you celebrate?

SPEAKER_02 28:57

In my head, I'm always gonna want to go crutch a huge meal and hang out and be social with my friends. And that's always kind of the plan before the race. The reality is I need to lay on the floor for four to six hours after any effort and not speak or think or do anything and just let myself completely go. I don't want to go to the bar or the restaurant or do anything like that after the race. I need some time. I know it now. I'm not gonna make plans after the race. I just can't.

SPEAKER_00 29:27

That's fair. That I could see how that would be mentally. I'm done thinking I'm done, I'm just I'm done.

SPEAKER_02 29:33

Yeah, it's finally done. I need I need a moment here. And then that night, I will crush some food. I mean, I feel like I have probably three days after a true hard effort race like that. It really does help with recovery too. I'm very clean generally with my food and things I eat. I eat a pretty good diet. I mean, on long effort days, I will eat some stuff that's a bit more calorie heavy. But for the most part, I'm pretty clean. But in the few days after a race, I don't think about it at all. I give my body what it needs. I just try to listen to it. If I want a bunch of sugar, then I'll drink a few smoothies and I'll eat some candy and just kind of whatever the body wants at that time. I really just kind of let it go and I don't worry so much about optimizing my calorie intake the few days after the race. I just try to sit back, give my body what it needs, and try to let it all soak in.

SPEAKER_00 30:22

That's amazing. Okay, what is your favorite running item? You will not go run without this item.

SPEAKER_02 30:27

Ooh. I have a belt that I love running with. It's a raid research two-liter belt that is so good because I don't really run with a vest on. It a lot of times sometimes you need to. And a hundred mile, you kind of need to wear a vest because you know the big bladder and everything. But I can get away with carrying a lot in that belt without having to have anything on my upper body to sometimes it just gets tight and I get claustrophobic in it. So that belt's really good. I can carry over a liter of water, I can carry all the food and snacks I need. I always have the liner shorts, and then I have the shorts that have the pockets on the top. They're kind of a belt themselves. So I'm always just full of storage options on a belt because I always carry a bunch of stuff and carry extra gels and everything that I need. So that that belt's been pretty good to me.

SPEAKER_00 31:14

That's amazing. Okay. I've not heard of that brand before. So that's that's pretty cool.

SPEAKER_02 31:18

Yeah, I think they just do belts, they just released a vest. I haven't tried, but the belt does well.

SPEAKER_00 31:23

All right, let's talk trail shoes. What do you like to run in?

SPEAKER_02 31:26

Norda is my favorite trail brand.

SPEAKER_00 31:29

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 31:30

They are a Canadian company, and the reason why I love their shoes, one, is they perform well, and two, they are so durable. I think I have a thousand miles on multiple pairs of Norda shoes that are completely fine. I feel it's a lifetime investment of buying a pair of those shoes because I trash them. I mean, I run all kinds of trails and run through the water crossings at races and all kinds of stuff, and they just hold up so well. They're just a great shoe. I think the price point is a bit higher, but the amount of miles that you can put on those shoes, it's completely worth it. I I love running in those. So in Leadville, I ran the first 37 miles in those shoes, and then I switched to on clouds. So the on cloud ultra pros, those are great trail shoots, too. I mean, those have the plate in them, which I think helps, especially at the beginning of races when you're still moving pretty quick. Those are great shoes. But I'd say those are the two brands that I'm wearing the most are Norda and On.

SPEAKER_00 32:25

Okay. Wow. You've already kind of mentioned a little bit how when you're out for your long runs, or let's say it's race day, how do you fuel? What does fueling look like to you? What do you carry with you?

