Passion Struck with John R. Miles - Martinus Evans on Why You Need to Set Audacious Goals EP 357

Episode Date: October 10, 2023

In this episode of Passion Struck, host John R. Miles interviews Martinus Evans, a man who has dedicated his life to making running a sport for everyone. Martinus's journey began with a pivotal moment when a doctor's warning pushed him to take charge of his destiny. Join us as we delve into Martinez's unwavering commitment to inclusivity and empowerment. Don't forget to subscribe and leave a five-star review to support the show! Want to learn the 12 philosophies that the most successful people use to create a limitless life? Pre-order John R. Miles’s new book, Passion Struck, which will be released on February 6, 2024. Full show notes and resources can be found here: https://passionstruck.com/martinus-evans-on-why-you-need-audacious-goals/  Martius Evans on Size Inclusivity, Diversity, and Audacious Goal Setting Martinus Evans is a vocal advocate for size inclusivity, mental health, and diversity. He passionately speaks about these issues to inspire change and create a more welcoming world for everyone. Evans believes in infusing intentionality into one's own life. Whether someone is a seasoned runner or considering taking their first stride, he encourages setting audacious goals, cultivating resilience, and fostering a sense of community that supports and uplifts. He believes in creating an intentional life, one that is purposeful and aligned with one's values and aspirations. Sponsors Brought to you by OneSkin. Get 15% your order using code Passionstruck at https://www.oneskin.co/#oneskinpod. Brought to you by Indeed: Claim your SEVENTY-FIVE DOLLAR CREDIT now at Indeed dot com slash PASSIONSTRUCK. Brought to you by Lifeforce: Join me and thousands of others who have transformed their lives through Lifeforce's proactive and personalized approach to healthcare. Visit MyLifeforce.com today to start your membership and receive an exclusive $200 off. Brought to you by Hello Fresh. Use code passion 50 to get 50% off plus free shipping!  --► For information about advertisers and promo codes, go to: https://passionstruck.com/deals/  Like this show? Please leave us a review here -- even one sentence helps! Consider including your Twitter or Instagram handle so we can thank you personally! How  Connect with John on Twitter at @John_RMiles and on Instagram at @john_R_Miles. Prefer to watch this episode: https://youtu.be/aivRTWrVwxk  Subscribe to our main YouTube Channel Here: https://www.youtube.com/c/JohnRMiles Subscribe to our YouTube Clips Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@passionstruckclips Want to find your purpose in life? I provide my six simple steps to achieving it - passionstruck.com/5-simple-steps-to-find-your-passion-in-life/ Want to hear my best interviews from 2022? Check out episode 233 on intentional greatness and episode 234 on intentional behavior change. Learn more about John: https://johnrmiles.com/ 

Coming up next on PassionStruck. One of the things I can tell people is that it's really a mindset for a lot of people like in their head it's like, I don't know if I can get there right. And one of the things I tell people is that like don't fall into this comparison truck. Like your day zero will look different from my day zero.

And that's okay. Your day 100 will look different from my day 100. And that's okay because it's not where you started. It's where you're going. Welcome to PassionStruck. Hi, I'm your host, John Armiles. And on the show, we decipher the secrets, tips, and guidance of the world's most inspiring people

and turn their wisdom into practical advice for you and those around you. Our mission is to help you unlock the power of intentionality so that you can become the best version of yourself. If you're new to the show, I offer advice and answer listener questions on Fridays. We have long-form interviews the rest of the week with guest Ranging from astronauts to authors, CEOs, creators, innovators, scientists, military leaders, visionaries, and athletes. Now, let's go out there and become PassionStruck.

Hello, everyone, and welcome back to episode 357 of PassionStruck, consistently ranked by Apple is one of the top 10 most popular health podcasts in the world. And thank you to all of you come back weekly to listen and learn how to live better, be better, and impact the world. PassionStruck is unsenticated radio in the world. And thank you to all of you, come back weekly to listen and learn, how to live better, be better, and impact the world. Passion Struck is unsindicated radio in the Brushwood meeting network.

You can catch us Monday and Friday from 5 to 6 p.m. Eastern time on Apple Music, tune in or wherever you listen. Links will be in the show notes. If you're new to the show, thank you so much for being here, or you simply want to introduce this, who a friend or a family member, you need to check out our episode Sturder Packs, which are collections of our fans favorite episodes that that we organize, and to convene your topics

that give any new listener a great way to get acclimated, everything we do here on the show. Either go to Spotify or PassionStruct.com's last Sturder Packs to get started. In case you missed it last week, I interviewed two great guests. The first was Dr. John Deloney, who's a best-selling author, a mental health expert, and host of Dr. John Deloney's show. For over two decades, John's immersed himself in research, experienced personal growth, and compassionately guided countless others towards reclaiming their lives from the grips of anxiety.

