Prophets Walk Among Us: Stories From Our Listeners Part II

Last year, we debuted a new episode dedicated to compilations of stories sent in by our listeners. The result was Prophets Walk Among Us: Stories from Our Listeners, an incredible achievement that showcased the talent, drive, perseverance, and inspiration of the amazing humans that comprise the RRP multiverse. And if you haven’t listened to that episode yet, I highly encourage you to do so. After calling for more stories and curating the best responses, my team and I are proud to present to you: Prophets Walk Among Us, Part Two. Heartfelt stories of real-life transformations, tales of perseverance, and wisdom earned submitted by listeners of the show. I sincerely hope you enjoy this episode. It was made with love, for and by you. Show notes + MORE Watch on YouTube Newsletter Sign-Up Peace + Plants, Rich Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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

• 0:00Rich Roll?

  Eating well rarely falls apart because of one big failure. It's the daily question that wears you down. Like, what am I actually going to make tonight? What's in the fridge? And it's exactly why we built the Plant Power Meal Planner. It's a personalized, plant-based meal planning program that matches you with recipes based on your taste, your allergies, your cooking skills, and how much time you actually have. You build, through this program, a balanced, nutrient-dense plan for your entire household in a few minutes. Then it generates a grocery list for you with one click that plugs right into our delivery partners. All the recipes in the program are built by dietitians with culinary training. Plus, you get your own food coach to help you problem-solve along the way.

• 0:44Rich Roll?

  It's kind of an amazing thing. For listeners of the show, all you special people, we're offering an exclusive $20 off an annual subscription right now. To get it, go to meals.richroll.com, take your quick personalization quiz, and enter promo code RICHROLL20 at checkout.

• 1:20Speaker 01

  Hey, Rich. Hello, greetings. Hi.

• 1:22Speaker 02

  All right, take two. Your podcast is a little beacon of light every week.

• 1:27Speaker 03

  Rich, it's an absolute honor and pleasure to be able to leave a message like this. From the Bronx, New York.

• 1:33Speaker 04

  I live in Cody, Wyoming.

• 1:35Speaker 05

  I'm from Philly, hence the accent and slang.

• 1:37Speaker 04

  From Atlanta, Georgia. Calgary, Alberta. Well, Massachusetts. I'm actually running on the treadmill right now, listening to Billy's "Go On."

• 1:55Speaker 06

  I'm thirty-four. I live in Madrid, Spain.

• 1:59Speaker 01

  I'm calling all the way from Australia.

• 2:01Speaker 02

  Calling you from Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates.

• 2:04Speaker 01

  Thank you so much for doing this and giving us, the listeners, the opportunity to share our stories.

• 2:09Speaker 07

  The podcast has not just kept me company, but has given me immense hope and confidence in the power of subtle transformation.

• 2:18Speaker 02

  I've been listening to the podcast since it started, in the first episode.

• 2:23Speaker 08

  I've probably listened to over three hundred podcasts, and it really has changed my life. The biggest gift that your podcast has given me is that I shared it with my daughter Katie. She loves it. She's overcome a lot of challenges in her life, and a lot of your guests and information and books really help her, inspire her to make changes. So it's really been a great relationship builder between her and I. We always had a good relationship, but this takes it to another level.

• 2:53Speaker 08

  Every time I listen, it just makes me want to become a better version of myself.

• 2:59Speaker 04

  Your podcast has really made me think about what am I doing? Just like when someone said to you, what does your podcast do? It made me think about what I'm doing.

• 3:11Speaker 09

  I know you've been pondering the question, what does your podcast do? And though I may not be able to tell you what your podcast does, I can tell you what your podcast does for me. It provides inspiration, not only through your own story, but the vulnerable way in which you tell it. What does your podcast do?

• 3:32Speaker 05

  Such a simple question. It changes lives, it changed mine, and implanted values and lessons. What does your podcast do? It inspires, feeds desires, and fans the flame to our intuitive fires. What does your podcast do? It plants seeds, pulls weeds, and does good deeds. What does your podcast do? It shifts perspectives, gives directives, and casts light toward the dark and neglected.

• 4:03Rich Roll?

  At the end of last year, we debuted a new format for this show with an episode dedicated to compilations of stories sent in by our listeners. The result was an incredible achievement that showcased the talent, the drive, the perseverance, and the inspiration of the amazing humans that comprise the RRP community. If you haven't listened to that episode yet, I highly encourage you to do so. But this year, we decided to do it again. And after putting out a call for more stories and curating the best responses, we're super proud to present to you Profits Walk Among Us, Part Two. And it's all coming up quick, but first.

• 4:52Rich Roll?

  Okay, as I said in last year's episode, this show is and has always been for and about you, the listener. Without you, the conversations that make up the bulk of this show just don't move the needle in lives beyond my own. Because the true impact of this platform is inspiring positive change in the lives of people within and beyond our community. In other words, you matter to me. It's why I do what I do. And what follows is your voice. This is your community. These are your stories, and I can't wait to share them all with you right now.

• 5:36Speaker 01

  Hello, greetings. This is Yemi Odetela Brown from Atlanta, Georgia. I want to say thank you for sharing your truth on the podcast. I am a new listener, and I find your platform authentic, inspiring, and enriching. Your message of self-love and nurturing of community for the greater good resonates so deeply, and it's beyond refreshing. You are truly a soul brother, my friend.

