196: Life Rewards Effort, Attitude and Energy | Simon Diaz

Simon Diaz left a fully booked barber business in New Jersey to start over in Texas. Months later, he was questioning the decision. We talk about leaving comfort, nearly going back, and how he built a different life through work, training, and helping the people around him get better. JOIN THE APP AND GET READY FOR UPDATES ⁠https://www.nickbarefitness.app/⁠ ORDER MY BOOK HERE: ⁠⁠ https://www.amazon.com/Go-One-More-Intentional-Life-Changing/dp/1637746210⁠ Become a BPN member FOR FREE - Unlock 25% off FOR LIFE ⁠ ⁠https://www.bareperformancenutrition.com/collections/performance-nutrition⁠ FOLLOW: IG:⁠ ⁠instagram.com/nickbarefitness/⁠⁠ YT: ⁠⁠youtube.com/@nickbarefitness This podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be considered legal [health or profession] advice. Bare Performance Nutrition (BPN) is not responsible for any losses, damages, or liabilities that may arise from the use of this podcast. This podcast is not intended to replace professional medical advice. This podcast may not be republished without the written consent of Bare Performance Nutrition (BPN)

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:05Nick Bare?

  Ladies and gentlemen, welcome back to another episode of the podcast. Today, we have BPN employee, athlete, barber, Simon Diaz, head of athletic performance at Bear Performance Nutrition. My brother, welcome.

• 0:24Speaker 01

  Thanks for having me, Nick.

• 0:26Nick Bare?

  All right, so where I want to take this conversation? I'll lay the foundation right here. You are someone that I have seen come in and own their role. Like get a job, own that job, take the standard and raise the standard. You started at BPN a few years ago and I want to get into the evolution of your role here at BPN. But I've seen you just crush whatever job you have been given.

• 1:05Nick Bare?

  You have poured into the people here, the culture, the team. You have contributed much more than we have ever asked. And when someone comes in and owns a role and exceeds the standard, opportunities will open up, doors will become opened. You are a clear example of going above and beyond and then being rewarded for going above and beyond. And we've seen your, your role and your responsibility and your schedule of all over these last couple of years. So before we get started, I want to say thank you.

• 1:50Nick Bare?

  But also you are where you're at right now, doing what you're doing because of the way that you approach work, your work ethic, your commitment, your integrity. And that's going to take you very far in your personal and professional life. So I, I want to get in this conversation of like where, where you learned that, where those habits came from, where that work ethic was instilled. But let's take it back a little bit. How and when did you start working at BPN?

• 2:22Speaker 01

  Yeah. So, uh, the way that it originally happened was, uh, before I was, before I moved to Austin, Texas, I was living in New Jersey. And at the time I was like cutting hair at a barber studio, I rented out a booth. And throughout that I had spent a couple of years kind of just building out my clientele to a point where my books would be filled up almost a month in advance. So my entire schedule was, you know, let's say if it was like February 1st, all the way up until the end of February, like from like Monday through Saturday, it was like every single 30 minute slots would be completely filled. And I was doing that for quite some time. And it got to the point where although from the outside looking in, uh, it seemed like I was absolutely crushing it.

• 3:06Speaker 01

  Business was going great. Uh, I was, uh, my clientele was like through the roof. Uh, there was like a part of me that like felt like something was missing and I felt like I wasn't doing enough. And I was just, I felt like I was called to do more. And where everybody else was looking at me wanting to be in the position that I was in, I was looking at the position that I was in and I was like, I feel like there's just more for me to do than to just be in this barber shop, just like cutting hair. Although I enjoyed what I was doing, I felt like there was, there was more. And I said this for almost two years before I finally made the move to Austin, Texas. And I'll tell this to my clients, like, yeah, man, like, I think I'm just going to move somewhere. I think I have to start fresh. I think I have to be uncomfortable again.

• 3:48Speaker 01

  I almost created this life and I was so comfortable in the life that I was living to a point where I felt like I wasn't growing anymore. And because of that, I felt like I needed a complete change in scenery. Uh, in six months before I finally decided that I was going to move, that I was going to close my books, that I was going to move to Austin, Texas. I had a conversation with a roommate of mine from college. His name is Marcos. He actually worked one of our Black Friday sales here about two years ago. And he was living in Austin at the time and he came to New Jersey to come visit. And we're sitting at a bar, we're having a conversation and he was telling me that he wanted to start up a coffee company. His name, uh, Orgullo Coffee. And he had this like startup in mind that he already started,

• 4:31Speaker 01

  but at the same time, he was working a full-time corporate, uh, kind of finance job. And we shook hands that day at the bar and I was like, if you quit your job and you go full-time in your startup, I will close down my business, I will pack up my car and I'll move to Austin, Texas. We shook hands, six months later, I drove down to Austin, Texas. I had no job lined up. The only thing that I had lined up a week before I got down here was that Preston emailed me about a, uh, a temporary position in the warehouse. And I was like, hey, are you guys hiring full-time? I don't have a job. He's like, we don't, we're not offering a full-time position. We only have this part-time, just 10-day temporary work. And I was like, that's good enough for me.

• 5:12Speaker 01

  So I just packed up my car, drove down here and, uh, I worked that week. And when I first got here, I was like, all right, Simon, like you know, the protocol, like get here early, like do above and beyond, uh, ask for more work when the work was already done. There would be times where it's 4:00 PM and I'm seeing the guys in the warehouse that are still continuing to work and the temps, we have to leave obviously because you weren't allowed to work more than eight hours. And I was constantly going up to John and Kirm like, hey, can I stay later? Can I throw out trash? Can I do more? And they're like, no, Simon, like you have to leave. And eventually after that week was over, there was no opportunity to continue working here.

• 5:50Speaker 01

  And then I spent six months after that, just navigating Austin, trying to figure out if I could find work. And eventually I got to the point where I was like, um, did I make the wrong choice? Do I have to go back to New Jersey and restart up my business? Because now I've been here for six months and there's nothing lined up. I don't have a job. And I almost thought that I failed. And I was at that point where I was at like a crossroads where I was like debating moving back to Jersey and starting back over. And I remember when I got the phone call, uh, from Preston, I was working at a landscaping company, uh, in San Antonio.

• 6:34Speaker 01

  And I was working for $15 an hour while I was starting up my coaching business. And I was just, when you, when you start off landscaping, uh, usually like you're the first person, yeah. As the new guy, you're the person on the weed eater. So you're just sitting there and you're just like getting all the edges. And I was doing that for eight to 12 hours every single day. And I just remember getting an email from Preston like, hey, Simon, an opportunity popped up to start working at BPN. Uh, you know, would you like to come work here? And I remember I responded back so fast, not even thinking about how long the commute was going to be, what it would look like. I just knew that it was like God answered my call. This is the reason why I moved down here and I was just going to figure it out.

• 7:16Nick Bare?

  Where, where were you living when you were doing landscaping, when you got that call?

• 7:18Speaker 01

  Yeah, so I was living in Canyon Lake, which is 30 minutes outside of San Antonio. And it was about an hour and a half to two hours, depending on traffic, uh, to get here to, uh, Round Rock where BPN is located. And I remember just, uh, when I first jumped on the interview with Preston, which was pretty much him telling me like, hey, this is, uh, the job, this is when you're going to start. And he's like, you know, are you able to, I'm like, yes, yes. And then I remember going home and putting it into the GPS and I just looked at it and I was like two hours. And I was like, in my head, I was wrapping my mind about the fact that I would have to commute two hours to show up here, to be in the warehouse by 7:30. Also reversing engineering that because I'm like, I have to get my training done because training never stops.

