Randall Park probably made you laugh as the endearing dad in Fresh Off The Boat or fan-favorite agent Jimmy Woo in the Marvel universe, but these days, he’s adding something new to his resume: Marathoner. At 50, Park is prepping for his first-ever 26.2, this weekend’s New York City marathon. He’s motivated by a cause close to his heart—running for KultureCity, a nonprofit dedicated to increasing sensory accessibility and acceptance for those with invisible disabilities.
The race, which is organized by New York Road Runners, is a solid choice for a first-timer like Park, who will be in good company, with over 50,000 runners from all backgrounds and abilities flooding the streets of the city. As the big day approached, GQ caught up with Park to dive into how he fuels his long runs, why starting a fresh decade made him want to take on this new challenge, and how marathon training is more meditative for him than competitive.
GQ: I heard this is going to be your first marathon. What’s the intention with it?
RP: Well I’ve been running for a good part of my life, but never marathon running. I would just do a few miles at a time, so it was something that I was used to. But I joined the board of a KultureCity, which is the charity that I’ll be running with, and that is a charity devoted to sensory inclusion and for people with sensory issues—like, loud sounds. Certain visual things are difficult for them to process. It was a very personal charity for me because my daughter is on the autism spectrum and she herself has a lot of sensory needs.
So the organization runs the New York Marathon every year and the head of the organization, Michelle, would ask me every year: “do you want to run?” And I’d say no because the idea of running a marathon is just so absurd to me. 26 plus miles. But this year I decided, why not? I also turned 50 this year and I was like, well, on my 50th, I should do something monumental. And so the marathon seemed like a good thing to attempt. And then my father passed away this year. So it felt like something I wanted to do for him as well.
So you’re ready. Those are all such great intentions.
The intentions are there. Is the body there? Is the VO2 max there? I don’t know.
Let’s talk a little bit about your approach to marathon training. I don’t think you’re working with a coach, but are you following a training program?
I’m loosely following a training program. I’m not like doing it to a T, but I’m modifying it to fit my schedule and doing my long runs weekly. Actually, sometimes twice a week. I don’t know if that’s good. But I feel like I got to get them in.
So what does an average training week look like for you?
Lately, I’ve been doing a short run for speed, or just as fast as I can, once a week. And then I’ll do a long run with a partner and then a long run by myself. The partner ones will be a little shorter. And then the ones I do by myself, I’ll really challenge myself to go farther. Yesterday morning I did 20. I could have done a few more, I think. I had some left in the tank, so that was a big one for me.
That is a great place to get to when you’re like, OK, I’ve found my pace that I know I can continue for a little bit longer. You’re not totally gassing yourself.
Yeah, yeah, and I’ve been really focused on not getting in that mindset of pace or time. This is my first marathon. Just finish it, you know?
Are you using wearables to track any data? Are you using any apps?
I’m just using my Apple Watch. I don’t know how accurate those things are, but I’m tracking data on that. But I’m also not thinking of it too much. Really the only thing I’m thinking of on that watch is the distance. I’m mindful. I’ll take a peek at my time per mile, like how fast I’m going, but I’m not getting too invested in that. Sometimes I’ll be surprised by the stretches I’ve run. I just kind of get in the groove and in a cadence and I’ll just be cruising.
Do you listen to anything when you’re running?
You know, when I ran my 20 yesterday I didn’t listen to anything. I just ran. But sometimes on my shorter runs where I’ll try to go a little faster, I’ll listen to music or meditation tapes when I run—like guided meditations. They really relax my mind. One thing I don’t like about music is—I like to hear myself breathe when I run. And sometimes the music—the beat—will alter the rhythm of my breath. So when I listen to something like a guided meditation, I can still hear my breath.
Running to me is meditative. You kind of get into a zone. And so it feels, for me, natural to listen to those while running and also just calming my mind, which calms my body and calms my breath. And being present in my surroundings, as present as possible. But also existing in that high. That runner’s high.
I like that focus on breath, because instead of focusing on metrics, it feels like it’s more about being in your body. I think a lot of people who are newer to running would really wonder how you got to a point where it feels meditative and not just like, oh my gosh, when is this gonna be over?
It’s just like meditation in a lot of ways. It takes doing it, and not doing it well, and then eventually, you just realize like, oh my gosh, I was totally in it. I was able to allow my thoughts to not interfere with the practice. It just takes doing it and doing it.
