Runner Breaks World Record: 372 Marathons in 372 Days

After losing everything he'd built, Li Shuangyong decided to run toward something new instead of away from his past.

The 41-year-old from Shandong, China, just earned a Guinness World Record for running a full marathon every day for 372 consecutive days. That's 15,000 kilometers across 300 cities in all 34 of China's provincial regions.

Li started his journey a year ago in his hometown of Heze, visiting a new city almost daily while live streaming every step to his 890,000 followers. Each morning, he'd complete 26.2 miles in about five hours, eat breakfast, then drive to the next city and repeat.

The record wasn't easy. When painful foot corns flared up, Li would stop at local pedicure shops to have them removed before continuing his run. He fueled himself with two liters of iced tea and electrolyte drinks, maintaining a steady pace of five to seven minutes per kilometer.

Li broke the previous record of 366 days while running through Xinjiang, but kept going until he could officially accept his Guinness certificate back home in Shandong. Brazilian runner Hugo Farias had set the previous benchmark in 2023.

This isn't Li's first viral achievement. He rose to internet fame after completing a 1,000-day fitness challenge inspired by the anime "One Punch Man," doing 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, 100 squats, and a 10-kilometer run every single day starting in August 2021.

Why This Inspires

What started as a personal quest to transform failure into something meaningful has become Li's full-time career. Chinese sportswear brand Erke now sponsors him, and local running clubs join him on the road in different cities.

Li's story resonates because it's radically honest about starting over. At 41, after watching his business fail and his marriage end, he chose the hardest possible path forward and documented every painful, triumphant step.

His recent medical check showed slightly elevated creatine levels, but Li maintains his body stays balanced through his manageable pace. Recent scans confirm he's healthy enough to continue.

And continue he will. Li plans to extend his streak to 520 days, finishing in Lhasa, Tibet. He calls it collecting his second "Dragon Ball," referencing another anime, with five more major achievements planned for his life.

"Every ordinary person has the chance to achieve something great," Li said after receiving his certificate. "As long as you keep going, you can become an extraordinary version of yourself."

For 890,000 people watching online each day, Li proves that rebuilding doesn't happen overnight, but it does happen one step at a time.