Nev Schulman Broke His Neck 3 Months Ago — Now He's Running the NYC Marathon as a Guide for a Blind Runner (Exclusive)

• Nev Schulman broke his neck in a bike accident in August and assumed he would be unable to run the New York City Marathon this year
• He details his tough recovery journey and how his body was able to “bounce back” from the spinal cord injury
• After cramming three months of training into eight weeks, he’s set to run the marathon on Nov. 3 as a blind runner guide for his friend Francesco

When Nev Schulman suffered a broken neck in a bike accident on Aug. 5, shattering his plan to run the New York City Marathon for a seventh time, he took it hard. That’s because this year, someone was depending on him.

The Catfish star, 40, is registered as a blind runner guide for his friend Francesco Magisano through the Achilles International Foundation.

“About two weeks after the accident, he texted me, ‘How are you feeling?’ I said, ‘I'm feeling terrible, and you should probably look for a new guide,’” Schulman tells PEOPLE. “He said, ‘Nev, I'm not going to find a new guide. Take your time, get better. And I don't care how fast or slow we go, I really want you to be my guide.’”

“And honestly, this was a very inspiring part of my recovery,” he recalls. 

That moment shifted Schulman’s perspective on the trajectory of his injury and motivated him to get back on his feet.

“I’m in a brace. I'm laying in bed. I am devastated for a million reasons. And for the first time I’m thinking, ‘Okay, wait a second. Maybe there's a chance if he's counting on me,” he says.

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When Schulman broke his neck, he was lucky the accident didn’t leave him paralyzed. He was treated at the Southampton Emergency Room and the Stony Brook ICU, recalling a “pretty rough” first week in the hospital.

The Dancing with the Stars alum was uncomfortable as he adjusted to wearing a neck brace and was dealing with the pain from emergency spine surgery. But once there were signs that he didn’t have any permanent nerve damage, he let out a sigh of relief. 

It only took three days for Schulman to get out of bed and walk around the ICU, surprising all of his doctors and nurses. “I knew how lucky I was and it gave me a lot of hope,” he says.

Additionally, Schulman spent the next five weeks at home with limited mobility, which he admits was difficult with three young children. He shares kids Cleo James, 7, Beau Bobby Bruce, 5, and Cy Monroe, 2, with wife Laura Perlongo.

But in the back of his mind, all Schulman could think about was the upcoming marathon and the crucial training he was missing out on.

“I kept thinking, ‘All that hard work I did is sort of fading away,’” he says. “But I also understood that I should just be patient and know that this little bit of time that I'm taking to let my body heal is far more important than anything else.”

Schulman got the all-clear from his doctors mid-September, and his body responded well to physical activity. After his first run, he could see the “light at the end of the tunnel” and he immediately felt better not only physically but mentally.

“I need to move my body for my own mental health,” he explains. “Running, as I discovered in my 30s, is the best medicine for my happiness. So that was such a huge relief for me and really gave me a big surge of energy and optimism.”

From that point, the TV star reunited with Magisano to be his blind runner guide and the pair jammed three months worth of training into eight weeks. Schulman’s initial goal for the marathon was to set a new personal best. But after his recovery, he was no longer trying to get faster — just get back to his baseline.

“My body really bounced back,” he says. “The first few runs were obviously tough, I was going at a much slower pace than I would normally go and working much harder than I would normally work. But once got some momentum going, by the third or fourth run I really felt strong again. I’m not 100%, but I feel great, honestly.”

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Schulman has run the New York City Marathon six times since 2015. But ahead of this year’s race, he asked himself, “Why am I doing it? How can I bring more meaning to this race, not just for me but to the race as well?”

That’s why he wanted to run with the Achilles International Foundation, which helps those with disabilities get involved in athletic programs. He also partnered with Brooks Running, which supported his recovery journey with their new Glycerin Max sneakers to “ease my way back into running” as his neck and body are "still vulnerable.”

Schulman says he already knows this will end up being his “most meaningful” marathon. 

“I worked really hard in 2018 to run a sub-three hour marathon, which was a huge personal triumph. But this feels like a community triumph,” he says.

In addition to Brooks Running and the Achilles International Foundation, Schulman says the number of fans who have rooted for his recovery journey has been “remarkable.” It gives him another reason to cross the finish line.

Although the race is Nov. 3, Schulman says his mantra — which also relates to his spinal recovery — will be his favorite quote from Haruki Murakami’s book, What I Talk About When I Talk About Running: “Pain is inevitable. Suffering is optional.” 

“I think about that a lot because everyone's hurting,” he explains. “No one who runs a marathon isn't hurting, but you can choose whether you want to suffer through it or if you want to smile, stay positive and keep it going.” 

Reflecting on how far he’s come just a few months after the accident, Schulman’s excited for him and Magisano to cross the finish line together.

“So many of the disabled athletes who run with Achilles have become disabled from spinal cord injuries. And the fact that I had one, recovered, and can now continue to offer my services to that organization feels so special,” he tells PEOPLE.

“Also for myself, to know that I got knocked down but I got back up and I'm going to get to that finish line. It feels really good.”