Like A Bigfoot

This week we are chatting with Jason Sudduth about rediscovering health, having adventures, and creating positive routines. Recently he's lost 40 pounds in two months, started doing yoga, began running, and recently went on his first backpacking trip to the Linville Gorge in North Carolina. I had Jason on specifically to nerd out about the Linville Gorge, one of the most remote wild places in the southeast, but upon seeing the strides he has made towards a healthier lifestyle the conversation turned into a much deeper more hilarious reflection on health and happiness. He followed, what I believe to be, the time tested formula of success: CONSISTENT POSITIVE ACTION / TIME = SUCCESS It's nothing fancy, there is no shortcut or hack, and it sure isn't pretty. It IS just showing up day after day, week after week, and putting in the hard work. Being cool with a little discomfort. Being ok with "failure" and having the beginner's attitude. That's it. You have a goal? Do a little bit each and every day to m

This week we are honored to welcome endurance athlete, entrepreneur, and creator and star of the awesome endurance racing TV show Boundless, Simon Donato. Recently he wrote a book called The Boundless Life: 13 Lessons Learned the Hard Way. If you are like me and obsessed with endurance sports, wilderness exploration, and solid life advice, then definitely check it out! I finished it over the weekend and absolutely loved it! You can find The Boundless Life here: https://www.amazon.com/Boundless-Simon-Donato/dp/1443446556 Simon is also the founder of the company Adventure Science (www.adventurescience.com) which partners field scientists with wilderness athletes in an attempt to explore and understand the wildest places in the world. In this episode Simon shares stories and advice from his days as a world class adventure racer, explains the lessons he's learned though endurance racing and how they have led to success in other aspects of life, and discusses various expeditions and challenges he has pursued

This week's Like a Bigfoot episode is, fittingly enough, with the creator of the Bigfoot 200 mile endurance, Candice Burt. In fact, she organizes, manages, and directs THREE 200 mile races: Bigfoot, Tahoe, and Moab (really 234 miles...but at that point what's 34 more!) Candice is a really thoughtful, funny, and happy person....for someone who jokingly received the moniker of "most masochistic race director in the world!" I was so grateful get to speak with her before she takes off into the wilderness planning the next big race. In this episode we talk about all the highs and lows of organizing such a gigantic event, how she keeps her runners safe, what people can expect from a 200 mile event, how to train for her races, and how 200 milers are a whole different BEAST than 100 milers. She really gave me an idea of the massive amount of work involved in putting on a successful ultra. Pretty amazing! We also discuss what it's like to 'fastpack' through isolated wilderness areas, what to do when you see mou

This week I was fortunate enough to chat with Eric Schranz, the host of the absolutely wonderful Ultrarunner Podcast! Years ago I binged a bunch of his episodes and then decided to sign up for my first 50k. So yeah...it's his fault that I'm an ultrarunner! In fact, if you are curious about looking into the sport of ultrarunning, I would highly suggest that you check out the URP as it is a great resource to learn all about this crazy sport. Each week, Eric shares a wide variety of stories from the world of ultrarunning. From elite athletes to regular every day folks to simply some insane people running some insane events! He also highlights the diverse nature of the sport; everything from 100 mile point to point mountain runs to self supported stage races to events where participants literally run for days around high school tracks. All the while learning tips of the trade, hearing wild adventure stories from his guests, and nerding out over some of the biggest events in the sport. Seriously, one of th

"I want an indelible bond with my daughter. I want her to remember this trip for the rest of her life. I want her to remember me after I am gone. I want Awe. I want to feel alive. I want Aidan to be filled with life and wonder."- James Campbell, Braving It Very excited to bring you this week's episode with author, adventurer, and family man James Campbell. Author of "The Color of War", "The Ghost Mountain Boys", and "The Final Frontiersman", I reached out to James specifically to hear about his latest book"Braving It" which tells the story of bringing his 16 year old daughter Aidan on three separate trips to the far north wilderness of Alaska. As a parent, and specifically a father of daughters, the book really connected with me. The end goal is to raise self-reliant, confident human beings, but reaching the moment where your child is becoming more independent and is preparing to "leave the nest" has to be an extremely tough time. I feel like a wilderness experience like James gave his daughter is of utt

I'm stoked to share this week's episode! An academic, a scholar, a....a.....a super smart dude. Professor Jake Reed!! Jake is one of my oldest friends and has recently become a Professor of Strength & Conditioning and Physiology of Exercise at the University of Northern Iowa. He's also a Sports Scientist working with the U.S.A. Women's Rugby team and a sport performance consultant for Renaissance Periodization. Previously, he worked as a sports scientist for the Texas A & M Football team and pulled double duty at Eastern Tennessee State as their head rugby coach and strength coach for the university's volleyball team. He also hikes, goes fishing, strength trains, brews beer, and grows one fantastically manly beard. Jake is a fascinating person and is hands down the hardest worker I have ever met . He sets big time goals and pursues them with intention, intelligence, and unrelenting energy. I've been so inspired by his journey to get his PhD and am enthralled by all the areas of sports he has dipped hi

This week the Like a Bigfoot Podcast proudly brings you Will Seeber's story of his 14ersQuest- where he attempted to summit as many of the Colorado 14ers as possible in brutal winter conditions. As a self confessed 14ers nerd, I followed Will's story this winter and am beyond stoked to have been able to chat with him about the experience. There's just something about climbing mountains that is magical and I can only imagine the peace you find and challenges you face while soloing one of these bad boys in the tranquility of winter. Seriously, try to imagine climbing in negative temperatures and savage winds, you are miles from the nearest sign of civilization, you seen the morning post-holing through knee deep snow, and now you have to climb up and down exposed cliffs. And then you have to wake up and do it all over again the next day.... The experience sounded INTENSE to say the least. In this episode Will shares how to persevere through the savage weather, the importance of warmth, why you must set

This week Brady Manriquez and Travis Steffen discuss their experiences in the Monument Valley Ultras. Brady finished off his very first half marathon, 13.1 beautiful miles running through the desert. A culmination of a year long discovery of running. He recaps his strategy to deal with the pre-race jitters, how he handled running in the sand, and the importance of embracing happiness and rolling with the punches. The race ended with a bunch of letters from friends and family and a finish with a great time! Travis's story is probably one of the most unique race reports of ALL TIME! The dude terminatored his way through a 50 mile race on pretty much ZERO training because he wanted to experience pain and misery in an attempt to see how much he can withstand physically, mentally and emotionally. The last few hours, he dug deep as he trekked through rain, wind, and darkness in only a soaking wet t-shirt and some running shorts. We dig deep into Travis's mindset during the race. How can we grow by purposel

This past weekend I competed in the Monument Valley 50 miler. The best way to describe the experience was "Life in a Day". I experienced the whole spectrum of emotions throughout nine hours of sand dunes, mesas, hogans, and even found moments of desert isolation. I hollered with joy running down Mitchell Mesa, I had my breath taken away by the beauty of the valley in the Arches Loop, and I welcomed the darkness of exhaustion while staggering my way towards Brigham's Tomb. It was exhilarating. It was exactly what I wanted and needed from the race. Special episode this week as I try to explain to my buddy Brady Manriquez the why, what, and how of my experience. We talk about the constantly changing mindset throughout the miles, share tips on motivation to endure such a long event, and attempt to explain how my emotional and mental benefits from an ultra completely overshadow the pain and discomfort. This is just PART ONE of our race report! In a few days we will release Travis and Brady's stories whic

Ridiculously excited this week as we welcome Adam Casey to the podcast! A month ago in Nederland, Colorado I spent a few hours running with Adam. We were cruising along, chatting and instantly I knew I wanted him to share his story on the podcast. Because, quite frankly, Adam's lived a life. His journey to where he is now, a computer programming major at University of Colorado, has been unconventional. He's been a former Mizzou football player, a U.S. marine, a biologist, a cancer survivor, and, most recently, a sky diving badass. He also started the nonprofit I Do It For Her which supports under-privledged children in the Saint Louis area and individuals with lofty life goals who believe that "the best weapon in a world deterred by the risk of failure are individuals who are willing to accept the challenge to better themselves through adversity." On this episode Adam shares stories from his time attempting BUD/S training ....or to us common folk Navy SEAL training. Commonly known as the absolute ha

This week we are joined once again with Travis Steffen (episode 10) . Travis is a successful entrepreneur and athlete working in the heart of the insanity that is Silicon Valley. Through the last ten years he's created multiple businesses from scratch, played college football, pursued MMA, fought in Thailand, completed triathlons and ultramarathons, climbed mountains, competed in body building competitions and so on and so on. How was he able to step up and confront all of these challenges? Travis attributes his success to regimented discipline, daily goal setting, and a focused mindset on success. On this episode Travis shares his intense morning routine, his affinity with lists, what drives him to set lofty goals, how he visualizes a "life trophy case", his hilarious experience running his first marathon, and how he plans on finishing his first 50 miler. We also reopen the "City Slickers 1 v. City Slickers 2" trial....in which I present some very damning evidence. As are most of my conversations with

There's so much I could write about as I attempt to describe Jason Schlarb in a few short paragraphs. He's a professional runner, Altra sponsored athlete, world traveler, family man, and an all around good dude. He's ran (and won) an insane amount of trail races all around the world, he's explored mountains, beaches, jungles, and deserts, and was the first American to finish UTMB in 2014 (the Super Bowl of Ultrarunning), amongst so much more! The dude is legitimately one of the best ultra runners on the planet! Best of all he's a Coloradoan who, like most people who live here, loves being outdoors and exploring the wilderness. Running, hiking, climbing, or skiing, he's a badass mountain athlete through and through. In this episode we nerded out about Colorado before discussing one of the state's craziest and most intense races- the Hardrock 100, a race Jason won in 2016 as he finished alongside ultra running superstar Kilian Jornet....you know...the dude who's trying to set the fastest known time up Eve

Imagine walking sunrise to sunset day after day for 2,650 miles through brutal winter weather. We're talking summiting gigantic frigid mountains, freezing cold river crossing, waist deep snow, without seeing other hikers for weeks at a time through intense wintry wilderness. Those are only a few of the obstacles Shawn Forry and his hiking partner Justin Lichter faced while successfully completing the very first WINTER thru-hike of the Pacific Crest Trail. Thru-hikes have always fascinated me. What it must feel like to immerse yourself into the wilderness with nothing but the winding trail for months at a time. In fact, every time I did a day hike on the Appalachian in Virginia I would unsuccessfully try to get into that headspace. Beyond the completely awesome story of the winter PCT, I was pumped to chat with Shawn just so I could nerd out on some of the billion of questions I had for an experienced thru-hiker. On this week's episode Shawn shares stories from the winter PCT trek, explains how his thru

“We don’t lack the science, information, or technology to get healthy. We lack the art to know how to use those things properly.” This week’s Like a Bigfoot Podcast is with the author of the upcoming book “The Art of Health Hacking” TJ Anderson. TJ is an advocate for human optimization through continual learning, testing, and adapting your habits to chase your ideal physical, mental and emotional health. He’s also just a really positive, life-embracing, loving dude who just oozes positivity and I had a great time chatting with him. While some health-hacking authors focus on the nitty gritty details, TJ has embraced the idea the of differentiation- teaching a diverse group of people how to teach themselves to optimize healthy habits in a way that works for their own individual backgrounds, needs, and bodies. What has worked for him may or may not work for you….so his book acts as an overall blueprint of HOW to pursue YOUR experience by choosing to focus on behavior change and strategies you can use on yo

Since we last spoke to Brady Manriquez (episode 1), he has lost 15 more pounds, overcame set-backs in the form of an emergency surgery, began pumping iron, and discovered the great form of exploration known as trail running. All this in preparation for his very first race- a 14.5 miler in the absolute breath-taking Monument Valley smack dab in the middle of the Arizona/Utah desert. In this episode we break down Brady's pre-race plan along with my own (I'm running the 50 mile Monument Valley ultra the same day), wax poetically about everything we know about Monument Valley, discuss ways to really make the most out of a big destination race, the origin of the name "Like a Bigfoot", and so much more! While you are listening to Brady's story, realize that a year ago he hadn't even dreamt of running one mile, not to mention running 14.5, let alone running 14.5 in a desert trail half marathon! His story is proof that you can accomplish whatever it is you want as long as you are consistently taking sustainable s

This week's guest is amazing, hard working, hilarious, loving and just so happens to be the most important person in my life, my beautiful wife, Lindsey Ward. (Brownie points for me!) As the clock ticked midnight on New Years' Eve, Linz and I started our month long journey to tackle the Whole30 challenge. The Whole30 challenge encourages you to eat only the absolute essentials- vegetables, fruits, and meats. It is not focused on counting calories, juicing, or portion control, and instead simply forces you to eat clean food. It also turns your focus away from weight and instead to simply observing how your body feels after eliminating processed food, sugars, alcohol, dairy products, etc. Lindsey and I wanted something to kick us out of our food routines to help nourish new, healthier habits. We also wanted to avoid the normal pitfalls of most unsustainable New Year's Resolutions. We chose Whole30 because, instead of creating vague goal over an indefinite time period, it offered a very black and white gu

If you are a parent...or an athlete....or a parent-athlete, you are going to love this one! Sara and Wes Turner are two of the most driven athletes in Virginia. On this podcast we like to highlight people rebelling against the status quo and I'm happy to say that this husband and wife team are epitomizing the Like a Bigfoot spirit! For the past few years Wes has been literally chasing his goal of qualifying for the Olympic Trials in the marathon. He is beyond driven, missing ZERO workouts while winning race after races he slowly creeps up to the magic 2 hours and 18 minutes needed to qualify. Dude is FAST! Sara is also a runner and spends her time training and writing on her popular blog "Running Wife" being completely transparent about the peaks and valleys of being in training, racing, and cheering on her husband throughout this journey. Recently their story has transformed as they added the challenge of having a baby. Now they are in the middle of adapting from life as "two married athletes" into "

I met this week's guest way back in 2008 during my first year of coaching 9th grade football for the Iowa City West Trojans. He instantly became one of my favorite players. He was coachable, tough, would play any position asked of him, worked harder than anyone else, and had the never say die attitude that brings a smile to a coach's face. Over the last nine years, George Kittle transformed himself from 160 pound ninth grader into a 250 pound starting Tight End for the Iowa Hawkeyes. In the last two years he has scored 10 touchdowns, became one of the team's best run blockers, and helped lead them to one of their best seasons of all time. How did his mindset help him throughout this journey? What obstacles did he overcome? What lessons did he internalize while pursuing his goals? What does the next step look like for a potential prospect chasing an NFL career? In this episode George shares the most important lessons from his journey. Over his five year college career he has used the power of consiste

This week we are proud to have the opportunity to talk to one of the leading experts of Acroyoga. The most basic definition of this style of yoga is that it is a mixture of acrobatics and yoga. It is the rare “social” yoga in that the poses are generally accomplished with either one or more partners. This week’s guest has spent the last ten years learning and practicing under the watch of Acroyoga creators Jesse Goldberg and Eugene Poku and is now one of the most highly respected Acroyoga instructors in the world. Jill Campbell fell in love with the movement, art, and connection that Acro brings to her life and is on a quest to spread the goodness to as many people as possible. She travels all over the world bringing acroyoga to literally thousands of students and has now spread her influence by teaching the next generation of instructors. Jill is a caring, introspective, boundary pusher who is blazing the trail for Acroyoga practitioners worldwide. As someone who has practiced yoga pretty regularly th

What kind of person can endure 50 ironman triathlons, in all 50 states, in 50 straight days? An Ironman consists of a 2.4 mile swim, followed by a 112 mile bike ride, and finished with a 26.2 mile run for a total of 140.6 miles. For most people completing one is a MAJOR life accomplishment. In the summer of 2015, "The Iron Cowboy" James Lawrence powered through 50 of them, for 50 straight days, while traveling through all 50 states with his wife, five kids, and his crew. He called it the 50.50.50. Some call it the craziest feat of self-induced human endurance. I call it the most impressive accomplishment I've ever witnessed. His story will truly open your eyes to what humans are capable of. In this week's episode, James shares some high points and low points of the challenge, the mindset it takes to endure this massive endeavor, how he has developed his physical and mental toughness with the power of consistent action over time, the positive ripple effects he has witnessed from his project, and what