• 6:08Speaker 01

  I find that though we are from different cultures, we speak the same truth. I am Nigerian by birth and started listening to your show recently and some of the words that you use and the language that you use are so rich and so similar to what I say every day. And so without a doubt, you are elevating the individual and collective consciousness with your work. May the universe continue to conspire to light your path and fill your heart with joy and abundance.

• 6:45Speaker 10

  In 2015, I was morbidly obese, so I took up walking. And I strolled while listening to your podcast and imbued my tracks with purpose, feeding needy people on the streets of Toronto with homemade vegan sandwiches. And crazily, I lost a hundred pounds. I've walked, hiked, and ran more than 62,000 kilometers by foot across six continents, as well as completed 600 freestyle marathons, listening to Rich and Adam and all your wonderful guests along the way. Your pod really has kept me company on my tracks as well as inspired me when the going gets tough on hundreds of marathons. And I just want to let you and the listeners know that I'm proof positive that having

• 7:27Speaker 10

  this positive convo continually piped into your ears over years and years can really power some unbelievable outcomes, and this really can't be understated. Anyway, I'm about to dedicate all of 2023 to breaking the Guinness World Record for most marathons in a year, which is more than 240, which I'm choosing to do solo. This means no support crew, and across 50 to 100 different countries to up the ante. And I'll definitely be an Arden listener next year, as I really need the wind in my sails once again when the going gets tough.

• 8:04Speaker 06

  Hi, I um just listened to the first installment of listener stories and in true fashion, I'm coming in late, but it doesn't matter because I'm coming in and I'm showing up. That is just one of many lessons I've learned through your podcast. So my story, eight years ago, I moved from Rhode Island to Spain and a big catalyst for that was my mother's drinking. Single parent, only child. My grandma helped as much as she could, but my mother was just dealing with wretched childhood drama through inebriation to the point where, I mean, I don't think she's

• 8:49Speaker 06

  functioning. But heart wrenching and it seems like it was just one emergency after another, motorcycle accident, house fire, hospitalization, just, I mean, searing anxiety for me. I didn't officially quit college, but I wasn't going for a year. Managed to get out of all of that and I moved to Spain. I needed distance and it's taken even longer to learn about emotional distance. And because it's been so normalized, it took until a tenant of my mom's house that she bought to tell me, "Your mom is unconscious on the stairs and going to the hospital

• 9:33Speaker 06

  because she's an alcoholic, sweetie." And um I just, I was shattered. And it took me um a long time to separate from all of the entangled feelings that came with my mother's pain from her past and that her only way of dealing with it was from drinking. But I found this podcast, I had, I'd already started running a few years ago, it's just such a great channel for emotion. And I've been able to find my identity and no longer just observe, but rather do through

• 10:09Speaker 06

  examples and, and thoughtful conversations about resilience and temperance and faith and trust through your podcast, so thank you. And really, I can, I can find my identity apart from my mom's suffering and.

• 10:30Speaker 06

  I don't drink anymore. Life is good. I feel absolutely with it. And I think what I've learned through your show, I just learned this yesterday, through your show and through life, of course, through doing these hard things is that,

• 10:49Speaker 06

  that I'm stronger than pain. I've, uh, than my own pain. I'm stronger than that. And I can always love. And thank you for what you do. A million times over. Peace, plant, and homestay friends.

• 11:08Speaker 11

  Hello, my name is Will Coka. You guys took my call over a year ago. It was the NFT episode that you guys did for on the Roll On episode. I just wanted to know if you guys had any advice on, on starting over for, for folks who have kind of lost it all. I was overweight. My father had passed away and I was in a slump. I ended up in hospital, diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, A1C at 11.1 and had a bad infection. I remember the advice you guys gave me and it really kind of resonated with me when I was kind of in bed and just dealing with the infection and getting ready to make a plan. I remember Rich said.

• 11:50Rich Roll?

  This enemy that you're facing is comparing yourself to this person that you were seven years ago. Comparison is the thief of joy. So stop comparing yourself to your past self or to other people. It's not about that. It's not about training where you think you should be. It's about accepting and embracing where you are right now and doing what you are capable of doing. Because that's the only way that you get anything done or make any progress.

• 12:19Speaker 11

  So it started with eating right, getting rid of all the food that got me in this place. And also walking to the mailbox, taking the dog around the block. And a walk became a jog and a jog became a run. I tapped into the advice you guys gave me. I took it a day at a time, a step at a time. Little decisions, little steps made big, big, big outcomes. And I want to thank you guys so much. I had my checkup two months ago and I got my A1C down to 5.3.

• 12:52Speaker 11

  Doing my third half marathon in October. And I want to thank you guys again for not only giving me the tools to do things physically, but emotionally as well, and really work on that part of me, as well as the other stuff. It truly is true when you say mood follows action, and it sure did. Thank you guys for everything you do.

• 13:16Speaker 12

  I found your podcast back in 2017 when I was struggling with extreme chronic fatigue. I had been an avid cyclist and was working for an active travel company, planning bike tours in Europe when I got sick. Almost overnight, I went from healthy and active to unable to walk upstairs on my own. After months of going to doctors, barely able to function, I was diagnosed with Epstein-Barr and chronic fatigue syndrome. I found that my well-meaning doctors had little to offer in terms of treatment or hope of recovery, and I was even recommended that I accept my new limitations and perhaps get a wheelchair to make life easier. Needless to say, it was extremely frightening and depressing. I decided that I needed to believe in something different, that I could recover, and I set out to figure out how.

