Amid national book launches and hosting top-secret political luncheons, Muse co-owner Paul Eldon has his runners ready for this year's Canberra Times Marathon Festival.
For Mr Eldon, running is a mode of detaching from the stresses of running a business.
"You don't have to be with anyone else, you can just be with your own thoughts," he said.
"That's why I like running. While people find it boring, I don't."
He holds a 1:52.26 personal best time from his 2022 Sydney half-marathon, but he's going into this one with a back injury.
While training in the gym, he injured his lower back, which has been nagging him ever since.
"I can do deadlifts again which is good, but I'm avoiding squats. I've just hurt my back too many times," he said.
While he's coming to the half-marathon with experience, he won't be taking life too seriously.
"I have what I consider to be a fairly normal lifestyle, in terms of approach dieting and nutrition. If I have bad things, oh well," he said.
Mr Eldon's laissez-faire attitude might come from the fact his life revolves around food, books and wine, but he's a devoted runner. This year's Canberra Times event will be his fourth half-marathon.
"I've done two in Sydney and one in Melbourne. I feel like I'm going to be able to complete it," he said.
Located in Kingston's East Hotel, Muse is a bookshop within a cafe and wine bar.
Mr Eldon's idea for the part-bookstore, part-wine bar and cafe is based on a store in Beijing where he used to work before moving to Canberra.
Together with his husband Daniel Sanderson, Mr Eldon has been in the hospitality business since 2018.
You can put yourself to the test against Mr Eldon's experience, among hundreds of runners in this year's Canberra Times Marathon.
There are five distances you can choose from, ranging from the full (42.2km) and half-marathons (21.1km), down to 10km, 5.4km and 2km runs.
Registration for this year's races is now open through the Sole Motive website, with standard prices closing on Sunday, April 16.
The course takes runners past Canberra's iconic sites, along the banks of Lake Burley Griffin, the Parliamentary Triangle before finishing near the Old Parliament House.
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