• 8:03Speaker 01

  I was training for high rocks at the time, which I still am. And also knowing that on the drive back with traffic during peak, it would take me about three hours to get home. But I was like, you want to know what, Simon? That's a future you problem. Uh, right now you take this opportunity and then you just figure it out. So it was every day, it was a hundred miles on the GPS, when I put it, from Canyon Lake to Round Rock, Texas, each way. So I was traveling 200 miles a day for quite some time until obviously I ended up moving a lot closer because I was a lot better.

• 8:35Nick Bare?

  I forgot you made that, that commute for so long.

• 8:38Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 8:39Nick Bare?

  So what time were you waking up and leaving the house to get here?

• 8:43Speaker 01

  So I was typically waking up right around like two o'clock in the morning. I was out of the house by 2:30. On a good day, I was getting here right between four to 4:30. And that gave me enough time because I would double my workouts in the morning. So I would run and I would lift and do any high rocks training that I would have to do, shower and be in the warehouse by 7:30 in the morning. So that at 4:00 PM I could leave.

• 9:05Nick Bare?

  So I, I remember, I remember this, this schedule. We talked about this a long time ago. You'd leave at four, say you get home 6:30 ish?

• 9:15Speaker 01

  Like 6:30, seven o'clock because I would just sit in bumper to bumper traffic on 35. That anyone who lives in Austin, they'd know about 35 on 4:00 PM.

• 9:23Nick Bare?

  And then you would eat, go to sleep, well, prepare all your stuff for the next day, go to sleep. So you could wake up at 2:00 AM the next morning.

• 9:30Speaker 01

  Yeah, I would, immediately I would get home. I was living with my sister at the time. I would hang out with my niece and nephew for a bit, empty out my lunchbox, get my meals ready, shower and try to be in bed before eight o'clock. And then set my alarm and then every night I'd remember just like laying in bed and just, you know, when you're just pushing hard and you're just tired and you're overworked and like you're laying in bed and your heart's beating and like you're feeling anxious and I'm like, all right, Simon, you got to do it all over again tomorrow. And I would fall asleep, alarm goes off, two o'clock and it's like, let's do it again. And I just did that for so long. Uh, but I think what really helped, uh, kind of just like staying optimistic and like, just like having a good mindset overall is just that I enjoyed coming here so much.

• 10:13Speaker 01

  And I just like, I would remember the first time that I would just walk in and I would just see the going more out of the old HQ and just walking in there and I'm like, dude, it's all worth it. It's all worth it.

• 10:22Nick Bare?

  It'll all pay off.

• 10:22Speaker 01

  It'll all pay off. And like, obviously where I am now, which you know, we'll get to, uh, I wasn't even thinking that far ahead. I was just focused on just today, get today done, show up, get your training in, go to work, work hard, get home. And that's it. I just had to simplify things. And obviously now, you know, there's a lot more stuff going on, but back then it seemed like things were a lot more simpler, even though I had a, you know, five hour commute.

• 10:48Nick Bare?

  Right. So when you're sitting in that bar in Jersey with your friend.

• 10:54Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 10:55Nick Bare?

  What was it that was, what made you make the commitment? Like so many people, I want to, I want to get in your head for a second.

• 11:06Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 11:07Nick Bare?

  So many people. They say they wanna do something. They wanna make a change. But oftentimes, they don't because the fear of the uncertainty of what's gonna happen after that change is greater than the discomfort they are in currently in that moment. As much as you hate what you're doing right now, that is more comfortable than the discomfort of uncertainty that you may experience with this change. So what was it that made you say, you know what, I'm done saying I'm going to do this and I'm gonna actually do it?

• 11:45Speaker 01

  I think it really came down to like, I was really good at giving advice, but not taking my own advice. So it was almost like practicing what I was preaching. Like, I remember sitting at that bar and just looking at my friend Marco and just telling him, I'm like, dude, bet on yourself. I was like, you're right now, you're working a job that you don't enjoy. You had this startup. You're ready. I was like, just go all in. As I was speaking to him, it almost felt like in a sense, I was like speaking to myself. And like, as I was saying this, I just started to think to myself, I was like, I'm giving this advice to so many people, but I'm not taking my own advice. So like in that moment, I was like, you wanna know what? I was like, I'm actually gonna flip. I was like, let's shake on it right now. I was like, if you commit to this and you go all in on your business,

• 12:28Speaker 01

  I was like, I'll commit to you as a friend and I'll go all in on the thing that I wanna do because I've been talking about this for two years. I knew that I needed a change of scenery. I knew that I needed to get out of my environment. I knew that I was comfortable. But although I was great at giving advice, I wasn't great at taking my own advice. And in that moment, I think that's why, as cliche as it sounds, like you can go, you know, fast alone, but you can go further with others. I was like, I just needed one other person to just shake that hand and just like look at me and for us to both commit, for me to finally make that decision because now not only was I committed to myself, I was committed to him.

• 13:04Nick Bare?

  Yeah.

• 13:05Speaker 01

  So, once we shook on it, I was like, oh, it's actually, that was the first time that I said it and I actually felt like I meant it. Where I was that person that, they're like, well, like even one of my clients earlier that week, he was like, well, Simon, you've been talking about moving. Two years later, you're still here. And I'm like, oh, that hurt. But he's so right. I was like, I keep saying that I wanna change the scenery. I keep saying that, you know, I wanna go all in on these goals. I keep saying that I wanna be, I wanna chase these athletic goals and I wanna change the scenery, but I'm still doing the same thing. So what does that look like to the people that I'm giving this advice to, that I'm preaching to? And now they're looking at me and they're like, Simon, you're giving us this advice, but you're not taking your own advice. And I think in that moment, it like, a switch went off. And I was like, alright, I'm doing it. I don't know what the road ahead looks like.

• 13:51Speaker 01

  I didn't have a job lined up here. I didn't know where I was gonna stay. Like I said, I wasn't even looking at apartments. I just called my sister and I was like, hey, listen, I might need a place to crash until I figure out what I'm doing. I don't know where I'm working. I don't know what's gonna happen. I just know that I'm gonna get down there and I'm gonna figure it out. And now we're here.

• 14:09Nick Bare?

  Yeah, you'd hope that like, you rip that Band-Aid off, you make the move, and it's all like rainbows and butterflies from there. But you get down here and it's, holy crap, I may have made a mistake.

• 14:21Speaker 01

  Oh, I still vividly remember being at Lifetime, sitting in the parking lot for 30 minutes and just sitting there and looking at my bank account, looking at just like, wow, it's been four or five months. It's like, I bet on myself and feeling like I almost like kind of like failed, feeling like I didn't, like I made the wrong decision. Feeling like everyone talks about, oh, like betting on yourself, like, you know, sometimes you just gotta jump and you gotta, you gotta take that risk. But all the uncertainty that came with it because it wasn't a smooth transition. It wasn't linear. It wasn't like, alright, I made this transition and now I got down here to Austin and everything's great. It's like, no, like I struggled for quite some time and there were times where I'm almost trying to stop myself from like breaking down and crashing out in the car

• 15:04Speaker 01

  and me just constantly reminding myself like, this is what you asked for. Like, there's a, there's a reason, like you wanted to be uncomfortable. You wanted to have that cage rattled. You wanted to grow, to grow. I was like, what do you think was gonna happen? Did you think it was gonna be easy? And that's why, to me, training is so important because I would have all those feelings, all that anxiousness. And then I would go and train and it's almost like, okay, like a little bit of that weight got lifted off. All my problems weren't solved, but at least like that kind of like shifted my chemistry a little bit. And then it was like, okay, alright, I made it through one more day. Okay, so I gotta go home. I gotta apply for jobs. Okay, what can I control? My college coach, Coach Losch, used to always say, he's like, control the controllables.