• 13:59Speaker 12

  It was in my dive into healing, health, and nutrition that I found your podcast. Over the last five years, your podcast has influenced my recovery in both practical and emotional ways. You introduced me to plant-based eating, of course, and I changed my diet, finding body ache reduced. You introduced me to Wim Hof, and I used his breathing practices to help my body heal. I started using acupuncture as a powerful part of my recovery after hearing your conversations with Colin Houdon, as well as Julie's own story of healing a type of goiter on her neck with the use of herbs and eastern medicine. But it was hearing your own story of recovery, Rich, as well as the story of so many of your guests all overcoming adversity, that gave me a sense of hope and determination. Listening to your podcast helped me see my situation as an opportunity for growth,

• 14:44Speaker 12

  and something I would be grateful for one day. I saw getting through my challenge as my ultra endurance race. I'm happy to report that five years later, I'm back on the bike. What's more, I quit my job in January of 2020 and enrolled in a four-year master's program in acupuncture and traditional Chinese medicine. My goal is to help others heal personally misunderstood chronic illness. Deciding to make such a pivot at age 41 was daunting, but knowing that you completed your first endurance race at 42 helped me to see that it's never too late to make a big change.

• 15:20Speaker 13

  Rich, oh man, there are so many ways in which you've influenced my life. Let me throw out number one on the shortlist. Mood follows action. Your mantra has helped me see many obstacles sitting between me and the life I've wanted to live over the past few years. In the interest of time, I'll give you one example. Ever since I read The Outsiders in 7th grade, mind you, I'm now 51 years old, I've wanted to write a novel. I've had flashes of inspiration and ideas for plots and characters over the years, but always told myself, "Once I get through X, accomplish Y, or have Z in the bank, I'll pursue my dream."

• 16:02Speaker 13

  Well, a number of factors converged 2 years ago that led me to leave my career in finance. As I did the responsible thing and began networking from an ex-job, the little boy in me kept raising his hand, started talking back, then ultimately shouted, "Stop waiting around to feel ready to write that book. Just start writing so we can all feel better." So I started. Then COVID hit. By then, the action of getting started had triggered such an avalanche of positive vibes that a day hasn't passed since when I haven't worked on my book about growing up, making mistakes, tragedy, running, and recovery.

• 16:46Speaker 13

  As I leave you this message, I'm giving the manuscript for Beyond Spirit Hill a final read-through. Thank you and stay tuned.

• 16:59Speaker 05

  What does your podcast do? It runs trails, tells tales, and provides wind for ourselves. What does your podcast do? It eats plants, hosts chants, and gives the underdog a chance. What does your podcast do? It follows curiosity, has discussions on philosophy, and is the biggest catalyst for change in our lives, quite possibly.

• 17:26Speaker 14

  On November 4th of 2021, my four-year-old son was diagnosed with heart failure and admitted to the hospital where he waited for transplant. And while we were waiting, his heart was so bad that he had to be hooked up to a machine to help his heart beat for about seven months until he got his transplant. And during that time, you know, I had been an avid listener to the podcast and I took a lot of the lessons that I had learned through, what I've learned through endurance sports, through running and mental toughness into that experience.

• 18:09Speaker 14

  When you're waiting for a heart, you don't have any idea if you're going to be there for six weeks or 18 months. And having a three-year-old at home and my four-year-old in the hospital, it was really a choice between going back and forth and our family being separated. And I was shocked at how many of the lessons that I took from endurance training and running seemed to translate on the long night when we didn't know what was on the other side of the coin while we were waiting. And really, I just wanted to say thank you so much to this podcast for giving me the mental toughness and strength and lessons that I needed to get through that time.

• 18:51Speaker 14

  Jake is now five years old, almost six actually, on December 20th, and doing great. And we are enjoying all the pre-Christmas activities and having a great time. And we're so grateful to the Children's Hospital here that got us through. And I personally am very grateful to this podcast, which was really the thing that got me through. Thank you so much.

• 19:18Speaker 15

  I discovered your podcast about nine years ago. I needed something to listen to while training for an ultra. And your show came along and I downloaded an episode, not knowing the impact it would have. At first, I listened almost out of kind of amused sense of curiosity because I was very much eating a typical western diet at that time, maybe even more so in terms of animal products as I was doing the whole keto thing. But after almost two years of listening to your show, I had suffered an injury to my leg and I underwent surgery. My leg was wrapped in a cast and I was bedridden for two months. I wanted to reduce the swelling

• 20:00Speaker 15

  and I remembered that you and your guests talking about how a plant-based diet reduces inflammation. So I switched to it. Started eating halos and drinking fruits, smoothies, and the most amazing thing happened. Despite being unable to move for two months, I somehow lost weight. And when the cast came off, the doctors were shocked at how much the swelling had gone down. And that was the proof that I needed to make the change. Since then, I've embraced the plant-based diet, not only for myself, but I've seen it help others as well. People like my teenage son who was struggling with acne, friends with high blood pressure, my dad who had a high PSA and possible prostate cancer. Plant-based diet's been a huge help

