For Timmy Fitzgerald of Sydney, N.S., weekdays start by delivering the mail.
"Typically, I'd walk between 13 to 16 kilometres,” said the Canada Post letter carrier.
But this mailman also runs marathons.
When the work day is done, he's back on his feet.
“Sometimes I would do a 10K, sometimes I’ll do 16 kilometres,” Fitzgerald said. “On the weekends, I’ll do more because I’m not walking.”
Plenty of people like to keep track of their steps. Fitzgerald is no exception, and between his walking and running, he racks up quite a few in the run of a day.
"I've looked at it a few times, and I think it's between 40,000 to 50,000 steps,” Fitzgerald said.
Back in May, Fitzgerald finished his first marathon at the Blue Nose Marathon in Halifax.
He placed second overall, in a time of 2 hours, 46 minutes and 38 seconds.
Then in October, he ran his first ultramarathon at the inaugural Big Breton Backyard Ultra in Coxheath, N.S.
This time, he came first, totaling more than 87 kilometres up and down Coxheath Mountain.
"I'm really looking forward to doing another one,” Fitzgerald said. “My next ultra will be the 2023 Capes 100 in Mabou -- 100 miles."
That's 160 kilometres.
Before that though, he's signed up for his first Boston Marathon in April.
"I was in the military when I thought about doing the Boston Marathon quite a few years ago, but I never really did the proper training for it, or I had an injury bug going on,” he explained.
Last year, Fitzgerald’s older brother Jamie completed the Boston Marathon. He ran the race in memory of their father, Paddy Fitzgerald, who died of lung cancer in 2020 at age 66.
"We made a promise that we would go to Boston and run the Boston Marathon,” Tim Fitzgerald said. “Of course, Jamie ran it last year, so now I'm just going to fulfill that for Dad."
When he crosses the finish line in Beantown, the Fitzgerald brothers will share a life accomplishment.
"We're definitely proud of it, and we'd like to think Dad would be proud of it as well,” Tim Fitzgerald said.
For now, the letter carrier will keep pushing the envelope with his boundless energy –- particularly when his Boston Marathon training begins later this month.