SPEAKER_02 32:37

I used to just do gels when I first started because that's kind of what everyone was doing. And I feel especially in the road community, that's kind of the way it is. But after going to the ultras and seeing the A stations of what those people have, anything is fair game, but you can eat whatever you want, which I didn't really realize that you can just eat real food on a trail, but you can. You can have anything, which has opened my eyes greatly. And I bring candy a lot. Nerd's gummy clusters are probably my most common snacks. They're so good. I don't know what it is about them. They're high performance fuel for some reason. They're actual, I don't know what it is in those things, but those are great. So I'll eat those. Uncrustables are another thing that I really love to have. So I'll bring those on runs because they come in a single pack. You can just crush them. They get some protein and fats that you don't get in the gels or the candy. So those are good for the super long efforts. And then at the race, I really struggled to eat. What I ate the most of was I really wanted watermelon. And I'm a huge proponent of giving your body what it wants in those things. I feel like what your body is craving is what it needs. So I don't know what is in watermelon, but my body wanted it. So I was eating a bunch of watermelon and I was drinking a bunch of ramen broth. It was warm, and I didn't really want the heavy solids that other people were able to eat. I uh my stomach wasn't having it. So just ramen broth, a bunch of liquid calories, and some watermelon. So it's kind of all over the place, but I like to have options. Chocolate milk is another fantastic thing to have. I go through a half gallon every couple days, just drinking it pretty much every run. I have some chocolate milk. So yeah, I used to be a lot more strict with what I was eating during the runs, but your body's burning through it so fast. It's just whatever you can take down, I feel should go with.

SPEAKER_00 34:20

I appreciate that perspective that you just uh just listen to your body because it's telling you what it wants. That's a great perspective.

SPEAKER_02 34:26

Yeah, totally. I learned that over time for sure. That you know, you just kind of give it and just give it what it wants.

SPEAKER_00 34:31

Sean, do you listen to music when you run?

SPEAKER_02 34:34

No, I don't. The only time I listen to music when I run is when I'm on the treadmill. And the treadmill is I have a love hay with it. You can do a lot of good work on a treadmill that sometimes it's just hard to do outside on a trail, especially when I'm really focused on doing a lot of climbing. I'm doing a race in Utah next month that is it's so much vert. It's 12,000 feet of vert and 31 miles, so it's vertical. And finding trails out here that I can get a similar profile to is really difficult. So you can do it, but it's a lot of kind of hill repeat style stuff. And on a treadmill, it's really easy to dial in exactly what your inclines are going to be. So that is the one time I will go use a treadmill. Same thing with the Stairmaster. I love using the Stairmaster, but I'll use music on the indoor workouts. But anytime I'm outside, I really don't listen to music. I mean, it's pretty rare that I'll have headphones in. I just need to be out there and be with my own thoughts. I feel like that's the only time that I'm able to actually be alone and not, I'm not working, I'm not making videos or watching videos or doing anything down. I'm just kind of doing the work. So I really try not to.

SPEAKER_00 35:43

Yeah, okay. Let's shift a little bit to post-race and you're entering recovery. And you had mentioned earlier that you've been dealing with an injury. So, what does recovery look like for you? Do you have a favorite recovery tool?

SPEAKER_02 35:56

Yeah, so the recovery I've been doing, I guess you can call it recovery, but the bike has been a huge piece of my training lately. And I never used it before I got hurt. And I kind of started to use it as something I only use when I was hurt. I was just essentially doing it until I got back into running and I was able to. But I think going forward, it's going to be a big piece of my training because I'm just not able to put in the amount of volume that I think is necessary without risking injury. I'm injury prone and I've tried to figure out what's going on and how to get around it. But I've been focused a lot more on the lifting and strength training and, you know, trying to take tips from all the pro ultra runners and what they're doing and trying to get stuff from them to avoid it. But yeah, I mean, for recovery, I feel like most days I'm doing something. I'm doing some, I don't have a lot of full rest days. So I'm either in the gym, I'm doing, I mean, I use the massage guide, I use the foam roller, I use stuff like that. But I think really the recovery is resting and cross-training. That's kind of the big stuff for me. I mean, all the all the tools are great, but I think if you sleep right and eat right and strength train, that's 90% of the puzzle. And then the other stuff is just kind of, you know, it's helpful, but it's not really going to move the needle if you're not doing the big stuff.