The key to this transformation lies in the power of choices. Six essential choices that paved the way for a non-ancient life. These choices that he outlines in his new book, Building a Non-Ancient Life, are not easy, but they are the stepping stones towards a brighter future, enabling you to rise above challenges and find peace amidst chaos. The second was with Haiti Horwich, who is a writer-speaker, mindset coach, and women's empowerment activist. She's the founder of Want Women Against Negative Talk, platform dedicated to empowering

women to move forward in their lives fearlessly by shifting their negative self-talk patterns. Katie is also the host of the Wantcast, a women against negative mock podcast. We discuss Katie's new book Want Yourself, which offers a revolutionary approach to transform your self-talk patterns in a deep and lasting way. I also wanted to say thank you for your ratings and reviews which goes such a long way in bringing more people into the PassionStrike community where we can bring them daily doses of inspiration, hope, and meaning. If you love today's episode or either the other two I mentioned, we would appreciate you giving it a 5 star review and rating and sharing it with your friends and families

and know we and our guests love to see comments from our listeners. Joining us on today's episode is Martinez Evans, a man whose life is a testament to the power of intentionality. Martinez isn't barked on a mission to make running a sport for everyone, which is fueled by his unwavering commitment to inclusivity and empowerment. Martinez's journey began with a pivotal moment when a doctor's stark warning prompted him to take charge of his destiny. In the face of the daunting ultimatum, lose weight or die, he chose to finance and purpose. Siding to run a marathon, he set out on a path that many deemed impossible. Since that pivotal moment, Martinez has run not just one, but eight marathons, along

with numerous other distances, all while carrying the strength and determination of his 300-something pound body. His story resonates not only through his remarkable running achievements, but also through the intentional choices he has made to inspire others. Today, we'll delve into Martinez's newly published book, Slow AF Run Club, the ultimate guide for anybody who wants to run. It's more than a running manual, it's a blueprint for living with intention. Martinez empowers readers to break free from societal norms and embrace their unique

selves, regardless of size or perceived limitations. Martinez's passion goes beyond running. He's a vocal advocate, precise, inclusivity, mental health, and diversity. Any passionately speaks about these issues, to inspire change and create a more welcoming world for everyone. Today, listeners you'll learn from Martinez Evans had to infuse intentionality into your own life, whether you're a seasoned runner or someone considering that first stride, his story will encourage you to set audacious goals, cultivate resilience, and foster a sense of community that supports and uploads.

Thank you for choosing PassionStruck and choosing me to be your host and guide on your journey to creating an intentional life now. Let that journey begin. I am so honored today to have Martinez Evans on PassionStruck. Welcome, Martinez. Thank you, Pat. So as I was doing my research, getting ready for this, it turns out, I think, you and my father grew up pretty close to each other.

My dad grew up in East Detroit and lived off of seven mile over by Kelly Road. And I remember growing up as a kid, a Denby high school, if you know where that is, was pretty close to his house. And we used to play around those neighborhoods as I was growing up as a kid myself. John, that's a full circle moment because you probably don't know that, but I went to Denby high school. Oh, I didn't know that. Yeah. But it was literally maybe two football fields away from my father's house.

That's what I'm doing is a full circle moment. Well, I remember him telling me growing up there wasn't necessarily the easiest way to grow up as a kid. Did you have similar experiences? Yeah, absolutely. I had a very rough lifestyle or a random one inside. We turned out a very tough life. Before the age of 10, I had two brothers passed. One brother passed, he got killed doing things inside of the streets and

then another brother died by school of time. In addition to that, I also grew up next to a crack house. It was one of the things I had to cross I walked past every day of my life to go to school. Well, I am so sorry to hear that. And I remember growing up as a kid. I think my grandparents lived there from the time it was in the 50s or 60s all the way into the early 2000s. And I just saw that neighborhood change in so many ways during

that period of my life, starting in the 70s until she ended up moving away when she got into her elder years. But I'm so sorry to hear that. One thing we might also share is I remember every time we would go to Detroit, my dad always wanted to get Detroit style pizza and he would always talk about going to buddies up and Warren, but my uncle would always take us to a local convenience store. I'd eat that had better pizza. Are you still a fan of the Detroit pizza or do you like other styles better? Oh, man.

This is a big debate between my Detroit brands and my New York brands whenever they get in the fan room together. I'm a fan of both. But if I had to choose one, I'm choosing New York pizza or Detroit pizza hawker time. I agree with you. I don't like the tech across as much as I like the thin crust, but we digress on Detroit for a few seconds there. Well, I have a really good friend, Tom Riley, who played for Notre Dame on their football team from that kind of 85 through 88 year period

where they won that national championship. And Tom Simroller, stature to you, he's about 6'7, 6'8", even now is probably 350 to 400 pound range. But I remember him telling me that while he was at Notre Dame for so many of the years, him being a football player kind of defined his existence. And then he ended up getting really injured playing. And his last year, he wasn't able to play. And he said, it was such a shocking transformation going from having these varsity tables, everyone looking out for you, being surrounded by people who are wanting to see you succeed and help you get through to then feeling like he had no support at all. Did you have a similar experience because I understand you started off playing college ball and yourself got injured and then had to make a pivot and went back to a different university.