• 20:44Speaker 15

  to them all, and I owe that to you and this show. And not only has your show helped heal my body, it provided me the tools I needed mentally as well. Because as a result of that injury, I was unable to run again. And I went from crossing the finish line of an ultra to six months later, being a therapist and learning how to walk again. And that was very hard for me. It's a loss of something that I love doing. And more than that, it's been the loss of part of my identity. And I still struggle with it to this day. But it just so happens that right before my injury, we had on the show a guest named Brian Holiday

• 21:24Speaker 15

  who was talking about his book, The Obstacle is the Way, which introduced me to this philosophy of Stoicism and the principles of acceptance. And to only worry about things that you can control. And amor fati was your fate. And I've embraced that as well. And without it, I honestly don't know how I would have coped in the years since that injury. But it's given me a better framework for life.

• 21:54Speaker 16

  I'm in my mid-fifties, I'm fifty-five. I grew up in, um, New York City and in the seventies and eighties and was a runner as from the time I was eight on. Growing up and in my adult life, have experienced a lot of traumas in my life, um, which then led,

• 22:22Speaker 16

  I was very busy raising children and being a single mom to two boys now men. And so I was focusing on that and I, and I actually ran three marathons in my thirties, the Vermont City Marathon, the New York City Marathon. And then I hit my forties and everything fell apart. Um, the trauma that I had experienced hit me hard and I pretty much lost a decade of my life. I gained, um, a lot of weight. I became dependent on alcohol, um, and diagnosed with PTSD and in a hospital.

• 23:06Speaker 16

  And that was about four years ago. And I changed my lifestyle altogether. I became vegan and I got back right into exercising again. Um, I'm a runner and a swimmer and a biker. And your podcast inspires me so much to continue following my dreams and following my athletic endeavors, which provide me with relief from depression and anxiety. Um, and also offer me just an amazing way of experiencing this world.

• 23:48Speaker 17

  Rich, it is so good to call into your podcast. I'm an Army officer, calling from the Fort Bragg area. And although I've been an endurance athlete since high school and college, and I've been plant-based for two years, my journey of transformation did not truly begin until just over a year ago, when my mom killed herself on July 12th, 2021. Leaving me heartbroken, without parents, or an immediate family, grief was hard for me, especially as I was juggling it while doing an overseas move and starting a new job path.

• 24:33Speaker 17

  However, I truly believe the universe conspires to help us if we let it. Because, this past December, I began to crawl out from underneath the tragedy and trauma when I told some friends that I would train for a triathlon this spring. And days later, while on a date with a woman who's now my fiancee, I was introduced to your podcast and it has been a constant companion and guide. From Lisa Miller, I learned to lean into the opportunity that grief provides to deepen one's spirituality. And Alexi Pappas, I found solace in her story of an almost identical trauma, and she gave me insight into trauma being an injury to the brain.

• 25:18Speaker 17

  She inspired me to put actions first and the thoughts will follow. She voiced many of the thoughts, questions, and concerns that I had about my mom while she talked about hers. Lastly, Susan Kane, offered encouragement for me to continue turning my pain into something beautiful, which has led me to continuing to work on a poetry book.

• 25:44Speaker 17

  Rich, in all of your conversations, you've reminded me of the power of human agency and the power of belief. Every day I choose to be grateful. Every day I choose hope. I choose life. Because although existence is full of pain and heartbreak and suffering, we cannot throw up our hands and succumb to nihilism. We must believe in ourselves. We must choose hope for our futures. We must choose the vulnerability of loving another despite the fact that we could lose them at any moment. And we must choose life. Thoughts follow actions, and the best training bike is the one in the corner collecting dust.

• 26:26Speaker 17

  Now, I've completed three triathlons, one being a half Ironman, I've bought a house, and I'm engaged. The universe inspired. Thank you, Rich, for all that you do and for all that you provide to us through your podcast. Bye for now.

• 26:47Speaker 07

  Hello to everyone at The Ritual Podcast. I'm Sierra Winters. I'm 23 years old, originally from North Carolina. And I've been listening to the podcast for a little over five years. And it was one of the influences that helped me go vegan at 18. The voices of Rich and his guests have been with me over countless training runs and indoor rides, inspiring me to keep taking that next step. Listening to guests speak about the inner spiritual power of sport and diet, as opposed to the typical weight loss narrative, has helped me overcome my own struggles with my body as a young woman. It has also helped me remember that while triathletes can be obsessive, sport is a means to self-improvement of

• 27:28Speaker 07

  the inner personality, and that my identity is not the athlete. Hearing from people who have traveled the world and dissolved their identities, as they learn more about the greater meanings in life, has also helped me as I have moved to India. I live there now with my husband, and the cultural shocks seem to be never-ending. But now I see them as opportunities for growth. I see them as stepping stones to becoming my strongest self, someone who can selflessly support others without all the comforts of a Western lifestyle. And this podcast has definitely played a significant role in developing that kind of outlook.

