Hearing your stories: Chanse Carlson

'I've learned that running is so personal, it doesn't matter what others think... now I try to enjoy each step, each breath, each tree, each person, each thought.'

Morning, friends! ☀️

You may remember a few weeks ago, when I put out a call to share your stories about how you became a runner and where running has taken you. We’ve heard from Rosalie Chan, Erinn Connor, Ken Morrison and Colleen McBride, and now it’s time to hear from another longtime THM reader, Chanse Carlson.

I’m (still!) loving reading each and every one of your stories, and I’ll be sharing more of them soon. Some will be in written format like this, while others will be in audio/video. So, stay tuned!

If you feel inspired after listening to/reading Chanse’s story, please don’t hesitate to reach out — I’d love to hear from you too! All you need to is reply back to me by email or in the comments below, and we’ll go from there. — Terrell

So, let’s hear a little bit about you! Who are you, your age (if you’d like to share), where you’re from, what you do, etc.

Chanse Carlson, age 53. I’m a lifelong Utah resident except for a two-year church mission in Texas and study abroad in Mexico. Father of four daughters; oldest is married with a son, Mack. Career in various customer service roles, currently seeking new opportunities. Host of "Mixtape Generation," a YouTube show celebrating eighties culture.

What does your running routine look like? How many times a week, and how far do you run?

I like to run four times a week and go about 25 miles a week.

Courtesy Chanse Carlson

Were you an athletic kid growing up? What are your early memories of what fitness and health were about?

I developed a passion for sports early in life, with basketball as my first love, loved March madness in the eighties, followed by swimming. My religious upbringing, which emphasizes abstaining from alcohol and tobacco, taught me the importance of health. My mother courageously battled and overcame breast cancer—which encouraged me to take my health more seriously.

How did you first get into running? Was there something that inspired you — like a performance at the Olympics, for example, or a runner you discovered by watching them on social media or TV? Or was there someone in your own life who inspired you to think, “maybe I can do this?”

I would run in the summers after swimming during my high school years, I loved being outside on a warm day. In my mid-twenties, I did my first triathlon and my love for running began.

How has your interest in running evolved since then? Do you run farther, or faster now?

My running journey took a hit when I had a grand mal seizure in my thirties. The stress of life [and the] lack of oxygen to the brain caused it. But I still loved to run, I spent months searching for an alternative and found Jeff Galloway's run-walk-run method, which resurrected my running. I don't run faster now, but I run farther.

What do you balance your running with? Do you have a family to take care of? Kids, parents or other relatives or loved ones? If so, how do you balance all of it and still make time to run/care for yourself?

I am happier when I run in the morning and my family knows it. One day in the winter months, my wife came in and said, “you are depressed, go on a run.” I try to run first thing to start my day.

Is there anything you’re especially proud of that you can point to your running and say, “this helped me achieve ______”?

I do public speaking with youth groups, church services, sports teams, etc., and running has helped clear my mind and then gives me ideas of what and how to speak. I prepare [for my speaking events] on my runs.

What have you learned about yourself from your running journey? Is there anything that’s changed about you since you started?

I have learned that running is so personal, it doesn't matter what others think about my running times, style, gear, etc. [In the past,] I would get upset with runners passing me or I would go a slow mile time. Now I try to enjoy each step, each breath, each tree, each person, each thought, because that time running is special to me. I read an article (can't find it) on pace shaming that changed my perspective and the slower I go the further and more enjoyable it can be.

Note from Terrell: This article on pace shaming might be one Chanse is thinking about.

Courtesy Chanse Carlson

Where would you like to go with your running? Is there anything special you’d like to achieve — like, say, running all six World Marathon Majors, or running an ultra?

I would love to put on a running event, with a variety of music, dance stops, garbage clean-up, and of course amazing food along the way. And if I can help anyone get over some depression or heartache by encouraging them to run, guide them, run with them, that is a dream as well.

What keeps you going? Especially if you’ve been running for a while — do you ever get bored with it? How do you find new things to motivate you, to keep you going?

When I see the temperature is below 40 degrees, I stall and try to talk myself out of going on a run, but I know that it is so good for me mentally to get outside, turn on the music and go. I am closer to my higher power, closer to my authentic self when I run — that is why I keep running.

Look back at yourself when you were a kid, maybe say 10 years old. Remember how you felt, what you thought, especially what you thought you were capable of back then. If you could talk to that kid now, what would you say?

It is 1982, I would tell 10-year-old Chanse to go for all those crazy dreams and don't try to please everyone do what you want to do which are those crazy cool dreams.