Australian runner John Mouland had to regain athleticism, then push toward a BQ. He credits his public commitments, and challenges readers to present theirs.
John Mouland saw his athleticism fade away, a startling contrast to the youthful, fit rugby player he had been for 30 years in Australia.
His story was the same for many males approaching middle age — with attention focused on family and work, he picked up unhealthy habits and faced the battle of the bulge.
“My 40th birthday resulted in a reality check, when I took a long hard look at myself in the mirror one morning, which resulted in me making a commitment to myself to find a diet that would work for me and to get my fat ass back into the gym,” Mouland said. “My immediate goal was to lose some weight, which would allow me to live a long and healthy life and to become a good role model for my two young boys.”
It worked: Mouland dropped 44 pounds over the next couple of years, thanks to weight training and diet. Needing a new challenge, he tried running.
John Mouland – Rugby to Running Marathons worldwide
First up for Mouland was the inaugural Warrior Dash obstacle race in 2012. “Although I was strong and physically fit at the time, this 5K obstacle race almost killed me,” he said. “I struggled to keep up with my wife, Karen, and I knew that it was time to dramatically improve my cardiovascular fitness and to become a more
competent runner.”
The new athlete of the family
For the next year, Mouland focused on running, training, diet and injury prevention. He and his wife ran their first 14K City to Surf fun run in Sydney in August 2012 and then their first half marathon a few months later.
“Although these races were still tough going, Karen and I were finally starting to
understand why people claimed to be addicted to the sport of running,” he said. “To be completely honest though, during this period my major motivation was to keep
up with my wife, as she was quickly become the new ‘athlete’ of the family and fast
becoming a very competent runner.”
Due to his rugby-playing days, Mouland had always been seen as the athlete by friends and family members. Now his new sport was challenging him.
“Distance running should have been a simple transition for me as I had been doing it for the majority of my life on a rugby field, but the reality was very different,” he said. “Running was usually related to a punishment during my rugby career. The coach sent you for laps around the field if you mucked up or made a mistake at a training session and the only ‘long run’ we ever done was usually a group training run of a mile or two that everyone always dreaded. So mentally running was a struggle for me right from the beginning and in the early days it felt more like a process to fitness and weight loss than an enjoyable way to relax and get fit.”
Injuries played a part, too. “I endured multiple calf tears and foot injuries during the first 12 months of running, which made me question on many occasions, whether running was the right sport for me. Luckily my metal toughness kept me moving towards my goal, I continued to enjoy the ongoing support of my wife and as a person that enjoys research, I sought out solutions that would allow me to achieve my running, fitness and weight loss goals.”
Embracing an epic adventure
His transformation continued and in early 2013, Mouland achieved his first real running goal of a sub 1:45 half marathon. “This was the first race where I felt really strong and in control of my running and it provided me with a great confidence boost that eventually led to me setting the challenging (and at that time, very daunting) goal of running a full marathon.”
In May 2013, he added “marathoner” to his titles when he crossed the finish line at the Barossa Valley Marathon in South Australia. “It is fair to say that the lead up, actual race day and the aftermath of my first marathon was an epic adventure. It was during the race that I realized that I wanted to create a website and blog to share the experiences that I was fortunate enough to be having.”
Mouland “also realized that marathon running was quickly becoming a lifestyle driver for my wife and I and was directly impacting (in a positive way) on our diet, health, well being, social life and travel plans.”
He didn’t stop with the Barossa Valley marathon. In fact, he did two more marathons in the next 90 days, qualifying him to be a Marathon Maniac. “I was loving the opportunity to compete in these iconic Australian marathons as they truly were ‘destination races, where my wife and I would travel for a long weekend to enjoy all the hospitality that these cities had to offer. Being a marathoner was obviously addictive, and at that point I realized that there was no turning back.”
Focused on Boston
No turning back, indeed. Mouland set a goal to qualify for the Boston Marathon. For him, the time to get was 3 hours, 25 minutes. At the Sydney Marathon, he missed the BQ time by just under 3 minutes but “was really happy to break the 3 1/2 hour mark and set a new 3:27 marathon PB.”
In January 2014, the Mouland family went to Disney World. As part of the trip, John competed in the Dopey Challenge during 2014 Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend. “This was the ultimate running vacation and although the back-to-back-to-back-to-back races in Florida were definitely a challenge, it was great preparation for the ultra marathon race events that I had decided to run later that year.”
But it was not just any ultra marathon.
“To make things even more interesting, my first ultra distance race (and my first trail running event) was the notorious Six Foot Track Marathon between Katoomba and Jenolan Caves in the Blue Mountains region of New South Wales,” Mouland recalled. “Known as Australia’s toughest trail marathon with a total ascent of 3,688 foot, this six-hour race really kicked my ass big time and for the first time in my running career, it made me take a big step back to reassess my training, diet and overall fitness goals.”
He focused the remainder of 2014 on building an endurance base, developing more speed and on fulfilling the dream of qualifying for the Boston Marathon. One week prior to the closing of the qualifying period, Mouland qualified for the 2015 Boston
Marathon at the Sunshine Coast Marathon in Queensland.
“It is fair to say that I was pretty rapped in achieving my goal and it was a fantastic
feeling to know that the dedication, diet and all that training had finally paid off with
a new marathon PB of 3:12,” said Mouland, who finished 2014 with 18 races — two ultras, four marathons, five half marathons, a 14K race, two 10Ks, one 5K, one obstacle race and two half Ironman triathlon events.