• 15:48Speaker 01

  He's like, sometimes an ump goes out there and makes a bad call. That's out of your control. But like, what are the things that you can control? And I'm like, alright, I can control my attitude. I can control my effort and I can apply for jobs right now and, you know, that's what I'm gonna focus on. And then I'll just like, lay the cards fall however they do. And that's just how, what I was focused on. Even though at the time, it was just, like I said, there was one point where I vividly remember being at Lifetime and I was looking at flights to go back to Jersey to at least make some money for a week and just open up my books. And then kind of like figure out if I was gonna come back to Austin or if I was going to stay back in New Jersey.

• 16:28Nick Bare?

  You know, if you would've flew back to Jersey, you ain't coming back.

• 16:30Speaker 01

  Oh, I, trust me, I know. That's why I, that's why I kept going back and forth. And like I said, shortly after that time period, that's when Preston reached out. It's almost like, right, like you've heard that story of like the person that's like looking for kind of like the gold mine, right? And like you're tripping away, you're tripping away, you're tripping away. And right at that moment where you're about to quit and like walk away, it's like, had you like striked a little bit more, that's, that's where the gold is.

• 16:54Nick Bare?

  Yeah.

• 16:54Speaker 01

  But you almost like gave up when you got like 99% of the way there. And like, it's always when you get to that edge, when you're almost at that finish line, you just gotta push a little bit more. And I was just at that point where it's like, that's the hardest push. It's that 1% that you have to push right at the end to kind of get over that hump. And that's when you get to the other side. And I got to that point and I just felt like I was in a car and like the car was like rattling. You've ever been in those cars where you're driving, it's like, it doesn't go past like 60 miles per hour? When you're driving on the highway, it like starts to shake, so you have to back off a little bit? I felt like that's exactly where I was. I was like driving 60 miles an hour. I knew I was close. I could see my exit, but the car's shaking. And I'm just like sitting there like, two hands on the steering wheel like, just, just hold on, Simon, hold on. You're almost at your exit.

• 17:38Speaker 01

  And then I just remember like how powerful it was. And I remember like just staring at that email and just being like, holy crap, like it's happening. Like, I don't know what it's gonna look like, but I'm proud of myself for sticking it through because I was so close to going back and starting over again.

• 17:57Nick Bare?

  Right. So what was your, your first job here at BPN? Like, what was your role, duties and responsibilities?

• 18:05Speaker 01

  Ah, so I was a material handler. So I was working in the warehouse and just, I consider the material handlers like the Swiss Army knife in the warehouse. So we like pack orders, do a little bit of fulfillment, like throwing out trash, like that's like the grunt work. Like whenever we bring employees in for like the Black Friday sale or for the summer sale, I always lean towards the material handlers because I'm like, hey, these are the dogs. Like, you're a dog if you're in the warehouse, but these are the ones that are doing all the grunt work behind the scenes that you're not the ones like really packing the orders full time, but you're making sure that the operation is running smoothly. So that's what I was doing. And I was working alongside John and Gino, who he's now the director in the warehouse.

• 18:49Speaker 01

  So that's what I was doing when I first got here. And I remember when Preston first reached out to me, I was like, Preston, you could've asked me to just clean bathrooms and just sweep up and just like, and I would've said yes. But you wouldn't have even had to pay me. The fact that I was given a salary in the warehouse, I was shocked at that. I was like, I thought it was just gonna be minimum wage. The fact that BPN here provides benefits for all employees, I was shocked. I was like, I'm getting benefits? Nick, that was the first time in my life that I had benefits since 2014, right after I graduated college. I worked at a law firm for a short period of time.

• 19:27Speaker 01

  Besides that, I had been just running a cash business at the barber shop. I was just paying for myself. I didn't have benefits from 2014 up until when I started here in 2024, I believe was when I started. So up until then, I'm like, what is this place? I'm like, what do you mean? I was like, we got benefits? We get a salary? I was like, yeah, sure. I'm like, awesome. I was like, I wasn't even expecting that, but great.

• 19:51Nick Bare?

  We believe in taking care of the people.

• 19:52Speaker 01

  Ah dude, that's, that's powerful.

• 19:54Nick Bare?

  So from my perspective, this is what started happening.

• 20:01Nick Bare?

  We work a full day and at this point, I didn't even know you were making this two hour commute to and from HQ every day. And we weren't at this point in our current HQ. We were in our previous HQ, which is four different buildings, 50,000 square feet, where the ops team was separate from the leadership team, separate from the brand team, separate from the gym and podcast studio. So we'd work a full day, then we all go into the gym at 4:00 PM in the gym and throw down. And then I would watch people line up after the workout on this little landing pad outside of

• 20:41Nick Bare?

  the warehouse. You know, we had like this, this little four by four foot dock with stairs.

• 20:49Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 20:49Nick Bare?

  You put a chair there and you cut people's hair.

• 20:51Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 20:52Nick Bare?

  Every day after the workout. And there started to be this line of people accumulating to get workouts or to get haircuts from you after the workout. And that kind of evolved into haircuts before work.

• 21:08Speaker 01

  Oh, yeah.

• 21:09Nick Bare?

  And then after work and on the weekends and before you know it, you're cutting everyone's hair and you're cutting my hair too. And it was 2024 and you were cutting my hair in the leadership suite of our old HQ. And so now we started talking about high rocks. And I was pretty unfamiliar with anything high rocks at that point. And you convinced me to sign up for high rocks Dallas by the end of that haircut. And then that led to me going to a full high rocks prep. We both trained for high rocks Dallas.

• 21:49Nick Bare?

  It became a YouTube series and it shifted a lot of the content and athletic training endeavors of BPN here. And during that entire time, I did not know you were making this long commute to and from, and you're coming off this super stressful time in your life. But to reinforce what you said earlier, you know, control of controllables, even when life is chaotic and unpredictable, you can control your effort and your attitude and your energy.

• 22:23Nick Bare?

  Looking back from the moment you started up until today, you've always walked into this place with effort, attitude and energy. Even when life has been chaotic for you, even when your dad was sick.

• 22:36Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 22:36Nick Bare?

  You would walk into this building with effort, attitude and energy. That's why you are where you are today and that's why you're going places. But how did you start cutting everyone's hair?

