When Nate Jones moved to Burbank at the end of 2022, he had no idea that within two years, he would accomplish a feat few could ever imagine—running every single street in the city. Jones originally came to Los Angeles to pursue a career in the film industry. But an unexpected passion for fitness and exploration led him on a journey that transformed not only his body but also his connection to the community he now calls home.
Born and raised in Jefferson City, Missouri, he attended the University of Missouri before making the leap to Los Angeles. His early years in Hollywood were filled with the hustle of the industry, but by 2020, with the film world at a standstill, he turned to fitness. COVID had left him overweight and sedentary so he started by doing at home workout videos like Insanity. Jones admired the endurance and discipline of seasoned runners and wanted to test his own limits. In 2021 he began his running journey with completing three miles at a time. Today, he logs 10-mile runs with ease.
Moving to Burbank was initially a lifestyle decision—In 2022 Jones wanted his own space, and to live on the Eastside of L.A. But the city soon became much more than that. “I affectionately call it ‘The Bank,’ much to the chagrin of my friends,” he jokes. It was in Burbank that his running took on a new challenge: mapping and completing every street in the city.
His obsession with completing mapped routes began in Hollywood, where he would trace his runs with a Sharpie on a paper map. “I’d color in each street after I ran it. That’s when my completionist obsession began. It was so satisfying coloring in the new roads that I began running more and more places just to get all new roads,” said Jones. He planned routes so he never had to retrace his steps, and drove out to locations to continue stretching out his runs, using an app called Strava to track his routes. “I still keep up my Sharpie map for fun but the Strava heat map is what I care about the most, especially because it’s my real GPS data. I spend way too much time staring at it,” adds Jones.
It took him exactly two years to complete every street, alleyway, park path, hiking trail, and even parking lot in Burbank. The only places left unchecked? The Burbank studio lots. “If anyone reading this works at WB, Disney, or Universal, please let me run there! I’ll come in the middle of the night if I have to,” he jokes. Woodbury University is another gap in his map—one he hopes to cross off someday.
Running is now part of his routine, though strength training remains a priority. He typically follows a two-day gym, one-day run schedule, meaning he’s out hitting the pavement two to three times a week. “People tell me all the time that they could never do what I do, but I always say it’s just about consistency and time,” he says.
After running all of Burbank, the Verdugo Mountains makes the of top the list as his favorite run in the city. “To me the Verdugos are the crown jewel of Burbank. It’s been my honor exploring them,” he says. Jones also recalls a particularly memorable run where he started in Glendale, traversed the entire ridge of the mountains, and finished in Shadow Hills. “It was a 14 mile journey that I’ll never forget. I listened to Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain during it, and I fueled up for that run with coffee, eggs, and the gluten-free pancakes from Another Broken Egg. It was truly a great day.”
Other favorites include Kenneth Road, the Burbank Chandler Bike Path, and the Magnolia Bridge over the 5 Freeway, where he tried (but never quite succeeded) to break the Strava segment record for fastest. October runs in Burbank hold a special place in his heart as well, thanks to the city’s dedication to spooky decorations for Halloween.
As he ran, Jones also devoured audiobooks. His unique ability to associate locations with specific book moments gives him a bizarre sense memory of the city. “I’ll be walking down Magnolia and think, ‘Oh this is where Rook Thomas found the traitor.’ Or I’ll be driving down Riverside thinking, ‘This is where Charlie beat Gogmagog.’” This unique connection of audiobooks and run locations happens everywhere he goes!
While he’s had some wild encounters on his run—including witnessing a car crash into a bank—his real journey has been about self-discovery, discipline, and an appreciation for the neighborhoods he’s explored. “Every mile was my absolute pleasure. This is a great community and I feel very fortunate to have been able to explore it so thoroughly,” said Jones. “I appreciate the industrial parts, the residential parts, the commercial parts, the nature parts. All of it. I’m proud to call The Bank my home and I hope I inspire some others to go out and see some of it from their feet!”
So what’s next? Jones’ new goal is to run at least one block in every neighborhood of Los Angeles, including those that aren’t technically within the city limits, like Burbank. He’s close to finishing, with only a few remaining areas to check off—including San Pedro, which will require multiple trips. Jones is a stickler for connectivity, so every run has to link to another which is an aspect he is very proud of. His current mapped routes stretch as far as Sylmar in the north, Alhambra in the east, El Segundo in the south, and Woodland Hills in the west.
And then, of course, there’s the LA Marathon. 2025 will mark his fourth year running it and his seventh marathon overall. “If anyone from Burbank wants to sponsor me in future races, I’m very open to that!” he adds excitedly. For now, he is continuing his runs of completing whole streets, and after finishing Wilshire and Glenoaks, he is just one run away from checking Ventura Boulevard off his list.