• 28:07Speaker 18

  Alright, so my story is I used to be a mess before. I hadn't paid my taxes from like 2008 to 2019. I was doing a bunch of drugs, I was starting to do too much cocaine, you know, drinking, all of that, all the bad habits. And I really needed to turn my life around. So what I did in 2019, early 2019, is I went to a vipassana retreat, and this transformed my life. And as I came out of the vipassana retreat, somehow Rich Roll came along in my life and carried me through the last three or four years since, which has been the best years of my life. Like I said, I was a mess before and now went, in 2019, I decided to start running when I came out of the vipassana,

• 28:50Speaker 18

  because I couldn't afford to pay a gym membership. So I said, "Fuck it, you know, I'll just run." So I didn't know what to expect, but I ended up really enjoying running. I still run today. So I went from like not running, being a couch potato, to running the New York City Marathon in 2019. I had to raise like $5,000 in the works to run the marathon, which was an amazing experience. And then I ended up doing a triathlon, I did an Ironman, I did a backyard race this year, which I did 114 kilometers in 17 hours. And I'm currently training for another marathon. So it's been a blessing. And I could go on and on, but yeah, the podcast has really inspired me.

• 29:32Speaker 18

  And in the end, what I take away from it is that mood really does follow action. Thank you, Rich Roll.

• 29:47Rich Roll?

  Okay, back to the show.

• 29:53Speaker 19

  My story of personal transformation perhaps actually begins with the sound of my voice right now. It is scratchy because I'm a public high school English teacher and I've been reading Of Mice and Men with my 10th graders and lost my voice. I'm also a plant-based runner of ultras and a mother and a survivor of trauma, which you've presented in your most recent two podcasts that I've listened to. But a wide array of your podcasts have changed my life and transformed me.

• 30:33Speaker 19

  But when I was 15, I walked home from school with a friend and we were approached out of nowhere by a complete stranger with a gun who threatened our lives, abducted us, and sexually assaulted me. And that trauma, well, the changes did not happen overnight, they took decades, but that trauma changed me for better and worse, or maybe I should say for worse and then for better. And your podcast has been a part of that transformative journey. I now do a run to support the students that I teach every year at Louise County High School.

• 31:16Speaker 19

  Most recently, in the spring of 2022, I ran from my high school to Washington DC without stopping 105 miles. I was on the Today Show. It got quite a bit of press, but I've actually done runs like that for the last seven years to raise money for students who have overcome obstacles in their lives. And that all goes towards scholarship fund for those students. Again, your podcast has been transformational. It's supported me in my plant-based lifestyle. You've helped me in all kinds of ways with my running. I wasn't even a runner until I was 35.

• 31:55Speaker 19

  Your most recent podcasts have been very, very valuable to me as I've continued to explore my experiences growing up in therapy, but also on my own in many ways. And I just want to thank you so much.

• 32:14Speaker 02

  Hey Rich, Steve Prochnow in Hawaii. The podcast and your book led me to go to my first teacher training, which was in Hawaii. And from that point on, I became a yoga teacher and have taught hundreds of thousands of people in the Buffalo area because of that first training, which I should credit partially towards the podcast of giving me that push. Also from the podcast, as you know, it led me to start the November Project Buffalo chapter. Your podcast with EG was the catalyst for me to say yes, and I did that for five years. And your podcast, over the years, is a staple for me to stay in the work.

• 32:58Speaker 02

  Both my parents have gone through, and still going through, cancer treatments. And having your eclectic people on the podcast has given me that ability to have something in my life that is consistent. I look forward to it every Monday. And when I receive something from your podcast, it helps me give out to my family and to the world. And so I know it sounds silly, but the podcast has had a huge impact on me from yourself, Rich, of being such an incredible person, and then all of your genuine guests have just helped me continue to be a student of life, which allows me to share that into the world and make a direct impact. Your podcast has made a huge difference in my life, which has impacted so many others.

• 33:44Speaker 20

  Back in 2017, my husband and I were taking a road trip and we were listening to a recent episode of your first interview with Bruce Friedrich, the Executive Director of the Good Food Institute. And at the time, I had recently left a 13-year career in pharmaceutical sales, and I was looking to find work that was more meaningful and aligned with my values and something I could do that would make a positive impact on the world. And when I heard about GFI and its theory of change, working to make alternative proteins more accessible, more affordable, and more delicious. I was sold. I was just convinced. I was like, this is what I want to be doing.

• 34:28Speaker 20

  I love the theory of change of this organization and I want in. So as a result of hearing Bruce interviewed on your podcast, I applied to the Good Food Institute and it took me a couple of times because the job openings didn't exactly align with my skill set right away, but in July of 2018, I was hired by the organization and since then I've been working with brilliant, kind, compassionate people to improve the future of food and I owe that to the Rich Roll Podcast. I don't think I ever would have learned about GFI, or at least not as early as I did, without hearing Bruce interviewed on your

• 35:08Speaker 20

  show. So, thank you so much for opening my eyes to the fact that this organization exists and I'm thrilled to be doing meaningful work that aligns with my values and I just want to express my very deep gratitude for helping me find this work and for all you do. Keep up the amazing work. You are a gift to this world.

• 35:33Speaker 05

  What does your podcast do? It harnesses pain, releases shame, and readjusts our lens to a new frame. What does your podcast do? It reads books, loves to cook, and has a knack for knowing where to look. What does your podcast do? It takes inventory, redefines glory, and unpacks the every person's story.

