On Saturday, November 1st, about 200 runners gathered in the middle of nowhere Texas on Bare Ranch to take on the night.
As dramatic as that sounds… it’s accurate.
Bare Performance Nutrition’s 50-mile ultra started at 6 p.m. and gave us 12 hours to get it done. Since this race came just three short weeks after my Devils Den 12-hour ultra, my only real expectation was to survive the event. Nothing heroic. Nothing spicy. Just get it done.
And I did.
Read MoreOver the past couple months I had the pleasure of being a content expert for TWO articles published online through Men’s Journal.
Yeah, THAT Men’s Journal…the magazine I great up reading as a young aspiring fitness professional.
Super cool moment.
Read MoreLast Saturday, I toed the line for my first ultra marathon—the Devil’s Den Ultra, 12-hour division, on Wrights Mountain in Bradford, Vermont. The format was simple but brutal: run a 10K loop as many times as possible within 12 hours. I completed 5 loops—50 kilometers—in 10.5 hours before timing out. No podium. No fireworks. But a masterclass in what it really takes to run long, and a deeper understanding of what goes in to training.
I learned a lot out there—about preparation, problem-solving, and myself. Here are three big lessons I’m carrying forward.
Read MoreLast month, one of my clients hit a huge milestone: he worked his way up to three workouts a week.
When we first started, he was exercising maybe once a week — sometimes not at all. Together, we built momentum:
First, just showing up for our weekly personal training session.
Then, adding a 20-minute at-home workout with bands and dumbbells.
Finally, he recruited a friend to join him at his local gym, locking in that third weekly workout.
For the past month, he’s nailed this routine every single week. That’s no small accomplishment.
Recently, he asked if he should add a fourth workout.
Read MoreI ended up running right at my training pace—around 7:30 per mile—comfortably finishing without emptying the tank. On paper, it looks like a win. But looking back, I realize I could have squeezed more value out of this race if I had paid closer attention to one piece of the puzzle: nutrition.
Read MoreWhen I started my exercise streak, I wasn’t thinking about hitting 194 days (and still counting as I write this...) I just wanted to move a little more consistently and designate a time of day for me. I thought I would read on some days, exercise on others, maybe pick up a new hobby in the middle. Well, it turns out I really fell in love with training again and every day just brought another workout. Along the way, I learned a few things that most people don’t talk about when it comes to long-term training. Here are the three biggest lessons:
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