Los Angeles local Adrian Villarreal started running as a way to get from point A to point B — regularly ditching his backpack in his high school locker and running the 5 to 7 miles home. Those runs quickly became the part of his day he looked forward to most. “That’s when I fell in love with running,” Villarreal says.

　　For Villarreal, running is the ultimate connection to himself. “I just need my shoes and I can get out the door and be the machine. Watch PACE SETTERS Episode 2, a series made in partnership with HOKA:

　　Play Villarreal isn’t the first person in his family to get into running. In the 1980s, his dad ran the Los Angeles Marathon twice. His dad’s fond memories of the marathon put the race on Villarreal’s radar.

　　He ran his first LA Marathon at age 29 — with no training and no goals. “I was going purely off vibes and had a decent time,” says Villarreal. That success motivated him to see how he could perform if he trained.

　　Villarreals multigenerational connection to running also led him to found the small business Momentéum, which reproduces vintage race T-shirts into limited modern releases, and hosts small community events at races.

　　When youre in that pain cave, to look down and see something nostalgic or comforting speaks volumes. I wanted to create something that could do that for the community, he says.

　　Now, with multiple big races under his belt and more on the horizon, Villarreal has seen what his body is capable of by pushing himself to chase ambitious PRs, and is aiming even higher. At the upcoming 2025 TCS New York City Marathon, he hopes to lower his PR to 2:35.

　　He credits his running community for helping him push himself. “Training for these races alone is super hard,” he says. “When you show up to the track or a group run and someone else is in that struggle with you — that’s what’s so beautiful about it.”

　　This post is sponsored by HOKA.