MY STORY

Growing up in a small Australian country town, I had big dreams of becoming a professional football (soccer) player. After years of hard work, dedication, and plenty of setbacks, I achieved my boyhood dream.

I travelled the world playing the game I loved until my body started to constantly breakdown in my mid twenties. As a result I spiralled into a dark battle with depression, fighting off many self-harming and suicidal thoughts. Suffering in silence for many years, without revealing what I was going through to anyone, I barely survived each day, and one of my coping mechanisms was binge eating.

Once I made the difficult decision to retire from football in my late twenties because of injury, I was lost to the crippling grasp of my depression once again.

To escape the illness I turned to extreme ultra-endurance sports and became instantly addicted!

Playing football

Initially, the extreme challenges satisfied my escapism.

I ran through the Sahara desert, down Mt Everest, through a tropical Chinese forest without food, water or any money – a real challenge for survival, and even cycled over 400kms on a Saturday just to learn how to surf the following day. My first ever triathlon was a double Ironman distance race taking me 35 hours non-stop to complete.

I constantly pushed my physical and mental boundaries to the absolute limit of my capabilities using these ultra-endurance adventures as an excuse to evade facing up to my battle with depression, and the question I needed to ask myself.

What am I doing with my life?

With my biggest physical challenge looming, I threw everything at a 2000km, 12 day cross-continental Ultimate Triathlon from Morocco to Monaco, which I had designed myself, and it almost nearly broke me, even before I started.

Organising the event, chasing sponsorship, and training, while trying to make a living through my coaching and speaking businesses made me dig deeper than I ever had before into my physical, mental and emotional energy reserves.

In 2015 I successfully completed The Ultimate Triathlon (not without several setbacks & hiccups), and in doing so was mentioned in Forever Sports Magazine’s list of the 50 fittest athletes in the world for 2016 – but at a cost!

For the next 18 months I suffered from extreme adrenal fatigue, alongside very dark holes of depression and more binge eating.

I was lost more than ever.

achieving goals

In the years following The Ultimate Triathlon, I spent a lot of time reflecting on my actions, speaking to others about my thoughts, and listening to my body.

I finally realised I had been running away from my past and vowed to turn this mode of survival into a way of living, and a path into my future.

The wealth of knowledge I gained from having nearly two years “off” from any physical exertion gave me another lens to view the world and my life through.

Always eager to learn each and everyday, I am also extremely passionate about teaching others what life has taught me, and sharing this knowledge so I can help as many people as I can become the best versions of themselves each and everyday.

get in touch

MY STORY

Playing football

Growing up in a small Australian country town, I had big dreams of becoming a professional football (soccer) player. After years of hard work, dedication, and plenty of setbacks, I achieved my boyhood dream.

I travelled the world playing the game I loved until my body started to constantly breakdown in my mid twenties. As a result I spiralled into a dark battle with depression, fighting off many self-harming and suicidal thoughts.

Suffering in silence for many years, without revealing what I was going through to anyone, I barely survived each day.

Once I made the difficult decision to retire from football in my late twenties because of injury, I was lost to the crippling grasp of my depression once again. To escape the illness I turned to extreme ultra-endurance sports and became instantly addicted!

Initially, the extreme challenges satisfied my escapism.I ran through the Sahara desert, down Mt Everest, through a tropical Chinese forest without food, water or any money – a real challenge for survival, and even cycled over 400kms on a Saturday just to learn how to surf the following day. My first ever triathlon was a double Ironman distance race taking me 35 hours non-stop to complete.

I constantly pushed my physical and mental boundaries to the absolute limit of my capabilities using these ultra-endurance adventures as an excuse to evade the question I needed to ask myself.

What am I doing with my life?
With my biggest physical challenge looming, I threw everything at a 2000km, 12 day cross-continental Ultimate Triathlon from Morocco to Monaco, which I had designed myself, and it almost nearly broke me, even before I started.

achieving goals

Organising the event chasing sponsorship, and training, while trying to make a living through my coaching and speaking businesses made me dig deeper than I ever had before into my physical, mental and emotional energy reserves.

In 2015 I successfully completed The Ultimate Triathlon (not without several setbacks & hiccups), and in doing so was mentioned in Forever Sports Magazine’s list of the 50 fittest athletes in the world for 2016 – but at a cost!

For the next 18 months I suffered from extreme adrenal fatigue, alongside very dark holes of depression. I was lost more than ever.

In the years following The Ultimate Triathlon, I spent a lot of time reflecting on my actions, speaking to others about my thoughts, and listening to my body.

I finally realised I had been running away from my past and vowed to turn this mode of survival into a way of living, and a path into my future.The wealth of knowledge I gained from having nearly two years “off” from any physical exertion gave me another lens to view the world and my life through.

Always eager to learn each and everyday, I am also  extremely passionate about teaching others what life has taught me, and sharing this knowledge so I can help as many people as I can become the best versions of themselves each and everyday.

get in touch