SPEAKER_00 37:14

Oh, that's a great point. Let's say that somebody comes up to you and they're like, Sean, I want to get started in running. I've never ran before, or I want to get started in trails. I'm afraid of the trails. What is a piece of advice you would give to somebody to start running?

SPEAKER_02 37:28

Yeah. So if they were just trying to start running, I would say, don't worry about how fast you're going and don't worry about how far you're going. Because every single person starts somewhere. I mean, the pros ran their first mile at one point. It probably wasn't a very good mile, you know. It was they struggled and they were out of breath, and then now they're winning races. And it's the same thing for me. You know, I when I first started, I was a horrible runner. And then a couple of years later, I ran a hundred. And I think being able to just start and just getting out the door a lot of times is the hardest part. Still, sometimes that's the hardest part for me. I mean, I never regret it once I'm out there, but sometimes, even now, it's kind of hard to just get there, just get to the trail, just start doing it. If you can just do that, that's something I use for a lot of things, like cross-training, for example. I'm like, I really don't want to lift today, I don't want to work out. So I'm gonna go work out for 10 minutes. I'm gonna drive the gym and I'm gonna do a 10-minute workout. It never ends up actually being that. I end up working out because once I get in the groove, I'm fine. I'm able to move. But I'm like, I can work out for 10 minutes, I can do it. So if you want to go, just say I'm gonna go run for five minutes. Literally a half mile run. I'm gonna run for five minutes and start there and then just keep progressing. Don't worry so much about how fast you're going. Just listen to your body and just start. I think that's what so many people get caught up in in so many things, is thinking you need the perfect pair of shoes and the perfect training program, and you need the exact right road to run on. And it's just go outside and just start running, and everything else will fall into place eventually. I've been running for four years now, and I learned something all the time on my runs that I didn't know before. I'm still learning. It's not something you ever actually figure out. You just have to start doing it. And that's when once you take the action, then the knowledge will come later. But if you never start, then you can read as many books as you want about running. It's not gonna make you a better runner until you start running. So it's taking in all the knowledge and the content. It's great, it's helpful. If you don't actually do it, then it's the action is the most important thing. It's gotta be the first step.

SPEAKER_00 39:26

That's good. That's so good. Let's talk about what your goals look like. What are we looking at now?

SPEAKER_02 39:33

I really like ultralunning. And I think it's something that over time I can get good at. I've said it before, and I've only done a couple of the longer runs now. But just based on what I know about myself and what my strengths and weaknesses are, I think that if I'm gonna want to be in the competitive in any of the distances, it's gonna be a longer distance. It's I'm never gonna win a marathon, let's put it that way. It's just not gonna happen. I'm it's not gonna get that fast. It's not really, it's it's just not in the cards for me. But I think I can get good at the at the ultra running, which is really cool and it's exciting. So I think that just being able to improve at that and actually because it's kind of when I ran my first marathon where I had no idea what I was doing, but then I did it and I'm like, okay, I could do this. And now I'm I did a 100. I'm like, okay, now I've I've seen it and I know that I can do it. So now let's try to style this in and get good, figure out where I can improve here and make it more enjoyable for myself and try to get faster while I'm at it. So I think that continuing down the ultra path is gonna be where I'm going. I've only done a hundred so far. I'll be pacing the Moab 240 in October this year. So that's gonna be really exciting for me because I'll be able to see what that's like and can't imagine what those people go through. It sounds insane, but I think once I see it and it'll be a good intro to that type of distance where I'm doing the long multi-day, just crazy long distances. And I think those could be really fun for me. I think in the next couple of years, I'll probably try to dive into something like that and just continue to enjoy it while I'm at it. You know, the the moment I stop enjoying running, I've I've lost sight of why I'm out there. So I've just whatever I feel like doing at the time, I think that's what I'm gonna try to go for. I'm not planning on becoming a professional runner. I'm just here to enjoy myself and hopefully help some other people appreciate it while they're out there soon.