• 35:58Speaker 21

  I have always loved running, ever since I was young, even in elementary school. It was my passion. It was where I solved problems, where I coped with stress. It really allowed me to stay in super physical condition. It was just what I loved and what I really enjoyed and it got me to healthy foods and the diet. In fact, on one run in Fort McMurray, Alberta, I was face to face with a large black bear on the run. Luckily, it went away. Well, in 2017, I was diagnosed with a weird disease called Parkinson's disease. I was 60 years old and noticed I was starting to get tremor and rigidity on my right side. And was worried, but I still was running even though it kinda was a weird gait.

• 36:41Speaker 21

  Well, as the years went by, I struggled more and more to run. Up to that point, I'd run over 45 marathons and ultramarathons and just knew running was what mattered most. Well, eventually, in 2020, I realized I can't run anymore. What can I do? But I realized, as you always said, Rich, mood follows action. I had to adapt. I had to change. I had to transform myself. And I think your podcast, over the years, really inspired me to do that and make a difference. I decided, you know what? You can ride your bike, your road bike or your mountain bike. You can go hiking. You can go to the gym. You can work out and lift weights.

• 37:24Speaker 21

  There's other stuff you can do to make a difference and still feel strong and healthy. And your podcasts have always inspired me to continue to do that, to try different things. Even though I can't run anymore, I can still do these other things. And it really has transformed my life.

• 37:43Speaker 04

  Greetings from the suburbs of Yellowstone Park. I first came across you, Rich, when I did a Google search for authors who had written their story. I devoured Finding Ultra and started listening to the podcast. And I'm happy to say that I too visit the rooms and sit at the table and tell my story of recovery. It's been a long 30-year journey in and out, and right now, I am all in. I intend to stay this way, one day at a time, thank God. My ministry and mission in life revolves around the Desmond Tutu quote, "We shouldn't just be pulling people out of the river. We should be going upstream to find out what's pushing them in." I've created a life for myself, doing what I love for a living, which enables me to

• 38:25Speaker 04

  be standing at the place where our fellows may be thinking of jumping in the river. I teach yoga to all ages at a little studio here in Cody. I teach art classes to kids because the local school district just cut the elementary art program last year. I feel for me, anyway, that yoga and my own creativity have saved my life time and time again, a theme that has woven in and out of your podcasts throughout the years. I want to share this with as many people, young and old and in between, so as to help people learn to cherish their minds, their bodies and their spirits, as well as cherishing others. And I know from you, Rich, with consistency in showing up, in ten years from now, I will

• 39:08Speaker 04

  have made a difference and people will stop jumping in the river and people will stop drowning. I consider you my great teacher and guide, Rich Roll. We are kindred in spirit and I can't even find the language appropriate to express my deepest appreciation for what you do, how you live, and the work you do.

• 39:27Speaker 03

  Being able to see your lighthouse, your podcasts, your truth, your transparency, your vulnerability, has helped me become who I am, considering that it took about fifty years to discover who I am and I'm currently fifty-three years old. It's one of those things that you can never, ever imagine that somebody that you've never met or know from afar could have such a lasting impact the way you have on me. Because for most of my life, I coasted, for most of my life, I just flew by the seat of my pants. Yes, there were times where I had to put the pedal to the metal.

• 40:09Speaker 03

  Yes, there were times that I avoided a lot of different behaviors, patterns and habits that were crippling me as a human being, the people that I hurt along the way, the first marriage that failed in part because of the way I behaved and the way I didn't take control of myself, of my situations at that time. And to think, between forty-five and fifty was such a rough stretch internally, emotionally, psychologically, spiritually, that I had to be able to put all my cards on the table. I had to be able to push whatever it was, not necessarily aside because I didn't want

• 40:52Speaker 03

  to avoid it, but to push all of the doubt that I had, all of the inferiority that I had about myself, and all the issues that had been accumulating over the years from being a child to teenager, young adult to adult. And through my own self-discovery and obviously through the podcast and all the wonderful guests that you've had, I've been able to break out to the other side. But as we all know, and like you say best, there is no finish line. I must continue to persevere because I want to continue this journey to be on the right path to success, more so for me internally than it is externally. And I just want to thank you for all that

• 41:34Speaker 03

  you do, for all that you've done for me, and I'm sure thousands and thousands of many other people out there, just like me.

• 41:44Speaker 22

  Around the time your podcast started, I found myself diagnosed with an autoimmune that had no cure and no treatment. And I had been vegan a year and a half, worked out six days a week, just incredibly healthy, turned forty. And I ended up in a wheelchair. And I was in that wheelchair for five years. Went through a stem cell clinical trial and got better. And all of this has been since 2012. So the stories, the conversations, it's all just been a guidepost for me to listen to and be encouraged as I've taught myself to walk again, use my hands, and get out of the chair and, you know, regain

• 42:25Speaker 22

  life, so to speak. And the lessons that I've learned in being present and getting through the difficulties and being told no by world-renowned hospitals that I'd never get better and there wasn't any hope. It's just been really encouraging to hear the stories of, even though I'm not an athlete, some of these athletes that have, you know, really been told no as well. So I thank you for putting all the goodness out in the world. And hopefully my little story will help you keep going because it does matter.

