Imagine this: it’s 2023. An aspiring young adult has just received news that he will be running on BYU’s cross country team.
Despite battling sickness, he feels ecstatic. A family member captures his reaction on her phone during a FaceTime call.
Flash forward to the present. What’s it like fulfilling a family legacy at BYU?
Just ask Isaac Hedengren, a sophomore runner.
Running at a high level is a natural activity for the Hedengren family. His dad, John Hedengren, ran cross country competitively for BYU from 1995 to 2001.
“It’s nice to go home and have conversations [about running] with my parents; they understand it,” Hedengren says.
Isaac first started running in late middle school and then took it very seriously in high school. While at Timpview High, he won the 2022 Arcadia Invitational 3200m with a time of 9:02.26.
But a love for running may have come earlier. His grandmother, Marilyn Dahneke, adores a particular photo of him at about five years old with his brother Eric during a “Christmas run of sorts” in the Houston area (see photo below).
“It has been very satisfying to watch Isaac set goals to improve his running at a young age,” says Dahneke. “When he told me he wanted to run for BYU, my inner reaction was very skeptical. But he proved me wrong. He has been diligent and patient. …He is the epitome of discipline.”
It’s no secret that sports in general ensure setbacks and difficulties for athletes to overcome.
“Racing is hard,” says Hedengren. “You have to really care about it to push your body.”
But what’s the hardest aspects not often addressed? The mental battle in an athlete’s head. The body is starting to give out, but one’s mind has been unsure since the start of a race.
“Everything is yelling at you to stop [when you race], but you just have to keep going,” Isaac says.
Along with the difficulties of being an athlete, goals are another thing that come to mind. After all, the biggest room in the world is the room for improvement.
“One of my biggest goals is to surprise myself. It sounds simple,” says Hedengren. “I have expectations of where I can be, but I want to go beyond that. I ran about about 75 miles a week freshman year. I’m trying to learn the balance between training and recovery.”
What does that training look like? Though Isaac redshirted cross country his freshman year, he looks forward to getting back into the swing of things.
“We do tempo workout at a certain pace and split up into intervals,” he says. “After our running workouts hit weights; usually lower-body focused.”
Perhaps one of the most remarkable things about BYU student-athletes is the unique blend of faith and sports. Hedengren shares why Romans is his favorite book of scripture, especially chapter eight.
“Paul is a great writer. He talks about how sin makes us imperfect, but then flips it,” says Isaac. “He teaches how Christ helps us become clean.”
At the end of the chapter are verses 38-39, which read: “For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come…nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
“I think that [scripture] is super well put,” says Hedengren. “None of these external things can separate us from God. We choose to distance ourselves, but we can always choose to come back.”
Friends, family and teammates alike have high praise for the sophomore. Twin brothers Creed and Davin Thompson are teammates of Isaac’s.
“He’s one of the hardest working and most committed people I know,” says Creed.
“It has been very inspiring watching Isaac develop as an athlete and a person while at BYU,” Davin adds.
Isaac has been a strong example of hard work and determination for his family. Last spring, he helped pace his sister Jane in a time trial. The family shares that Jane recently gave a church talk including how “Isaac is [her] best friend.”
“Many things inspire me about him,” says Jane. “In particular, his pure dedication to an aspiring goal. His faith in Jesus Christ and his gospel have allowed him to apply himself in similar ways into his running career.”
On what advice he’d give to aspiring runners, Isaac says, “Take time and think about what you actually want in life and what your calling is. Then go all in and put your eggs in the basket.”
Hedengren anticipates making strides in his upcoming season. One of his current indoor personal records is a time of 7:56.54 in the 3000m event in the February 2024 Husky Classic in Seattle, good for 13th place out of over one hundred contestants.
“Even right now, I feel like [running] is my calling and will develop even more next year,” he says. “Being on a big stage is a great way to be an example of putting that to practice.”