Hardship, Resilience & Competing at the Highest Level | Ken Rideout
4/29/20262 hr 35 min
In this episode, I sit down with Ken Rideout — author, elite masters marathoner, and one of the most compelling people I've ever had on the show — to discuss his journey from a difficult childhood and decade-long opioid addiction to becoming the Masters (50+) Marathon World Champion and winning the Gobi March, a 155-mile self-supported stage race across the Gobi Desert in Mongolia. Ken shares how running became his path to sobriety and why he finds peace in suffering rather than comfort. We cover his "clean vs. dirty fuel" framework for motivation, the mental tactics he uses mid-race to avoid quitting, his approach to pacing and fueling for marathons, and how his training philosophy evolved once he brought in a coach. We also discuss raising competitive kids, the value of discipline as freedom, and what he'd tell anyone who doesn't know where to start. This episode is for anyone who has ever felt like they've wasted time or lost their way and needs proof that it's not too late. Sponsors Momentous: https://livemomentous.com/perform TrueMed: https://truemed.com/perform LMNT: https://drinklmnt.com/perform Eight Sleep: https://eightsleep.com/perform Chapters (00:00:00) Ken Rideout (00:02:15) Book Tease and Tears (00:03:27) Gobi March Race (00:38:23) Relief After Winning (00:40:29) Why Choose Suffering (00:47:30) Drugs Versus Discipline (01:01:10) Quitting And Redemption (01:05:00) Malibu Half Turnaround (01:09:29) Racing Tactics Mindset (01:16:03) Train Fear Compete Fire (01:17:58) Clean Versus Dirty Fuel (01:24:00) Health First Baby Steps (01:27:09) Morning Routine And Discipline (01:32:48) From Sports To Running (01:35:31) Triathlon Lessons And Kona (01:38:16) The Mental Grind Of Suffering (01:40:31) Try Harder Mindset (01:49:06) Comfort With Discomfort (01:52:48) Parenting Toughness And Losing (01:56:41) Setbacks Into Strength (01:58:20) Money Doesn't Fix You (02:00:09) Family Pride And Purpose (02:00:47) Coaching With Edge (02:06:57) Ask For Help (02:09:52) Romanticizing The Suffering (02:15:55) Grit Beats Talent (02:19:38) No Roadmap Just Effort (02:23:54) Marathon Progress And Coaching (02:28:01) First Marathon Fueling Plan (02:31:28) Service First Content (02:32:25) Wrap Up Disclaimer & Disclosures Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Transcript preview
First 90 secondsKen Rideout· Guest0:00
I had tried the mediocre roa- road in life- Yep ... and it didn't pay very well, meaning it wasn't very fulfilling. The only things that have been fulfilling to me as a, as a person, as a man, has had come with suffering and struggling.
Andy Galpin· Host0:13
[instrumental music] The science and practice of enhancing human performance for sport, play, and life. Welcome to Perform. I'm Dr. Andy Galpin. I'm a professor and scientist and the executive director of the Human Performance Center at Parker University. Today, I'm speaking with Ken Ridout. Ken is an author, elite endurance athlete, and a tremendous storyteller. In this conversation, you're gonna learn a lot, and probably at most, be incredibly inspired. Ken's journey from really tough circumstances as a child to early career success, making millions of dollars, then falling into a decade-long battle with drug addiction, and coming out of all that breaking records in endurance sports and having a successful life is as inspirational as anything I've ever been a part of. I was lucky to get an early copy of his book. I read the entire thing, almost, I saved the last couple of pages till today, in one sitting. Ken is different than anyone I've ever had on Perform, and so you're gonna learn a lot of tactical stuff if you're into endurance racing and running, but you're gonna walk away entertained, I guarantee you that, and also incredibly inspired. The lessons he imparted are valuable to all of us, regardless of whether you'll run a race in your life now or ever in the future. I found it valuable. I know you'll get a ton out of this as well.