Meet the Athlete: Tony Rost
Name: Tony Rost
Age: 26
Place of Birth: Lincoln, NE
High School: Centennial Public School (Utica, NE)
College: Kansas State University, University of Nebraska Medical Center, University of Nebraska at Omaha
Major/Minor:
K-State: Major in Kinesiology and minor in Leadership Studies
UNMC: Doctorate of Physical Therapy
UNO: Master in Business Administration
Where do you currently live?: Omaha. We don’t coast I guess.
Occupation/Degree you are working towards: I’m a physical therapist and also currently working on my MBA. I drive race cars on the side.
How long have you been and LRC-Nebraska member?: Only a few months – since March this year.
How long have you been running competitively?: I ran track for two years in high school (400m, 300m hurdles, 4×1, 4×4) – not sure if that counts. I quit track so that I could focus on driving race cars during my junior year of high school. Part of me wishes I would have stuck with track but I ended up racing sprint cars semi-professionally across the US, so I guess it worked out. I didn’t start seriously running until October 2018 (thanks to Austin Post) and I’ve competed in one race as a member of LRCN (Early Bird 2019).
What excites you most about being an LRCN athlete?: Being part of a group of hard-working, dedicated individuals who are passionate about this sport and push each other every day. The culture on this team is great. I really don’t have a running background and shortly after Austin convinced me to join the team I did my first long run with a few of our Omaha guys. I was kind of intimidated because I knew most of them ran competitively in college and I had just started running a few months prior. We did an 18-mile run that day and I was able to hang with the group for the first 13 or 14 miles before the hills started to really hurt and I fell off the pace. That day I experienced firsthand the culture of this team and the respect they have for each other. These guys welcomed me in as one of their own right away and have been incredibly supportive ever since.
What does a typical training week look like for you? Walk us through your daily routine (training related and otherwise): Right now I’m coming back from a stress fracture in my tibia, so my current mileage is pretty low at the moment. When I was healthy, a typical week went something like this: Monday was a tempo run, Tuesday easy, Wednesday workout (1k repeats, mile repeats, 400m, something spicy, etc.), Thursday easy, Friday easy or off depending on how I was feeling, Saturday long run with the boys, Sunday off. Ranging from 50-65 miles a week. I just graduated from UNMC and started working full time and I’m still trying to find a balance in my schedule. I have been running in the afternoon/evening but with MBA night classes starting I’ll switch to morning runs. A typical day will be run at 6am, get ready for the day and see my first patient around 9am, done with my last patient between 3-5pm, rest for a bit/grab some food and then head to class from 6pm-9:30pm, back home and asleep by 11.
We all approach training and racing differently, so tell us what your short-term and long-term goals are with running: My short-term goals are to stay healthy, successfully come back from this injury without it lingering too long, and improve my fitness to where I can hang with the elite guys during workouts and long runs. I guess my 2019 goal would be to run fast enough at the Good Life Halfsy to graduate from the Development group and join the Elite level at LRCN (because let’s be honest those jerseys are sick). Before my injury I wasn’t far from the 75% age-grade threshold, so I know it’s attainable – just depends on how well I’m able to recover from this stress fracture and if I can get enough mileage in before November. My long-term goals aren’t as clear cut. I don’t really have any time or distance-specific goals. I know I’d like to run a full marathon at some point. I also think ultra running would be cool. Rim to Rim to Rim at the Grand Canyon is definitely on my bucket list. For the time being I want to stay healthy, improve my fitness, and keep grinding out miles and making memories with my LRCN family. Looking forward to the Market to Market race coming up soon!
Where are your 3 favorite places to do long runs at the moment?: I’ve only really done long runs on Wabash trail in Council Bluffs, around Zorinsky Lake, and on Keystone trail in Omaha. I really like running on Wabash. Two places I really want to do some long runs are in the Flint Hills near Manhattan, KS and some trails/roads in Colorado. When I was in undergrad at K-State I would ride my bike south of Manhattan on McDowell Creek Road which has a ton of rolling hills through the Konza Prairie and Flint Hills. And I recently went on a weeklong camping trip in Colorado and saw some roads and trails that would make for great long runs. Hope I can make it back there soon.
After a solid race or long run, what is your favorite meal to demolish and replenish those calories? Please use details and give recommendations!: I will absolutely, under no circumstances, ever turn down Chick-Fil-A. Especially their breakfast. Those chicken biscuit sandwiches are amazing. If not CFA, really any breakfast food following a long morning run – donuts, pancakes, biscuits and gravy, hash browns, breakfast burritos, etc. If I wanna crush some food following a run later in the day, you can’t beat good tacos and cold beer. Boulevard Wheat is my go-to followed by Boulevard Kolsch and Goose Island Next Coast IPA. Maybe I should do a beer mile.
Share a crazy training or racing story, or simply an interesting moment in time: Not a crazy story by any means, but in early January this year there was a Saturday morning where it snowed quite a bit (like 8-10” in some areas around Omaha). I had a 14-mile long run planned and drove over to Wabash Trail that afternoon. By the time I got there, the wind had totally stopped but it was still snowing. There was at least 8” of fresh snow on the trail and I was contemplating not even running because I knew it was just gonna suck running through that. It was slow going and more of a high-step than a run but with the snow falling through the trees and being the only person out there it was super peaceful. After my turnaround at 7 miles some dude flew past me on a snowmobile which conveniently packed down the snow and gave me a decent path to run in. Ended up going all 14 miles that day despite the snow coming halfway up to my knees and packing my shoes full of snow. Those are the character-building runs.
What book are you currently reading or TV show are you binge watching?: I’m really good at starting books and not finishing them – but I’ve got two chapters left in Running With the Kenyans by Adharanand Finn and I’m about halfway through Being Mortal by Atul Gawande (would highly recommend for anybody working in the medical field).
You’re the star of a running movie, and the opening scene is you running on a winding dirt road, with a beautiful sunrise. What song is playing in the background?: Ain’t Done Yet – Adrian Stresow