8 days, 35 hours of flying, 2 marathons
Mouland admits his lead-up to the Boston Marathon was less than perfect. “Due to work commitments and a few minor health issues leading up to Boston my training was substantially impacted,” he said. “In addition, prior to running my BQ, Karen and I had won a lottery for entry into the Paris Marathon in France and we had booked a 10-day vacation in Paris to allow us to compete in the marathon.”
The 2015 Paris Marathon was scheduled eight days prior to the Boston Marathon. “I was under no illusion that with my less than stellar preparation, running two marathons in eight days with 35 hours of flying thrown into the mix, there would be no PB at Boston.”
So Mouland went into the Paris-Boston combo just wanting to enjoy the races. No time goals whatsoever. “In hindsight this was the right decision. Our vacation in France and running the Paris Marathon was an amazing experience and we definitely made the most of our time, touring, eating and drinking our way through the magnificent sites of Paris.”
“By the time I arrived in Boston, I was feeling great, very relaxed and most likely five
pounds heavier. I arrived late on the Friday night and ran the BAA 5k the next morning, which was a great way to stretch out the legs and to explore Boston from a runner’s perspective.”
He remembers how wonderful it was to be in Boston, wearing his
Boston Marathon jacket, and having strangers come up and congratulate him. The weather conditions for the race — especially for a guy from Australia that had been
preparing for this race in the hot and humid Australian summer — were less than perfect.
“I will never forget the feeling of running this historic course and hearing the never-ending screams of support and encouragement from the tens of thousands of passionate Bostonians that lined the entire 26 miles of the course, despite the cold, rain and strong winds,” he said. “Although there were no PBs or BQs at the end of this race, crossing the Boston finish line was one of the proudest moments of my life as I knew I had achieved a significant goal that a few years ago seemed to be an unachievable dream.”
A public commitment and challenge
So, what’s next for Mouland? He has a full race schedule planned.
“I largely credit my transformation and running success to making public commitments about my goals,” he says. “I have always been driven by having a chronic fear of failure and these public commitments have kept me honest and very focused on achieving my goals.
“I recommend that at least once a year that everyone should commit publicly to achieving at least one goal that takes him or her way out of their comfort zone. That may be to run their first marathon, or to achieve a BQ or to lose 20 pounds. The mind is such a valuable tool and by making these public commitments and encouraging your friends and family to keep you honest, it is amazing how the mind will find a way to guide you to success.
Mouland is one who leads by example.
“To put my money where my mouth is, I will commit to the MTA Community in this article that I will run and finish my first 100K race in 2015. Although this goal scares the hell out of me, I am sure that this ‘VERY’ public commitment combined with my wife’s, family, friends, Angie, Trevor and the entire MTA team’s support, will help me to find the way to a successful 100K finish.”
Mouland encourages “the rest of the MTA community to also make a public running or fitness or weight loss commitment and to post that goal at the end of this article.”
Also on his to-do list: the Gold Coast Marathon, Perth City to Surf Marathon, Western Sydney Marathon and The Melbourne Marathon. Mouland is also planning to do and review a number of half, full and ultra marathon races that are being established by a new running event company in Australia. He also wants to return to the States to run the Chicago Marathon during October and to Florida in January to compete again in the second Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend Dopey Challenge.
And, in his “down time,” Mouland hopes to compete in obstacle racing events and will continue to train with the local triathlon club for the half and full Ironman triathlon races.
A partner in life, at the gym and at the track
It wasn’t always like this for Mouland. Four years and 44 pounds ago, he wasn’t able to achieve such running quests.
“Working as a CEO in a demanding environment, being married and having two kids
makes it really easy to lose focus on your personal health and fitness,” he says. “There are only 24 hours in a day and balancing work and family needs can be tough and I have learned the hard way that it is very easy to quickly put on a lot of weight and to lose substantial amounts of fitness.”
John gives his wife Karen a great deal of credit for his running journey.
“As my wife and I are both runners, it has also transformed the way we travel and spend time together,” he says. “We now plan our long weekends and vacations around our races and we are now well on our way of running marathons in each continent of the world.
“Running has also allowed us to become part of the global running community and it
has been wonderful to meet like minded people from all round the globe both at races and online through wonderful runner centric websites such as the Marathon Training Academy and Australian Marathon Reviews.”
Mouland enjoys meeting other runners. But the runner who inspires him is the one he wakes up next to. “Without Karen I would have not started this journey into distance running and without her ongoing support, I would not have enjoyed the success and rewards that the sport has provided.”
Speed drill
Hometown: Sydney, Australia
Number of years running: Three
How many miles a week do you typically run: 30
Point of pride: Being a great role model for my family and friends and of course my
3:12 Marathon BQ
Favorite race distance: Marathon
Favorite pre-race or training food/drink: N/A I prefer to run in a fasted state but post race my favorite meal is a big plate of BBQ ribs a ice cold beer
Favorite or inspirational song to run to: Morgan Page’s – The Longest Road
Favorite or inspirational mantra/phrase: Just get yourself to the next lamp post.
Where can other runners connect or follow you: I am the editor of Australia’s largest marathon website Australian Marathon Reviews, which can be found at www.australianmarathonreviews.com
You can follow my marathon adventures on Facebook at www.facebook.com/AustralianMarathonReviews and on our Twitter feed at www.twitter.com/AusMarathons
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