A conversation with Lucas, how running transformed his life

Meet Lucas, a trail runner and content creator who turned his struggles into strength through running. In this interview, he shares how trail running helped him overcome personal challenges and how he now documents his runs with his GoPro. Check out his inspiring story!

Can you tell us a bit more about yourself? What got you into trail running, and what inspired you to start running and creating content around it?

Hello everyone! My name is Lucas, I’m a 30 years old trail runner from Florianópolis, Brazil. I work full time job as a Web Developer. When I’m not working, I’m either working out, running, playing videogames, watching videos, tv shows or movies, or just resting.

I started to run (and working out in general) to take care of my health, both physically and mentally. I’ve always been a very sedentary and depressive person, with the worst of it happening in 2020, during the pandemics. Due to social isolation, an even worst sedentary life style and unemployment, I went into a downwards spiral, with health deteriorating really fast. I was considering suicide back then.

By the end of that year I sought professional help and started going for walks in order to take care of myself, as means to see the outside world, to breath some fresh air and in the process exercise my body.

In 2021, after seeing lots of people running in the places I went for my daily walks, I decided to start doing that too and from there onwards I fell in love with the sport. It was my biggest ally in the battle against depression. It made me improve my health in ways I never thought possible and gave me many goals for life.

As for Trail Running, I first learned about it roughly in 2022, when a friend (and film maker) called Pedro told me that he got hired to run and film an expedition set in the region of the Mont Blanc mountains in France. The thought of running on trails and mountains was crazy back then. Then, a few months later, as I was talking to a friend from Canada he told me about the Western Coast Trail, which really picked my interest due to its length and beauty. I went to YouTube to find videos about it, and discovered Jeff Pelletier’s channel, a Canadian Ultra Trail Runner and Film Maker with some very well produced films.

Suddenly I was binge watching all his videos and got hugely inspired to start trail running. Then, in 2023 I got my first shoe made for that purpose in a sale, grew some courage and went for my first trail run. Almost fell many times, twisted my ankle at least 3 times (that I remember), and still loved the experience. From there onwards, I was hooked!

And as for creating content around it, it happened in a very curious way. In 2023 I ran a local race called South Run – Etapa Ilha, which went through one of the places that I love the most. Before the race I actually met the race organizers and would often share on social media about my training runs on the race’s area in order to prepare myself for the challenge.

Then in 2024, the same race organizers were about to make their first Trail Race, and due to the friendship I’ve made with them I was invited to be an Ambassador. Thus, as a means to support the race and to show people how it was going to be, I started creating content around it. It was an interesting way to treat running in general, and I not only liked it but also got some positive feedback from others, so I just kept doing it. Also about the race, it was my first official Trail Race, as previously I had only ran on trails for training purposes.

In almost all your videos, you’re running with others. How important is it for you to run with a group?

Very important! I’m a co-creator of a local trail running group, alongside a dear friend and fellow trail runner called Amanda.

We made this group, which is called “Descomplica Trail Running” (Descomplica means “uncomplicate”) to not only invite our friends to run with us (as we already did that, but always via private messages, and then when we had any change of plans we’d have to remember everyone that we invited to update them), but also to create a safe space for everyone to run in the trails together, regardless of experience or goals.

Running with a group basically makes the entire experience much more fun and enjoyable, as we’ve been able to gather people from all different profiles and life experiences to share our love for the sport.

It’s a means to show everyone that they can challenge themselves, that trail running isn’t as tough as they possibly thought it was, and also a place for making new friends.

Running can be really good to improve one’s health, but are there any other benefits that you’ve noticed since you’ve started running?

Absolutely! I love eating, so now I have the perfect excuse to eat a lot, since I need the fuel to run farther! I love when I’m close to a race and I can easily eat tons of pasta or dozens of slices of pizza, knowing full well that all these calories and carbohydrates will be put to good use soon enough! But of course, I try to maintain a balanced diet. I eat lots of vegetables too, but when I see some candies (specially “Paçoca”, a peanut based sweet we have here in Brazil) or some cakes, I tent to lose control and eat way too much of it. No regrets though!

If I’m not mistaken, you have a GoPro Hero 10. What challenges did you face when you first started filming your runs?

I first started filming my runs with my cellphone, so the first challenge was on how to hold my phone without dropping it and still being able to balance myself whilst recording.