• 22:49Speaker 01

  Yeah. I remember when I first got here, my main focus was like, all right, Simon, yeah, yes, you're a barber and that's what you did. Almost like it felt like a previous life or a previous season. Right before I had left New Jersey, I purposely gave away all of my clippers to all the other barbers in the shop because I didn't want to come here to Austin. And then immediately the easy route would have been like, oh, I'll just go to a barber shop. I was like, I can just reopen my books and just rebuild my clientele. I felt like that was the easy route and I didn't want to go that route. So I just kept my personal set and I would just cut my

• 23:29Speaker 01

  own hair, but I told everyone that I was retiring from cutting hair. When I got to BPN, I was, I looked around at you guys and some people always say this, like they people watch, I haircut watch. So usually I'll stare at people and I'll look at them and I was like, man, if I can just grab the clippers and I can just taper out the sideburns a little bit and just clean up the back of their neck and just like, you know, maybe just take two inches off the top. I was like, damn, I was like, that look would look so much better on them. And after a while, I remember the first haircut I ever gave here was actually Kerm who was running the warehouse at the time. And I was like, yo, man, I was like, just let me cut your hair. And he's like, what do you mean? He's like, you cut hair? I was like, yeah, man, I used to be a barber. Like, that's what I did for a decade before I came down here. And once I gave him a haircut, I think you guys had an L10 meeting shortly like after, and everybody was like, yo, man, great

• 24:13Speaker 01

  haircut. And he started to tell everyone, he's like, yeah, there's a guy in the warehouse right now that he's a barber and he cuts hair. And that's how slowly I started to cut the team. But there was no barber shop. We were obviously in the old HQ. So people would ask me, they're like, oh, can you cut my hair? I was like, yeah, of course. So I would just tell them, I'm like, hey, listen, like, obviously I work from 7:30 to four. I was like, after work, I was like, you can just meet me at the gym. I would grab the rogue box. I would sit it outside and mind you, it's Texas. It's now, you know, the middle of summer.

• 24:42Nick Bare?

  People just dripping sweat.

• 24:43Speaker 01

  Dripping sweat and I'm wiping their sweat off while I'm cutting hair outside in the heat because I didn't want to get hair inside the gym because obviously the gym is our sacred place. We keep that place clean. Like there's a standard that we keep in there, but it was like right outside of the gym and I would just have people lined up like, all right, you're my four, you're my 4:30 or you're my five. And there were certain days where I'm cutting six, seven people. Now I'm leaving here at, you know, let's call it like six, seven PM and then still doing my, you know, two hour commute home and then just coming back and like doing it all over again. So like, that's kind of like how it started. And then eventually I remember you sent me a message and you're like, hey, man, can you give me a haircut today? And I was like.

• 25:20Nick Bare?

  And you're doing all these haircuts for free too?

• 25:22Speaker 01

  Oh, yeah. Cause because I was no longer depending on cutting hair to like, for that being my main source of income. I always said that like, I'm gonna, like my friends and my family, like, I'm gonna take care of you guys. Like, yeah, like in the past, that was a way of me making money. To me, it's like, I also enjoy the art of cutting hair and I enjoy that feeling that somebody gets. Like, I know there's times where like you sit in my chair and I give you a haircut and now you're like glowing different. Now you're like walking, you're looking in the mirror and like you just, there's a, like, I know the feeling that I get when I get a fresh haircut and I know I can give people that feeling. And to me, I was like, I didn't want to turn it into a business. Like I was gonna come here and like cut hair to like make money on the side. I was like, no, I just want to make people here feel good. And I didn't care

• 26:05Speaker 01

  about making money from cutting hair. So that's why I told everyone that they're like, yo, how much? I was like, just show up to team workout. Cause I don't know if you know this, we'll back up a little bit, but the week that I started here at BPN, that was the week that you came back from Nashville and that was your first week back.

• 26:20Nick Bare?

  Yep.

• 26:21Speaker 01

  And I remember going into the gym at like 4:30, 5 o'clock in the morning and there's music playing and I opened the door and like two like golden doodles like come after me and I'm like, what the heck is going on? And I see you and you walk up to me and you're like, hey, I'm Nick. Are you the new employee here? And that's, that was our first interaction. And that was your first week back.

• 26:38Nick Bare?

  I remember that morning.

• 26:39Speaker 01

  And I feel like that was like, kind of like our journey. Like while I was like driving here, I was kind of like reminiscing and I was thinking about, I was like, just thinking about when I first started here, that being your first week. And now it's like the transition of like you moving now back to Nashville and just like me being here and just how far like we both have come, how much BPN has changed from that point to now. And it's just, it's been a roller coaster ride.

• 27:05Nick Bare?

  It really has.

• 27:06Speaker 01

  Yeah. But to, to get back to your point, when, when I first cut your hair, I remember just getting that feeling and I'm, you know, obviously like, you know, obviously we're good friends, you know, we're brothers, but at this, at that point, I really didn't have that many conversations with you. And so at that, I'm excited because I'm like, I can't wait to, you know, cut your hair and sit down. I didn't know how that was gonna go. And naturally, we just like started having a conversation and you're like, so like, what are you training for? And I was like, oh, I'm training for this thing called high rocks. And at the time, high rocks wasn't as popular as it is now. I remember showing up to the venue, the day of the race and being like, hey, I want to sign up and run, run men's open. And they're like, all right, what heat do you

• 27:47Speaker 01

  want? Do you want to run at two, 2:30, 2:15, 3 o'clock? I'm like, I'll run to 3 o'clock. Whereas now during the pre-sale, if you don't get your tickets and you're on that website, you'll, you'll be 30,000 on the list and you won't even get in. So obviously a lot has changed.

• 28:01Nick Bare?

  The growth, the growth has been insane.

• 28:03Speaker 01

  Has been insane. And just from the, being on the inside and also when I was on the outside, I was like, why has Nick never done a high rocks? But I started to find out during the haircut, you didn't know what high rocks was. So when you asked me about it, you were like, so what is it? Is it like CrossFit? And I was like, well, it's kind of, but not really because there's no high skill component. You don't have to like do handstand walking. You're not doing snatches. You're not doing any Olympic weightlifting or gymnastics. It's power output and running. And I was like, Nick, I was like, you were made for high rocks. I was like, at the time you had just got done running, what was it? 237?

• 28:43Nick Bare?

  239.

• 28:44Speaker 01

  Yeah, 239 at CIM. Obviously you have the power lifting and the bodybuilding background. So you have a lot of muscle. You have the running pedigree. And obviously at that point, I feel like the business was like, you know, if you go online, even to this day and back then two years ago, and you type in hybrid on YouTube, what pops up?

• 29:03Nick Bare?

  BPN Nick Bear.

• 29:04Speaker 01

  BPN Nick Bear. So, and I view.

• 29:07Nick Bare?

  Come on.

• 29:07Speaker 01

  Yeah, exactly. And everyone knows this. So like, if you haven't, you, you live, you live under a rock. And I was trying to wrap my mind around. I was like, okay, so like, we are, like, there's a sign right now in the gym that says the Mecca of hybrid training. And I'm like, all right, so the direction of the business is hybrid. That's like kind of like, we have our strength collection. We have our endurance collection. And I view you as kind of the pioneer in the hybrid space. And I'm like, it is time for you to step into the arena. It's time for you to throw down. I was like, it's eight by 1,000 meters of running and it's just straight power output, skiing, sled push, sled pull, wall balls. I was like, Nick, you will dominate

• 29:48Speaker 01

  this if you just shifted your focus and just went into high rocks. And I remember at the time, you just like looked over at Sarah because we were in the leadership office. And you're like, Sarah, when's a high rocks Dallas? And he's like, oh, it's like November. It's like, all right. Yeah, let's do it. Sign us, sign it up. All right. I'm going in, I'm doing high rocks. And I was like, oh crap. I was like, I just convinced Nick Barrett to do a high rocks race. And then I remember the following week, we did our first high rocks workout together. And you know, obviously that led into the prep, the direction of the business. And who knew that one haircut would have led to, you know, BPN making a splash, you know, in high rocks in Dallas and just being there and just the flood of just go one more hats and merch and people out there

• 30:31Speaker 01

  because they were already in the space. You just hadn't cemented yourself. You hadn't find, you haven't, you hadn't stepped into the arena up until that point. You were in the arena in other avenues, but you weren't in the hybrid arena. And I think at that moment, BPN cemented themselves like into the, into the hybrid space. And then you stepped into the arena and I thought that was like massive for the brand.