That is very interesting. Yes, I will say it is definitely something that I experienced as well. Planned collegial football and then life as a collegial football. I didn't necessarily get injured in football per se in my story. What actually happened to me is that the football coach quit. So when the new coach came in, he told everybody that everybody was going to retry out again. And I don't know, 19 year old Martinez was not for that. So I quit football. Luckily for myself, I had a decent GPA and transferred to a different school. And to go through that, I went to a school where,

in your name, it was respect was given or it was just, I was commended because you were on the football team. So just being like a regular individual was still having like football team happens. So what I mean by that is that when I started playing my first major in college, The football coach would tell me, you were too late, you need to gain more weight. And he would tell me, eat whatever's not

voted down to the ground. When I stopped playing football, I still had that habit of ballooned up because I wasn't being as active as I was or meeting demands of playing football, but I was still eating like I was. I remember Tom telling me similar to you, he went through a coaching change as well, because halfway through his time there, Lou Holtz came on. And he told me it was really interesting,

because you either felt like you were part of Lou Holtz's team, or you didn't feel like it at all, but you sent the whole program changed. And another thing I can sympathize with you on is I had a number of friends at the Naval Academy who played on the football team, and interestingly enough, these guys, especially the linemen, would try to gain all this weight, but then in order to get commission, they had to get under 250 pounds. So I remember so many of them in this mad rush over the last six months that they were there trying to lose 40, 50, 60, 70 pounds so that they could get commissioned in the military. I think that's the craziest thing when I was having our bodies become like commodities for whatever sport for a specific position. You got to be a certain weight. You you gotta be a certain height and so on and so forth.

But I find that interesting that when you add like Navy, the name of God to be on top of that, how that dichotomy of gaining weight and being this big, the play just particular sport, was almost at odds of getting commissioned. And what that really is telling about what really matters a lot. For say, I just find it very interesting, especially being on the other side of no longer playing football or just no longer being even interested and watching football anymore because I've seen the behind the scenes, that it doesn't, like, interest me anymore.

Well, it is interesting. Almost all the professional athletes or high caliber collegiate athletes I met who play football, almost none of them now watch the sport. It's interesting, Tom, does a yearly get together and he has somewhere between 20 and 30 of his teammates from Notre Dame come to his house. And I would say the vast majority of them steeper line, Tim Brown, people of that caliber played in the NFL, but almost none of them today have anything

to do with it or even watch it. So it's more common than you would think across these elite athletes. Absolutely. Well, Martinez, can you take us back to that pivotal moment when your doctor gave you a stern warning to lose weight or die, which I can't even believe a doctor telling someone that? How did you find the inner strength to turn that moment into a catalyst for positive change? Yeah, let's talk about this. So I started running back in 2001.

So before then I was working at Mansburg. I was a commission salesman, all my feet eight to 10 hours a day. And actually, I want to go see this doctor because I was having some hip issues. And so since the first time he ever came to this doctor, he didn't know me, he didn't have any. And I'm sitting in a doctor's office,

I'm like, God, I started this job. I had hit pain, I used to play football. I don't know if that happened, he didn't do it. But I'm all my feet, eight to 10 hours a day. And he goes, I know why you're in pain. Me, okay, like why? Because you ain't, because the stuff is going to go, you know, you're touching my thigh, you ain't doing anything.

And you just went on the side and you're fat. And then you also went on the side, you need to lose weight or die. John, I was taking it back because, yes, I'm a big guy, I've been a big guy, I'm all over it. But I just told this man, I'm all up to 8 to 10 hours a day, right?

Like I'm moving, I'm shaking, I'm on the field floor, it's not like I'm just sitting at home, like laying on a couch, being potato chips. So for him, just to say, you need to lose where they died. I was just taking a bed. So then you also went on to say, you need to start losing weight by walking on the track and eating a better diet. And I laughed because I was already on my feet eight to 10 hours a day.

I say something, prestigious, I'll be getting walking, I'm gonna run a marathon with it. And he laughs at me and tells me that's the most stupidest thing he has heard in all his years of practical medicine. So now, the steam is really coming out my ears, right? And I had a few other choice words for him that I won't say on this kid friendly podcast,

but I ended up storming out of that doctor's office. And as I was driving home, I seen a running shoe store. And I went in there and I told them, I need to use them, I need to know. Because in my mind, ARA had clicked. I was gonna run it marathon today. Now, there was a problem, though, John. I did not quite know how far of me I thought it was. So for the longest, I

was telling my friends, oh, I'm going to run acage marathon until one of my runny friends came to me. It's like my penis. Those two things don't make sense. There's a 5K and there's a marathon. So John imagine, okay, well, how far is a 5K? And they go, it's 3.1 miles. Okay. So now your reason is, well, America may be double-'re reasonable. Well, America, maybe no more, 10 miles.

So how far is America? And he's like 26.2 miles. And it's like 26.2 miles. What is this? Well, run state. But it was one of those things where I made that commitment to myself that I was gonna run this America. Who does not know? made that commitment to myself that I was going to run this marathon food is not wrong. And that was the initial fuel to my

fire to continue to go on throughout this journey. Well, just to give you some context, I know a thing or two about running because I ran division one cross country and track at the Naval Academy. But you are absolutely correct in that if you are used to running a 5K or a 10K, even a half a marathon, there's a huge colossal jump up to running a marathon. And the ones I've done, especially once you hit that 18, 19,

20 mile area, it is always brutal to get through that period I don't care how good a shape you're in. Well, you want to hear something incredible. I have a good friend of mine, Kellyanne, who just did the seven-continent marathon challenge. She did seven marathons on seven continents and seven days. And to make it even more incredible, the first day they started in Antarctica. And she said as they were running in their snow boots, one leg seemed like it was so easy until they turned around and were in the middle of a 40 mile per hour wind hitting them the other way as they're running in full snow clothes. And she ends up making it about

10 miles into that and had a blister on the bottom of her foot about the size of a tennis ball. So she had to compete in that marathon and the rest of them with that large blister, which had to be excruciating. Well, getting back to your story, I remember when I was in the military, there was a senior officer that I worked with who was a heavy smoker, etc. And he, similar to you, came up with this ambition that he wanted to run a marathon. And I remember as he was starting out, he was not able to run from one telephone pole to the next one without stopping. And he told me he started to judge his runs by going from one to two telephone poles to three to four

to five and eventually gave up smoking and eventually accomplished his goals. As you were starting out on your journey, how difficult did you find it to become a runner? Oh man, John, it was back where I of the hardest physical things that I did to that day, even my playing collegiate football running and running on distance. It was the hardest thing that I did. So let me tell you about my first run. So you know, I get home with these running shoes and I am inconveniently sandwiched in between two gazelles. One guy is going to 10 on the treadmill. The other guy is going

knock on treadmill. And I'm sizing these guys up and they making it look so effortlessly on these treadmill. So these guys are going definitely and I can at least go flapping. I've been flapping on the treadmill and that's the building. Between my legs, I think of myself like, I don't know. I don't know if I can do this. And then I was like, you know, I got to do this. So I get on the treadmill and I feel like my life lasts for my eyes. I felt like the treadmill was ejecting me,

or my body was rejecting the treadmill. But when it was all said and done, I actually fell off the treadmill. And the noise that my body made when I fell off the treadmill was definitely and that's the gazelles were still running on the trip. Now they look down are you okay? I was like yeah I just lost my balance. That was my first run and when I looked up at the treadmill I don't need ran 15 seconds. To go from not being able to run 15 seconds

and fall on up the treadmill, it was definitely a journey for like that to actually run an marathon. And it was so hard, but it was also rewarding because one of the things I just kept telling myself is that you can do it, you can do it, keep going. So every day, what I did starting out was going to trip and just run a little bit longer. So I went 15 seconds to a minute and then a minute,

so I can minute and half, so on and so forth. I'm really starting off there until I was able to run five or so minutes straight. So similar to you, I think a lot of people have these audacious goals that they would like to achieve in their life, but they have, initially, even getting started, and then once they get started, they have this natural inclination that when you face hardship or it doesn't go as easy as you think it's going to go, you end up stopping. What advice would you give someone who's maybe listening today who feels hesitant or apprehensive about starting whatever it is that they're ambitious to do and how they can take the initial steps to get there and overcome their hesitations? One of the things I used to tell people is that it's really a mindset, right? I think you can tell people is that it's really a mindset, right? And so for a lot of people in their head as well, I think, do this. I see how far you can, I don't know if I can get there.

And one of the things I would tell people is that don't fall into this comparison truck. Like your days are wrong. We'll look different from my days are wrong. And that's okay. And your day 100 will look different from my day 100. And that's okay. Because it's not where you started. It's where you're going. So that's the first thing it'll tell people. The second thing I'll tell people is that we have the calm that inner critics. Right. Like tell them that we can't do it. It's impossible. Most of the time, it's in our voice. So we're literally you telling you you can't do something. So one of the things that I've looked throughout all of the years of running and doing this is that, A, not everything you

think about yourself is true, and B, not everything you feel about yourself is real. So one of the ways that I take this into process is to name my inner critic. So I gave him my inner critic a name as a persona and then that way it's not me telling me these things is this inner critic. So for example my inner critic name is Otis. So whenever I have a defeating thought or I thought that's like trying to challenge me to say, no, you can't do it. It's not me telling me this is Otis telling me.

And now I can actually reason with these thoughts to say, okay, well, why are you building this? It's this because of fear. Is it because of doubt or is it because of something else and really be able to reason with my thoughts to be able to move forward with that particular thing? Yeah, I think that's some excellent voice and it is that inner critic that halts in so many ways the absolute visions that we're trying to create for ourselves that we end up burning down

because we let our mind get in the way of the progress that we could make if we were intentional about choices we were making to take as closer to those goals. I think that's a really important lesson for anyone to hear. Now, when I was reading the book, I understand that as you were running these races, you had some people who were pretty skeptical you had some people who were pretty skeptical about your running style and we're even making jokes to you about it. How did that influence you and how did that evolve into the shirt that you're wearing right now that says slow AF? It's something about a personal size being active that kind of gives the liberty of other people to feel like they should tease that person. And this has happened even when I played football. Us is lying and writing to the wide receivers.

