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He Never Ran a Race—Now His Run Club Is in 85 Cities
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Will Garinger can't explain how Run with Christ became so popular—and that might be the point.
Less than two years after a group of 20-year-olds gathered in a Columbus park in September 2024, Run with Christ spans more than 85 cities across seven nations and three continents.
Its founder never ran competitively.
Garinger was a goalkeeper—an All-American who left for a Phoenix soccer academy at 16, jumped into life insurance sales at 18, and landed a Division I roster spot at UNC Greensboro. Every rung up the ladder looked right and felt empty. Behind the résumé was a kid cycling through addiction, shame, and Sunday-morning resets, hiding from everyone—including his own father.
The turning point came one week after the run club launched. On September 14, 2024, a stranger prayed over Garinger, asked about his relationship with his dad, and named things nobody could have known. Garinger fell apart, confessed twenty years of hiding, and walked out a different man.
In this conversation, Garinger and Dominic dig into why the most connected generation in history is the loneliest, why discipline and human connection are the only currencies you can't fake in the AI era, and why your worth never changes based on what you produce.
Garinger shares the question he asks everyone searching for purpose: What makes you angry when you look at the world?
Whatever you believe, this one is about getting outside yourself.
Tap into the Will Garinger Special.
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S H O W N O T E S
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-Our Website: therunningeffect.run
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youtube.com/channel/UClLcLIDAqmJBTHeyWJx_wFQ
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Behind the scenes of The Running Effect:
youtube.com/@Dominicschlueter
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Instagram: @willgaringer_
TikTok: @williamgaringer
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1 hour 18 minutes.