• 30:54Nick Bare?

  Yeah. I think that was probably like May of 2024 that you gave me that haircut.

• 31:00Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 31:00Nick Bare?

  And made that decision. And then we prepped all through the summer.

• 31:06Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 31:06Nick Bare?

  Through the fall. It was a November 2024 race in, in Dallas.

• 31:11Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 31:12Nick Bare?

  And that prep was so much fun.

• 31:13Speaker 01

  Oh, yeah.

• 31:14Nick Bare?

  I learned so much about. High intensity interval training, uh, circuit training. It was a fun new element that was added to my, my training. I'll never forget the day we spent with Rich Ryan, Ryan Kent.

• 31:29Speaker 01

  That was a day.

• 31:30Nick Bare?

  Throwing down just like nasty workouts. Be like a nine mile tempo run in the morning.

• 31:36Speaker 01

  It was supposed to be a, a zone two easy run. We ran nine miles at six 50 mile pace.

• 31:41Nick Bare?

  Just pushing.

• 31:41Speaker 01

  Just pushing and we were all, you know, chilling like it wasn't hard, but it wasn't easy.

• 31:46Nick Bare?

  It was full conversation.

• 31:47Speaker 01

  Full conversation. Yeah.

• 31:48Nick Bare?

  It was like negative splits. We got faster with each incremental mile. And then Rich Ryan programmed a dirty workout for the afternoon that we did. It was a great day of training. I have so many memories from like that period of time. And then I remember race day, high rocks Dallas. We're driving in your truck to the venue through downtown Dallas. The sun was setting because I think you and I went on at nine PM.

• 32:14Speaker 01

  Yeah, it was late.

• 32:15Nick Bare?

  We had a late start and we're driving to the venue at like seven, seven 30. Sun's coming down. We're drinking pre-workout G1M sport plus. We're like, our music's blasting. Your stereo system that works, you had like a Bose speaker on your dash.

• 32:33Speaker 01

  And a JBL speaker. I had you connect to the Bluetooth.

• 32:37Nick Bare?

  And man, I just remember being in that venue, warming up and throwing down. It was so much fun. So to be back in a high rocks prep right now. It's bringing back a lot of those old memories of, of two years prior. And that season of life, that season of life, I remember, you know, I started training for high rocks Dallas in May. My son, Nico was born in August. It's like middle of that prep. And I was trying to navigate now having two children and put in this massive prep and it was just a wild time of life, but it was so much fun. It was all because you came into the office, cut my hair and led to a conversation which then led to a full fitness prep and YouTube series.

• 33:22Speaker 01

  I still remember being at the Airbnb, uh, that afternoon and you handing me G1M sport plus for the first time in a small little Ziploc bag.

• 33:31Nick Bare?

  Before it launched.

• 33:31Speaker 01

  That was before it launched and you know, when they say, uh, never try anything new on race day. I believed in that product so much that you handed me that Ziploc and I just shook it up in a water bottle. And I was like, this is what I'm taking.

• 33:44Nick Bare?

  I forgot that was before we launched.

• 33:46Speaker 01

  That was before. You handed me that. It was like a little rectangular bag and it just said G1M sport plus lemon lime.

• 33:52Nick Bare?

  Yeah.

• 33:52Speaker 01

  And you just handed it to me and I just like shook it up in a water bottle and I took that for the first time.

• 33:57Nick Bare?

  Dude, such like core memories.

• 34:01Nick Bare?

  All right. So let's talk about how did you evolve in your role here at BPN? From material handler to now head of athletic performance in team barber.

• 34:12Speaker 01

  Yeah. So, uh, it was obviously the cutting hair, uh, after hours, before hours. It was also too, this was around the time that, uh, you started implementing the team workouts on Thursdays at three PM. And what started off as like everyone just kind of going in there and just working out by themselves. The way that my brain operated, I'm like, this is a team workout. So to me, I'm like team workout means like we worked out together as a team. And what started off as just me working out with just one other person evolved into two people, three people. And then before you know it, I'm writing the workout on the whiteboard and I turn around and there's 15 people looking at me to guide them through the workout. And at the time, like, I don't think I was, I would have called myself a coach.

• 34:56Speaker 01

  I wouldn't call myself a trainer. Like, I don't have a degree in that. Like, that's not something that I was doing. But I was leading the members here, uh, through like high rocks workouts and just like, kind of like just training. And we would have athletes come into town and, you know, people would message me. It's like, hey, so and so is coming into town. Like make sure we have a good presence today. And I would just like go into everyone's offices and just give everyone reminders like, hey, guys, three PM today. Like we're going to be throwing down in the gym. And I guess like naturally, like I was just, uh, doing more than what my job description was because obviously my job description was a material handler. My job was to be in the warehouse from seven 30 to four PM and do all things ops in the warehouse. And on top of that, I was also cutting hair before and after, and I was also kind of just, uh, running the team workouts.

• 35:41Speaker 01

  And at the time, I don't know if you remember this, I had a group chat, uh, that I had all the employees at BPN. And on the weekends I would go to a coffee shop and I was programming everyone's training.

• 35:52Nick Bare?

  Yep. I remember that.

• 35:53Speaker 01

  Whether they were training for like marathons or like high rocks or like five Ks, or they were just like, hey, Simon, I just want to be a better runner. I want to be a hybrid athlete. So I was doing all of those things on top of also working my full-time job in the warehouse. And that's when I, uh, sat down, uh, with Josh, who was our CFO at the time. And I was like, hey, man, listen, like, I think I've taken on a little bit more than what I can. Uh, I think, uh, I'm starting to spread myself a little bit too thin. And I don't think I can, uh, coach everyone at the level that I want to and also cut everyone's hair. And, you know, work in the warehouse. I think I'm just going to have to like go part-time so that I can still cut everyone's hair after hours and before hours. So I can still coach everyone here.

• 36:35Speaker 01

  So I can still like work full-time, but also like a piece of me like is an athlete as well. It's also like training myself. And I was also, I was burning myself out, trying to do all of those things and trying to be a good employee, be a good coach, be a good barber, uh, be a good friend. And do all those things at a high level. And that's originally when, uh, you guys allowed me at first to, uh, go part-time. And you were on vacation. I think you were in Nashville actually. And then you came back later that week and I think you had just found out about that. And that's when you called me into your office. And at that point I thought I was getting fired. I was like, I was like, no, Simon, like you either are here full-time or you leave. And that's when you, uh, you know, sat me down and you're like, actually, Simon, we're going to make you the head of athletic performance.

• 37:21Speaker 01

  Uh, your new role now here at BPN is you're no longer going to be in the warehouse. You're going to be the coach, you're going to be the barber and you're going to be an athlete. And I just remember looking at you and I was like, yo, man, can I just get a hug? I was like, this is crazy. I was like, and obviously that's how that position evolved. But I didn't ask you guys for that. I didn't come up to you and say, hey, can I, uh, can I be the head coach here? Can I just be the barber? Uh, it just, I was doing all of those things naturally. And I was just doing above and beyond of like what my role was. I, I find that a lot of people, when they work at businesses, they always complain about, oh, this is my job. And I'm doing like two or three other jobs and I'm not getting compensated for that. To me, I'm like, yo, I have an amazing opportunity here. I want everybody around me to elevate.