SPEAKER_00 41:16

Again, just another great perspective. I really appreciate that. Sean, do you have a mantra? Is there something that you tell yourself when you want to give up? I mean, you you mentioned just get out there for five minutes or 10 minutes or whatever it is, but let's say you're knee deep into this and you're like, there's no turning back now. I gotta keep going. What do you tell yourself?

SPEAKER_02 41:33

Take the stairs. Gotta take the stairs. That is something I lean on a lot. It's my Instagram handle and I had it tattooed on my body, and it's something I think about all the time. And what it means to me is choosing to do the hard thing now while you can. And it will make when those times come where you don't have a choice, it's essentially chosen versus unchosen suffering. So if you have all of these times where you can choose to go out and when you don't want to work out and you don't want to finish the race, but you choose to do it every time, that makes you better and better and better at when the hard times come that you don't choose, you are better equipped to handle those moments. So every time you can do something that's difficult that you have to push through, I just think you're making yourself stronger. And every time, if you take the stairs now, I'm I'm 26. If I am not doing anything hard and I don't take the stairs, then I won't be able to later on. I'm not even gonna have that option. So the longer I can take the stairs now and do it, I'll be able to do it forever. I'll be, and I mean that literally with stairs and figuratively with doing all the hard stuff, it just extends my timeline of how long I can do these difficult things. So knowing that I'm choosing to be out there and I'm choosing to do the hard thing now and just improve and get better, it'll just make me better equipped for when hard stuff comes because it will. There's suffering happens and hard things happen to everyone, and it always looks different, but it is guaranteed to happen to you at some point. Things will get hard. So being able to prepare yourself for that by doing hard stuff today is something that I know I'm out there for a good reason and I know why I'm out there. So tell myself that I just got to take the stairs. It's tattooed right on my forearm. So anytime I'm ready to give up or ready to quit, I'm like, figure it out, just do it, and you'll be happy for it later on. No one ever regrets taking the stairs.

SPEAKER_00 43:22

Again, another great perspective. That was amazing. Wow, thank you for sharing that.

SPEAKER_03 43:27

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 43:28

What is your favorite length to run? Do you have a favorite mileage? Whether it's a training day. I mean, we we know you like the ultras, but do you have that like, ooh, I get to go run this today?

SPEAKER_02 43:39

I'll tell you the hardest distance that I think is I think the half marathon is so hard. The distance of the intensity that you have to run to raise a half marathon is so hard. So I think if I have to raise a half marathon, that's probably my I'm the least excited about that. It's I know it's just gonna be so tough. It's a 13 mile sprint, it feels like. So that is super difficult. And I would say my favorite is in that 25 range of the long run where I'm just trying to get a bunch of vert. I'm just trying to climb four different mountains that day. And I don't care how long it takes me. I'm just gonna go out there and really the full day. I love Friday night. You get home from work and I start laying out all my stuff. I have three uncrustables, I have all the gels on the ground, my belts fully packed, and I've got all the clothes ready. And I know I'm gonna wake up at four o'clock and drive to the drive to the trailhead. And I'm just gonna be out there all day. It's really exciting to know I just have this huge adventure coming up, and it's that's probably my favorite. The weekend long runs where I'm not, there's no race pace, there's no pace goal at all. It's just I'm gonna go out, I'm gonna be there for a while, and then I'm gonna, you know, come home and just try to recover over the next few hours. But yeah, I would say the the long runs are definitely my favorite distance. The short ones, high intensity, that's just not what I love.

SPEAKER_00 44:58

I love because you know, just listening to you, I'm like, you know, at one time, and it goes back to what you said earlier that everyone had to start somewhere. So at one time 13 miles for you was a long run, and now you just called it a short run. I love that.

SPEAKER_02 45:14

Yeah, sorry. I I didn't mean to say that.

SPEAKER_00 45:17

No, it was awesome for that so much.

