The same intensity that can destroy your life is the same intensity that can rebuild it. The difference isn't the person, it's the direction.
Ken Rideout is the world's fastest marathoner over 50, a former prison guard, a former addict, and someone who has never once in his life waited to feel ready before making a move. He spent 10 years taking 50 Percocets a day while making millions on Wall Street and hiding it from everyone around him, including his wife.
Today he runs 10 miles every single day, has won age groups at every world marathon major, and won a 155-mile desert ultra he signed up for with four weeks' notice and zero experience.
In this episode, Ken gets into the real story behind what it took to trade his darkest habits for the discipline that made him a world champion. He also shares the one race he quit that rewired how he approaches everything, what he tells his kids about fear, and why having no process is the reason he keeps winning.
If you have ever felt like your past, your struggles, or your lack of a plan disqualifies you from doing something extraordinary, this conversation will change how you see yourself.
What's Discussed:
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(00:00) Who Ken Rideout is and why his story doesn't make sense on paper.
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(04:37) Working as a prison guard at 18 while his brother was an inmate.
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(07:03) The slap that got him fired and the better job that followed two days later.
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(15:24) How a routine prescription started a decade-long secret.
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(19:40) The night his wife found him on the floor.
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(27:25) Moving his family to LA with no safety net and a newborn.
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(28:01) Why running became the replacement, not the cure.
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(33:44) What "delusionally optimistic" actually looks like in practice.
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(36:05) The most underrated skill in business nobody talks about.
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(40:30) What Ken told his scared son at the baseball game.
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(41:01) Signing up for a 155-mile desert race with zero experience.
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(54:18) The marathon times that made the Wall Street Journal and New York Times take notice.
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(1:05:35) The one coaching change that shaved five minutes off his marathon.
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(1:10:22) The line about walking on water that stopped me in my tracks.
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(1:22:10) The race he quitted that he still carries with him to this day.
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(1:31:06) His daily routine and the supplements he swears by.
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(1:44:52) The status symbol that's available to anyone and costs nothing.
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Find more from Jen Cohen:
Website: www.jennifercohen.com
Instagram: @therealjencohen
Books: www.jennifercohen.com/books
Speaking: www.jennifercohen.com/speaking-engagements
Find more from Ken Rideout:
Website: https://www.thekenrideout.com/
Instagram: @ken_rideout
YouTube: @ken_rideout
Facebook: Ken Rideout
TikTok: @Ken_Rideout
X: @KenRideout_
Book: https://www.theothersideofhard.com/
Podcast: Rideout: The Other Side of Hard
Find more from Ken Rideout's Group:
Website: https://www.rideout.group/
Instagram: @rideout.group