Ep 66: Erik Sowinski returns
Erik Sowinski is a guy that always goes for it. - Mike Jay
Eight races on two continents in 17 days. 6400 meters, well really 6300 meters came to a head in the last 100 meters of the last race of a grueling trip. So, what happens to a world-class athlete when there isn’t much left in the tank? The same thing as the rest of us… the wheels come off.
Erik Sowinski is the ultimate Moonlighter. Our first two time guest makes his first appearance in studio while in Des Moines for the USA Track and Field Outdoor Championships. He shares how it feels to be overlooked in a highly competitivly field. Sowinski isn’t just a athlete at the top of his class and competing on the world stage, he is also true fan of the podcast and has one of the best Moonlight-Mindsets you’ll hear in any interview:
“If you are not in a place to win the race, then what are you there for?”
In his second interview, Erik talks about some of the amazing races he has been involved in since the last podcast as well as training and competing as a professional runner. Sowinski shares how he has reached his peak as a 28 year old runner competing with guys young enough to be his younger brother or even a cousin. He shares how he has adjusted his training since finishing college and getting older. A lot of weekend warriors can take solace from his discussion of his professional level training as you listen to this pod training for an upcoming 5k or 10k. However, he does tell a tale of a workout so difficult that he put on sunglasses for the last 400 to hide the pain from any onlookers. Sowinski sets a standard of toughness pretty high for any athlete.
Erik Sowinski has the next few years planned out as he prepares himself for the 2020 Olympic games and the 2021 World Championships. Tim and Erik dive into the realities of his career as a professional runner, sponsored by Nike, that has taken him from growing up Wisconsin to the University of Iowa and now around the world, even racing on the original Olympic track in Rome. It was great to have our first two-time Moonlighter in studio.