Who we become in the act of trying [NQM024]

In 2018, Kaylo Littlejohn started running. In 2018, Kaylo Littlejohn completed the grueling 240-mile Moab footrace. From his first marathon in April to the 240-miler in October, Kaylo’s mental and physical transformation is astounding, considering he was 275lbs in highschool and not a natural runner.

From a young age, Kaylo had been fighting an uphill battle. Growing up in an abusive household, it resulted in him being aggressive, hyper-energetic, and medical professionals diagnosing him with autism, asperger’s syndrom, and ADD. He was in and out of mental hospitals and special education throughout his K1-12 school career. His first remarkable transformation took place well before his 240-mile endeavor, as he applied and got accepted into Columbia University.

Fast forward to October 2018, and Kaylo is fighting cutoff after cutoff in a 240-mile race, which he is running unsupported. He finished the race in 112 hours, 4 minutes, and 2 seconds. Let that sink in. That is a little over 4 days and 16 hours of grinding it out solo on a tough and unforgiving course. The typical cutoff for Moab 240 is 4 days and 16 hours, but they had extended the cutoff by 1 hour due to a course change. The mental fortitude to accomplish this feat is tremendous, particularly given his relative lack of ultra-running experience and being constantly chased by cut-off times.

Runner and non-runners alike can learn a great deal about Kaylo’s mental approach to big undertakings, as those strategies can be used in all facets of life.

Kaylo’s remarkable and extremely short progression to Moab 240.

Training for Ultra Podcast 76: Who we become in the act of trying

There are podcasts for pretty much every interest out there, and yes, there are a couple of really great ultra-running podcasts. Rob from Training for Ultra, did a great job interviewing Kylo after his 240 mile experience.

On the importance of connecting as a mentor: He taught me how to channel all this extra energy I had, by getting after it and meditating, learning, and improving myself. I took all that extra energy that would have been going towards things that aren’t as healthy, and I started getting after it. Mitch did not tell me what to do, he listened to me. I saw him more as a friend-mentor more than and adult-figure.

On starting at square one: When I was in high school, I was 275lbs. and there was a school trip where we hiked up one mile of trail. I couldn’t do it. I was the only who couldn’t do it and it was so embarrassing. I was never a natural runner.

Compressed timeline towards Moab 240: The first marathon I ran was end of April 2018. I had zero ultra-marathon experience. I did not have too much time to prepare as the 100 mile run which was two weeks later. I ended up failing that one. The 240 miler was in October 2018. It was time to recover from my failure and re-attack. I went for the 100 but did not finish it, so let’s take it down a notch, and three weeks later I did the North Face Endurance Challenge 50 miler, which I finished.

On how to mentally approach a big challenge: I apply this to anything, whether it is a 10-day meditation retreat or applying to Columbia University, as soon as I get the idea in my head, I immediately decide that I am going to do it pretty much. As soon as I heard about the 240 miler, I signed up for it. The speed of implementation can be a useful strategy, not waiting for everything to be right in order to do something, because when you find yourself in the middle of a 240-mile race, things are not going to go right.

Continuing the journey despite the setbacks: I have definitely failed, but people do not see the failures. I failed that first 100-mile run. I started a nootropic company, that failed. I created a health care software company start up, that failed. That was a lot of hours down the drain. Failure didn’t really stop me. I knew life is going to throw punches at me, does not matter if you start from square 1 or if you are the best in the world. There are always going to be setbacks. I made the decision in my mind that no matter what I am going to achieve that I am after, and any one particular thing I don’t achieve does not going to affect the mission of who I am. If I don’t accomplish XYZ thing, I am still going to get after it and accomplish the next thing.

On barriers to entry: I truly believe in improving myself. You hear these self-help authors saying you can create these brands and build this million dollar company. I do not mean that. A lot of these aspirations have high barriers to entry. But with the 240 miler, there is just a sign up button. Relatively speaking, there are no barriers to entry.

Make a plan, develop a system, be disciplined, and get after it: If you set your mind to something and you decide in your mind you are going to do something, there is a very high likelihood you will succeed, it kind of solidified that in my mind. And I don’t mean some crazy huge feat that requires high barriers to entries, but something along the lines of being a world-class scientist, or an ultra-runner, or a podcaster. You can do that if you really set your mind to it and develop systems in place to help you get there. Think hard about how you are going to do it, make a plan, and get after it. A lot of time we put preconceived limitations on ourselves and convince ourselves that it’s not for me or those people are outliers.

On the power of signing up for a race: Once you sing up, there it is, there is the goal. Your mind comes up with ways to attain that goal. And if you fail, don’t be afraid to re-adjust.