• 38:04Speaker 01

  So like, I'm going to do that by cutting everyone's hair, by coaching everyone, by making people fitter. And also at the same time, like, I just, I didn't view that as like you guys owed me anything. And then in return, this position opened up.

• 38:17Nick Bare?

  This is exactly right here, this part of the conversation of why I wanted to have you on the podcast. Because this is the opposite of entitlement.

• 38:27Nick Bare?

  So many people would have found themselves in your position and came to the boss and said, I want a new title. I want more money. I want, I want, I want, I need, I need, I need. You came to us and said, I think I need to go part-time so that I can dedicate more of my time to the things that I don't get paid for. And when I heard this, it was like, you're crazy, dude. You're crazy. And that's why I was like, give, we're going to give this dude exactly what he knows he wants in his head, but he won't say it out loud.

• 39:08Nick Bare?

  Because there's such a lack of entitlement and a full ownership of you get everything that you work for. That's why I called you in the office. I was like, you want to be, you want to be a pro high rocks athlete? You want to spend time training? All right. You can have that. You want to be the team barber? Okay, you can have that. You want to be the head of athletic training? Okay, you can have that. That's going to be your new job. We're going to create a rule. You are head of athletic performance at BPN. Because I need your energy. I need your effort. I need your attitude. Like, we need that here culturally. So this is the clear example of like, when you just show up and do your job and

• 39:49Nick Bare?

  do more than is what, what is asked and required for all the right reasons. You get exactly what deep down in your heart you want and desire. That's why you're here. And that's the lesson I want people to take away. It's like, we live in this world right now where everyone's entitled to everything they're wants and their needs. They don't want to put in the time to get it. When you put in the time and the effort and the energy and the attitude to get it, the world will reward you. Maybe out on the timeline that you want. You know, like you made the move to Texas and things didn't work out. It wasn't the timeline that you wanted, but because you were resilient and you persevered.

• 40:32Nick Bare?

  Eventually you got like the opportunity and you turn that opportunity into what it is today. And it's like, it's been so amazing to just watch and it is very refreshing and it is very rare. I hope you recognize how rare that is. And just keep running with that attitude, energy and just drive. Because that is a unique skillset and characteristic that you have that not many people do. I've, I haven't seen it many times in my life. So you should be really proud of that.

• 41:09Speaker 01

  Thank you.

• 41:11Nick Bare?

  All right.

• 41:13Nick Bare?

  Where did you learn that from? That work ethic?

• 41:23Speaker 01

  The thing is, I didn't always have that work ethic. And I think a lot of it stems from the fact, I look back at kind of like my childhood and my upbringing and I was the epitome of like hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard. I feel like I had a lot of talent, but I didn't have the work ethic. I was talented enough to, you know, play high school baseball, end up

• 41:50Speaker 01

  being able to play sports in college and playing baseball in college. But the four years that I was in college, I rode the bench because I didn't have that work ethic. Because I had the talent and I had little moments where I would go out there and make the big plays and have the big strikeouts or like have the big hits and the big home runs. But because I didn't have the work ethic and I didn't have the discipline, I was very inconsistent. And I used to have a lot of guilt around that and a lot of like shame. But also, it's the reason why I'm here today. Because I often look back at the times where I was in college and that feeling of like sitting on the bench and walking into the cafeteria

• 42:33Speaker 01

  and seeing all the guys on the baseball team like after like a big game or a big weekend and just knowing that I didn't contribute at all. And I would beat myself up about it, but I wasn't doing anything about it. So I think it was that shift. It's almost like now, because I understand that in the past, I didn't have that work ethic and discipline. It almost like forced me after to kind of like double down and kind of like rewrite that story. I'm like, alright, Simon, so in the past, like you were, you had talent, but you were lazy and you weren't disciplined. And you weren't an early morning riser and you didn't prioritize those areas in your life. So now, that's why I like have like this fire inside of me to like actually be disciplined, to actually have that work ethic.

• 43:17Speaker 01

  Because I just remember that feeling of just like sitting in the bench and just like watching your team and like, you know, lose. And like, there's nothing you can do about it because I used to often point the finger and kind of like blame like the coaches for not putting me in the lineup. And for all my other circumstances where really what I should have done was point the finger at myself. The reason why I wasn't starting, the reason why I wasn't there and I wasn't on the field, wasn't because of my coaches. It was because of myself, right? And I often like look back at that. And that's really kind of like the main like driver for me. Cause and that's why I feel like I'm the athlete that I am today. Like the coach, the friend, like kind of like the barber. It's because in the past, like I wasn't disciplined. Like I was like lazy.

• 43:59Speaker 01

  I was like when guys were showing up early on like a Saturday morning before practice to get some extra work in or go into the cages. I rather party, you know, I was like up all night, like drinking. Like I cared more about kind of like living kind of like the college frat lifestyle instead of like being kind of committed to the team and doing the work needed to. Because it was almost like a blessing and a curse being talented. Because I was like so skilled that sometimes I didn't have to work as hard as everyone else and every now and then I can make a big play. I didn't feel like I needed to work as hard. And I feel like now I have the talent and I also have like the work ethic. And you almost need to go through that season.

• 44:41Speaker 01

  And now I'm almost appreciative of riding the bench, which I never thought I would say that. Because that's why I'm here now. And that's why I'm still pursuing like athletics and like being an athlete. Like I think I told you this, when you gave me that, the position that I have now. I was like, dude, man, like I said this to my personal friend group and I haven't like really like spoken this like publicly or out loud. But I have like this like crazy goal of just like of being like a professional athlete still to this day. Like I have this crazy goal of like winning the High Rocks World Championships. And when I say that, I understand the amount of body of work that needs to happen in order for me to get there. But like I believe that because of everything and all the experiences and everything that's happened to me in like my life up until this point.

• 45:26Speaker 01

  Like now I have all the pieces of the puzzle. Now I just have to put the work in. And like to me, it's like I enjoy the work. So it's like, I'm just like looking forward to it. I'm like, oh, like now I have, I have a full state of the art private facility here where I can go train at. We have saunas, we have cold plunges, recovery boots, the sleds, all the equipment, like it's a hybrid gym in there. I was like, I have the ability now in the ownership of my schedule to kind of like have my training schedule and then being able to dictate the days where I can coach all the athletes here, where I can be a barber. And I can like focus now on being a full-time athlete. And like, these were the things that I've dreamt about. And now it's like it took all of that work to finally get here and for it to actually come into fruition. But all of that happened because I was lazy.

• 46:11Speaker 01

  Because I was undisciplined, because I rode the bench.

• 46:15Nick Bare?

  It's delusional until the work works.

• 46:19Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 46:21Nick Bare?

  It's delusional to yourself and to the people around you until they see and you see the work payoff. And then it's not delusional anymore.

• 46:31Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 46:32Nick Bare?

  Then it's real. I'm a big fan of I am affirmation statements.

• 46:40Nick Bare?

  And I had Bedros Kholian on the podcast years ago. He talked about how like we as people have the pen of our life in our hands. And the next chapter, today, tomorrow, next week, next month, next year. Like we are the person who can write in those blank pages what happens next. But a lot of times what happens is we look at our previous self. You know, I was undisciplined, I was unmotivated. I didn't work out, I didn't train, I didn't stick to my diet. I wasn't committed, I would set goals, then never pursue them.

• 47:24Nick Bare?