They would jump on. I said, what? So it's something that, hey, I built a tough skin. About what I'm so knowing that most of the time your biggest critic are people who don't even have the slightest idea, the hardship, and the obstacles you have to go through to even get to where you are. I was running New York City Marathon,

which is first time I was running New York City Marathon, and there's this bridge called Queensboro Bridge. I'm not sure if you heard of this bridge, but Queensboro Bridge is a very nasty means bridge. And the reason why this bridge is mean is because there's no spectators on this course on that particular bridge. It was literally you, the sound of your feet paid

or pounding the ground, other people around you, breathe, and then the sounds of trunks, right. It's by far the most depressing thing that you go to and it's also appointed to raise where the voices really start to kick up to tell you you can't do this. You get off this bridge and you head on to the first avenue which is also a steep incline. And as I was on first, I made eye contact with this guy and he was pointing at me. I think he'd run, hit me on, give me a high five or something and I'll go over her. I think my ear pines, and he called me slow. I won't say the words, but you can infer what slow-ay I mean. He called me slow-ay up until he'd go home. And I was taking a back again.

And I asked him, what? And he was like, you're slow, you go home. And in truth, in New York fashion, I get in the hurry when I go to God. Because I'm like, you're on the side of the course, drinking a beer, laughing at me, pointing at me, telling me, I need to go. Comes there to be a beer.

Meanwhile, you're on the side of the course drinking a beer. You're not even running. You don't even look like you were in. But you have the nerve, the gall, they call me slow and tell me I don't need to be out on the scores. When I finished the race, I bowed to myself that I was going to wear slowly across my chest as a badge of honor.

It was almost like the ass-on Supermanish chance that was my ass. And for me, it was just a constant reminder of what there's so many obstacles that I had to go through to get to the start line, let alone all the obstacles in a race that I had to go through to get to the finish line. That's what slowly up meaning me. And that's how I got there. When your great book, Slow AF Run Club, which was released in June, you talk about embracing your body as it is right now. How did you cultivate self-acceptance and how do you encourage others to do the same?

Not as a great culture, but how do our culture make self-acceptance? I think one of the things that we really have to do, John, is limit the amount of inputs that we get. What are we watching on TV? What are we watching on social media? And what are these messages are telling each other, and telling us about who we are. My background is in marketing, right? I really understand like how most marketing goes from a deficit mindset versus from a binders mindset.

Well, most marketing is telling you, oh, you don't have this, oh, you want Rothsport ad, oh, you want XYZ, all you need is this peel, or all you need is this powder or this shake or so on the folklore. So one of the things that, and once you learn that and you understand that all marketing is made to do is to make you feel even better about yourself and to make you buy into that particular product, I really

start to dig deeper myself to really understand what are my wants and my needs in order to make myself feel happy. So one of the things I noticed was that running was the thing that brought me the most joy and being active was the most thing that like the thing that also brought me the most joy. And being active was the most thing that like the thing that also brought me joy as well. So I bowed to myself to say, you know what? I'm going to run and be active regardless if I lose weight or not. So if I lose weight, great.

But if I don't, that's not gonna stop me from being active and enjoying my life so the fullest. So one of the things that I tell people is like, your question, is to really think about the benefits of physical activities and really break it down to simplest times. People think, oh, I need to be healthy, which means I need to lose weight, which means I need to work out. So, then they work out and then they don't necessarily lose weight.

In that amount of time that they had nothing left them up and then they get discouraged and they don't work out anyone. They just lose the motivation to do that. So one of the things I try to tell people was that Estetta using weight loss as a girl, like what about using what about all the other benefits that comes with regular physical activity that can help you be more beneficial and will lead to a healthier life, even if you don't lose weight. This is one of those things of really changing that mindset to really understand that weight loss on how to end off beyond and really think about health

but also to understand the marketing and diet culture of marketing is really meant to make you feel bad about yourself. And the goal of making you buy a pill powder or shake or follow a particular diet. Yes, I know so many people right now are taking that new prescription drug to do the quick weight loss technique because I think there's so much societal pressure on people to feel like they have to lose it. But I think in the book, as you were just alluding to, you bring up so many incredible benefits in your case of running, but in anyone's case of doing physical type of exercise, including better sleep, strung our muscles,

cardiovascular health, sense of community, mental health, et cetera. How have all these positive impacts shaped your life now that you've started to do this, and how do you help others experience those benefits, too? Absolutely, John. How do I shoot my life? Is that running into the right to you,

you're sticking me to places that I've never been, I probably would have been in my life. For example, I had the opportunity to run in London with friends and just go pub to pub looking for trickle-plenty. Had the funest time doing that. I was able to run in Berlin. I was able to run and burn hand. I was able to do things that I never thought I would do

for us to go and get breached. Fiscal activity was more or less the gateway for me to enjoy life and travel to various places that I've never seen in my life. So I think like that's something that I want to be able to give to everyone else, to let them know that you never know that this work or the particular physical activity would take you. I like you just like you had a friend run seven continents, seven man thighs and seven days.

