Harry Styles has delighted fans with a sizzling new photoshoot flaunting his impressively chiselled physique, as he opened up on the isolating aspect of fame.

After discovering his passion for running and participating in two marathons last year, the singer, 32, displayed the hard-earned results as he appeared shirtless on the cover of Runner’s World, showing off his sculpted frame and many tattoos.

The hitmaker demonstrated his athleticism in the striking snaps, sprinting down a deserted mountain road, clad in only a pair of trainers and patterned running shorts.

And in the accompanying interview, Harry opened up on finding his passion for running to novelist Haruki Murakami, sharing how it enables him to be alone with his thoughts and shed the trappings of fame.

He has been keeping a low-profile since wrapping his Love On Tour tour in July 2023, with it been more than three years since the release of his third album Harry’s House.

However, the One Direction star stunned fans last year when he popped up again on the streets of Tokyo, taking part in the city marathon.

Harry Styles has delighted fans with a sizzling new photoshoot flaunting his impressively chiselled physique, as he opened up on the isolating aspect of fame

After discovering his passion for running and participating in two marathons last year, the singer, 32, displayed the hard-earned results as he appeared shirtless on the cover of Runner’s World , showing off his sculpted frame and many tattoos

The hitmaker demonstrated his athleticism in the striking snaps, sprinting down a deserted mountain road, clad in only a pair of trainers and patterned running shorts

He impressed onlookers when he crossed the finish line with a time of 3:24:07, landing him in very respectable 6,010th place of 26,706 runners.

And six months later, the Watermelon Sugar singer scored a new personal best when he ran the Berlin Marathon in under three hours, with a finish time of 2:59:13.

Speaking to Haruki – the author of What I Talk About When I Talk About Running which Harry says inspired him to take on a marathon – he explained the reason for his three-year career hiatus and the part that running played in his return to the limelight.

After playing 173 tour shows in 2023, Harry decided to take time off to say yes to plans with friends, travel, and enjoy being part of an audience again, rather than the star on the stage.

He admitted that after shooting to global stardom in his teens in One Direction followed by further meteoric success as a solo artist, he began to feel an increasing sense of isolation as a result of his mammoth fame.

In the accompanying interview, Harry opened up on finding his passion for running to novelist Haruki Murakami, sharing how it enables him to be alone with his thoughts and shed the trappings of fame

‘Over the years, I had to say no to everything I was invited to, whether it was a friend’s birthday, a trip somewhere amazing, an opening,’ he recalled.

‘I started to wonder if I was saying no because I really was so busy or because it was more comfortable than saying yes. 

‘When you close yourself off to protect yourself from people who might bring negativity into your life, you’re also missing out on positive experiences.’

After taking time away from the spotlight to go to travelling, attend Glastonbury, hit the Berlin club scene and see the new Pope be announced in Rome, Harry found his passion for running, saying it became a place for him to ‘really be by myself’.

He said: ‘Because in some of those new experiences, there’s just so much stimulation, right? So many people, and it’s just so loud. 

‘So then running also became my processing place for all of that. Really being by myself. When you’re training for a marathon, which is the loneliest part, you just kind of set out for a run, and three hours later you come back. 

‘But there’s a real synergy between that and electronic music. It’s kind of hypnotic and becomes like a mantra almost.’

While he explained that an added bonus was that running allowed him to step outside of his status as a celebrity and just be himself, describing it as ‘going about your day in the most naked form’.

Despite being one of the most famous faces in the world, he insisted that being in constant motion meant that fans often didn’t get the chance to recognise him.

‘Well, the main thing is that you’re always moving. You can turn a corner wherever,’ he said. ‘I think with people who see me, it’s a bit more “Was that…?” rather than, “Oh look it’s him!” And by that time, you’re already gone.’

Harry went on: ‘For me, one of the things that can be complicated is that, as an artist, say if you’re a novelist or a musician or a filmmaker, you’re an observer – but when you become a known person, you become the observed. 

He admitted that after shooting to global stardom in his teens in One Direction followed by further meteoric success as a solo artist, he began to feel an increasing sense of isolation as a result of his mammoth fame

‘You know you’re still the same, but other people can begin to view you as something different.  

‘So something I love so much about running is the simplicity of it. You are the observer once more, and you can go about your day in the most naked form. 

‘It’s just you, alone, moving through the world. That’s what I love about it: You don’t need anything, just a pair of shoes.’

Harry has now remerged into the public space after an ‘amazing’ three years off, with his fourth album Kiss All The Time, Disco Occasionally set for release on March 6.

He returned to the stage on Saturday to open the 2026 BRIT Awards, with the live debut performance of his new single Aperture and is set to perform 50 shows in total on his Together Together tour across the globe.

Harry has described the title of his new album Kiss All The Time, Disco Occasionally to be almost like ‘a life mantra’. 

He explained: ‘I think like loving and being moving through your life with love and taking a break every now and again to have some fun I think is a really good way to approach your life. 

‘That’s what I felt like I did the last couple years and it led to positive changes in my life.’

The full interview with Harry Styles can be read on the Runner’s World UK website now and in the May issue on sale from April 1