Who Am I Beyond Finish Lines

When the Finish Line Isn’t Enough

There was no guest. No perfectly tuned microphone. Just me, holding a broken mic and sitting with an uncomfortable question I’d avoided for most of my life: Who am I without the finish line?

This wasn’t planned. But neither is most of real life and that’s kind of the point.

As endurance athletes, we love structure. Training plans. Paces. Splits. Goals neatly wrapped in race bibs and finish line photos. On paper, my story fits that mold too. Puerto Rican kid from the Bronx. Corporate career. Media company. Runner. Podcaster. That’s the highlight reel.

This conversation lives in the outtakes.

The Stuff We Don’t Put on Strava

In this solo Fireside Chat on the Everyday Athlete Podcast Network, I talk openly about the parts of my journey that don’t come with medals. Alcoholism. Disordered eating. Divorce. Years spent trying to be what I thought I should be instead of learning how to like who I actually am.

It took me into my fifties to start answering that question honestly. And no, there wasn’t a breakthrough workout involved.

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Running as a Mirror, Not an Escape

Running has always been a privilege in my life but not one I fully understood for a long time. Financial access, safety, race, gender…all of it shapes how we experience the sport. My wife sees things on the trails that I never noticed, simply because I’ve never had to.

Perspective changes everything.

Running doesn’t make us better people automatically. But it can help us ask better questions about empathy, access, and how we show up for others.

Becoming Better Without Losing the Fun

This episode isn’t about abandoning goals. It’s about loosening their grip on our identity.

You can still chase PRs and big dreams. Just don’t let them define your worth. Fun matters. Connection matters. Community matters. And sometimes, the most important progress happens when you stop performing and start being honest.

If you’ve ever wondered who you are when the watch stops and the race ends then I am asking you to pull up a chair.

You’re not alone.

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