  That could be true, all of that in your past. But I am today can be something different. Like I am someone who is committed. I am someone who wakes up and makes healthy food choices. I am someone who, who wakes up early and goes for a run. Like those I am affirmation statements are really powerful. And they don't have to be reflective of who you were in the past.

• 47:51Nick Bare?

  Something I noticed from you is that like you are someone who is genuinely and authentically on a mission to serve others. I watch you light up when other people win and succeed and improve and reach their goal. And you want to be a part of the process of getting them there. Like if someone here at BPN is going to run 100 miles next weekend and they say, I need someone to pace me. You're the first person to raise your hand. I'll pace, I'll crew, I'll put a logistics plan in place.

• 48:30Nick Bare?

  Would you say that's true that you receive a lot of joy and satisfaction when other people win, not just yourselves?

• 48:39Speaker 01

  Absolutely. And I'll just give you like a great example of that. Like we have one of our guys in here, Yuli, right? Who did the last man standing race in Maine. And I remember whether it was like seven or eight months ago, he came to me and he was like, hey, Simon, like I want to run this last man standing in Maine, I want to win it, I want to run over 100 miles. And I remember looking at him and getting fired up when he was like telling me. Cause like, you know, everyone has that like that twinkle in their eye when like they reach for a goal. And even though he was saying it to me, I can tell a part of it was almost like delusional. Cause it's like, alright, Yuli, you've been only running for like a year and a half. Like you've never really done an ultra marathon before. But he was looking at me and he was telling me that he wanted to go out there and win a backyard race. And I remember looking at him and I was like, I will be your crew chief.

• 49:24Speaker 01

  I will be there. But I was like, if you, I'll take you as seriously as you take yourself. Go out and hire Sam Harvey, who has 117 loops and who has ran over 450 miles in the backspace. If you hire him as your coach, I'll be there to crew you and then I'll take you seriously. Because there's also that dynamic of because his goal was so big and he wanted to win that race. It's almost like instead of me saying like, hey, like I'll coach you to get there. I needed him to have somebody from the outside kind of programming it. Cause I felt like he would have respected the programming more if somebody else would have been programming it. Because I was so close to him and because we're friends, it would have been very easy for me to program, alright, a long run. And be like, oh, well, you know, instead of the 18 miles, I only got 12, this and that.

• 50:09Speaker 01

  I was like, no, you gotta go speak to somebody else that you don't really know him that well. But I'm gonna be there on the day to have you do it. And then we show up to Maine. And although Yuli didn't go out there and obviously win, he ran 100 miles out on that course and you've done that course before.

• 50:25Nick Bare?

  It's a tough course.

• 50:26Speaker 01

  It's a tough course and it's nasty. And I watched him absolutely fight. And for somebody like Yuli, who's been behind the lens, who's been capturing the first G1 M0tra, the second, and who's been at UTMB, for him to like step into the arena and to go in and to throw down and for me to be a part of that and to just be there on that race. It's like even now to this day, after the whole race has transpired, now it's like he has bigger goals now. Like you should see what me and him are talking about of like what he wants to achieve next year. And I got to be a part of that. And you're right, like that fires me up, that gets me excited. Like there's nothing that I enjoy more than to be crewing someone. Like as much as I love training myself and being an athlete and competing, being able to be a crew chief, being able to coach someone.

• 51:11Speaker 01

  And especially when their goals are delusional. Like I just had one of my guys, he completed the Nebraska 200. And it was a point to point race in Nebraska. And his name's Stuart. And at the time, I met him earlier this year for lunch with his wife. He came up to me, he's like, hey, Simon, I want to run this 200 mile race. This is why I want to do it. I want to raise money for people in need in Honduras and I want to be able to like build houses for them. But you know, this is my goal and this is what I want to do. And I'm like, alright Stuart, you're 50 years old. You just started running a year ago. You have 13 grandchildren and you're running two businesses and you want to run 200 miles.

• 51:56Speaker 01

  And a part of me almost like Didn't want to coach him because I'm like, that's just like super delusional because you're like, running a marathon is hard, running a 50 miler is hard, running 100 miles is extremely hard. Doing a 200 mile race and like you look at his resume and his body of work. And like, I'm just like, from the coach's perspective, I'm like, looking at this paper and I'm like, this is impossible. But like, I, he had that same twinkle that Yuli had in his eyes and other people come up to me when they have these crazy goals. And I'm like, well, I'm also delusional as well. So I was like, if you're crazy enough to go out there and boldly state how crazy of a goal you want, I'm gonna go out there and I'm gonna support you. And you know, seven months later, he crossed the line at 51 years old.

• 52:40Speaker 01

  And mind you, he was four years ago, over 400 pounds. So he's lost over 200 pounds.

• 52:46Nick Bare?

  Crazy.

• 52:46Speaker 01

  On, and being over 50 years old. And with how much craziness that is going on right now in his life and completely turning his life around. And then to go out there and do 200 miles. And then to, I ran the last marathon with him. So I ran from miles 174 to miles 200, I paced him for that final stretch. And I remember that entire day was, was cloudy, the sun didn't come out. And as we started to approach and get off the trail and go out to the main road. And you can see the finish line and his family's there waiting for him. The clouds parted and the sun started to beam down. And I remember giving him a hug and him, uh, reaching over and grabbing me. And him just like weeping on my shoulders, like being so proud of his effort and just thanking me for like believing in him.

• 53:30Speaker 01

  And I'm breaking down, he's breaking down. And watching him cross that line, I was like, man, like, I love this, man. Like I just, that, that feeling that you get to like, to be able to, uh, be there with someone and accomplish a goal that a part of them, even when he stated it as confident as he was, I know a part of him was almost like, I don't know if I can, you know, do this. I know a lot of people were thinking that and I know he was thinking that. And then to actually get him to that finish line and to be a part of that. Dude, that's a, that's a drug, man, that there's no drug on the planet that you can buy on the corner of the street that can give you that. And that's why I enjoy doing it, as tiring as that is, because the race started at Friday at 6 o'clock in the morning. It ended, he crossed the finish line Monday at 6:00 PM.

• 54:15Nick Bare?

  It's a long time on your feet.

• 54:16Speaker 01

  It was like 84 hours. So he went, what was that? Four nights and three days of running? And at the time, you know, he's barely resting. The crew's barely resting, it's a point to point race. We had three Airbnbs booked because the race is moving, so the crew's moving. We had an RV, we had three cars. It was a, it was a crazy logistical, you know, nightmare to do that. And to be it, like that feeling, man, like that's what fills me up. Like although the body is physically tired, like my spirit is filled. And that's why I enjoy doing it so much. Like I get back and I want to train harder. Like I see somebody do that and complete 200 miles and I already told you what his resume was.

• 54:56Speaker 01

  It's like, when you connect like the mind, the body and the spirit and you set out on a goal, like, you know, it's not a linear path, right? It's ups and downs and it's a roller coaster ride. But when you go and complete that, like what else, what can't you complete? Right? It's like now the goals get even bigger and, uh, yeah, man, it's a very unique position. It's because I'm here, it's allowed me to. If you would have told me a couple of years ago that I would be crewing somebody for a 200 mile race and multiple 100 mile marathons and backyard races. And I'm like, uh, maybe in another lifetime.

• 55:26Nick Bare?

  Yeah.

• 55:26Speaker 01

  Now I'm here.

• 55:28Nick Bare?

  Well, I, I don't think everyone is born to be a coach. I think certain people have that in their DNA, in their blood. Like as I hear you describing that, I'm like, oh, you know who else is like this? Jeff Cunningham.