Now that I have a GoPro Hero 10, funnily enough the biggest challenge I’m having is moisture! I live in an island, so it’s always very humid, but now, during summer, it’s not only crazy hot but also much more humid, and my GoPro’s Power On/Off button seems to be way too sensible to humidity. I got a used camera, so I’m unsure if that’s a factory defect or just something from prolonged usage.

So, when I’m not using the camera, it stays inside a closed container with Silica Gel to absorb all the moisture and let me use it properly when I need it.

I’d also mention that another challenge was the sweet spot of settings to allow for lesser battery usage. Until recently I had only one battery, so recording in 4K was basically impossible without missing bits of the run, so it took me a while to find the best settings to be able to record almost everything with good enough quality.

What’s your go-to GoPro setup for long trail runs?

At least 3 batteries (now that I got myself some spare Telesin Stamina batteries), the “Handler” short stick/pole and a head mount.

The Handler I use for almost all shots, as it’s comfortable and easy enough to use. I’m planning on buying a longer stick for some other cool shots too, hopefully I’ll buy it soon.

As for the head mount, I like to use it when I’m going to run in a place where I need both of my arms to for balance, like downhills for example. It’s simple to use, but not very comfortable, so I avoid wearing it for prolonged periods.

I also have a chest mount, but barely use it as I’m almost always wearing my hydration vest, and it gets in the way of the camera.

How do you decide what to record during your runs? Do you capture the entire run or focus on key moments?

I focus on key moments. These can range from a lot of different things. When the whole group is running together, maybe in a straight line for example, that’s a shot worth capturing. Or maybe a shot of myself running. I love filming moments when I step on puddles too, these look great in slow motion!

When we’re at some very beautiful places, I try to record them in different angles. I also like to capture moments of different people from the group running the same spot, this way I can not only give them some cool shots of themselves but also make some montages too.

Any tips for runners who want to film their runs without it becoming a distraction?

Try to find a way to record that’s comfortable and that won’t hinder you.

For holding your camera, it’s a good idea to invest in a comfortable pole/stick to hold it, one that has a good grip and won’t start to slip from your hands when you start to sweat. Head or chest mounts can be very good options too.

And when you’re recording, always keep focused on the path ahead. Avoid taking too many peeks at the camera’s screen to check if you’re getting the desired angle. A distraction at the wrong time can mean a nasty tumble when on the trails.

You won’t always get the best shots, as your attention won’t be on the act of recording itself, but there’s always another opportunity to go back and get that cool shot you’ve always dreamt about.

Eventually, you’ll naturally start to position the camera at the proper angles to get the shots you’re looking for, it comes with practice and experience.

I imagine you collect a lot of videos; how do you organise and edit them? Could you share a bit about your workflow?

So, I have them organized by the date of recording. I basically have folders named with the years (2024, 2025), then folders named for each month (01_Jan, 02_Feb, 03_Mar), and lastly for the day. This way, I can easily find the videos I want based on it’s recording date. So, let’s say I wanted to grab videos filmed in 01/03/2025, the folder structure would be like: 2025 -> 03_Mar -> 01-03.

I’ll usually edit two different videos from the same run. One is shorter and in a vertical aspect ratio for Instagram’s Reels, usually limited to 90 seconds. These are a very short summary of how things went, usually with a catchy song to set the mood. Then, I’ll edit a longer and horizontal video for YouTube. There I’m usually free to add explanations and more details on how the run went. I can talk to the camera, add conversations with others, and much more. Also, on YouTube I’m allowed to crank the video quality up to 4K, so there can be more scenic shots.

Also, from time to time, I’ll pick different shots from different runs to make shorter Instagram Stories or Reels, stuff for like Throwback Thursdays, some cool shots that appear too quickly on a Reels, maybe some conversations I had with the camera, and many other things. The best part is, the more I record, the more material I’ll have, so the more creative videos I can make in the future!

You’re training for your first Ultramarathon, how’s that going?

I’d say it’s going well so far. Had some left feet pain last month, but it’s healed by now. The biggest issue right now is the summer heat. Everything becomes much harder in the heat, so I need to be really careful with protecting myself from longer expositions to the sun, and also with keeping myself properly hydrated. Thankfully the Ultramarathon will take place in September, so the peak of my training will happen during winter, which is not only my favorite season, but also much easier and pleasant to run

Any dream races or trails you’d love to run and capture on camera?

