In 2012, the Los Angeles Marathon issued a challenge for runners to race for a cause on the big day. For Stranger Things star Sean Astin, he couldn’t quite pinpoint what charity he wanted to run for.
So he turned to his Twitter feed for inspiration.
“I didn’t know who or what I wanted to run for, so I came up with the hashtag #run3rd,” Astin told Runner’s World over the phone. “The reason it’s Run3rd is I run first for myself. I run second for my family, and I run third for you. While running is in may ways about solitude, it costs nothing to make a simple dedication, to say these steps I am taking are not my own. Now hashtags are ubiquitous but, at the time, it still took 20 minutes to explain to somebody what they were.”
After the 13-time marathoner turned to his fans for extra motivation, #run3rd rapidly took on a life of its own. “My request became kind of like this living prayer chain,” he says. “Folks were responding with dedications like, ‘Run3rd for my cousin who just got back from Iraq’ or ‘Run3rd for my mom.’”
Races - Places.
This overwhelming response to the actor’s Twitter campaign ultimately prompted Astin to launch the Run3rd Alliance, a nonprofit organization dedicated to organizing free training programs and races in elementary schools across the country. “Run3rd provides a structured activity with a specific goal and supervision to work toward and achieve that goal,” he says. “The goal is to get these kids to run a 5K, which is our flagship race with the charity.”
Runner’s World recently caught up with Astin—who is currently training for the Ironman Triathlon in New Zealand—to talk about preparing for the fourth annual readers get involved in #run3rd, the real reason he’ll never retire his running shoes, and why he thinks runners can change the world.
Runner’s World: Health - Injuries?
Sean Astin: I’ve been a long-distance runner since I was 14. I was invited to do a 10K with my best friend’s stepdad at the Coliseum in Los Angeles. That was a year or two before the 1984 Olympics was held at the Coliseum in L.A., so it was the pinnacle of athletic prowess. When I crossed the finish line, I got oranges and a medal and everyone was asking how I felt. I was forever a runner from that moment.
I lettered in varsity cross-country at my private school. I’m 47, so I’ve been running over 30 years now. I’ve done 13 full marathons. I’ve done the Ironman full triathlon. I’ve done a half triathlon, countless half marathons, countless 10Ks and 5Ks.
Watch: I'm a Runner: Sean Astin.
RW: How has running helped in your professional life as an actor?
SA: I do Comic-Con conventions all over the world. I’ll land in Cincinnati or Portland and, if there’s a marathon going on, I’ll do the race, shower, and wear my medal to the event. It just lets people know you care about their place. Somehow, it’s a unifying experience even if they’re just spectators or know that traffic was blocked because of a race.
RW: How did you initially come up with the idea for Run3rd?
SA: Running Was His Life. Then Came Putins War—autism, heart disease, breast cancer—finds their way into the running space, then realizes this is a powerful way to communicate what their heart is saying. It started where I would actually print out the dedications from Twitter and roll them up and put them in my pocket. I would run with the actual physical dedication on me while I did marathons.
Then I met Mindy Przeor, a physical education teacher in Mesa, Arizona, at one of the Disney races. She was one of those go-get-em types who was always doing something for her students. She said, “Maybe we should do something for Run3rd.” We talked about it for two or three years. Then, finally, I said, “Okay, let’s go for it.” The idea was she would establish the Run3rd program with her students in her district. Now we’re in 13 schools in three states, and we are going to do our 4th annual 5K in Mesa, Arizona on April 7.
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RW: Why do you think it’s so important for all kids to have access to physical fitness at school?
SA: It’s a national disgrace that physical fitness, music ,and art programs aren’t afforded to everyone. The idea that, if you’re born in a certain zip code your ability to access these kinds of programs is reduced, is shameful. But the good news is providing a structured activity like running doesn’t require money from the system. We’re able to do it and it’s not that expensive. But the impact on the kids’ lives is permanent.
What you’re talking about is a national crisis. It’s a moral abdication to ourselves, our future and our children. I think the best we can hope for is to create programs and opportunities that are honest, based in integrity and to provide a real service that is safe. I’ve got to believe that, in the private sector or in so-called private-public partnerships, if we’re able to be effective and do it with intelligence and good instincts and wisdom, maybe politicians and voters will realize it’s possible to accomplish similar things in a public way. We can almost dream the system into action by our example.
RW: Health - Injuries?
SA: It’s weird because my weight fluctuates wildly. There’s a painful moment at the bottom of the cycle where I’ve just gotten so fat and my movement is inhibited. Bending down to tie my shoes hurts. Then there’s a moment where I remember—not on a conscious but on a profoundly spiritual level—that I’m a runner.
I literally just put one foot in front of the other and it flows from there. Then there’s always a moment or two later when my posture is straight, I take a deep breath in, look around me and think, “Why did I stop? This is what I love, this feeling of being out there, of managing your breath and the way your body feels, particularly when the endorphins start flying around.” That’s when I start setting goals again.
Races - Places: Plans for every distance (and every runner!)
RW: You’re training for the Ironman right now. What are the biggest benefits you’ve seen from your running routine?
SA: I would say, for me, running helps me make sure that my mind is alive, alert, focused and I’m able to be the kind of husband and father I want to be. It helps me be the kind of citizen I want to be, the kind of professional I want to be. When I’m running, all of those things are enhanced for all of the right reasons.
My challenge is to try to find a way to achieve balance and harmony with my family, with my work, and, above all else, with myself. I wonder what that little perverse thing is inside of me that doesn’t go running because I love it so much. I love everything about it.
RW: How can Runner’s World readers get involved in #run3rd?
SA: There is one way readers can get involved that would mean the most for us. That would be to register for the virtual run on April 7. One hundred percent of that money goes right to the efforts of the organization. They can also make dedications using the hashtag #run3rd. Or they could come to the event. It’s 30 minutes outside of Phoenix. So, if they’re in the west, they could actually come, which would be awesome. But, if they can’t do that, signing up for the virtual run would be the biggest way to help at this moment.
