Friday, February 8, 2008

Carey Smith - Running Toward the Future


There are many stories about how people take up running or exercise, and transform their lives. Some even become ultrarunners. One extraordinary example is Carey Smith, who blogs at "Going the Distance!". He describes his recent past best himself:

In 1998, at the age of 24, I was 6 feet tall, weighed 230 lbs and was approaching a 40 inch waist. I knew that I needed to make some changes before my weight and health spiraled out of control. I lost about 35 lbs in 6 months due to following a strict diet and exercise routine. Throughout my 20's I maintained my weight but continued to lead an extremely unhealthy lifestyle. In September, 2005, I kicked many of my self-destructive habits and promptly signed up for the Memphis Marathon which I ran on December 3, 2005. Since then I have run 10 Marathons, 14 Ultra-Marathons and weigh in at 170 lbs.

What also makes Carey truly admirable is that he co-owns a program, created by co-owner Brad Holzworth, who finished his first 100 mile event at Rocky Raccoon, to help others realize the positive benefits running can have on your life. They call it Running 4 Recovery.

Here's a cool interview with Carey on Endurance Planet.

I've read his sites for awhile, and exchanged a few emails with Carey. He's a wonderful addition to our sport, an inspiring and positive influence on many others, and a great guy. Some day I hope to share a few miles of trail with him.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Wow - thanks for posting about Carey! What an accomplishment - he is an inspiration!

Sarah

Carey said...

Sam,
Thanks for the post and the kind words; that's a lot to live up to! One minor correction; Brad Holzworth is the founder of Running4Recovery so the credit definitely goes to him. I joined him as a co-owner last August and since then have been working to get the word out about the benefits of the program. I'm really looking forward to hitting the trails with you someday soon; although you might be a bit too fast for me :-)
Hope your recovery from HURT is going well!
Carey