When Justin Gallegos started running competitively his freshman year of high school, his goals were simple: get stronger, get more active and be involved in an after-school activity. Eight years later, as a senior at the University of Oregon, after four years of running on the club team, signing a professional contract with Nike and completing the Chicago marathon, his goals have changed: run two marathons in 2020.
Gallegos — also known by his nickname “Zoom Magic” — has cerebral palsy, a neurological disorder that affects the parts of the brain that control muscle movement and speech. As a young runner, he struggled to teach his body the movements of running and trained for months before he found his rhythm. It was this struggle, however, that fostered the determination and work ethic needed to complete his first marathon in Chicago.
After training for the race for six months, Gallegos completed a 26.2-mile race with a time of 4:49:30 on Oct. 13. He ran 200 miles per month during his training and ran 10-15 miles every Sunday. While he takes his physical training very seriously, he’s just as serious about mental training.
“It’s all a mental game,” Gallegos said. “In the last 10K in Chicago, my legs were gone and my feet were cramping. It was about my mind telling my body, ‘Just keep putting one foot in front of the other and get to the finish line.’”
Primarily focusing on track and field events up to this point, Gallegos didn’t think it would be possible for him to do longer races. Now that his strength has gradually increased over the course of his career, he has the endurance to complete marathons, which are his new focus.
“There’s not much left in the tank for me in the world of track, but there’s a whole new beginning in marathoning,” he said.
Gallegos takes inspiration from his favorite runner, Eliud Kipchoge. The day before Gallegos ran the Chicago Marathon, Kipchoge became the first person to run a marathon in under two hours. Kipchoge frequently comments on Gallegos’ social media, and Gallegos is hoping he will get to meet the star runner in the future.
Running is extremely taxing on Gallegos’ body, and he even falls occasionally, but it would be naive to think that this would hold him back.
“Sometimes he comes back from a run with blood on his knees,” UO running club coach and former women’s track and field coach Tom Heinonen said. “That’s such a minor part of what he faces on a daily basis.”
Being a professional, Gallegos doesn’t run for the club team as much as he used to, but he’s still on the team. Amidst everything going on around him, he handles the stress well. Just because he’s a professional doesn’t mean he can’t have some fun at practice once in awhile.
“When he’s at club, he’s ribbing and joking, just like everyone else. And he can dish it out,” Heinonen said.
Not only is Gallegos starting to focus on marathons, he’s been developing a side project as well. Any spare time he has is poured into his new podcast called The Zoom Magic Show. Gallegos hosts various faces from the running community to talk about the latest trends and predictions in running, as well as his other interests, including music and sneakers.
“It definitely required a ton of motivation to get started, but I’m glad I did it. It’s been a lot of fun,” Gallegos said.
The podcast is still in its infancy with four episodes released, but he already has one of his athletic sponsors on board. While he’s having fun doing the show, Gallegos is looking at the bigger picture and applying his no-nonsense, determined attitude, saying he wants the podcast to “go the distance.”
“I’m looking to bring people in from the track and field community, as well as from the disabled community,” he said.
Gallegos’ influence in the running community goes beyond his new podcast. Just over a year ago, Gallegos signed a contract with Nike, and he now collaborates with them to create shoes designed for runners who have mobility issues or trouble tying their shoes, which take maximum amounts of stress and have no laces. He gives feedback to his consultant at Nike, John Truax, on what works or what doesn’t.
Truax discovered Gallegos’ talent almost four years ago, when he was coming into college. Truax knew Gallegos was something special, and he made the effort to get the runner on board at Nike. He recognized an exemplary athlete, but also someone with the right mindset. “He’s always positive,” Truax said. “His motto is ‘stronger every mile.’ It really is true: the more he runs, the stronger his body gets.”
A huge factor in Gallegos’ success is his focus on the future. He’s always looking forward to the next accomplishment, the next race and the next chapter in his career. Right now, the next chapter is marathons. Gallegos plans on running two marathons in 2020: the London Marathon and a repeat performance at the Chicago Marathon.
“This wasn’t a bucket-list thing for me,” Gallegos said of his marathon feat. “I want to call myself a 10-time marathoner, even a 20-time marathoner.”
Whatever he does in life, Gallegos doesn’t take it lightly. Whether it be running, doing his podcast or helping design sneakers, he intends to “go all out,” as he puts it. It’s difficult to predict where Gallegos’ running career will end up, but one thing is for certain — if he sets a goal for himself, he’s going to reach it.