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ABOUT ME

I’m an unlikely candidate to be an adventure athlete. I’d always been active growing up, but was hardly prime athletic material. And at the beginning of 2010 in my early 30’s I was obese. A decade out of college with a family of 5 and a career of my own, I’d packed on 70+ pounds. If you’d told that version of me that only a few years later I’d be completing Off Road Triathlons, Trail Running Races Longer Than Marathons, or Open Water Swimming entire lakes? I would have laughed at you! But here I am. This can be done.

And that’s the message I share with others – that this can actually be done! As a “Parent Athlete” I know how hard it is to juggle a career, marriage, kids (I have 4), house repairs, a mortgage, etc. I know that in all the controlled chaos that is adulthood it’s really, really easy to put on a pound here, a pound there… until you wonder what in the world happened and why none of your clothes fit anymore. The combination of business life and family life can be downright crazy and it’s often hard to find time for yourself, let alone time to stay in shape. But, taking care of yourself is one of the best things you can do for you and your family. Because when you take care of yourself you can then offer your best self to the world around you. And the reality is that it doesn’t have to take a ton of time. Most of us can make anything happen in the time we sit in front of the TV each night. It’s a matter of priorities and persistence. If your family, your work, and your community are important to you than your own health and wellness should be a priority.

I’ve lost 70 pounds since 2010 and become an aspiring adventure athlete all while juggling a very demanding professional and family life. Professionally, I currently work in the Not-For-Profit Human Services field. I also possess Fifteen Years experience in Social Media Strategy, Content Development and New Media Management working with everyone from small, local not-for-profits, to global Fortune 500 Companies. Believe me, I definitely know what “busy” is like! This health journey has been hard fought and continues to require dedication, but it can be done and it has been oh-so-worth-it!

In 2010 I couldn’t run more than 10 minutes without needing a break. Now I routinely go trail running for hours at a time. I am now an outspoken Wellness Advocate, Syndicated Health Columnist, and am increasingly engaging in Public Speaking and Consulting opportunities. In a modern world where we aren’t active enough, where we allow the status-quo to think for us, and where we increasingly eat too many bad-for-us things – it’s a radical message to suggest to folks that they can take control of their own lives and make a change. But I deeply believe that life is what we make it and that life is far too short to waste. Get up, get out there, make it happen!

Got questions? Shoot me an email – benmurphyonline@gmail.com – I’d be honored to hear from you!

(Image: Trail Running The Devil’s Path, Catskill Mountains, NY. Credit: Ron Heerkens, Jr.)


3 Comments

  1. I am awestruck. Seeing ur lean frame here, wondering how u wud have looked adding up 60+. You are yet another example, that human mind and body can be trained however we want with sheer determination and hard work..

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