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Bonus: NY Damien - After the Marathon | Leading from the Front | Chasing Your Best
441 Plays1 year ago
Rush and Joe (and Sam) reconnect with NY Damien in this bonus episode. They talk about his first marathon, leading from the front of the pack, and learning about yourself in adversity.
Once again, NY Damien is the most interesting person in the world. Find him on Instagram.
SUBSCRIBE to keep up with the most interesting people in the world. New episodes release every Friday.
Learn more about the podcast here.
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Transcript
Marathon Day: The Anticipation and Preparation
00:00:01
Speaker
This is what it sounds like When your dreams get pushed over and thrown away That's not cool
00:00:15
Speaker
Yeah, this is okay. So listen, I have to tell you your Instagram post on your day of your of your marathon was so awesome. It was like my one mile to clicking out your time. It was awesome. I mean, it was so great. Now I did my.
00:00:34
Speaker
I was like, it was just so fantastic. So tell me a little bit. I mean, last time we talked, it was all pre, it was all pre you were ready to go. It was all set. It was literally like, if I remember right, it was like literally a couple of days before you were ready to rock. So soon.
00:00:52
Speaker
Okay. So, so tell me, tell me what are, what were some of the major, what were some of the major like highs and lows? So let's, let's go, let's go three. Oh, excuse me. Let's go three highs and three lows of the, of the whole day of the whole
Facing the Hottest Day Challenge
00:01:09
Speaker
day. I mean, we're talking like it's start what it's like, you know, it's like, I got it. So
00:01:16
Speaker
So all highs, right? We got the medal. Oh, look at that. Nice. That's the number one thing, right? We completed the marathon. So as I told you, I don't know if I got into it with you guys last time. So I had like a stretch goal for myself when I was training.
00:01:36
Speaker
So I was really trying to push myself to go for a 330 marathon, which is tough, right? Like if you think about that, that's eight minutes. It's fast. It's a long way to go. Right. Long way to go. Exactly. So I don't know if you guys check the weather out over here during that time. I, you know, obviously I'm sure the weather weather is different. All three of us, but it was the hottest day of the damn year.
00:01:58
Speaker
How hot is that? How hot is that? So, it's 75 degrees that day and I have yet to train in 75 degrees or run yet, right? So, usually when I run, last time everything I do is in the morning before my day starts, before, you know, my girl starts, Christian wakes up, you know, and starts trying to get all my training done working out before the day starts and then kicks off my day for work and everything.
Strategies for Mental Edge in Marathons
00:02:24
Speaker
marathon came. I wasn't nervous. I was super focused. I was there. I was ready. I was talking to somebody who was going for a Boston qualifier. We were just talking and we were fine. The breeze started about 10 minutes late. Did you tell him the story?
00:02:41
Speaker
Did you tell this guy that's trying to qualify for the Boston, for Boston to story? You know what, I would have given you an advantage. In these situations, Damien, you need every psychological advantage over your opponent. You know, Boston qualifier is what, seven minutes? There was no way I was getting there, right?
00:03:08
Speaker
Uh, there was two, there were two pacers, um, that were, that were around the time that I, and I didn't even know that it was part of a marathon to be honest, which obviously is the first one. I didn't even know that they had super helpful. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, really. Um, and I never ran with anybody before. Okay. So you've never, you never ran with anybody before. I never ran with anybody. Usually my runs are about like, they're like five o'clock in the morning, five 13 and on my long runs for the weekend, they're about,
00:03:37
Speaker
Seven o'clock in the morning. I try to simulate race day as much as I can. Got it. Got it. So The two painters that were within the time frame that I was looking for one was 335 and the other one was 405 I didn't want to run with the 405, right? So I know I had my stretch goal of 330 So I ran with the 335 pacer
00:04:01
Speaker
I should have probably just ran in between them or just stood in the back of that pack,
Overcoming the Heat and Struggles at Mile 18
00:04:09
Speaker
right? Yeah. So I stood with them and I was good until about mile 12, 13. Yeah. And I was running with them side by side with the pacer and I was good. I was breathing and I checked the, you know, the heart rate and I was like, ah, dude, it's kind of, it's going up there, right? But the heat was there. And now, so this, there was no crowd. This was a trail in the woods.
00:04:31
Speaker
So there was nothing, it wasn't like people were cheering you on so you can get that excitement, that energy right from what I thought would be a traditional marathon, right? I wasn't expecting forced atmosphere, but I was expecting a little bit. So yeah, people on the street.
00:04:45
Speaker
So 75 degree weather, higher altitude, right? Which I never got to train up there. Okay. We're in the mountains. In the mountains. It's just north about an hour and a half north. And then around mile 18, the heat just, I mean, it just took over. I mean, there was trees and it was, it was no trees for miles, right? So you're in there, it's pollen. And not to make excuses, right? Like I probably should
00:05:11
Speaker
I just got out the gates around 840 and just did an 830 pace and then just stood there and let that training take me to wherever it took me and wherever I landed. So as that went on, I just kept on fighting it. So probably from mile 18, 19, probably from mile 20, I stopped at every mile and just stretched. I had to stretch my leg because
Finishing Strong: Family Support and Achieving Goals
00:05:33
Speaker
the groin was tight. So I kept going.
00:05:37
Speaker
I kept going and then at one point, as you can see in the video, I couldn't have the full video. I had to edit it because Instagram only allows that.
00:06:02
Speaker
And I just kept on pushing. I just really dialed back and faced a lot. And then came out 26 and tried to just pick it up as much. So then I realized we started at 7.10. I was like, oh, I got a shot. Oh, yeah. You had a schedule. I was like, oh, I'm like, OK. Sub four was really the first one, right? Finish line or right about like the 200 meter mark, right? One of his left. The guy's like, well, he still has a chance for sub four. Sub four. And I hear my son like,
00:06:31
Speaker
You can hear them in a video. Get here, get here, get here. It's something I ran and we want to finish that 35815.
00:06:40
Speaker
Oh, how was that? Good work, man. I did notice that. Now, again, whenever I'm running, sometimes it's not that tight. But any way you look at it, I always do a dead sprint whenever I turn the corner and there's the finish line just so everybody... It looks as though I ran that fast the whole time. The whole way, yeah. But bro, bro, for a first effort, for a first timer, I mean, first timer, like really...
00:07:08
Speaker
recently running and, uh, and picking up on all of this, you know, you're picking up on all the learning and, um, all the, the strategy and planning and those elements are, are super serious. It makes sense that in the middle of the race, really start to struggle with the heat like that. I've always heard, you know, 45 to 50 degrees is ideal for, so you mean you're going 20, 20 or more degrees over that, which is, there was no cloud on the sky. Oh yeah. Yeah.
00:07:39
Speaker
Well, what's interesting is what you're giving testimony to is that you set a stretch goal, right? I mean, you set a stretch goal just this year where you're saying, listen, I'm going to wake up one day, I'm going to do a marathon. And then you're saying, hey, listen, while I'm there, this is what I'm going to stretch to. And what you're giving testimony to, which I think everybody, all of our listeners would really appreciate, is that
00:08:06
Speaker
You also learn as you stretch, as you set your stretch goals, that that a part of the journey and the success of it all is actually gaining more experiences. So the way in which you think now about how you run and how you do and that it's going to be informed by your experience. And I think this other thing is that then those kind of dynamics
00:08:30
Speaker
you're going to apply to other areas of life too that you're going to go, Hey, I'm going to, I'm going to calculate these kinds of things, uh, to think through how your body works and how things happen too. So that's a, that's a huge, that's a huge advantage and a lot of learning.
00:08:49
Speaker
Yeah. You know, uh, I was just going to say in the stretch really is what keeps you going. Joe, I saw today on his Instagram, he posted earlier this morning, you know, we're one week, we're not even a week out from the first marathon. He's talking about a month from now he's running a half marathon and he's already got the date. He's running headlong into this, into this training, which is amazing.
00:09:10
Speaker
I mean, it really is amazing. What do your legs feel like today? Because I know I've never run a marathon, but I know I've seen people that
Post-Marathon Recovery and Continued Training
00:09:19
Speaker
have and they just talk about just the incredible leg pain. And does your building have stairs even just today? I'll get into it, right? I rain the next morning.
00:09:32
Speaker
Yeah, no, no, you're supposed to because it's a lactic acid. Look at that. I busted out lactic acid. You know, you think you know, science, science, you've always been good with the science. So you run the next day. I ran. I mean, I ran all week. I run. So I ran four, three, three miles. Easy pace on Monday.
00:10:01
Speaker
Tuesday, I ran about two and a half miles, pushed to about eight minutes a mile. I wanted to make sure my legs are still working. Wednesday, I took a rest day, which was a workout day. Thursday, I ran four miles, just pushed in. I did some speed work. Oh, look, the ambulance is back. Perfect. So I did some speed training on Thursday. I didn't mean to. I got out the house and I was like,
00:10:30
Speaker
I run calmly and then I had nothing above 8 30. So it was 8 30, I think 24 and 7 42 and 7 24. So four miles. And then this morning I ran what I run today. Today I ran
00:10:43
Speaker
three Maya 3.1. So I tried to run like on a regular day, just try to run five since mom and I run. I got, I got some stuff to do tomorrow for Sunday. So I'll have to cut the story. I was going to go over it. I'm super, I'm super impressed, man. I'm super impressed by that. I, you know, two weeks ago is when I ran that half marathon and I'm still, I'm not going to start doing any kind of training until next week. I took four days off with, with no running. I felt like I was really, I mean, you're, you're way, you're way beyond now.
00:11:12
Speaker
You're way beyond because of the marathon training as well. You have a lot more miles than the most recent training. But still, that's really impressive, dude, that you're super impressed by your run. I'll leave it to you like this, right? So I can't leave my example from behind the top,
Learning and Setting Stretch Goals
00:11:28
Speaker
right? Straight up.
00:11:32
Speaker
It's to really show people what's possible, especially my two boys who are, you know, in pivotal points in their life, my brother and my son, you know, in 25 and once, you know, 25 is where you really start to grow up, right, to become an adult. My son turned 13. So showing them what's possible with dedication and discipline, because motivation is not always there. I'm not
00:11:55
Speaker
always motivated to get out of bed right now. Me too. Five o'clock in the morning and you know I just kind of want to lay here in the AC but I mean I know what drives me and you know it's just getting up and getting it done. If I could die and they could put everything on my tombstone that there needs to be room for a savage and that's that needs to read savage on it like that's where I'm headed. The reason why I say that is I mean I'm already registered for a second marathon right October so like I'm
00:12:20
Speaker
I'm just going, right? Like, I'm going and there's... Good for you. Well, you know what's interesting, Damien, is that when you're talking about those things, I think...
00:12:32
Speaker
For me, if it was just about me, I don't think that I would ever really have any sort of sustainable commitment to stretch. I think that we really are motivated to be a part of something that is outside of ourselves. Because even in our humanness, we know that, I don't know,
00:12:54
Speaker
just me living just for me, just doesn't seem as satisfying as being a part of something that I get to contribute to be a part of something that's greater. And when you're saying, hey, listen, I'm going to get up and certainly I'm going to do that in a way that's good and helpful for me to grow. But what I always hear in your heart, man, is I hear
00:13:15
Speaker
that you want to be able to be an example and a support and an encouragement to your family. And to be honest with you, hanging out with us, that you're actually just being kind to us. Super kind. You know, to be able to share that with us too. Yeah, if I can help one person in the world to change,
00:13:39
Speaker
It's a super win, right? I could just get somebody to say, hey, you know what? I'm going to make these little changes in my life to be better for myself or for them to be better for their family.
00:13:50
Speaker
I mean, it's a win right there for me. I just want to try to help inspire James. That's a key part of your story as we've had our conversation even the last time that we talked is you're always thinking about other people. Joe, I have a question that I think you're going to like and echo with Damien.
00:14:12
Speaker
So, obviously, this is a bonus episode, which is incredible for me and Joe because, I mean, seriously, this is two idiots on a podcast. And it's like becoming a real podcast. When you have a bonus episode, you become three idiots.
00:14:33
Speaker
We welcome you into the idiot into the club of idiots all Okay, three idiots on a podcast. This is a real podcast because we have it. We have a bonus episode That's how you know, you've done every everybody knows you've made it when you have a bonus episode
00:14:51
Speaker
So here's the thing. So I've been thinking about this since the last time that we talked and I want to ask you about it because you said something when you texted me which was awesome that you had texted me and just let me know how the race went. The last time that we talked, I've been thinking about this since then because you said it multiple times and I don't know there was something kind of
00:15:11
Speaker
There was something kind of like, it was super, super Bronx, super New York, rugged. You said twice the last time that we met, you talked about this old person or this old person that you were and that you had killed him and buried him and you were going to make sure he never came back again.
00:15:34
Speaker
I've been really thinking about that because I have an old person in me that I'm trying to leave behind every day, as does Joe. One of the things you said when you texted me, you texted me and said that the demons came back that you talked about. I want to ask you, what do you mean? What was going on in the race? What were you wrestling with internally?
00:15:58
Speaker
So it wasn't even so I i'll put it to you like this once I cross once I crossed the starting line I knew the only way back out of that race was to cross the finish line, right? That was first and foremost I knew that was gonna happen if I crawled across the finish line wasn't gonna come out. No, there was no dnf in mind but There were no signs and you saw in the video, right? And me explaining earlier like the groin was acting up that he was there. I mean it was
00:16:25
Speaker
how many things that I do that were so negatively or that negatively impacted my life and I enjoyed it, right? Or I stood in that as that person throughout my life when I was younger and those
00:16:39
Speaker
to speak to those demons and feel that come out like there's no quitting you right like if you can do those things to negatively impact you right so not as far as the demon speaking but just thinking of those times thinking of those days and those things that I've done if I can do those things with a smile on my face or you know thinking I was enjoying those like this will
00:17:05
Speaker
benefit me so much from now and further beyond in my life, that there was no way that you're going to allow that to happen in your life, but not this. So it was like, you will continue to fight through this no matter the elements. If there's a tree that falls on your leg, you will drag it to open that finish line and get there and get it done. But yeah, it was
00:17:29
Speaker
Any kind of doubt that was there, that person and left them in
Future Aspirations and New Challenges
00:17:35
Speaker
the woods and that person never be, yeah, I'm saying it a little bit more PG, but I left that person buried there and I will never be that person again or ever have that person come out. It's gone.
00:17:50
Speaker
Um, and I had a, you know, I had a moment with my mother and we spoke and it was, it was just, it was good, man. The family was there. They had fat heads for me, but yeah, man, it was.
00:18:01
Speaker
It was, yeah, I left that person behind. And now it's, now it's me. And now the challenge is there. I have so many things that I'll be posting and doing as these things come. We have the half marathon and three weeks away. I'll be doing a four by four by 48 challenge after that, which is four miles every four hours for 48 hours. And then we got the marathon coming up in October.
00:18:30
Speaker
Just go out there and chase it. Like, let's not settle. Complacency in this society has taken over. And it's time to shake things up. And if I can help anybody who's following my pace, then let's get it done. What do you think about that, Joe? I think it's just incredible, man. Let's get it done.
Celebrating Milestones and Honest Conversations
00:18:48
Speaker
Absolutely. It was fun. It was definitely fun. It was a blast of a day to be able to, you know, you set skin like
00:18:58
Speaker
and just said that that old person. Yeah. It makes me this. I don't know. I don't know. It makes me want to come run a half marathon with you.
00:19:10
Speaker
I don't know if you would let me like, can I come to your house? I'm not, I'm not, I'm not making promises, but I'm also not, not entirely joking. Like, like I would, I would come run a half marathon with you. I'm not, you know, I'm not a great runner or anything, but, but to come and just like do it together. And you know, I mean, I'll sleep on the floor. I'm being for real when I say that.
00:19:31
Speaker
Well, all I'm saying is that I think this would be a time where I just need to say that last night, last night I had a Little Caesars pizza with cheese sauce and pretzel bread. So just, you know, again, again, I'm just saying, I just saying that, you know what, you guys are running. I'm just going to, maybe I'll think about that.
00:19:53
Speaker
I love pizza. So I don't, so my diet is very different. I don't eat any kind of dairy or anything, but I do have veggie slices and carb up.
00:20:03
Speaker
Well, I tell you what, it just, it just has been such a joy, honestly, to hang out with you and to meet you. And I just say this, this podcast and this, just this excuse to just to meet people and to hear their stories. I tell you what, I don't think that
00:20:24
Speaker
that Rush and I thought that we would be blessed and enjoy it so much. So thanks for being on our little show and for making it an official show by being a part of a bonus podcast. You guys got it. You guys did it. You made it. You're there now.
00:20:45
Speaker
That's great. Stretch goal for us, competed. You got it, man. Everybody rushes to the end. Let's enjoy the journey and let's just tackle each day. And like I say every time, it's attack the day, man. Awesome. I appreciate you guys having me. Thank you so much. And this is in the end, we're going to keep following. We're going to keep following. Yeah, for sure. And staying in touch. You know, Sam, you're like our target, like our target market sort of. Uh-huh.
00:21:14
Speaker
I liked it. Now you can say that it stinks. You can say that it stinks. The one question I do have is because I know when people get put on the spot, they turn very, very much into someone who likes to speak to the masses. And I wonder if that's actually how he thinks when he's not talking. You mean the part where he's talking, he's kind of giving self help or he's giving like motivational content. Yeah.
00:21:41
Speaker
Like what he said, what he said works. It makes sense. And it's interesting. I think he's preaching to himself. Yeah. Honestly. Yeah. I think, I think he's preaching to himself. I think he genuinely believes those things. And I think he genuinely is preaching that to himself and that that's been, that's been a helpful motivator for him. And so he wants to, he wants to, he's just, I think he's preaching to others, but I think in the end,
00:22:12
Speaker
I think he's actually preaching to himself at the same time because he's so early in the journey. Then you're gonna share with others what you want to believe and what you hope you can be. And you wanna share that with others if it was meaningful for you. So my guess is that the guy...
00:22:27
Speaker
he heard those things and he's like, I'm gonna do that. And that it's worked for him. And so then therefore he wants to share that, which is a biblical principle, right? That what completes our joy is sharing our experience. And not just taking it all in, but then to share it. And certainly with Damien, that he's been impacted by
00:22:54
Speaker
those ideas that I don't have to be the same and I don't have to be a slave to the worst parts of myself, but rather I can motivate myself by saying, you know what, I can be something that's different. And because he heard that somewhere, that that resonates with him and now
00:23:18
Speaker
And now because that's been a motivator for him, he wants to complete his joy by sharing that with others, which is really interesting because every time he talks about his motivation for doing something, has always gone back to his kids, all right, and his family, and that sort of responsibility. You can see that he bears that and that that was a motivator for him. This illustrates the fact that
00:23:47
Speaker
There's very little forethought going into this podcast is that I have not thought at all until Sam says it. I've not thought at all about, you know, Joe, if we put people on the podcast, they might not be honest.
00:24:03
Speaker
I've not thought about that one time until you said it, and it's a good thing, it doesn't concern me, because I don't think that we've experienced that yet, but it's a good thing to think about as we keep going. And I guess in the end, the observation is worth exploring, and that's why what we're doing is such an interesting human experience. And because we're going, okay,
00:24:30
Speaker
There's no, we're not really doing anything, but we are wanting to have a conversation. And it's interesting to watch people respond differently to that. More often than not, even just in the episodes that we've had, everybody starts with a sharp, crisp image. And then by the time we're done, by the time we're done, you can just see their shoulders relax.
00:24:58
Speaker
And you're able to like hear, hear an honest here, not, not that they were dishonest before, but to hear maybe to explore, to allow us to hear them even, even more than what they had before. Right. And that's, you know, that's where, that's where I guess the other question is, Sam, is that did it stink? That's all I'm saying. Like, that's the real question. Yeah. All I'm saying is that you have to be a dog to not run a whole marathon without music.
00:25:27
Speaker
I know, right? Oh yeah. Or run the whole training. A dog's good, right? Yeah. Okay. That's a good. Okay. A dog. A dog. But yeah, savage. I mean, you got, I mean, that's like, that's, that's pretty hard. And to run all of your training with no music and no other person. At five o'clock in the morning. Five in the morning. All I'm saying is, is that when the 75 degrees thing, when he said, Oh, that was hot.
00:25:54
Speaker
You just then had to realize that you're in it for 26 and a half miles dude, right? Cause like 75 in California is great. Let's be honest. That at the beach is awesome. But then you're up in elevation on a trail in the woods by yourself with your demons of your life, searching through your mind. All I'm saying, all I'm saying is that I'm like, I'm like, I became a real fan of this guy.
00:26:21
Speaker
And I really, I was like at the end, I was like, no, again, I'm not going to say creepy stuff. Like, can I come over to your house and sleep on your floor? I thought that was going to be creepy. Cause I don't say, I don't say stuff like that. I don't say stuff like that. I'm not like, Hey, can I come to your house? But you know who does.
00:26:39
Speaker
I do. You've done that twice now, too. You did it to the repo guy, too. You're like, okay, man, can I come over to your house and meet your family? I'd love to take your kids to the park. You literally said that, Rush. You were like, hey, can I come over to your house and take your kids out for the park? And I'm like, that's not what I said. That's not what I said. I said, all of us will go, all of us.
00:27:05
Speaker
I want to take you and your kids to the park. That's what you said. You do not say that? I did not say that. I didn't. I said we. I said his name was Sam and I said, Sam, I want to come visit sometime coming through town and we can go get pizza with your kids and then we can go repo cars. And now that I'm repeating it in hindsight, OK, it sounds a little creepy. And now that we're talking about it with Damien,
00:27:33
Speaker
The part where I say, can I sit on your floor? Can I sleep on your floor? Which I'm just saying, which I'm just saying, good. So that's the way, that's it. Sam, I'm talking to Sam Keller now. Sam, that's how we can answer the question. Oh gosh. We may never know, but one way that we can know if they're being authentic
00:27:57
Speaker
is if they let me come over. Oh my goodness. No, but I do think that rush, all joking aside, is that you were feeling what we were all feeling. Yeah, we're friends. We're like, we actually made a connection with this guy.
Reflecting on Friendship and Shared Experiences
00:28:14
Speaker
Sure, we're friends now. Now again, I wouldn't necessarily crawl into his house and sleep. Me personally, that's not what I would do, but Rush, that's why we're friends. But you would go if I was going. You know that that's true. Yeah, I would. After some careful planning.
00:28:41
Speaker
I love this podcast. All right. All right. I gotta, I gotta roll. I gotta write. All right. That was fun. Don't see it. Thank you, Sam, for being here. You're great. Yeah, this is what it sounds like when your life gets pushed over and you go astray.
00:29:23
Speaker
Yes, you go astray.