• 55:46Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 55:47Nick Bare?

  Like I've watched him get so jacked up, watching his athletes win. I see it in you too. Where it's like you, your success isn't based off of like what you do yourself. It is helping people reach their significance. And it's a very selfless place to operate from. I don't think everyone has that ability or desire. Like I, I, I believe it's, it's literally like encoded in your DNA, in your blood. The best coaches in the world, they have that. They have to have that, you can't fake that. You can't fake passion.

• 56:31Nick Bare?

  You can't fake caring about someone else. You can't fake caring about someone else's goals. And I've watched you over these years, just pour generous amounts of energy and time and resources into other people. Whether that's doing your actual job in the warehouse in the beginning and then cutting people's hair. And then running team workouts, Thursday afternoons. And then taking two groups of athletes to the track in the morning before work gets started, putting them through workouts. And traveling to and from all these races and events we host.

• 57:13Nick Bare?

  Whether it's an actual BPN event organization or it's one of our employees here that are going to put out a big effort and you were there to support. Again, it's a rare characteristic and trait to find in individuals. You are, you are a very, very rare breed of person. And I just want you to know that. And it's been very helpful, but also rewarding and fulfilling to watch you grow here at BPN. And take on more responsibility and inspire the team here and lead people here. Like you are a leader of, of people, people look up to you.

• 57:58Nick Bare?

  They look to you for guidance. That's why when you're doing, doing team workouts and you're putting the workout on the board and you turn around and there's 15 people looking at you. People will look towards a leader. Like they want to be led by someone. You are one of those people. So I appreciate you, man. You've done really good work here. And you're going to continue to do great work as long as you keep focusing on those values, those beliefs, that way of living. So keep doing it, man. It's awesome to see.

• 58:38Speaker 01

  Yeah, I wish you were there, uh, last week at the, uh, the team workout that, uh, I hosted on the, on the ranch. It was the, the team challenge. So, uh, last year we had a 50 miler.

• 58:50Nick Bare?

  I hope people got buried.

• 58:51Speaker 01

  Yeah, dude, it was, it was a nasty one. Actually, as I was programming it, I was like, I was like, man, this is, uh, this is rough, but, uh, this is what I felt like the team needed. Uh, last year, you know, I think we hosted our, our first team challenge, which was a 50 miler on the ranch. And you know, uh, I think we had nine people complete 50 miles out on the ranch. And I was there all day, uh, crewing everyone. And I remember earlier in the year, uh, during, I think, one of the team meetings, you're like, hey, guys, we're gonna run, uh, back to 50 miler, uh, again this fall. Uh, this is what we're gonna do. And I remember leaving that and just having individual conversations with everyone. And I came into your office, I was like, hey, Nick, can we have like a quick sync? And I was like, hey, man, nobody wants to do this 50 miler.

• 59:32Speaker 01

  Uh, a lot of the people that already did 50 miles to go and do 50 miles again, it's just people aren't getting fired up about it. I was like, but I come with, I come to you with a solution. Uh, I, I have this idea of kind of like the hybrid long run is what I coined it. And, uh, the way that my brain was thinking was, how can I take the feeling and experience you get from like a 50 miler, like doing an ultra marathon? And like condense it into like a two hour window, right? Where I can like push everyone, but also understanding that we have people that are racing Indy, right? We have people that are training for high rocks and understanding that people have like goals that they're getting ready for. So in order to have mass participation, how can I get a bunch of people together to like push hard?

• 1:00:15Speaker 01

  But also not completely destroy themselves, but get that experience of kind of like that team bonding. And that's when I came up with that, that hybrid long run, which was, hey, I'm gonna take all the skiers that are in this gym and all of the rowers. And I'm gonna bring it out to the ranch. And we're gonna do like teams of four, we're gonna do 5,000 meters, then you can split however you want with your team. You're gonna take sandbags, you're going to carry it around loop one with your team. Meaning that if one person is running with the sandbag and you all have to run together, because that's the whole part. And then I threw a curve ball at everyone and I was like, and when you arrive and you're out on loop one, there's gonna be two stations where I had my friends, Conrad and April out there who run a painkiller, they host events.

• 1:00:58Speaker 01

  And they were my judges, where they had to perform 100, uh, sandbag over the shoulders. And you know, let's say you do five, I do five, someone else does five. Then you pick the sandbag up, you run another 800 meters, then you have to do 100 squats with that sandbag. You return back and now we repeat it again. The only difference was on loop two, I doubled the reps. I didn't tell anybody that I was gonna double the reps. They found out when they got there on loop two, that instead of doing 100 reps, now the sun's out, now it's 90 degrees, now they're out on the ranch. They have to perform 200 reps of this sandbag over the shoulder and squats after being fatigued. Because I wanted the team to get rattled a little bit. I wanted to see how they responded to adversity.

• 1:01:40Speaker 01

  And like, that also is a testament to like how we operate here. It's like, we had our first G1M ultra, where it's like right as the race took off, what happened? The live tracking stopped working. What did we have to do? We had to adjust. Uh, during our sale, uh, yes, all our sales are great, they're massive. Uh, the website crashes, something happens, what do we do? We adapt. I wanted people to take those like attributes that they incorporate here in the office. And I wanted them to incorporate that in kind of like a fitness event. And I remember the lead up into it, I tried to hype it up as much as I could, but I could tell looking around, people weren't that excited. But I knew once they got out there and they started sweating and they started pushing themselves, everyone came up to me after Nick and they were fired up. They were like, I went up to Sarah and I was like, Sarah, we gotta do this twice a year.

• 1:02:25Speaker 01

  We have to do one in the spring and we have to do one in the fall. People are chirping, people are messaging me after. They were so, it was something completely out of their comfort zone and something so different and it brought everyone together. Uh, I had, uh, Paul, who we just, uh, hired here, who now is running your content. And he was like, dude, there were people that I, that were on my team, that I had never really like spoken to, that like now I got a lot closer to them because, you know, you're out there sweating, you're halt racing through the roof, they're motivating you, they're picking each other up. I'm like, that's what I wanted to get out of it. And just how powerful that is, uh, and just being able to like, kind of like witness that out on the ranch last week, man. That was such a unique kind of like experience. And like, that's why I love doing what I'm, what I get to do here on a day to day basis. It's like, things like that, right?

• 1:03:08Speaker 01

  Where it's like, that was just like a conversation that we had and you just like let me run with it. And obviously like now it's, you know, part two is coming next year.

• 1:03:16Nick Bare?

  Yeah, I, I saw the feedback from that event and like, they were just jacked up.

• 1:03:22Speaker 01

  Oh, yeah.

• 1:03:22Nick Bare?

  I mean, you're, you're obviously really good at what you do, but it's also obvious that you love what you do. I think competence and passion and purpose and just like love are required to do something really well. But I wanted to bring you on the, the podcast to share your story, man, because there's a lot to take away from it. From commitment to perseverance, to adversity, to personal and professional growth. And, and ownership and lack of entitlement. So I appreciate you, brother.

• 1:04:03Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 1:04:03Nick Bare?

  Thank you for coming on, thank you for sharing your story. And I'm excited to see what you do in your athletic career. I'm excited to see you go pro one day. I'm excited to see what you do here at BPN and continuing to lead people, lead yourself. But I'm proud of you, man, so thank you.

• 1:04:23Speaker 01

  Thanks for having me on.

• 1:04:24Nick Bare?

  Absolutely.