See Dad Run (How it all started…)
How I Went from Couch-Beer Dad to Running Rock Star (with a Side of Diapers)
Yo, fellow dads! Let me take you back to March 2020—a time when everything went full bonkers. My 3-year-old’s preschool shut down indefinitely (forever??), my newborn daughter had just arrived, and bam—our family went on lockdown like a bad sci-fi movie… but with more spit-up and less laser swords.
I was juggling bottles, Zoom calls, and meltdowns—sometimes mine—and desperately searching for a way to keep my sanity. So I turned to an old reliable friend... craft beer. Delivered. To. My. House. (Modern sorcery!)
Spoiler: that didn’t help.
My body felt like a beanbag chair that had given up. My “exercise routine” was carrying tiny humans from playgrounds to snack stations. I was exhausted, foggy, and cranky—basically a Dad-Zilla stomping through snack time and bedtime with zero stamina and no chill.
Enter: The Sedona Spark
Fast forward to 2021. I’m on a trip to Sedona (spiritual vortex, baby!) with my buddy Kent—father of three and somehow still a functioning human. Dude runs every single day. I asked him, “How?! What’s the wizardry here?!”
And Kent, in his calm Jedi wisdom, said:
“Running clears my head, makes me a better parent, and keeps me sane.”
Then he drops this challenge on me:
“Just one mile a day. Walk it. Jog it. Whatever. Just do it.”
ONE MILE? I could do that, right? Ten to fifteen minutes a day? That’s like… two Daniel Tiger episodes!
So I got home. No plan. No gear. Just vibes.
And it was rough. My shoes were ancient. My knees screamed like banshees. My shirts smelled like sadness. But I kept showing up. One mile at a time.
Little Hacks That Made It Stick
Podcasts. I turned my jogs into knowledge quests. Dad gets buff and learns stuff!
Creative breakthroughs. I’m an illustrator, and running turned out to be a total creativity unlocker. I’d be mid-run, BAM—idea explosion! I'd yell into my phone like a maniac: “Siri, remind me to draw a pirate riding a unicorn made of broccoli!!”
Scenery magic. I discovered secret corners of my town I’d never noticed. Nature! Architecture! That one mailbox shaped like a dolphin!
Apple Watch. Oh man, turning my runs into a game? YES. It became a data-driven dopamine buffet.
By the end of year one?
332 days of running.
I felt like a warrior. I had more energy, more patience, and I could finally play tag without collapsing like a soggy burrito.
My Kids Noticed. And That Was Everything.
One day my son looks at me and says:
“I like that you take care of yourself, Dad.”
BOOM. Instant waterworks.
He saw the discipline. The effort. The transformation. And I realized—this wasn’t just about me feeling better. I was becoming a role model. I was showing my kids that taking care of yourself is cool.
Year Two? We Go Beast Mode.
I ran 325 days, crushed my first half-marathon, and joined a community of amazing humans all chasing the same thing: feeling alive. Healthy. Connected.
Now? Running is just something I do.
No pressure. No end goal. Just a part of who I am.
And my kids?
They don’t just see me as “Dad.”
They see me as a guy who keeps going. A guy who cares for his body, mind, and heart.
Wanna Run With Me?
If you’re a dad feeling like a drained juice box, I made something for you:
👉 A FREE Kickstart Guide to help you get moving.
It’s got everything I wish I knew when I started:
How to keep going when life gets wild
Gear tips
Motivation tricks
And how to get creative inspiration while you run like the wind (or a light breeze, that counts too)
Let’s do this together. Let’s be Dads who show up—for ourselves and our kids.
Let’s run the good run, one step at a time.
Rock on,
Daniel
