Running on Empty by Marshall Ulrich – Book Review
An Ultramarathoner’s Story of Love, Loss, and a Record-Setting Run Across America
Foreword by Christopher McDougall, author of Born to Run
Running on Empty is the amazing story of Marshall Ulrich, his life as an ultrarunner and adventurer and his trials and tribulations in running across the country, he was attempting to break the world record for the fastest transcontinental crossing. I read Born to Run a couple of months ago and learn about ultra running (and of course, barefoot running). One of the most well-known ultra runner that I learned from the book is Scott Jurek and now, I can add another name to that list with Marshall Ulrich. The book is very well written that’s a biography and adventure novel combined. After reading Running on Empty, you may not be inspired to try to run across America, but it may inspire you to run harder than before or do things you never thought was possible. And if that doesn’t happen, then at least you’ll be entertained throughout.
There are various things that can motivate a person to run. Sometimes they’re born with it, but more often than not, it’s an external factor that causes people to run. Marshall Ulrich endured many struggles throughout his life, the most significant is probably the death of his first wife (which was when he had started running), followed by two failed marriages and others. But running seemed to keep him sane and although running itself is pretty painful, the sense of accomplishment from completing a race definitely outweighs the drawbacks. In fact, in the 30 years of running, Ulrich ran over 100 foot races averaging over 100 miles each as well as mountain climbing and many other adventures. From 2002 and 2005, he summited the highest peak on each of the world’s seven continents all on the first try. One amazing story from Running on Empty is when Marshall Ulrich completed the Pikes Peak Marathon (a tough feat in itself), but instead of cooling down and/or recovering from the race, Ulrich heading to the Leadville Trail 100 that same weekend! The Leadville Trail 100 is a very tough ultra, which I learned about in Born to Run. Unfortunately, this will NOT be what Marshall Ulrich will be known for…
On September 13, 2008, Marshall Ulrich began a run in San Francisco’s City Hall and 52.5 days later he ended up in Ney York. Ulrich completed a record setting 3,000+ mile race across America at the age of 57. He averaged two marathons and a 10K PER DAY for 52.5 days. “Completing the mind-bending and body-breaking equivalent of 117 back-to-back marathons, Marshall ran an average of more than 400 miles a week, gained 84,430 feet in elevation, dealt with temps ranging from below freezing to the upper 90s, and crossed 12 states.” He wore out 30 pairs of shoes, that’s more running shoes that I have ever owned! I ran my first marathon in June of last year and it was one of the most painful races I have ever ran. About 9 months later, I decided to run the LA marathon with my cousin (more for moral support), and had to endure strong winds and pouring rain. I wanted to stop on more than one occasion, but never gave up. Upon crossing that finish line, I felt a surge of emotions come out, it was the most gratifying feeling ever. I’m telling this just to compare how running 26.2 miles, I can’t even imagine how Ulrich felt after running over 3,000 miles.
Runing on Empty is a great read, and is broken down along his run across the country. The appendix also has some interesting facts including Ulrich’s training plan, nutrition during the run (yes, he ate his meals during the run!), and what gear and equipment he used during. The good thing about the race is that he was never alone, he always had a core of support crew with him. His wife, Heather was literally with him every step of the way, which is such an awesome thing to be able to say. But for Ulrich, I’m sure that is one of the things that kept him going. I cannot even imagine what was going through his head during those tough times when his body was just telling him to quit.
The phrase, ‘mind over matter‘ is definitely easier said than done. All runners go through this probably on a daily basis. It’s cold outside and you don’t feel like getting out of bed in the morning, or maybe you had to work late and you’re too tired to go for a run that evening. You tell yourself that you’ll just make up the run the next day. And even if you do make that effort to actually run, your mind will do whatever it takes to convince you to stop. You’re tired, your body is tired, your brain is going to make you think that you shouldn’t keep going. So what happens, you go through this ‘negotiating’ process. You say, ‘oh I don’t need to run that 10 miles today, I’ll just do 9’ then later you think, ‘maybe I’ll just do 8 today and a couple more tomorrow to make up for it’. Everyone needs to have a reason to get up and go out for that run or not back out on what you actually planned to do. It’s that motivation that keeps us moving and after reading Running on Empty, I know that Marshall Ulrich has found that motivation to do anything he puts his mind to. Not many can say that they ran across the country, and that fact will not change any time soon (or ever).
Learn more about Running on Empty at Marshall Ulrich’s site or buy online below:
