Born to Run (Slowly)

The July issue of Runner's World magazine features a profile of 58-year-old Japanese marathon runner Hajime Nichi, who manages to run 60 marathons a year. During 2006, he ran 72 marathons in 11 countries, and for 2007 he is on track to do a further 60 marathons in 25 nations, his long-term objective being to finish 1,000 marathons in 250 countries by 2049, when he will be 100. Nishi is, in his own terms, an "ecomarathoner," who attempts to find "harmony" with his surroundings: He never pushes himself beyond his physical limits and is always one of the last to finish.

Once upon a time he was an overworked Japanese executive, but after his wife died of cancer in 1988 and his children grew up, he dissolved his company and enrolled in personal growth seminars at the Esalen Institute in Big Sur, California. His spiritual quest led him to his slow-running philosophy, which was inspired by the Marathon Monks of Mount Hiei, near Nishi's hometown of Kyoto, who run for 100 consecutive days in search of enlightenment.