That's amazing. And those are the types of things that running and having physical activity like can bring to Virginia if I didn't run. running and having this right to you know like can bring to Virginia if I didn't run I'll never come out Traumat all these other places and running and have any specific goals of I want to try to run off It these days or being a part of the set of the company club and things that's for but now that I'm Those are things that I can look forward to and to aim and strive to And those are things that I can look forward to and some aim and structure.

Well, Martinez, I have purposely not brought on some mega stars under this podcast because I think you have someone like Tony Robbins or someone of that caliber. People tend to have a hard time relating to how do I go from where I'm at today to Tony Robbins. Because it's a, let's face it, it's a pretty big jump. But let's look back at you. You started this journey about 10, 11 years ago, really from square one.

And you've now been featured in the New York Times. You've got a bestselling book. You've been on the cover of Runners World. When you started this journey 10, 11 years ago, would you have ever imagined that any of that would have happened? Absolutely not. I was just more of us trying to prove my doctor wrong and let him know that I can't run a man around

and do it and not die. But it has been amazing these past 10 years and I'm just extremely grateful that I can be a light to other people in that journey we're over there right now. It has been amazing. I'm currently on a 40-day boat tour just to see the amount of people that come to me, tears, and the eyes smile on my outfit, and just being like, you change my life. And like your story is just something that feels attainable and something

that I can just heavily relate to. And for them to just let me know that I and my story has changed my life. And for me, it was a complete honor because it was something that I'd never looked out to be, right? I never thought to myself, hmm, I'm going to run a marathon. See years like I'm going to book into all this other stuff. It just fell in my lap.

I see myself as a reluctant leader in the lack of better words or a reluctant superhero because this was the main effort for me. This was the main thing that I was like, oh my, do you have a sore throat? They're just telling my life. I'm gonna unpack that a little bit more because intentionality often involves setting adacious goals and you set the adacious goal that you want to run a marathon.

But sometimes as people are going through the motions of trying to achieve these adacious goals, they get stuck. How do you strike a balance between setting your ambitious targets and remaining kind to yourself along the way as you run into hurdles towards achieving that goal that you want to ultimately succeed in? So that is a great question. One of the things that I'm aware throughout is journey

is that most of the time it's not about the end product. Most of the time it's not necessarily about the goals. It's about the journey that you went on in order to reach that goal that needs a lot more and is more a table. For example, yes, I set that up. I was just going got a running America and I did it, but I put so much stock into that, John, the after that random man, but I got

extremely depressed. And this is something that happened to like elite athletes as well. Like, I remember who you say both Sam, him spending four years to run nine seconds. you say Boatsam, him spending four years to run nine seconds. And then after him running up nine, such as building empty inside and just filling what was all the despair. The only things I could tell people was that, yeah, the goal is great, but enjoying the journey.

Another example, I told you I went to Berlin, so I was running there. But, so I spent a year and a half training for this thing, a higher coach. I felt to myself, I'm going to have this PR, the run of best works I've ever ran. And I get there and none of the chips were in my favor. But it was human doing the race of rain. The sky just opened up in a dock or, and I get to the finish line and the finish line is closed. So I'm trying to have this conversation with this guy with a big German accent to let him know how I need to get to the finish line because I'm still running the man, did not get the chance to cross the finish line, and my heart

was building. I bought, bought heavy tears because if I spent all this time, money and effort for this particular goal, and it was literally in my sights and couldn't wasn't able to finish the race. But one of the things I'm going to tell you was like, now that's the opportunity to rise up and take that opportunity to subdued you versus deep each other.

So the next weekend, John, I had another race plan and I ran that race and it was the fastest race that I ever ran in all of my careers. So it's also, it goes to tell that all of that hard work doesn't go anywhere. Like, it doesn't just go away if you don't hit your goal. Like, you go out there another day and not even race. That's the race that you've never ran. So, that's why, for me, goals are great.

Something's really a thing. So, but that journey, really that journey is the thing that really is the most because once you accomplish that goal, you can feel empty inside because you spent so much time working on it and now you don't know. Well, one of the things you were just talking about is having resilience. And what ways do you think running has helped you cultivate resilience in the way you lead your life? Running, I like to say, is an healthy word for life because doing tough things and one thing can be transferable

to other parts of your life. The fact that I've been running for 10 plus years has definitely translated to me starting my own business, me starting to clone the live with no experience and just going on their journey, me creating a act for my community, pretty much any and everything that I've done for the sport of running has been because me knowing that I'm done under the in the sport of winning. But it's one thing to say, okay, oh, running a business is hard or starting a business is hard or learning how to create clothes is hard.

And my thing is, what's hard? What's even harder? Like running big certain marathon. What else is harder? Running up a mountain. What else is harder? Conquering your voice, conquering that inner voice that's telling you to know, don't do it or tell you to quit and you go on to do it as well. I was at everything

about me, the way I'm at now has really been about resilience and being resilient in the sport of running has definitely translated to me being resilient in the sport of running has definitely translated to me being resilient in the sport of life. Yeah, it's interesting. I have a really good friend who lives right up the road for me who's a retired Navy captain's seal. And he tells me all the time that the thing

that scares him the most is public speaking. And I think here you are this guy who's gone through buds. You've gone on numerous combat deployments. You reach the pinnacle of being a Navy captain in an elite fighting unit. And you're telling me you're scared to go talk to people and you said I absolutely was terrified. And you know what he did about it?

He has just thrown himself out there to speak anywhere. He volunteers at churches, he volunteers at colleges, he volunteers at high schools, because he has a message that he wants to tell the world, and he feels that if he doesn't get comfortable on the podium talking to people, he'll never be able to influence people the way he wants to. And I think the same thing could be said about any goal that you want to achieve, but it's purposely putting yourself into that uncomfortable situation that gets you there. And I use that story to lead up to this because I understand now that you've created a global community with the Slow AF Run Club, which is an incredible feat by itself. But how are you through this

club inspiring people to take actions like my friend did to change their lives? Oh yeah. So Slow and Run Club has about 17,000 members worldwide. And our permission with the Run Club is to inspire 1 million people in some run and the body that they have right now. One of the things are a few ways that we do that is by providing education, inspiration, motivation, but awesome group meetups across the nation. And one of the things that typically happens,

it was literally just the cycle of our memories is that I remember coming in, like I'm not a runner, I think I can do it as though I'm on the floor and what the community does is love on that person, right? Let them know that they can do it, provide them with tips and tricks to get them on their first run,

check in on them after they ran their first run, check in on them, after they ran their first run in order to figure out what other things they need to help trouble you on. And it's really about letting people know that they're not alone in this in Georgia. So just the fact that people knowing that they're not alone, people continue to start running,

they run their first race, they feel so proud about themselves when they get that race medal on their hand to say, look, I've done it. And they continue to go run more. And then they just become the next individuals to help the next person who's coming in telling us that they came run. They don't know what to do. And they just want to be active. That's how the flora club does does that amazing thing to see how this community has a life of his own and pretty much runs itself now at this moment. If someone out there is wanting to start their own movement, what were some of the challenges that you had to overcome

in creating this community and what were some of the things that allowed it to really accelerate because I remember when I was doing background on this, you only had 10,000 members in the club. Now, you're up to 17,000 and I find that these things are compounding effect and they just keep growing and growing. But getting started can be a difficult task. I would say that's the first part. Yeah, that is the difficult path. Going from zero to one. I started this community with 40 people and now we're up to two, there's 17,000 members. And I would say one of the difficult things of doing this community

was really trying to figure out a mission that we can hold and figure out our messaging and then the other thing is really letting people know what we want them to do to lower their expectations inside of this community. I think that's another thing that for a lot of people they don't have or they don't necessarily give the next step or so on to do. More of us how I think about my communities and how I think about most things is that this community is a party and it's a party at my house. As you can't see my house and I have a party, I went to the open door and I said anything.

You come to my house and it's the first time you're in my house and it's my party. I want to make sure you get good or make sure that make sure that I grab your coat. I want to make sure that you got water. I want to make sure that you found somebody that you can have a connection with so you can talk to somebody and feel entertained. And I think when it comes to online communities, people just say, oh, people been a part of Facebook groups before or whatever and people just know how to do that and my answer is no, they don't. You have to be the model for it, but you also have to think about what you want individuals to do at your party. I think that was the biggest challenge that I had and how I overcame it. It's to really think about that this is my house.

You're having a party at my house and I want to be the hostess of the most. So that means that once you leave this party, you're gonna go out to your other friends. Yo, I was a Martinez admins party. And let me tell you, I had the greatest time ever. And the next time this man had a party, you should come because you're gonna have a great time as well. So that's how I think about

my community and running communities and I think that's what's missing. Out of communities, especially in the space of like info business and things and our thought is that everybody has a community and these communities, you're like waving communities, they're not doing anything to make a community for a party fun. It's like having a party and not having music or doors and that. You just have a space and not give people any other direction to do inside of this space. Well, I love that answer and you got to have the community have fun. You got to get them to feel like they're part of it. They want to bring others into it, experience what they're doing as well.

Well you're doing a great job of it. And I understand Martinez that your advocacy in the club extends beyond running to issues like mental health, inclusion and diversity. How do you use your platform and the club to intentionally address important topics like these? It's about leading by example and being a serving leader. So mental health is definitely a big thing that has affected me. So early on today, I told you that my brother died by suicide. So that has been a big thing in my life, and it has been a big thing that I've dealt with from the age of 10. It's one of those things that I just want to make sure I give back and let everybody know that they're not with

particularly issues. And one of the things that we've discussed in the community, like I said, I'm a servant leader, is my leader, by example, and let people know that these are expectations that we expect without this community. Everyone is expected to be an advocate for mental health. Everyone is expected to be an advocate for inclusion. And if you're not doing that, maybe we're not the community for you. So it's just already ingrained in expectations

that this is what you're expected to do inside of this community. It goes back to giving people rules and boundaries and expectations and not just giving them the space and not telling them what to do. So it's almost like starting a Facebook group and setting the

guidelines in it of how you want people to act in the group. More or less, but I think it goes. People don't need those guys. Anybody read those guys? I think it goes to like, setting an example and having constant conversations about it inside the community because it goes back to that think. Yeah, these are the actual real action happens via conversation among each other about having the new conversations amongst each other. That's where real action happens. Yeah, I couldn't agree more. Well, following on that discussion

on mental well-being in your group. I wanted to ask you how do you intentionally prioritize mental well-being, especially while you're now juggling a very hectic schedule. You mentioned that you're on a 40-place book tour right now. You've got other things that are going on and I know myself when I've become really busy that it's easy to deprioritize that. So how do you make sure that you're keeping it front of mind? So it's one of the things that's taking through my life. There's always time off.

Just already making to this thing. And I think just having time off that, I'm right, there's one thing, it's just super important for Mitchell's honor. Another thing is, I mean, I see my therapist sometimes for twice a month, once a week depending on the time for just having someone, the third party that can help me where I'm going through.

And the last thing I do, John, I think, is a sleeper than a lot of people fail to do. It's just journal. I, whenever I'm on a flight or from travel somewhere, or I'm right before I go to bed or you don't know, when I wake up in the morning, I just journal a few lines just to get my thoughts and feelings out. Just even just talk about what's going on in that particular time.

And there's something about writing those thoughts, feelings, emotions that can be catharted so that you can't release. So you can't go out through your life. I think that's extremely important. And they often say until you write something down, it, you don't release it or it doesn't come to fruition. Well, Martinez, can you share an intentional habit or routine outside of running that is significantly contributed to your personal growth and success? I think it was not necessarily a variety of. A habit or a routine that really has to distribute some of my success is having monthly talks

of my mentor. I haven't mentored that I talk to on a weekly or sometimes monthly basis that I'm not with as ideas on things. So any hair, brain, idea, or when it comes to my business, I run into my mentor first, and we're able to have these brain trust meetings about what I'm thinking, make their job as the tear down these ideas and thoughts in order to live it up stronger.

And help question Westy validity for also the horseman goal for this new tacked idea that I had in mind. So that's something that I do. We're going to race. And then Martinez, my last question for you would be if someone was listening to the podcast today and they were going to pick up your book and read it, what would be one or two key things that you would want them to take away from the book or it could be this episode? Absolutely. So the two things that I want people to take away from this is that A, mindset is that it's like that famous quote, whether you think you're hair or you think you can

you're true. So that's the first thing is that we all have to work on a life set and really tone down that voice that tells us we can't do it. The second thing is, is not where you're starting, is where you're going. Although it's going to happen, all of us might even have multiple days. And that's okay. But for is slow and for is still progress. So those are two things that I want you to remember throughout this book as well throughout this podcast. Okay. Well, Martinez, thank you so much for the honor and privilege of coming on our show.

It was such an honor to have you. Thank you, Jenna. I really appreciate it. I thoroughly enjoyed that interview with Martinez Evans. such an honor to have you. Thank you, Tyler. I really appreciate it. I thoroughly enjoyed that interview with Martinez Evans, and I wanted to thank Martinez, Marissa Franco, and Penguin Random House for the honor and privilege of having them appear on today's show. Links to all things Martinez will be in the show notes. Please use our website links if you purchase any of the books from the guests that we feature on the show. Videos are on YouTube at both John Armyles and PassionStruck Clips. Evertiser deals and discount codes are in one convenient place at PassionStruck.com slash

deals. You can now pre-order my upcoming book titled PassionStruck where I give you 12 powerful principles to unlock your purpose and ignite your most intentional life. Links will be in the show notes. We are also on the Brushwood Media Network. You can tune in every Monday and Friday from five to six PM Eastern time. Links will be in the show notes.

You can also find me at John Armiles on all the social platforms. And you can sign up for my newsletter at both JohnArmiles.com or passionstruck.com. You're about to hear a preview of the Passionstruck Podcast interview that I did with Evo Bergenz, who is a renowned philosopher, management consultant, and author of the

groundbreaking book, Paradoxical Leadership. The respective methodology and extensive toolkit, Evo shows us how to transform diverse dilemmas into creative solutions and paralyzing polarization into constructive dialogue. People might think, oh paradox, a leadership that is very difficult because we always need to find the perfect balance in the middle. Know that it's absolutely not true. In fact, it is, you can go black, you go white, you can go gray, you can go everything in the middle,

but you need to make a conscious choice. Remember that we rise by lifting others. So share the show with those that you love and care about. And if you found today's episode useful, then share it with someone who can use the advice that we gave today. In the meantime, do your best to apply what you hear on the show so that you can live what you listen.

Until next time, go out there and become Ashence Rock. you