Rising Above Challenges Jarrod Bruce Lee's Story of Growth and Fitness

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All right, and we're back.

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Hey, it's Brad Minus with Life Changing Challengers, and I am so excited because, all the way from New Zealand, we are meeting with today Jarrod Bruce Lee, who is the CEO of the Daring Academy.

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He's a fitness and nutritional expert and he's got an absolutely amazing story.

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So hello, .

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Brad, thank you for having me here.

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I'm excited to dig on in and see what we uncover and find today.

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Yes, me too.

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I always start out with the same question every single time.

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So can you tell us a little bit about your childhood, the complement to your family, where you grew up, and what kind of environment that you grew up in?

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Yeah, so my parents were raised in Taiwan and I was born in Taiwan, taipei.

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At the age of four we migrated, immigrated to New Zealand, auckland, new Zealand.

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There's a bit of backstory there with my parents.

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There's some dramas I won't get into too much of that because that's their story which caused us to get to go to New Zealand.

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Part of it was also obviously for education as well, a different environment.

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My brother, he's a burn survivor, so he that was part of the situation which got us to move.

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And then, at age of four, we being in a new country, I wasn't consciously so much aware of it, but looking back I am very much aware.

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Now, being in a new place, not speaking the language, feeling kind of out of sorts, that was quite stressful.

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I mean, being young, right four, you can adapt a lot quicker, you can learn the language and all that.

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And yeah, so age of four grew up in Auckland, new Zealand.

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I remember at first I would say first maybe three, four years, five, potentially even of my childhood probably I haven't thought about this for a long time now, brad, actually, but making friends was probably a.

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It was challenging for me, so it wasn't an easy thing.

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I almost felt.

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Isolated, yeah, isolated, and being at school, I almost felt isolated yeah, isolated and being at school and there was a there's like a disconnect where almost like a true personality is going on, because it's like me at home and then there's me at school.

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So do you attribute to the fact that maybe it's because you spoke Chinese at home or Taiwanese at home and and then they were speaking.

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Now in New Zealand, they speak English right.

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English yes, absolutely yes.

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So was that your disconnect?

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Do you think?

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I mean obviously at four, five, six, that's very our brains are very malleable, so obviously you can pick up English, but do you feel like that was probably you know where there was a disconnect and isolation?

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There's a language barrier, right.

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And then there's also like a culture thing.

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So when my parents they had to adapt, but my parents they didn't really speak that much english, they learned but feeling, yeah, there's a culture.

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I still remember now a culture clash, almost even at school.

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Right, I'm expected to be someone completely different to someone I'm at home there.

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There's that going on.

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Yeah, oh, and there's a lot of that still.

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We've got people that immigrate from in here in the United States.

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They come from Mexico, or obviously we've got this issue going on right now, but they speak Spanish only, and so we have that.

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It's still going on today.

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So obviously you just experienced the same thing.

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Yeah, yeah, I guess maybe it's interesting to speak about this now, brad, because I guess I had this minor we're talking about between the body side of things yeah, this was something I really dealt with maybe my more mid and teenage years and early 20s was a massive deal for me.

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But remembering now it's quite interesting because I think I've gone past a lot of it, but at some point there was that and there was some racism going on at school, right?

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So some maybe it's comments laughing at the food I brought to school, or I still remember being at age of age 10, wanting to play with a lot of the other guys.

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They were playing soccer and doing these things, but I was not invited.

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I wasn't allowed to be there because of I look different and I.

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There was this moment where I had to.

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There was this bubble gum from Taiwan that I brought to school and one of the guys was like, what are you having?

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So I gave him one of it and then some of the other guys were curious too, and then I shared that bubble gum around and that was the initiation of like hey, this guy's okay, he can join us.

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Oh great.

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But I remember like just different moments if you carry on, even to the age of was 13 at high school when I was, you know, in the rugby fields playing rugby with my classmates and some other guys and one of the other guys was.

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I want to share his name.

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I remember his name.

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He was looking at me.

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It was like what's this fucking asian doing here?

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What's he fucking doing here?

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And all these moments add up right where it's really stung to my heart, where I carry this message for such a long time that being me was wrong, that my skin color was wrong.

