David Harbour: A lot of my runs are half walking those are worthy of celebration
David Harbour is the face of Brooks Running’s Its Your Run Campaign. Brooks is just an athletic apparel company, but I dig this campaign because the idea is that whatever you define as your run routine – do it. That part really speaks to me and apparently it does David as well. David is in a weird branding place right now. His star rose while he had a schlubby dad bod and he promoted the idea of adorable over cut. Then he got cut and now he’s still trying to promote the idea that he loves big bodies and fit bodies. To be fair, he pulls it off. And things like this campaign and his interview about his fitness journey about why he started running help. David said he began a proper running routine not to lose weight but because in his 40s he found himself unable to sprint across the street to avoid traffic. When he realized how far his mobility had declined, he made changes. Now he tries to do something physical every day. But it’s not always intense workouts and high-impact cardio. And David said those in-between efforts need just as much shine. For example, David says his own runs are really half-walking, but he feels they should be celebrated too. I agree.
When he realized he needed to change: There was a moment where I was crossing the street in New York and there was a car coming and I thought, ‘Oh, I gotta sprint a little bit across the street,’ and I just couldn’t sprint. And I was like, ‘Oh I guess that’s gone. I guess I’ll just never sort of run across the street.’ I mean at this point I was like 270 lbs. and my knees were kind of shot. And I just sort of thought that that’s the way life was, that was the trajectory of your body.
On dropping 80 pounds for Stranger Things: It opened up a whole new world, [I’m] a lot more pliable and a lot more teachable, even in my mid 40s, than I ever imagined it could be. And it felt like a rebirth. It was really refreshing and really exciting to feel like after months of training like, Oh now I can just sprint across the street if a car comes. Just simple little things like that that were really exciting for me.
His non-work exercise routine: When I’m not training specifically for something, exercise in general can be much more playful, doesn’t have to be as grindy or as serious or as right-and-wrong as some of the experts will tell you. But then of course when I’m doing too much of that I long for that expertise and the intensity. So it’s a bit of the grass is always greener.
How he runs: I really started [running] a lot more during the pandemic because I was so stressed out, especially going back to work. I had a lot of anxiety and I went to a PT who told me, ‘Look, all you gotta do is run for 45 minutes to an hour, really slowly, and your breathing and your heart rate will level out. I did that for a couple weeks and after about the second week, I noticed a huge difference mentally and in my anxiety. It all sort of melted away. So it really is more about anxiety than cardio for me, although there are cardio benefits. It really is a mental, spiritual gain.
I really liked that because, you know, a lot of my runs are half walking. So according to them, those are worthy of celebration. To have a campaign that really fit me and my style of how I approach running, I just thought that was a very sort of welcoming, nice way to look at fitness in a world of all these experts, in a world where I’m constantly being barraged about how to do an exercise and how I’m doing it wrong, to have this attitude of like, it’s a playful thing and it’s your run and you can go out and do it any way you want to do it. It was very refreshing to me
I found David’s comments on exercise interesting because I think it’s an important angle. David emphasizes his routine is for his mental and sustained health. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to work out to reshape or lose weight, of course. But for people like me, it’s daunting to see how hard some of these people work, even though I love their results. David’s playful and more customized approach speaks to me. One can lead to the other, as David pointed out. His inability to sprint across the street at 270 pounds led to an 80-pound drop and the ability to get in Hellboy shape. I was in pain putting together a chair when I realized I need to build strength. That was my objective. Once I got some energy, I asked my trainer if I could try to lose some of this pesky pandemic/menopause weight. It’s slooow going, but I am already half-way to my goal.
I agree that whatever routine a person follows should be celebrated. Yes, I’m trying to convince myself of that as much as you guys. I’ve said many times that in my late 40s my ability to run over two blocks disappeared. So I almost exclusively fast-walk now. My doctor, my trainer, several fitness-adjacent folks all tell me how much better it is for my knees and shins but I still feel like a failure in some way. I like David’s comments about approaching exercise with a more good-humored mentality. What he’s talking about here is important. People need to celebrate their different routines more. It would be more fun. I’m just tired of feeling guilty about not doing this or eating that. I’d rather feel good like David than focus on what I haven’t accomplished.
Photo credit: Avalon Red, Instagram and Backgrid
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