Wow, there’s so many! In Brazil alone I can think of many different races, like Mons Ultra Trail, Ultra dos Perdidos, Jaraguá Sky, UTMB Paraty, Mountain Do – Selva Amazônica, and many, many others!

Now when talking about international races, it would be easier to make a spreadsheet with the huge list of the ones I’d love to run one day, with UTMB Mont Blanc being in one of the top spots. As for the trails, way too many to even think about… The Western Coast Trail in Canada is one of them, obviously!

Where do you see your content going in the future? Any specific goals for your Instagram and YouTube?

That’s a great and tough question!

One thing is certain, I want to keep producing content regarding Trail Running. Not only videos from training, but also races, product and race reviews, and much more. I’d say that the biggest goal is for both my Instagram profile and YouTube channel to grow and reach more people. I’d love to show more people that you can win your battle with depression, that exercising can be a huge ally in this battle, and also show how running can be fun, specially on the trails. And well, I won’t lie that it would be really cool to have some kind of support from brands that I like and use.

What message do you hope to share with your content when it comes to mental health?

That life has its ups and downs, it’s not perfect, and it’s perfectly fine to not feel well sometimes. And most importantly that depression doesn’t have to be a defining factor on how you’ll live your life. If I was able to win my battle against it, other people can too! I don’t mean to say that exercising and running are “the revolutionary” way to fix all your problems, no, far from that. Life is complex and things that work for some people won’t necessarily work for others… But there can be a way out of it. You’re not alone, and you can do this, regardless of how you do it.

Running takes a lot of willpower, especially when motivation is low. What advice would you give to someone struggling with finding the drive to start?

Great question!

We live fast lives, and we usually want to be rewarded instantly.

One could look at my Instagram profile for example and think that I’ve been running for my entire life (people actually told me that they thought I ran since I was a child, which is far from the truth). They could think that since I supposedly started early, and now it’s too late for them.

Or maybe, they could actually take their first steps, run for 100 meters, feel very dizzy and tired afterwards, and then compare themselves with someone that already runs for years and quit, since they aren’t that good.

Or even, they could be looking for loosing some weight with running, but if after one week they give up because they didn’t see any results…

The thing is: progress is slow.

I didn’t go from not being able to run 100 meters to running a Marathon in a couple of days. No, it took years.

I didn’t go from feeling afraid of taking a tumble when running in the sidewalk from being able to film and run on technical trails without being afraid of falling or hurting myself.

And I sure as hell didn’t feel confident enough to sign up for a Ultramarathon after running my first kilometre (hell, I didn’t even knew back then that there were races for longer distances than Marathons)…

My advice would be to take it slow. Progress is progress. If you feel good enough to be able to go for a run today, that’s great! If you don’t, that’s fine!

There’s many other ways in which you can work towards your goal, even if you decide to take the day off and rest (which lots of people tend to ignore, rest is super important folks, don’t let influencers with the “No Rest Days” philosophy fool you!).

Go at your own pace and do what you can, regardless of how well it went. In a month from now you’ll be glad that you did it, because you’ll already be a little bit better.

It all depends on you, it’s going to be painful (specially at the very beginning), but eventually you’ll be able to reach your goals, it just takes time and effort.

To wrap things up, what would you say is the best moment you’ve ever captured with your action camera?

That’s very difficult to say…

There’s a specific shot I’ve filmed of my and two friends running the “Lagoinha do Leste” Trail recently, where we’re going for a part of the trail that goes over some cliffs overlooking the sea.

It’s 11am, the sun is high in the sky, it’s very hot, the skies are clear and the sea has a gorgeous blueish and greenish color. The tides are low, so you can see more of the cliffs.

That specific moment, specially when slowed down, is easily the most scenic shot I’ve filmed so far.

But I also can’t go without mentioning the many shots I’ve made of my friends running and having fun. It’s such a genuine feeling, makes me feel really glad that I’m around these people capturing moments like these.

A big thank you to Lucas for sharing his inspiring journey with us! His story is a powerful reminder of the strength we can find in movement and nature. You can follow Lucas’s trail running adventures and content on his instagram and youtube. Thanks Lucas!