SPEAKER_02 45:19

Yeah, but it changes for sure. It changes over time as you run different distances. But yeah, I mean, all the runs, that's you know, something I've I've talked about on my page before and I've gotten some slack for was talking about how every distance is hard and every race distance is is really hard. There's no now that I've run a hundred miles, that doesn't make a half marathon like some easy distance. Like it's really, really hard. Anytime you are trying to peak and run at a high intensity, it's really difficult. An all-out mile is really, really hard. Anyone who's done an all-out mile knows that that's a really challenging distance to run. So they're all you can choose to make any distance is easier or as hard as you want. Obviously, the longer you go, you know, it might get a little bit harder over time because you're dealing with different things, having to fuel for a whole day and things like that. But I mean, I just don't want to get people to get the wrong idea that that stuff's easy for me now. Because I mean one of the hardest runs, that Tokyo marathon I just ran was extremely difficult. I mean, I truly hit the wall, I just out of breath, my legs lost everything. It's hard to run any of the distances. So I think people look at ultra guys and or girls and just oh, they've just people make jokes of me, they're like, oh, what are you going out for an easy run, you know, doing a marathon or something? Like, no, that's a really tough day, like for anyone. You know, it's not, it doesn't really get easier. So that's you know, something I try to talk about and help people understand.

SPEAKER_00 46:41

Absolutely. And it goes back to everyone's in a different, a different chapter with running. So and again, also depending on where you live, depends on here in the south, we're all throwing out paces. We're like, we're not worried about this right now, we're just trying to not dehydrate, you know, we're just it it's hard. It's hard to get out there and run, and then you're like, Oh, I have to go run in this. So I appreciate you saying that, but I love hearing people's stories for that very reason because now you're looking back, and that is your easy your mileage, you know, you're like, Well, that's a short mileage for me because comparatively math, you know, 18 to 25 is a lot longer than 13. So that's amazing, amazing. Sean, when you're not running, what do you like to do? What fuels your soul?

SPEAKER_02 47:22

I spend a lot of time now, honestly, on I just started my Instagram page to take the snares page in September, and it takes up way more time than I thought it was going to originally. I spent a lot of time making the content, which has been really fun because I feel like I'm actually able to tell a story and help some people out, and it's cool to use all the experiences that I've gone through to be able to try to help people because I have a hundred people that I look to when I have a question about something. So it's cool to try to be a resource like that and use what I've learned over time, and all the experiences are personal, but there's a lot of truths in running that just are are able to be told well with a story. So I spent a lot of time doing that. Yeah, I think really it comes down to being outside. That's really what I love to do. And it doesn't have to be running. I bike a lot, I'm in a basketball league, I love moving and hiking and camping. Really anything that I'm outdoors doing, I feel good about. So I live in a great place. Live in Southern California where I'm in Malibu right now and it's 78 degrees and sunny. And I just always love being outside. I feel guilty if I'm not. I just want to be out there and enjoy it. And and I feel like a lot of my best memories are when I'm outside and when I'm doing something hard. So I try to do that as much as I can.

SPEAKER_00 48:35

That's amazing. Sean, this has been so much fun, and we cannot wait to see what else you take on. As we conclude here, do you have any final words of wisdom for everybody?

SPEAKER_02 48:45

First, take the stairs whenever you can. Remember that to do it when you can. And then more importantly, I think what I have figured out my messages that I can actually pass along well is appreciating movement and that it is a blessing to move. So wherever you are in your journey of movement and running and whatever you have to do, of physical activity, whatever level you're at, it is a blessing to be there, and it can be taken away from you at any time, which is really crazy to think about. But it happened to me once, and now that I've been through that, it's given me the perspective of being able to understand that it can go away. So any day that I can move and I'm able to, I'm going to. So just understanding that it's a blessing and that it's exciting to be out there, and even when it's really hard, it's still a blessing. It's still exciting to be out there. It's a blessing to do hard things. It's a privilege to be able to try to take on those big goals that you set for yourself. So, really, whenever stuff gets hard, just remember that you're lucky to be out of breath and you're lucky that your lungs are struggling and that your legs hurt. That's a good feeling. It's just a good thing that you can be out there doing that. And it's really exciting. So, trying to frame your perspective in that way, I think it's been really powerful for me. And I think that I've got a good angle on that, and I'm able to tell that story well. So that would be my main takeaway.

SPEAKER_00 50:02

Sean, thank you so much. And uh, and we really appreciate you sharing your story and reminding us to take the stairs.

SPEAKER_02 50:09

Yeah, of course. Thanks, Allison. This was fun.

SPEAKER_00 50:20

Take the stairs. Running is chosen suffering, and it prepares us for those unchosen moments where we have to suffer and just run when you can. So good. Sean Casey, you are absolutely amazing. I'm so incredibly thankful for you. I'm thankful for your story. I know it was hard. I know it was not an easy story to share, but what an inspiration you are. And just the reminder that you told us is just to get out the door. Just go and do it. My friend, you are amazing. I cannot wait to see what else you accomplished. I'm so excited for you and so excited to see you take on big things because you are such a just a big personality, and I'm such a huge fan now. So thank you, Sean, for your story. Guys, if you're not following him on social media, please follow him. Sean is an absolute gem. You guys are gonna love him. He puts out all kinds of content. He's just an all-around genuine guy. So definitely go and give him a follow. Sean, we wish you the very best in all that you do, and we'll be cheering for you. Speaking of cheering, that's what's gonna happen with our friends at Rocket City Marathon. Congratulations on our 50th anniversary. We are so excited to be able to celebrate with him in December. You're gonna get all the cheering because it's gonna be a party. So we are very, very excited. Make sure to come and join. Come check out me and my friends at Podcast Alley. We are stoked about this. Amen. You should see our group chat. It's fantastic. And all the other podcast hosts, they do such a great job, and we're very, very excited about this partnership. So, Rocket City Marathon, make sure you sign up. We are beyond excited about this race. And we thank Rocket City Marathon for believing this podcast, believing in run stories, and doing big things for the rank meeting. We really truly appreciate you guys. Speaking of doing big things, Gileard Tech Services has taken our website to a whole nother level. Guys, if you've not checked it out, highly encourage you to check it out. It's so much fun. I'm loving the website. Also have some big news coming, and we cannot wait to share with you guys once everything is official with it. So it's gonna be so much fun. And again, Gileard Tech Services, I get all the credit for that. Because I just had the idea. We brainstormed, we sat down with a session, we kind of talked about all the things that we wanted, and here we are. So cannot wait to share with you guys the big news for that. We are pumped about it. So thank you to Gilead Tech Services. Guys, if you need a website updated, if you need one created, he understands the space and the wide world of websites, and so he will definitely get you going. He knows how important your story is to be told online, and that first impressions are everything. So give him a shout out. Say, hey man, we want to meet up for consult. He would love to have you, he'd love to chat with you. And that is Gilead Tech Services. He believes in the running community, he believes in what we do at Runner Story, and we're incredibly grateful for him. Thank you to our Patreon family members. We love you, we adore you. We just got another one added, which is so exciting. It's gonna be so much fun. And we are just beyond excited that we have people that believe in this podcast so much that they support us financially. Like that's just a dream. And we are where we are because of these people who have been with us. Some have been with us since day one. And it doesn't matter when you join us, it's a hoist. Like, I can't believe this when I get that email that someone joined our Patreon family. Like it is amazing, and we're just incredibly thankful for that and super excited about it. So thank you to our Patreon family members. We love you, we adore you, we're incredibly thankful for you. I'm thankful for our team of Run Your Story, Dave McDonald, who blogs and reviews, does all the incredible things. Guys, if you're not following him on social media, please do. Dave McDonald is absolutely amazing at what he does. And then our booking team, Scott and Stefan, we really appreciate you. Thank you for all that you do. You guys are golden. So appreciate you guys loving so very much. And thank you to everybody who listens. Thank you for liking, sharing, and commenting. Thank you for letting us know that these stories matter to you. It keeps us inspired, it keeps us going. And we're incredibly grateful for that. So with that being said, guys, go run your story because every story needs to be heard.