Taking on big challenges and the mindset it takes to do them.
Ryan Steiner says he is autistic and is obsessed with running. Before he became obsessed with running he was obsessed with food and weighed over 700 pounds. Now he has dreams that he pursues daily and says that what he believes most defines him is that he is a dad of an autistic child. He says that since they both have autism he can show her the world and share things with her in a way that he can’t connect with other people. His daughter, Kala, is in a wheelchair so Ryan pushes her as he runs. They’ve run a 50K race together, and he hopes they can someday run a 100 mile race.
His goal for next year is to run 100 miles, but he’s not sure yet if Kala is ready to run for 24 hours because it might be too long for her. She has a specialized wheelchair they call “The Chariot,”and it is specifically designed to run distance races with people with physical disabilities. When Kala was smaller, they used a jogging stroller. The Chariot is also a type of trailer for a bike so Ryan can vary his workouts.
Ryan is a fan of the elliptical bike. It is like an elliptical exercise machine on bicycle wheels, but with a longer stride. He says it simulates a slow motion run, so it works the same muscles you use when running, but without the impact of running. It doesn’t replace the need for actual running, but he likes it as a supplement to his running workouts.
Ryan says he started out like Forrest Gump, but walking. And then he felt like he wanted to go faster. He also dedicated himself to losing weight. He did the Hennepin 50k race last year, and from the time he finished until February he reduced his mileage and his calories. He wanted to lose weight to see how much more he could improve his pace. He says he has to balance weight loss with race training because if he wants to lose a lot of weight in a quick period of time he has to watch how many calories he is counting and how many calories he is taking off so he can maintain recovery.
At the Hennepin 50K last October he pushed his daughter, Kala, the whole way. He says it was a brutal thing because the heat and the humidity were really bad and it sucked all the hydration out of his whole body and he got really bad cramps. He chose that race as his first 50k because it has an extremely generous cut off which is 21 hours because of the fact it runs in parallel with the 100 mile race. This was his first night race as well. The course is a cross between road and trail because the ground is like crushed limestone, and it’s a good surface to run on .
Ryan has become very familiar with the trail running group associated with the Ornery Mule Races. He says that once he has a group of people he is socializing with it is easier for him than starting in a whole new group. His autism makes it more of a challenge to deal with new people and unfamiliar places. People tell him he should be his authentic self, but he says that if he was his authentic self he wouldn’t talk to people because he wants to be in his own world. So having people around him that are safe and can help him navigate those confusing things in a race he’s never been to before is really nice for him. So he likes being in the trail running community. Also, in new situations, he likes to have sunglasses on because then he doesn’t have to make eye contact and can look in other directions until he adapts to what is happening. He says he can fake it for short periods of time and people get the impression that he’s doing fine. Then they say things like ”Well, you don’t seem very autistic compared to people I know.” But it’s because he has practiced and forced himself to learn how to connect with others
Ryan says that one of the things that helped him learn to push forward is that he learned to be consistent. And being able to connect with people, which allowed him to push through a lot of really tough training times. He loves running and he loves what running brings to his life. Sometimes he has to remind himself that he loves to run and push away the negative thoughts in his head that tell him he doesn’t want to go running because it’s too hot or whatever other excuse that pops us. He also has to balance the things he does with his daughter because there may be days when he is fine but she is not willing to connect.
Ryan has a trainer, and she’s been great at taking his obsession with running and filling his head with all the things he needs to know about his body and helped him train using heart rate. Helping him to see how his body should feel at each of these different levels. He also does speed work and strength training. She had especially helped him focus his energy where it needs to be.
He has also been a race announcer and has been on the live broadcast of the Kettle Moraine 100 mile race. He was nervous about doing this, but now has more confidence because of the podcasts he’s been on.
Bridge questions:
The fundamental piece for Ryan’s race is water, he says he can run without shoes without any problem but if he doesn’t have water he is finished.
The strangest thing he’s encountered is someone seeing The Chariot and asking to buy ice cream.
The phrase that defines his life philosophy is: real change only runs at the edge of your comfort zone.
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