These days, you’re more likely to find Jim Ryun running for re-election than for exercise.

Jim Ryun. Before he even got to the University of Kansas, this future congressman was already running a mile in under four minutes. Before his ten-year stint in the US House of Representatives, he racked up an impressive trove of accolades, including the Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year award and the silver medal in the 1,500-meter at the 1968 Olympics.

Nicholas Sparks. Most people know Sparks as the guy who plays puppeteer with our heartstrings in books like The Notebook and A Walk to Remember. But before managed to corner the market on disaster-and-illness-filled romances, he was a standout middle-distance runner at Notre Dame.

Bruce Dern. Dern, an avid runner, has managed to find the time over his half-century long acting career to clock over 100,000 miles. He runs an average of 2,500-4,000 miles per year. He once ran for the University of Pennsylvania, and hasn’t looked back since.