Is The Bachelor star Matt James aspiring to become the next big U.S. running star? The Raleigh, N.C., native was first paced by Shalane Flanagan at the 2023 New York City Marathon, but things really got serious when he “booked a one-way ticket to Kenya” and began training among the elites.
James escaped from New York City to Iten, Kenya, in early February, at the peak of his very public breakup with Rachel Kirkconnell, a contestant on season 25 of The Bachelor. According to his social media, he was inspired to experience African culture by his father, who was born in Nigeria. “What a typical workout looks like, training with the fastest distance runners on earth,” he captioned one post.
The experience led him to meet major running stars. James was seen running alongside 2:19:17 Kenyan-American marathoner Betsy Saina, and later shared a photo with Dutch Olympic marathon champion Sifan Hassan.
“Today’s workout: One hour of running uphill continuously,” James narrated over an Instagram video. “This is my first workout of the day, but for everyone else, they’ve been up since 6 a.m. for a 10-mile run. This group runs double most days, and said today would be at ‘easy pace.’ But you’ll learn there isn’t anything easy about a Kenyan’s pace.”
The reality-TV star mentioned that he fell behind the leading pack and ended up running with the women–though that wasn’t much easier. James also highlighted the advantage Kenyans have due to their elevated red blood cell counts and enhanced aerobic capacity from being born at altitude. “After each run, they do drills to loosen up those muscles, which is typically followed by the coach’s assessment of the workout,” he said. He also revealed that he runs between six and 13 miles each day. He returned to NYC as of Monday.
James, an ambassador for Lululemon, set his marathon personal best at the 2024 NYC marathon, clocking 3:00:20. He’s coached by former professional runner Julia Lucas, who once ran personal bests of 4:05.89 in the 1,500m and 15:08.52 over 5,000m.
@katemackz Replying to @Em Sheldon 3 miles in Central Park with The Bachelor, Grant Ellis #movewithkatemackz #runwithkate #therunninginterviewshow ♬ original sound – KATE MACKZ
Running seems to be a signature trait of The Bachelor stars. This season’s Bachelor, Grant Ellis, was also spotted on a three-mile run with content creator Kate Mackz in Central Park–and we give his form an A+.
