Exceeding the Limits for a Good Cause with Luca Turrini
Would you be willing to do whatever it takes and push yourself way past the red zone to bring about a positive change for something that’s so near and dear to your heart?
In today’s show, David is joined by Luca Turrini, a world record holder and an ultra marathon runner with a special passion for cancer prevention who did just that!
Growing up, like most kids, he obsessed about the stars and wanted to be an astronaut, but nowadays he’s working in IT where he enjoys the complexity and precision of it - “At the end of the day, it’s all one and zero, it either works or doesn’t work, no middle ground.”
On top of IT, he also works as a running coach for ultra distance races and runs the not-for-profit organization Outrun Cancer. Running, for Luca, became an outlet that allowed him to quiet the mind for a couple of hours and bring the much needed balance in his life, but most importantly, he utilized his running passion as a tool for saving lives and fighting cancer.
For his most notable extreme running highlights, he cites the 24 hour Guinness World Record treadmill run in 2017, and running with the Tarahumara in Mexico’s Copper Canyon in 2014, both experiences that had a profound impact on him.
When discussing the preparations and the mental fortitude needed for such events, as well as the impact that running has on quality family time, Luca admits to sometimes being too obsessed with the events, but he also wouldn’t have been able to do them without their support all this time.
It’s always easy to stay with what you’re comfortable with, but you’ll never know your limits until you exceed them, and to do that, you have to get uncomfortable. Extreme passion and commitment to the cause are his main drivers.
But when it comes to the cause, Luca found out that by doing things for others and for the greater good, he’s been able to push himself far beyond what he thought his body was capable of than when he was running a race for his personal achievements.
He believes he would’ve finished the Spartathlon race if only that had been for a bigger cause like Outrun Cancer was, “Few times I ran for myself, most of the times I failed.” The only way to push yourself to the limits when your body and mind are screaming at you to stop - “It’s when I’m doing it for the right reasons. I know I’m not running it for myself, I’m doing it for the cause, for the people that believe in me, for my wife and for my family.”
Luca’s challenge for YOU over the coming week:
“Get up 15 minutes earlier than usual, spend them outside with your eyes closed, and just listening. Listen to everything and nothing at all. Then, welcome the other people in your family with a smile on your face. You’ll feel much better and much more in control instead of just getting up and just thinking about what you have to do.”
Contact Links:
