#070 – Passionate athlete Jon Ross-Wiley strives to push himself to the limit by completing a Spartan Ultra and conquering the challenging obstacles of obstacle course races (OCR), discovering an unexpected serenity while running during the process.
Topics Covered:
- How did Jon Ross-Wiley transition into the obstacle course racing world and become proficient with grip work and obstacles?
- What inspired Jon to improve his running and find joy along the way?
- How does Jon Ross-Wiley stay healthy and motivated in the hybrid fitness space by managing knee issues and utilizing the right equipment?
Today’s Guest
Jon Ross-Wiley
Jon is a husband, father, lifelong educator, and athlete. Over his 27 years in schools, Jon has taught grades 1 through 12 and has been an elementary school principal for 11 years. Jon played football and lacrosse in high school, went on to play lacrosse at Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine, and, in his adult life, has always tried to stay active.
Some post-college lacrosse leagues filled that space for a while, but it wasn’t until Jon jumped into the world of OCR that things ramped up in terms of fitness. This coincided with Jon’s mother passing away at the age of 66 after battling cancer, so training and racing also became spaces for reflection and therapy. Jon credits coach Yancy Culp for taking his training to the next level through the Yancy Camp program, and trainer Shawn Harris, at Elite Fitness and Performance in Port Chester, NY for continued support, personal training, and motivation.
Jon has taken on dozens of Spartan Races and, more recently, has turned his attention to the hybrid fitness space. Highlights for Jon have been completing the Spartan Ultra at Killington and getting an AG win at DekaFit New Jersey in 2021. Jon is currently coming off a knee injury and is looking to accomplish big things in 2023. He is grateful for the support of his family as he takes on challenges and heads toward his 50th birthday later this year.
Follow Jon (and his coaches):
- Instagram – @ocr_aroo
- Instagram (Elite Fitness) – @elite_fpt
- Instagram (yancycampofficial) – @yancycampofficial
Resources:
- Inspire to Run on Instagram – @inspiretorunpodcast
- Free Guide – Kickstart your Fitness in 5 Steps
- 8 Week Fitness Coaching Program with Underdog Fitness
- Sign-up using code INSPIRE10 for 10% off
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Listen to Inspire to Run Podcast:
Richard Conner 0:01
Hey everyone in this episode, you’re not only going to be inspired, but you’re going to learn a lot whether you’re running road races or obstacle course races. As our guest, John Ross Wiley will talk about his journey into obstacle course racing and hybrid races, how he came to love running along the way, and you’ll hear about how he is in the best shape of his life going into his 50s Hope you enjoy.
Intro/Outro 0:27
Welcome to Inspire to run podcast. Here you will find inspiration. Whether you’re looking to take control of your health and fitness or you’re a seasoned runner, looking for community and some extra motivation. You will hear inspiring stories from amazing runners, along with helpful tips from fitness experts. Now here’s your host Richard Conner.
Richard Conner 0:50
Hi, everyone, welcome to inspire to run podcast. You’re in for a treat. Today we have such a special guest John Ross Wiley. He is a husband father, lifelong educator and athlete. John jumped into the world of OCR obstacle course racing, and things ramped up in terms of his fitness, which coincided with his mother passing away at the age of 66. After battling cancer, so training and racing became spaces for reflection and therapy. John has taken on dozens of Spartan Races, and more recently has turned his attention to the hybrid fitness space. Highlights for John had been completing the Spartan Ultra at Killington and getting an age group win at DECA fit New Jersey and 2021 Welcome to the show. John.
Jon Ross-Wiley 1:37
Thanks so much for having me. I’m psyched to have the chance to virtually sit down with you and have a have a conversation and catch up with you. I haven’t seen you since a DECA strong at that underdog A little while back. So good to catch up.
Richard Conner 1:53
Yeah, for sure. And you know, I’ll say that that is? Absolutely one of the things I love about going to these races is just meeting amazing people like yourself, and now bring you on the show to share your story is such an amazing story, too. Can’t wait to get into it. But yeah, it’s so great to have you here as well, John.
Jon Ross-Wiley 2:11 Thank you. Thank you.
Richard Conner 2:13
So let’s you know, just dive in a little bit and learn you know more about you. Like I said, I’ve only read just a snippet of just your amazing journey. So why don’t you tell us a little bit about yourself and kind of how your journey began.
Jon Ross-Wiley 2:26
Great. So just, you know, focusing kind of on the fitness side of my life, I’ve been an athlete, since I suppose high school, I play lacrosse and football in high school, wanted to play football earlier. But I wasn’t allowed to by my mother. I think that I was a little too frail. And frankly, I probably was, by the time High School rolled around lacrosse and football became my sports, loves them both so much loved playing them both. Wish I could play both now. But as you might imagine, those are harder sports to play as you get a little bit older, but went on to play lacrosse in college, Division Three at Bowdoin in Maine, really love that as well. And then after college was really kind of just finding a way to stay active and motivated because I didn’t have that team element anymore, which was so valuable to me over the years. And football lacrosse are kind of two tricky sports, you can’t just kind of roll up to a park and find people playing either sport. So I found some adult leagues for lacrosse did that for a bit. And then yeah, I found OCR and just tried one out just for fun and was immediately hooked on it. And I thought this is this is what’s going to get me going for the next number of years. And little did I know that it would be a real focus and a real game changer in my overall fitness fitness world.
Richard Conner 3:58
That’s really wonderful. And thank you for sharing that. And I see all of your posts on Instagram. And I feel like I’m not doing enough when I see your posts and you’re on the assault bike. And I’m like, that’s just incredible. You are definitely taking this seriously. And you know, just congratulations on just a wonderful journey. And, you know, just to kind of share a little bit about my background. I think there’s some similarities that we have i i also played sports in high school, didn’t play football and lacrosse. I did you know more than running sports or cross country and track. And same thing after high school. I mean, even through college, I ran a little bit but not a lot. And it wasn’t until just a few years ago where I started to run five K’s again. But obstacle course racing really kind of got me back into training more and running more. And it’s just been a wonderful journey because I had to run to do the OCR part, but it was fun for me to get back into running as well. So it’s interesting that we kind of share similar journey in that in that regard as it relates to sports and fitness.
Jon Ross-Wiley 4:56
Yeah, it took me a little while to get to a place where I enjoy Running for the sake of running, you know, even when I would go for runs and trying to get in shape, but in my mind, I was like running back kickoffs or something like I had to make up some reason why am I actually just out there running. And it took a while it wasn’t until really recently that I just I found that I enjoyed running a lot more both on the road. And then definitely on trails, which came from the OCR world, it’s impossible to, at least for me, impossible for me to really think about anything else other than the run when I’m out on a trail, because you need to really focus on what you’re doing. And that focus is really just on the elements around you. And so that, to me, that’s really just sort of this peaceful moment where go for a 30 minute run in a trail. And it’s almost like that time evaporates. And you don’t even know what what happened during that time. But you knew, you know, you enjoyed it,
Richard Conner 5:52
for sure. And it’s funny, because I was actually having this conversation just the other day, I reached a milestone in my own running journey where I ran for three hours, and I hit 16 miles, well never ran 16 miles in my life. But this is, you know, the new program that coach Kevin has for me, right? And I had to, I had to run that for the first time. And I was telling the story, and someone asked me, How in the world do you do that? How did you run for three hours? I’m like, honestly, it’s actually very enjoyable. Unless there’s something that’s happening, you know, whether it’s pain or the weather or whatever, it’s actually really comfortable and enjoyable for most of it until the end when it gets hard. But you know, I totally understand what you’re saying. It’s just your time when you’re out there on the trail or the road doing that run. So yeah, yeah. Very cool. Very cool. You know, so let’s talk a little bit about kind of the mindset piece, because you mentioned something interesting that I’ve heard from other guests in the show who play other sports as their primary and maybe running as their secondary. So maybe writing is for them is more of a chore or more of a punishment, right? If you’re playing some other sports, like football, lacrosse, soccer, etc. So, you know, you mentioned it took you a while to kind of change your mindset, you know, what really made you run more or really embrace running more versus before.
Jon Ross-Wiley 7:17
So I think again, it comes back to that transition into the obstacle course racing world, I was getting out there doing some races, having fun with it, and then started to get pretty proficient with the obstacles. I know I’ve mentioned to you before, I’ve been part of the Yancey camp team for a long time. Now, Yancy Culp is just an awesome ball of energy with amazing programming. And I credit, you know him with a lot of the inspiration behind this. But, you know, through that program got really proficient with the grip work and the obstacles and all and was finding that really, the only way I could get better times was to get better at running. That was the differentiator in terms of me versus the competition. And, you know, I got to a place where I was feeling pretty good about where I was, and, you know, some, you know, top 10 finishes and things like that in age group, which is, you know, was a goal, and then became kind of an expectation for myself. It’s funny how that changes over time. But yeah, as I started to just try to train for those and get better at running in that way. I was just finding myself more and more enjoying the process of that. And I think some of it had to do with running like you’re doing now for longer distances. I mean, you’re you went out there for 16. So, you know, a couple of days later, you go out for four, and it’s like, this is this is a joyride, you know, this is great. And so that’s kind of that was kind of my progression on that. And I just found that, you know, I suppose as with most things, if you get better at it, it’s a little bit more fun. So, you know, it took a lot of tips. Going along along the way, I am hoping to think through my entire life, high school and beyond, I’ve always I would consider myself pretty coachable. I understand my limits. I understand there are others who know a whole lot more than me in a lot of different areas. And I lean on lean on those folks. So like I said, you know, Yancey, in this world and trainer Now Sean Harris, who, at elite fitness, you know, I listen to those guys, and they get me to the right places.
Richard Conner 9:25
You said a lot of great things there. And I appreciate you sharing that I just kind of want to recap some of the things that you mentioned. You know, you’re absolutely right, when you’re starting anything, right, whether it’s running or other activities. It’s hard at first and maybe not as enjoyable. Because there’s pain involved and there’s learning and there’s failure and overcoming that and kind of getting better at it and seeing your accomplishments. Yeah, you do feel good about yourself. And then yeah, for sure it can be enjoyable. So, you know, what we’re trying to do here is, you know, on one side, really inspiring others to take that first step. If it’s something that you haven’t done before, or something, you’ll think you’re very good at which I’m not very good at anything. So I have to work at everything I feel you have to take that first step, and then you’re totally No, eventually you’re going to get there, if you put in the work, you know, like you are.
Jon Ross-Wiley 10:14
Yeah. And I think, to me at this point, in terms of inspiration, you know, I’m definitely motivated, I suppose, by you know, a lot of the elite athletes I see in the times, they’re putting up at all these events. And I think it’s pretty remarkable. And those are some goals. But in terms of inspiration, I’ve always found a whole lot more inspiration in those who are putting it out there. And it’s just like out on a limb. And this is hard for them. So like if I’m at a DECA event, or high rocks or something like that, and I can compete, and then afterwards, I can volunteer and cheer on someone who, you know, comes to one of the stations, and it’s like, I never Don’t they know, they always come in, and they want to talk, you know, and it’s great. And it’s like, I’ve never done one of these before, this is killing me. And I’m like, You got this. Those are the people that I they just gave me so fired up. Because they’re out there trying it, you know, they they’re, they know, they’re not going to be standing on a podium. They’re just doing it for themselves. And that’s where I get a lot of my inspiration to is are those folks?
Richard Conner 11:17
For sure. I love that. And yeah, for sure. And I’m inspired as well. Because if you’ve never done it before, and it might seem scary for you, right? And a lot of people may just walk away, they’re like, I’m not gonna do that I’m not a runner, or that’s really not for me, but for those who have the courage to kind of take that step, you know, for sure. And, you know, let’s talk a little bit more about you know, your journey. So I’d like to talk about the movement piece, because you’ve done incredible right with the races that you’ve run and and the wins that you’ve had. And you mentioned you were working, you know, you’re good at grips grip work needed to kind of train on the running. So, you know, let’s just talk about how some of the training land let’s talk about some of your favorite races. This year more about kind of how you’re moving through your journey.
Jon Ross-Wiley 12:02
Yeah, so I guess starting back once I got really into OCR and the Yancey camp program, I was following that pretty religiously and that had a nice balance of both, you know, grip work and running, compromised running, which is key. And also compromise grip work, you know, you’re doing a lot of running and then all of a sudden you have to go traverse something and that can be challenging when you’re winded and all that so started out with you know, mostly the sprint and stadium distances for Spartan Races, enjoyed those first season I just did a sprint. And then the second year, I did I think maybe a couple of Sprint’s and a super, and I just felt like Spartan was so brilliant in giving you your metals, but then also giving you those wedges that come with the So there I was at the end of season two, I think with you know, my sprint wedge and my super wedge and I was looking at it and I was like I have
Richard Conner 12:58
to miss it Something had to feel
Jon Ross-Wiley 13:02
like you’re really smart, Joe to center with this. You know, that’s a motivator there and let’s close this thing up. And so I started to think about the longer distances and did a couple of beasts in Jersey and in Killington. There brute, I mean, they’re just brutal that that was not at all part of my wheelhouse was running for that long, but at the same time, enjoyed them. I loved being able to say that I finished a Spartan beast and finishing the trifecta and all and so that was that was that was a lot of fun. And I ran one Ultra. And then I guess the highlight that you mentioned in the intro, was the Killington Ultra, primarily because I think I could safely say that that’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done. One just because it’s Killington. And it’s brutal to because I was in no way prepared for it. I was registered for the beast, and the race was on a Saturday as usual and the Tuesday prior, and only, I suppose, I think you might be in this company, but only a subset of people understand this mentality of I knew that it was going to be really hard, and I was going to suffer. And so I thought, why don’t I just suffer a little bit more and get one of those awesome belt buckles that says Killington on it, you know? Like, it’s just, it’s gonna be bad. So So anyway, I loosely use the word upgraded my registration to to the Ultra and you have signed up and was feeling actually pretty good up to the halfway point where you get back to the, to the bin and fuel up and everything and I was well ahead of the time hacks, which they put in place to ensure that you’re going to be on a pace to finish but with each time hack, I was just getting that much closer to, to the cut offs and to the cut offs. Yeah, I mean, I started whenever it starts, you know, 630 something in the morning, and I used almost every minute allowable to finish it. I just started to just really break down at a certain point. And I think I finished maybe with 10 minutes.
Richard Conner 15:17
No way left. Yeah, that’s incorrect. So it was dark out. Anytime you Oh, it was always dark
Jon Ross-Wiley 15:23
for a lot of it. Dark when I started dark when it ended, oh my gosh. And I just the moment I can recall there, I think the last thing before the fire jumped, there was a was a cargo net. And mercifully, that was the last thing. And so just crawling up to that, and seeing that, that was definitely the finish line. And knowing that I had about 10 minutes, I was like, I’m gonna do it like I did it. And so that buckle is probably my, you know, the prime achievement on the rack with the other ones. Just because it was a real, it was a real struggle. But at the end of it, I just was really proud that I was able to get it done.
Richard Conner 16:03
Yeah, that’s incredible. Well, congratulations. I mean, that is that is truly, truly an impressive accomplishment to do the Ultra and I can’t even believe on the spot you upgraded from a bistro Ultra. Like that’s, that’s a decision someone would want to make, like months before the raise. So so that’s just incredible that she did that.
Jon Ross-Wiley 16:23
Yeah, I don’t know how smart it was. But in the end, I’m happy to have that experience in that story. And you know, I remain in awe of people who just knock these kinds of things out. And then, you know, some of these folks who would do an ultra and next day go out for found out there was a marathon in town. So I did that as a shakeout, you know, like those. Alright,
Richard Conner 16:47
that’s really funny. And, you know, one of the things I took away from that is, you know, you, you’re more capable than you think. Right? So if I’m, if I’m gonna do a Bese, I’m not thinking about signing up for an ultra, but maybe I could do it. And you did it without, you know, the training kind of leading up to it. I think that’s amazing.
Jon Ross-Wiley 17:07
Thanks. So maybe, maybe that was, for the best, I didn’t give myself a whole lot of time to think about it. Right? And talk yourself out of it. Right. All of a sudden, there was. So yeah,
Richard Conner 17:18
that’s great. You know, and in my story only goes up to a beast, but I’ll just share it in a moment. But, you know, I saw this joke online about the hardest Spartan Race in the world. And it was Spartan, ultra Spartan beast, Spartan, super Spartan sprint at Spartan kids, those are the hardest races in the world. So that’s great. So to do to do the Ultra, you know, in such a tough environment, I mean, intentionally, right, difficult environment, is really a wonderful feat. But, you know, for my own story, I accomplished my first Trifecta and 2022. And in person, I did the virtual Trifecta a couple of years ago, when, you know, races got canceled. And that was the only option but you know, Coach, Kevin was pushing me to, to really, you know, do more kind of back to the, you know, you could do more than you think you can, and I’m like, nah, nah, I’m gonna do this brand. So I’m gonna do this stadiums, I just want to get better at that. I want to be able to do the monkey bars and climb a rope. Like if I could do that. I’m happy with myself. He’s like, I think you could do these. And, you know, I sign up for it. I’m certainly happy that I did it. That was a my beasts was a challenging experience on its own. It took me about seven hours to do the do mountain creek beast. And it was, it was rough. It was really a rough race. But you know, I finished it. And I actually feel really great about all of the races I had during the year like I ended the year and I’m like, I feel good about what I accomplished. But it was, it was a bit of a journey along the way.
Jon Ross-Wiley 18:48
That’s awesome. Well, congratulations to you, too.
Richard Conner 18:52
Thank you. So yeah, so I have my wedges. I was just when you said oh, I have two out of the three wedges. I’m missing something. I don’t know what it is. But yeah, but yeah, having those three wedges and being able to say that I did that. Yeah. And then I see folks going out there for 2x 3x 5x trifectas. I’m like, Yeah, I don’t know. Maybe that’s someday in the future.
Jon Ross-Wiley 19:12
I don’t know. But But, yeah.
Richard Conner 19:14
So you know, tell me a little bit about, you know, I love to hear, you know, through your running journey. What would you say would be the biggest obstacle that you faced and how did you overcome it?
Jon Ross-Wiley 19:25
With running specifically? I think it’s still something I’m working on right now, is I’ve always had knee issues. And so it’s and I think that’s just from the, you know, football across all that kind of, you know, just banging around for a number of years. So running all that impact and especially doing the Spartan Races and things, you know, those downhills will will draw you in so I’ve always kind of had to be careful when when I was running which which is tricky, you know, I I wanted to in those races wanted to kind of just run recklessly and all that, but I needed to be, be careful. That’s still something that I’m working on now coming off an injury that out of all this other wacky stuff that I do happened on a hike with a friend, everyone just gives me a hard time about that, you know, you do all this other stuff, and you go on this one hike, and that’s when you get hurt.
Richard Conner 20:20
Right? It wasn’t during the Ultra. Not
Jon Ross-Wiley 20:23
exactly, no, just on a morning hike. So just kind of managing that piece has been a big, big challenge. But there’s been some good things, you know, again, good coaches in my world to kind of keep me on the right track, kind of that train smarter, not harder kind of mentality, which has been helpful for me, because I just want to really, I like to just keep going no matter what, and sometimes I need someone else to tell me to put the brakes on. So that’s been helpful. And then also, you know, frankly, the kind of the right equipment helped out to, to a large extent. So over the past few years, have been Ultra ambassador for ultra running shoes, I kind of reconfigured things going into the season. So I’m no longer officially with that crew. But at no point was. I’m not a paid employee of eltra. But I will say that I found a shoe that allowed me to get my running form helped me with a running form. That was a game changer for me for my knees. And then by extension, my hips and all the runs were easier to do, they felt more comfortable and recovery from them was a lot easier. There’s a lot of value in that. So I think for those who are getting into running, I would really recommend, you know, go to find a great, a great running store in your area. And a number of them will really walk you through everything you need, you know, for your gait for the shape of your foot, all those things just to set you up for success. You know, I love these shoes. That’s all I all I wear, but I recognize they’re not for everybody. So yeah, definitely do that. That’s a big piece of advice.
Richard Conner 22:05
That’s really great advice. And you know, running shoes are, to some extent, the unsung hero, right, you may not think about the technology and what goes into a running shoe and the importance of having the shoe that’s best for you. So I really appreciate you sharing that and honestly, I didn’t know that when I started my running career. You know, good luck with your kind of your journey, they’re kind of at the knees and getting back into some of the some of the running and some of the things that you want to do. So you know, thank you for sharing that. And, you know, for the listeners, I think these are really really great points you know, as you’re kind of going through your journey if you’re just starting or kind of along your journey, you know, a lot of great points here about having the right equipment you know, we talked about running shoes, having having a coach right depending on where you are, I think to get started. Some people may say well I just want to do it on my own right I’ll follow some program online and then kind of get into it and see if I like it which is perfectly fine. But you know once you kind of progress in your journey and get to those next levels, you know, having a coach for sure is going to help you get to where you want to be, especially in the OCR world. So really appreciate you sharing that. So you know let’s talk about what’s next for you like what do you what are you excited about what’s coming up in terms of races or OCR? What What’s got you excited, motivated?
Jon Ross-Wiley 23:20
Yeah, so over the last year or so I’ve kind of just transitioned a bit into the hybrid fitness space and that’s got me super excited for a lot of reasons just enjoy the format you know, I love the the OCR races but there’s something about going into an event knowing exactly what is going to happen and training for those exact set of circumstances. And that’s what’s been going on you know, with deca, the strong mile and DECA fit and then high rocks you know, super standardized to where you know that when in Jersey, I literally had all of my times for each zone written on my arm. My coach Sean and I, we had this language like stick to the script. And I knew I could hit those marks because I was hitting him in the gym and it just kept me and I just would look come out of the station look at my watch among okay I’m on keep going that kind of thing and it just just really stayed to a plan and didn’t get ahead of myself which is easy to do in those events because people come out myself included can come out super hot because it’s the you know the environments exciting and you want to get get out there and race but you have to have some composure around that. So sticking to the script really worked but love that environment. I won’t lie there’s something to having an event and being able to get directly back in your car afterwards. That’s kind of compelling after needing to spend like 45 minutes getting my act together after you know a Spartan Race and cleaning myself up and all that kind of that’s nice too. But no, I love this new kind of avenue that I’ve taken on With with hybrid this jiving with me right now. And so I’m gonna stick with it and just keep, keep pushing along. My first deck is strong is coming up next weekend. It’s so I’m in Connecticut, it’s about an hour away and Long Island. Yeah, I’m jazzed about, I just can’t wait. But you know, I feel really fortunate to over the last couple of years really, arguably be in the best shape of my life, I often say and I’ve a couple of friends from college who are kind of on the same path, who just say our goal is just to make sure that we could always whip our 21 year old selves. And I’m pretty sure I could do that right now, which is which is which feels good. And so that’s, that’s kind of what’s next right now is a real focus on hybrid. I think if I do some OCR, I’ll probably focus on stadium races, again, just kind of keeping it really predictable, mostly for the health of my my knees right now. That’s a 50 year old thing to say. But But no, it’s just it’s you know, it’s very, very controllable. And maybe get out there on the on the trail OCR as well. And but maybe more so in the capacity of supporting other people and getting out there and someone’s first fill in the blank beast or something and just kind of help them through it with no expectations on my of you know, a performance or a time might be a way to think about staying involved with OCR. So yeah, really excited about that. And just the goal right now is stay healthy, have fun plan on getting to a bunch of events at underdog, I imagine there’ll be a whole bunch. And with that being the focus, just keep kind of plugging away at that, those marks and see what I can do this year.
Richard Conner 26:40
Wonderful. All of that sounds exciting. And I really do wish you the best in, you know, what’s next for you. And we should sync up our race schedules, because I’m sure, you know, there’s some overlapping races there. So it’d be cool to get you on on some of these. So you know, kind of as we wind down here, I’d love for you to share with our listeners, what would be the one thing you would say to them to inspire them to run,
Jon Ross-Wiley 27:04
I think the one thing I would say is getting out there. And running can really be a pretty unique and special time, just for yourself. If you think about it as a way to kind of just connect one with the outdoors. And to with yourself. If you allow yourself to do those things. It can be, you know, pretty serene, it can be, you know, certainly therapeutic, that’s definitely been a part of my life, just finding a way to decompress and shut everything else off and get out there. And so maybe trying to approach it more as looking at it more like self care. As opposed to that thing you just did. You don’t want to do, I don’t want to go for a run well, do you want to be outside for you know, 1520 minutes, you know, just, I think give it a start and see what feels right. And then just keep building, set some realistic goals for yourself, and then give yourself grace around it, you know, it’s not going to be, it’s not going to be pretty when you first start out unless you’re a kind of a natural athlete. And that’s alright, that’s all right. It’s gonna be whatever it is for you. And ultimately, if you just keep kind of chipping away at it, I think hopefully, you might follow that center, same progression or trajectory that I did, where he just all of a sudden you’re like, wait a minute, I kind of like this. So yeah, start start small. Start with what feels right for you don’t spend too much time on, you know, Instagram or whatever else looking at people who are doing these things that you say, I could never do that. And so then you just don’t start. It’s your own. You often hear people say me versus me kind of thing. I believe in it. I really do. I know it’s kind of cliche, but I really believe in it. So just get out there you will 100% feel better at the end of every run, you’ll have more energy and you know, once it’s over, no one can take it. Take it away from me you did that over in the bank. So just start, just get out there.
Richard Conner 29:13
Love it. Absolutely love it. I really appreciate you sharing that. I love everything about this conversation. And I look forward to you know, continuing to see you along your journey this year. And like I said, syncing up some of these races. So how can the inspired Orion community and listeners find you and follow your journey online?
Jon Ross-Wiley 29:34
Thanks for that primarily on Instagram, I’m at at OCR underscore a RU. Spartan inspired as you might imagine OCR underscore AR o that’s where I am right now. If you hop on lately, you’ll just see me losing my mind on the assault bike in my basement. That’s been my primary mode of of work right now. But that’s where I am pretty much where I focus my my posts and everything. Additionally on on Yancey camp I’m still Yancey camp athletes. So if you go to Yancey camp.com and follow the same program that I follow, and essentially be kind of, you know, part of my team, which is which is great. So I encourage you to check that out as well. And then yeah, if you’re in the kind of Westchester Fairfield County, Connecticut, Westchester, New York area, elite fitness and performance is the gym that I go to when I go when I go to a gym. That’s where Sean is a great place to check out. And if you’re there, maybe I’ll see you. So those are kind of the the big ones.
Richard Conner 30:41
All right, wonderful. Well, I will include all of that information in the show notes to make it easy for our listeners to find you and follow you again, John, thank you so much. Love this conversation. And I wish you a great day Friday and weekend.
Jon Ross-Wiley 30:56
You as well you as well enjoy it. Thanks for having me. I really appreciate it.
Intro/Outro 31:02
That’s it for this episode of inspired to run podcast. We hope you are inspired to take control of your health and fitness and take it to the next level. Be sure to click the subscribe button to join our community. And also please rate in review. Thanks for listening
Transcribed by https://otter.ai
Hey everyone in this episode, you’re not only going to be inspired, but you’re going to learn a lot whether you’re running road races or obstacle course races. As our guest, John Ross Wiley will talk about his journey into obstacle course racing and hybrid races, how he came to love running along the way, and you’ll hear about how he is in the best shape of his life going into his 50s Hope you enjoy.
Intro/Outro 0:27
Welcome to Inspire to run podcast. Here you will find inspiration. Whether you’re looking to take control of your health and fitness or you’re a seasoned runner, looking for community and some extra motivation. You will hear inspiring stories from amazing runners, along with helpful tips from fitness experts. Now here’s your host Richard Conner.
Richard Conner 0:50
Hi, everyone, welcome to inspire to run podcast. You’re in for a treat. Today we have such a special guest John Ross Wiley. He is a husband father, lifelong educator and athlete. John jumped into the world of OCR obstacle course racing, and things ramped up in terms of his fitness, which coincided with his mother passing away at the age of 66. After battling cancer, so training and racing became spaces for reflection and therapy. John has taken on dozens of Spartan Races, and more recently has turned his attention to the hybrid fitness space. Highlights for John had been completing the Spartan Ultra at Killington and getting an age group win at DECA fit New Jersey and 2021 Welcome to the show. John.
Jon Ross-Wiley 1:37
Thanks so much for having me. I’m psyched to have the chance to virtually sit down with you and have a have a conversation and catch up with you. I haven’t seen you since a DECA strong at that underdog A little while back. So good to catch up.
Richard Conner 1:53
Yeah, for sure. And you know, I’ll say that that is? Absolutely one of the things I love about going to these races is just meeting amazing people like yourself, and now bring you on the show to share your story is such an amazing story, too. Can’t wait to get into it. But yeah, it’s so great to have you here as well, John.
Jon Ross-Wiley 2:11 Thank you. Thank you.
Richard Conner 2:13
So let’s you know, just dive in a little bit and learn you know more about you. Like I said, I’ve only read just a snippet of just your amazing journey. So why don’t you tell us a little bit about yourself and kind of how your journey began.
Jon Ross-Wiley 2:26
Great. So just, you know, focusing kind of on the fitness side of my life, I’ve been an athlete, since I suppose high school, I play lacrosse and football in high school, wanted to play football earlier. But I wasn’t allowed to by my mother. I think that I was a little too frail. And frankly, I probably was, by the time High School rolled around lacrosse and football became my sports, loves them both so much loved playing them both. Wish I could play both now. But as you might imagine, those are harder sports to play as you get a little bit older, but went on to play lacrosse in college, Division Three at Bowdoin in Maine, really love that as well. And then after college was really kind of just finding a way to stay active and motivated because I didn’t have that team element anymore, which was so valuable to me over the years. And football lacrosse are kind of two tricky sports, you can’t just kind of roll up to a park and find people playing either sport. So I found some adult leagues for lacrosse did that for a bit. And then yeah, I found OCR and just tried one out just for fun and was immediately hooked on it. And I thought this is this is what’s going to get me going for the next number of years. And little did I know that it would be a real focus and a real game changer in my overall fitness fitness world.
Richard Conner 3:58
That’s really wonderful. And thank you for sharing that. And I see all of your posts on Instagram. And I feel like I’m not doing enough when I see your posts and you’re on the assault bike. And I’m like, that’s just incredible. You are definitely taking this seriously. And you know, just congratulations on just a wonderful journey. And, you know, just to kind of share a little bit about my background. I think there’s some similarities that we have i i also played sports in high school, didn’t play football and lacrosse. I did you know more than running sports or cross country and track. And same thing after high school. I mean, even through college, I ran a little bit but not a lot. And it wasn’t until just a few years ago where I started to run five K’s again. But obstacle course racing really kind of got me back into training more and running more. And it’s just been a wonderful journey because I had to run to do the OCR part, but it was fun for me to get back into running as well. So it’s interesting that we kind of share similar journey in that in that regard as it relates to sports and fitness.
Jon Ross-Wiley 4:56
Yeah, it took me a little while to get to a place where I enjoy Running for the sake of running, you know, even when I would go for runs and trying to get in shape, but in my mind, I was like running back kickoffs or something like I had to make up some reason why am I actually just out there running. And it took a while it wasn’t until really recently that I just I found that I enjoyed running a lot more both on the road. And then definitely on trails, which came from the OCR world, it’s impossible to, at least for me, impossible for me to really think about anything else other than the run when I’m out on a trail, because you need to really focus on what you’re doing. And that focus is really just on the elements around you. And so that, to me, that’s really just sort of this peaceful moment where go for a 30 minute run in a trail. And it’s almost like that time evaporates. And you don’t even know what what happened during that time. But you knew, you know, you enjoyed it,
Richard Conner 5:52
for sure. And it’s funny, because I was actually having this conversation just the other day, I reached a milestone in my own running journey where I ran for three hours, and I hit 16 miles, well never ran 16 miles in my life. But this is, you know, the new program that coach Kevin has for me, right? And I had to, I had to run that for the first time. And I was telling the story, and someone asked me, How in the world do you do that? How did you run for three hours? I’m like, honestly, it’s actually very enjoyable. Unless there’s something that’s happening, you know, whether it’s pain or the weather or whatever, it’s actually really comfortable and enjoyable for most of it until the end when it gets hard. But you know, I totally understand what you’re saying. It’s just your time when you’re out there on the trail or the road doing that run. So yeah, yeah. Very cool. Very cool. You know, so let’s talk a little bit about kind of the mindset piece, because you mentioned something interesting that I’ve heard from other guests in the show who play other sports as their primary and maybe running as their secondary. So maybe writing is for them is more of a chore or more of a punishment, right? If you’re playing some other sports, like football, lacrosse, soccer, etc. So, you know, you mentioned it took you a while to kind of change your mindset, you know, what really made you run more or really embrace running more versus before.
Jon Ross-Wiley 7:17
So I think again, it comes back to that transition into the obstacle course racing world, I was getting out there doing some races, having fun with it, and then started to get pretty proficient with the obstacles. I know I’ve mentioned to you before, I’ve been part of the Yancey camp team for a long time. Now, Yancy Culp is just an awesome ball of energy with amazing programming. And I credit, you know him with a lot of the inspiration behind this. But, you know, through that program got really proficient with the grip work and the obstacles and all and was finding that really, the only way I could get better times was to get better at running. That was the differentiator in terms of me versus the competition. And, you know, I got to a place where I was feeling pretty good about where I was, and, you know, some, you know, top 10 finishes and things like that in age group, which is, you know, was a goal, and then became kind of an expectation for myself. It’s funny how that changes over time. But yeah, as I started to just try to train for those and get better at running in that way. I was just finding myself more and more enjoying the process of that. And I think some of it had to do with running like you’re doing now for longer distances. I mean, you’re you went out there for 16. So, you know, a couple of days later, you go out for four, and it’s like, this is this is a joyride, you know, this is great. And so that’s kind of that was kind of my progression on that. And I just found that, you know, I suppose as with most things, if you get better at it, it’s a little bit more fun. So, you know, it took a lot of tips. Going along along the way, I am hoping to think through my entire life, high school and beyond, I’ve always I would consider myself pretty coachable. I understand my limits. I understand there are others who know a whole lot more than me in a lot of different areas. And I lean on lean on those folks. So like I said, you know, Yancey, in this world and trainer Now Sean Harris, who, at elite fitness, you know, I listen to those guys, and they get me to the right places.
Richard Conner 9:25
You said a lot of great things there. And I appreciate you sharing that I just kind of want to recap some of the things that you mentioned. You know, you’re absolutely right, when you’re starting anything, right, whether it’s running or other activities. It’s hard at first and maybe not as enjoyable. Because there’s pain involved and there’s learning and there’s failure and overcoming that and kind of getting better at it and seeing your accomplishments. Yeah, you do feel good about yourself. And then yeah, for sure it can be enjoyable. So, you know, what we’re trying to do here is, you know, on one side, really inspiring others to take that first step. If it’s something that you haven’t done before, or something, you’ll think you’re very good at which I’m not very good at anything. So I have to work at everything I feel you have to take that first step, and then you’re totally No, eventually you’re going to get there, if you put in the work, you know, like you are.
Jon Ross-Wiley 10:14
Yeah. And I think, to me at this point, in terms of inspiration, you know, I’m definitely motivated, I suppose, by you know, a lot of the elite athletes I see in the times, they’re putting up at all these events. And I think it’s pretty remarkable. And those are some goals. But in terms of inspiration, I’ve always found a whole lot more inspiration in those who are putting it out there. And it’s just like out on a limb. And this is hard for them. So like if I’m at a DECA event, or high rocks or something like that, and I can compete, and then afterwards, I can volunteer and cheer on someone who, you know, comes to one of the stations, and it’s like, I never Don’t they know, they always come in, and they want to talk, you know, and it’s great. And it’s like, I’ve never done one of these before, this is killing me. And I’m like, You got this. Those are the people that I they just gave me so fired up. Because they’re out there trying it, you know, they they’re, they know, they’re not going to be standing on a podium. They’re just doing it for themselves. And that’s where I get a lot of my inspiration to is are those folks?
Richard Conner 11:17
For sure. I love that. And yeah, for sure. And I’m inspired as well. Because if you’ve never done it before, and it might seem scary for you, right? And a lot of people may just walk away, they’re like, I’m not gonna do that I’m not a runner, or that’s really not for me, but for those who have the courage to kind of take that step, you know, for sure. And, you know, let’s talk a little bit more about you know, your journey. So I’d like to talk about the movement piece, because you’ve done incredible right with the races that you’ve run and and the wins that you’ve had. And you mentioned you were working, you know, you’re good at grips grip work needed to kind of train on the running. So, you know, let’s just talk about how some of the training land let’s talk about some of your favorite races. This year more about kind of how you’re moving through your journey.
Jon Ross-Wiley 12:02
Yeah, so I guess starting back once I got really into OCR and the Yancey camp program, I was following that pretty religiously and that had a nice balance of both, you know, grip work and running, compromised running, which is key. And also compromise grip work, you know, you’re doing a lot of running and then all of a sudden you have to go traverse something and that can be challenging when you’re winded and all that so started out with you know, mostly the sprint and stadium distances for Spartan Races, enjoyed those first season I just did a sprint. And then the second year, I did I think maybe a couple of Sprint’s and a super, and I just felt like Spartan was so brilliant in giving you your metals, but then also giving you those wedges that come with the So there I was at the end of season two, I think with you know, my sprint wedge and my super wedge and I was looking at it and I was like I have
Richard Conner 12:58
to miss it Something had to feel
Jon Ross-Wiley 13:02
like you’re really smart, Joe to center with this. You know, that’s a motivator there and let’s close this thing up. And so I started to think about the longer distances and did a couple of beasts in Jersey and in Killington. There brute, I mean, they’re just brutal that that was not at all part of my wheelhouse was running for that long, but at the same time, enjoyed them. I loved being able to say that I finished a Spartan beast and finishing the trifecta and all and so that was that was that was a lot of fun. And I ran one Ultra. And then I guess the highlight that you mentioned in the intro, was the Killington Ultra, primarily because I think I could safely say that that’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done. One just because it’s Killington. And it’s brutal to because I was in no way prepared for it. I was registered for the beast, and the race was on a Saturday as usual and the Tuesday prior, and only, I suppose, I think you might be in this company, but only a subset of people understand this mentality of I knew that it was going to be really hard, and I was going to suffer. And so I thought, why don’t I just suffer a little bit more and get one of those awesome belt buckles that says Killington on it, you know? Like, it’s just, it’s gonna be bad. So So anyway, I loosely use the word upgraded my registration to to the Ultra and you have signed up and was feeling actually pretty good up to the halfway point where you get back to the, to the bin and fuel up and everything and I was well ahead of the time hacks, which they put in place to ensure that you’re going to be on a pace to finish but with each time hack, I was just getting that much closer to, to the cut offs and to the cut offs. Yeah, I mean, I started whenever it starts, you know, 630 something in the morning, and I used almost every minute allowable to finish it. I just started to just really break down at a certain point. And I think I finished maybe with 10 minutes.
Richard Conner 15:17
No way left. Yeah, that’s incorrect. So it was dark out. Anytime you Oh, it was always dark
Jon Ross-Wiley 15:23
for a lot of it. Dark when I started dark when it ended, oh my gosh. And I just the moment I can recall there, I think the last thing before the fire jumped, there was a was a cargo net. And mercifully, that was the last thing. And so just crawling up to that, and seeing that, that was definitely the finish line. And knowing that I had about 10 minutes, I was like, I’m gonna do it like I did it. And so that buckle is probably my, you know, the prime achievement on the rack with the other ones. Just because it was a real, it was a real struggle. But at the end of it, I just was really proud that I was able to get it done.
Richard Conner 16:03
Yeah, that’s incredible. Well, congratulations. I mean, that is that is truly, truly an impressive accomplishment to do the Ultra and I can’t even believe on the spot you upgraded from a bistro Ultra. Like that’s, that’s a decision someone would want to make, like months before the raise. So so that’s just incredible that she did that.
Jon Ross-Wiley 16:23
Yeah, I don’t know how smart it was. But in the end, I’m happy to have that experience in that story. And you know, I remain in awe of people who just knock these kinds of things out. And then, you know, some of these folks who would do an ultra and next day go out for found out there was a marathon in town. So I did that as a shakeout, you know, like those. Alright,
Richard Conner 16:47
that’s really funny. And, you know, one of the things I took away from that is, you know, you, you’re more capable than you think. Right? So if I’m, if I’m gonna do a Bese, I’m not thinking about signing up for an ultra, but maybe I could do it. And you did it without, you know, the training kind of leading up to it. I think that’s amazing.
Jon Ross-Wiley 17:07
Thanks. So maybe, maybe that was, for the best, I didn’t give myself a whole lot of time to think about it. Right? And talk yourself out of it. Right. All of a sudden, there was. So yeah,
Richard Conner 17:18
that’s great. You know, and in my story only goes up to a beast, but I’ll just share it in a moment. But, you know, I saw this joke online about the hardest Spartan Race in the world. And it was Spartan, ultra Spartan beast, Spartan, super Spartan sprint at Spartan kids, those are the hardest races in the world. So that’s great. So to do to do the Ultra, you know, in such a tough environment, I mean, intentionally, right, difficult environment, is really a wonderful feat. But, you know, for my own story, I accomplished my first Trifecta and 2022. And in person, I did the virtual Trifecta a couple of years ago, when, you know, races got canceled. And that was the only option but you know, Coach, Kevin was pushing me to, to really, you know, do more kind of back to the, you know, you could do more than you think you can, and I’m like, nah, nah, I’m gonna do this brand. So I’m gonna do this stadiums, I just want to get better at that. I want to be able to do the monkey bars and climb a rope. Like if I could do that. I’m happy with myself. He’s like, I think you could do these. And, you know, I sign up for it. I’m certainly happy that I did it. That was a my beasts was a challenging experience on its own. It took me about seven hours to do the do mountain creek beast. And it was, it was rough. It was really a rough race. But you know, I finished it. And I actually feel really great about all of the races I had during the year like I ended the year and I’m like, I feel good about what I accomplished. But it was, it was a bit of a journey along the way.
Jon Ross-Wiley 18:48
That’s awesome. Well, congratulations to you, too.
Richard Conner 18:52
Thank you. So yeah, so I have my wedges. I was just when you said oh, I have two out of the three wedges. I’m missing something. I don’t know what it is. But yeah, but yeah, having those three wedges and being able to say that I did that. Yeah. And then I see folks going out there for 2x 3x 5x trifectas. I’m like, Yeah, I don’t know. Maybe that’s someday in the future.
Jon Ross-Wiley 19:12
I don’t know. But But, yeah.
Richard Conner 19:14
So you know, tell me a little bit about, you know, I love to hear, you know, through your running journey. What would you say would be the biggest obstacle that you faced and how did you overcome it?
Jon Ross-Wiley 19:25
With running specifically? I think it’s still something I’m working on right now, is I’ve always had knee issues. And so it’s and I think that’s just from the, you know, football across all that kind of, you know, just banging around for a number of years. So running all that impact and especially doing the Spartan Races and things, you know, those downhills will will draw you in so I’ve always kind of had to be careful when when I was running which which is tricky, you know, I I wanted to in those races wanted to kind of just run recklessly and all that, but I needed to be, be careful. That’s still something that I’m working on now coming off an injury that out of all this other wacky stuff that I do happened on a hike with a friend, everyone just gives me a hard time about that, you know, you do all this other stuff, and you go on this one hike, and that’s when you get hurt.
Richard Conner 20:20
Right? It wasn’t during the Ultra. Not
Jon Ross-Wiley 20:23
exactly, no, just on a morning hike. So just kind of managing that piece has been a big, big challenge. But there’s been some good things, you know, again, good coaches in my world to kind of keep me on the right track, kind of that train smarter, not harder kind of mentality, which has been helpful for me, because I just want to really, I like to just keep going no matter what, and sometimes I need someone else to tell me to put the brakes on. So that’s been helpful. And then also, you know, frankly, the kind of the right equipment helped out to, to a large extent. So over the past few years, have been Ultra ambassador for ultra running shoes, I kind of reconfigured things going into the season. So I’m no longer officially with that crew. But at no point was. I’m not a paid employee of eltra. But I will say that I found a shoe that allowed me to get my running form helped me with a running form. That was a game changer for me for my knees. And then by extension, my hips and all the runs were easier to do, they felt more comfortable and recovery from them was a lot easier. There’s a lot of value in that. So I think for those who are getting into running, I would really recommend, you know, go to find a great, a great running store in your area. And a number of them will really walk you through everything you need, you know, for your gait for the shape of your foot, all those things just to set you up for success. You know, I love these shoes. That’s all I all I wear, but I recognize they’re not for everybody. So yeah, definitely do that. That’s a big piece of advice.
Richard Conner 22:05
That’s really great advice. And you know, running shoes are, to some extent, the unsung hero, right, you may not think about the technology and what goes into a running shoe and the importance of having the shoe that’s best for you. So I really appreciate you sharing that and honestly, I didn’t know that when I started my running career. You know, good luck with your kind of your journey, they’re kind of at the knees and getting back into some of the some of the running and some of the things that you want to do. So you know, thank you for sharing that. And, you know, for the listeners, I think these are really really great points you know, as you’re kind of going through your journey if you’re just starting or kind of along your journey, you know, a lot of great points here about having the right equipment you know, we talked about running shoes, having having a coach right depending on where you are, I think to get started. Some people may say well I just want to do it on my own right I’ll follow some program online and then kind of get into it and see if I like it which is perfectly fine. But you know once you kind of progress in your journey and get to those next levels, you know, having a coach for sure is going to help you get to where you want to be, especially in the OCR world. So really appreciate you sharing that. So you know let’s talk about what’s next for you like what do you what are you excited about what’s coming up in terms of races or OCR? What What’s got you excited, motivated?
Jon Ross-Wiley 23:20
Yeah, so over the last year or so I’ve kind of just transitioned a bit into the hybrid fitness space and that’s got me super excited for a lot of reasons just enjoy the format you know, I love the the OCR races but there’s something about going into an event knowing exactly what is going to happen and training for those exact set of circumstances. And that’s what’s been going on you know, with deca, the strong mile and DECA fit and then high rocks you know, super standardized to where you know that when in Jersey, I literally had all of my times for each zone written on my arm. My coach Sean and I, we had this language like stick to the script. And I knew I could hit those marks because I was hitting him in the gym and it just kept me and I just would look come out of the station look at my watch among okay I’m on keep going that kind of thing and it just just really stayed to a plan and didn’t get ahead of myself which is easy to do in those events because people come out myself included can come out super hot because it’s the you know the environments exciting and you want to get get out there and race but you have to have some composure around that. So sticking to the script really worked but love that environment. I won’t lie there’s something to having an event and being able to get directly back in your car afterwards. That’s kind of compelling after needing to spend like 45 minutes getting my act together after you know a Spartan Race and cleaning myself up and all that kind of that’s nice too. But no, I love this new kind of avenue that I’ve taken on With with hybrid this jiving with me right now. And so I’m gonna stick with it and just keep, keep pushing along. My first deck is strong is coming up next weekend. It’s so I’m in Connecticut, it’s about an hour away and Long Island. Yeah, I’m jazzed about, I just can’t wait. But you know, I feel really fortunate to over the last couple of years really, arguably be in the best shape of my life, I often say and I’ve a couple of friends from college who are kind of on the same path, who just say our goal is just to make sure that we could always whip our 21 year old selves. And I’m pretty sure I could do that right now, which is which is which feels good. And so that’s, that’s kind of what’s next right now is a real focus on hybrid. I think if I do some OCR, I’ll probably focus on stadium races, again, just kind of keeping it really predictable, mostly for the health of my my knees right now. That’s a 50 year old thing to say. But But no, it’s just it’s you know, it’s very, very controllable. And maybe get out there on the on the trail OCR as well. And but maybe more so in the capacity of supporting other people and getting out there and someone’s first fill in the blank beast or something and just kind of help them through it with no expectations on my of you know, a performance or a time might be a way to think about staying involved with OCR. So yeah, really excited about that. And just the goal right now is stay healthy, have fun plan on getting to a bunch of events at underdog, I imagine there’ll be a whole bunch. And with that being the focus, just keep kind of plugging away at that, those marks and see what I can do this year.
Richard Conner 26:40
Wonderful. All of that sounds exciting. And I really do wish you the best in, you know, what’s next for you. And we should sync up our race schedules, because I’m sure, you know, there’s some overlapping races there. So it’d be cool to get you on on some of these. So you know, kind of as we wind down here, I’d love for you to share with our listeners, what would be the one thing you would say to them to inspire them to run,
Jon Ross-Wiley 27:04
I think the one thing I would say is getting out there. And running can really be a pretty unique and special time, just for yourself. If you think about it as a way to kind of just connect one with the outdoors. And to with yourself. If you allow yourself to do those things. It can be, you know, pretty serene, it can be, you know, certainly therapeutic, that’s definitely been a part of my life, just finding a way to decompress and shut everything else off and get out there. And so maybe trying to approach it more as looking at it more like self care. As opposed to that thing you just did. You don’t want to do, I don’t want to go for a run well, do you want to be outside for you know, 1520 minutes, you know, just, I think give it a start and see what feels right. And then just keep building, set some realistic goals for yourself, and then give yourself grace around it, you know, it’s not going to be, it’s not going to be pretty when you first start out unless you’re a kind of a natural athlete. And that’s alright, that’s all right. It’s gonna be whatever it is for you. And ultimately, if you just keep kind of chipping away at it, I think hopefully, you might follow that center, same progression or trajectory that I did, where he just all of a sudden you’re like, wait a minute, I kind of like this. So yeah, start start small. Start with what feels right for you don’t spend too much time on, you know, Instagram or whatever else looking at people who are doing these things that you say, I could never do that. And so then you just don’t start. It’s your own. You often hear people say me versus me kind of thing. I believe in it. I really do. I know it’s kind of cliche, but I really believe in it. So just get out there you will 100% feel better at the end of every run, you’ll have more energy and you know, once it’s over, no one can take it. Take it away from me you did that over in the bank. So just start, just get out there.
Richard Conner 29:13
Love it. Absolutely love it. I really appreciate you sharing that. I love everything about this conversation. And I look forward to you know, continuing to see you along your journey this year. And like I said, syncing up some of these races. So how can the inspired Orion community and listeners find you and follow your journey online?
Jon Ross-Wiley 29:34
Thanks for that primarily on Instagram, I’m at at OCR underscore a RU. Spartan inspired as you might imagine OCR underscore AR o that’s where I am right now. If you hop on lately, you’ll just see me losing my mind on the assault bike in my basement. That’s been my primary mode of of work right now. But that’s where I am pretty much where I focus my my posts and everything. Additionally on on Yancey camp I’m still Yancey camp athletes. So if you go to Yancey camp.com and follow the same program that I follow, and essentially be kind of, you know, part of my team, which is which is great. So I encourage you to check that out as well. And then yeah, if you’re in the kind of Westchester Fairfield County, Connecticut, Westchester, New York area, elite fitness and performance is the gym that I go to when I go when I go to a gym. That’s where Sean is a great place to check out. And if you’re there, maybe I’ll see you. So those are kind of the the big ones.
Richard Conner 30:41
All right, wonderful. Well, I will include all of that information in the show notes to make it easy for our listeners to find you and follow you again, John, thank you so much. Love this conversation. And I wish you a great day Friday and weekend.
Jon Ross-Wiley 30:56
You as well you as well enjoy it. Thanks for having me. I really appreciate it.
Intro/Outro 31:02
That’s it for this episode of inspired to run podcast. We hope you are inspired to take control of your health and fitness and take it to the next level. Be sure to click the subscribe button to join our community. And also please rate in review. Thanks for listening
Transcribed by https://otter.ai