Travis Barker: Running makes me a better father
Travis Barker says running makes him a better father.
The blink-182 drummer – who has Alabama, 11, and Landon, 13, with his ex-wife Shanna Moakler – is "addicted" to staying in shape through this particular medium of exercise and says it means he is "never tired" around his two children.
He said: "I first laced up for a serious run the day I found out my ex-wife [Shanna Moakler] was pregnant with our son, Landon. I came home from the doctor’s office and ran to the freeway, which was four miles away. I’d never really run for fun before, but I did it every day until he was born. I was going to be responsible for someone and be a role model. That was the beginning of being in shape …
"I’ve been sober since the accident, but I’ve replaced all of my bad addictions with good ones. Now, I get high off running. I just love running. It makes me feel like I can conquer anything that comes at me. I’m never tapped out. I’m never tired around my two kids. I owe a lot of that to running."
And the 41-year-old musician enjoys being able to adapt his running to fit in with his tour schedule.
Talking about how he stays fit on the road, he added to Runner’s World magazine: "I feel off if I don’t run. It’s like a meal. I need it every day … I don’t fly, so I’m on a bus for 10 to 12 hours on tour. Sometimes when the driver stops to get gas, I’ll say, ‘Which direction are you driving? I’m going to start running, so pick me up!’
"Even in the studio, if there’s downtime, I can’t just sit there. They say sitting is the new cancer, and I kind of agree. The coolest part about being on tour is running stairs at theaters and arenas. It’s so quiet after soundcheck. Six hours later the arena is going to be filled with 20,000 to 30,000 screaming kids. It’s the calm before the storm."