• 42:58Speaker 23

  My name is Dan, and I'm a sixty-two-year-old pediatrician from Virginia. Eleven years ago, I had a life-altering accident that rebooted who I am. While body surfing in North Carolina, I suffered a cervical spinal cord injury that left me limp from the neck down. The universe must have been watching because strangers saw me and dragged me out of the water. Things happen quickly. A helicopter ride to the closest trauma center, multiple tests, neck fusion surgery, and then I was parked in the ICU paralyzed.

• 43:35Speaker 23

  Life can change in a second, and that hit me with a walloping impact that day. But I turned out to be one of the lucky ones. I was an avid cyclist, and I think my level of fitness helped me out. After four months in the hospital doing intensive rehab, I regained the ability to feed myself, take care of my own bowel and bladder issues, and I gradually clawed my way back to being able to walk, albeit with crutches or a cane. I made it my mission to scratch back as much as I could. I was able to return to work and return to cycling by way of a recumbent trike. Last year, I rode thirty-five hundred miles on my trike.

• 44:19Speaker 23

  Always looking for inspiration, I read Finding Ultra, and I loved your book. The book and podcast have catalyzed many changes for me. These include a vegan diet, meditation, renewed dedication to exercise, and focus on sleep. Perhaps the biggest change is a refocusing of my values. I have a much stronger sense of just how amazing it is to have this moment of beauty we call a life on this blue dot floating in the immense universe. What a miracle. Your podcast helps me truly realize what's important: possibility, openness, curiosity, listening, love, and gratitude.

• 45:03Speaker 23

  These values are undergirding my efforts. It's made me a better person, a better father and husband, and a better doctor. I see these drivings in the bright eyes of my patients, from the first smiles of a two-month-old to a giggling five-year-old, to a struggling teen who finally makes a breakthrough. And I see these values in the loving eyes of their parents. Thank you, Rich.

• 45:32Speaker 24

  So I first came across the podcast through Finding Ultra in 2015. My story's a little crazy. I'm 51 and when I was 26, like Tommy Ribs, I got laid up in a coma. Mine was a different illness, a rare autoimmune illness called vasculitis that attacked my brain. I was in the hospital over two months. My heart stopped a few times. It's probably a good thing I don't remember much of it. I had to relearn how to walk, talk, read, write, you name it. Long story short, thank God I got better, but I had a lot of anger, shame, denial buried pretty deep, and I dealt with it the way I knew best. Throwing myself into training, fitness competitions, running, making sure I was so physically exhausted I didn't have time to deal with what was going on in my head. I'm not proud of some of the choices I made during that time, but I think about Gabor Maté saying,

• 46:15Speaker 24

  "Trauma is something that leaves your brain different than it was before," and it helps me understand and have some peace. Nobody talks about mental recovery after extreme illness, only the physical. 25 years ago, they didn't anyways. In 2015, I finally decided to face my illness. That's when I came across Finding Ultra and your podcast. I connected with your journey, albeit different. You threw yourself into ultras, went vegan, and recreated your life. I went vegan 100% cold turkey that same month. So here's a funny thing that happened. Prior to going vegan, I'd had vasculitis flares, crazy headaches, memory and speech issues. Once I went vegan, no flares, zero. I can't tell you how life-changing that's been. And it's not just the plant-based lifestyle that's helped me on my wellness journey.

• 46:57Speaker 24

  It's Gabor Maté about trauma, Dr. Matthew Walker on sleep, Dr. BM on gut health, and Julie on spirituality, and so many more. Through the podcast, I learned there are so many elements of wellness. Thanks so much.

• 47:11Speaker 25

  A few years ago, I was working kind of at an agency, sort of living what I thought was my dream life as a writer. A lot of partying, a lot of not healthy habits. And I was always listening to your show, but nothing had really stuck yet. And about two years ago, I got really sick and I was in the hospital and almost died, kind of a freak bacteria thing. And when I left the hospital, I kind of felt like, you know, everything I'd been giving up to that point was wrong and I wasn't living the way I wanted to live. So through listening to your show on a continual basis, I actually picked up Autobiography of a Yogi, which was a book that Adam Klink recommended as one of his favorite reads.

• 47:52Speaker 25

  And I read that in the summer and I ended up signing up for the Self-Realization Fellowship. So now I'm in a really deep meditation protocol that I do every day. I quit drinking two months ago, which has been like just amazing in so many ways. And I actually signed up for a marathon in six months from now. So, you know, two years ago at this point in time, I was literally, you know, on my deathbed and I left the hospital. I had to relearn how to walk again. And, you know, my life has just changed in all these like really insane ways and I have to attribute a lot of it to the podcast. And I mean, I could talk at length about the different ways that your show has influenced me in these really powerful ways, but I would say the takeaway at this point is my life

• 48:37Speaker 25

  looks totally different. I'm meditating, I'm mostly plant-based, I don't drink and I'm running all the time. So just trying to become you, apparently. Thanks so much. Bye.

• 48:50Speaker 26

  I've always loved the quote, "It is no measure of health to be well-adjusted to a profoundly sick society." Jiddu Krishnamurti. I remind myself daily that if I am guided by my own internal compass, the universe will inevitably conspire to provide. My personal growth has been scary, painful, uncomfortable, and the most precious and valuable asset I have. I've had to diligently unlearn a way of life that did not serve me and I won't go back. Thanks, Rich, for being there on long walks before I broke my knee and being there to keep the light while I listened through hours of daily physical therapy exercises on the living room floor. Your wisdom and experience has watered the seeds of my growth and encouraged me when others have doubted.

• 49:31Speaker 27

  I have gone through the worst experience a parent could. My daughter passed away May 2019 from cancer. She had ovarian estradioma and she was 11 when she died.

• 49:46Speaker 27

  I've fully been kind of coming back to life, living it again, not just surviving. Still, still in survival mode, but I think I'm coming out of it. Listening to your podcast, you know, just reminds me that I am not the only one going through something. We all have our stories, some maybe more tragic than others, but everyone's got something. And just hearing the survival and getting through in the stories of all the others and a lot of the psychology and things like that really just helps me remember that I'm

• 50:28Speaker 27

  not alone in this and if other people have gotten through, well, so can I. So I just, I just wanted to share that. Thanks. Bye.

• 50:41Speaker 28

  I've been a longtime listener and I was drawn to you because of my own trauma and tragedy that I was so desperately trying to make sense of. In 2003, our family was involved in a rollover car accident that left my strong athletic husband a C5 quadriplegic. Luckily, my kids, who were only five and eight at the time, were okay, but our world was turned upside down. We had family and friends walk away and my health suffered with severe medical issues that resulted in three major surgeries and finally a diagnosis of GIBT syndrome, a rare

• 51:21Speaker 28

  immune deficiency disease. My mom, who'd been our biggest supporter, got cancer and died very suddenly. And just as I was catching my breath from that, our home burned down in the horrific car fire. Then, of course, COVID happened, which was extra difficult, being a very immunocompromised person.

• 51:50Speaker 28

  However, all that has led me on the most important journey of healing and of trying to make sense of my life, trying to make peace and survive while dealing with such tremendous pain and grief. Your podcast has most importantly tried to change the story in my mind that has been replaying. And most recently, Dr. Conti and Dr. Matte have been huge sources of knowledge and inspiration. Your podcast has given me the tools to go plant-based and then explore what it means to be vegan. And Rich, you've shared your story and struggle so openly and with such vulnerability and

• 52:30Speaker 28

  emotion that I find myself taking something important from each guest that has helped in my life and my road to healing. So as you can see, you've touched my life in so many ways. I'm just so grateful for the opportunity to share a little of my story and to hear others as well.

• 52:53Speaker 05

  What does your podcast do? It asks questions, suggests introspection, cares for other earth, her inhabitants, and their protection. What does your podcast do? It examines systems of belief, serves a dose of therapeutic relief, and finds bittersweetness in grief. What does your podcast do? It battles resistance, goes the distance, and is a roadmap for persistence.

• 53:20Speaker 28

  It's with my most humble gratitude that I thank you from the bottom of my heart for everything and all that you are. Thank you for your consistency, dear one, and please, please keep coming back.

• 53:32Speaker 11

  It's been an amazing transformation for me. Every episode resonates with me. Love the conversations. Keep up the great work. And I thank you for the way that my life has been transformed as a result.

• 53:44Speaker 15

  Thank you for the chance to express how much this show has meant to me.

• 53:47Speaker 12

  So I want to thank you, Rich, Julie, Adam, and the whole team for inspiring me to stay curious and believe in the possibility of recovery of all kinds. I don't think I could have done it without you. Thanks again. Have a good one.

• 53:59Speaker 29

  I'm a psychotherapist. I'm an addiction specialist at Kaiser Permanente's Addiction Medicine Department in Zilmar, California. Your podcast has totally inspired me, and I use you constantly for a resource to give to my people when I do group and when I do individual therapy, and they absolutely love you.

• 54:18Speaker 02

  You have just created such a beautiful thing for all of us to tap into.

• 54:24Speaker 22

  If there were a badge for a Rich Roll Podcast superfan, I would proudly display it because I love your show so much and love sharing it with others.

• 54:32Speaker 28

  Please never stop posting episodes because they make my week every week. Bye.

• 54:40Rich Roll?

  This was a labor of love for my team. It was a labor of love for me. And I'd like to end this episode in that spirit, in the spirit of gratitude by thanking you for listening and thanking each and every one of our callers who submitted their stories with such vulnerability, with such humility and grace, because it's no easy thing to share your struggles with strangers. And I'm just grateful beyond words for your courage and for your generosity. You have truly put wind in my sails going into the new year and have strengthened my hope in the goodness of humanity, truly. But most of all, I want

• 55:23Rich Roll?

  to thank you for letting me serve, because it is in service that I find purpose, that I find meaning and a sense of deep satisfaction that positively infuses every aspect of my daily life experience. I simply cannot overstate the extent to which your experiences humble me, hold me accountable for my own actions, inspire me to do and be better, and ennoble me to soldier on in the face of whatever obstacles I may personally face. Finally,

• 56:02Rich Roll?

  I want to be very clear. I in no way want to take credit whatsoever for anybody's journey. Any improvements our callers make to their lives are on them entirely. I just love hearing the stories. It helps me feel more connected to you. And it helps to dry the cement on this community bond that I'm trying to foster, because giving back is what it means to be part of a community. Thank you for listening. Peace.

• 56:32Rich Roll?

  Plants.

• 56:33Speaker 12

  Namaste.