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Like I'm not okay, this is like I'm I'm not okay, and I guess that really fed in later on to some of my journey with body changes okay, so.

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So, speaking of the body, so what do you think that you were?

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What were you?

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What would you look like back then?

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Just to give us an idea of where you got, where you started and where you came, where you went to.

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Yeah.

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So I wasn't.

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I was probably not a.

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I wasn't physically fit, my fitness wasn't really a big part of our family.

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I was on the part of our family.

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I was on the.

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I wasn't like big, but I was on the chubbier side.

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So at ages from five to maybe 13 14, I would get teased, often by family, friends or people around me.

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Not, it wasn't terrible, it wasn't like you're terrible, it wasn't really intentional shaming, but with simple things like squeezing my cheese ah, you're so chubby, it's so cute.

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My dad would tap me on the stomach like, oh, your stomach's getting rounder, it's getting bigger, and all these different comments.

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Right as a kid like that to me I remember just being like this is a lot of shame was around my body.

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With that.

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I remember getting really angry and frustrated, feeling like no, I'm not, like'm not like I'm not this chubby, I'm not this.

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I don't want to be this cute chubby kid.

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People were squeezing me and, yeah, it was anger, there was resentment around that.

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There was that frustration from there.

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That caused any issues between you and your parents.

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That wasn't.

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Oh.

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So, the parent side of things, my starting from around the age of eight or I can remember more clearly, but I came from a family where there's a lot of codependency.

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If the audience don't understand the term, it's just emotions, everything's just intertwined.

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But my parents would fight, so argument, and sometimes it was physical, sometimes verbal.

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There was a lot of love in our family at the same time, because there was a lot of beautiful moments, because I want to make this really clear when I share this story, people might see my story and go, oh, he just had this terrible childhood.

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No, there was a lot of it.

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We went traveling, we had loving moments, but those fights would happen, I would say, say, every sometimes a few weeks, sometimes a couple months.

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And what started from then which I only started, truly uncovered that only since 2020 so three, four years of this emotional component was there was a lot of fear, anxiety, this feeling that at any moment, um, something can blow up and go wrong.

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And I still remember being a kid with my siblings.

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I've got a brother and a sister, I'm the youngest of three.

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We were maybe hiding in our rooms hearing all the screaming matches, crying and just feeling.

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I remember my body just feeling in terror of when is this going to end?

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Wanting to mediate, fix my parents' relationship I want them to be okay Feeling like my family's breaking down in front of my eyes.

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And all these different feelings fear, right, anxiety of any moment.

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Something could snap, something could go wrong, and this is only since, obviously not the time.

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But I, my parents, my dad, he had a really rough childhood and that was shown in our family.

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So yeah, they bring the kind of bring the baggage into the family and it just shows up at certain points and obviously it affected you.

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He cared about your dad, so obviously this bringing some of this in would probably have just affected you in that way.

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At what point did your, the body shaming, come to a point where you really started to think something's got to change?

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yeah, the body shaming really.

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So it grew worse.

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I would say actually.

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So first it was the I think it was the combination of things, right so the family environment, the um, shaming about the chubby side of things, some of the race things.

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At age 13, I started to come to terms of my sexuality, so being gay, I didn't want, I hated it.

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At the time I was trying to shove that away, pretending that was unreal.

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There was a lot of shame and judgment around that.

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So all that combined, almost I felt I wanted to control my body.

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At that point, being 13, I still remember it was terrible.

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I went to school and I did this weird game with my friend.

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What was like how we'll make these sandwiches pretty much out of, how low calories we can make these sandwiches and how crazy I would bring.

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It would just be a teeny bit of bread and it would just be cucumber and carrots.

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And at 13, 14, that's not the nutrition you need.

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And I started to go on these diets wanting to fix myself, right.

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I think really there was other stuff going on, but I was trying to fix things and then it got truly, I would say, and then then was compounded.

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I started putting myself out there age of 16, 17 in the dating world, and then having being rejected for on the dating scene, right and for by rejected I mean so maybe there was like online dating where but there's so much coming up so take your time.

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This is good, because a lot of people go through this.

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So online dating me coming to terms with my sexuality and it's almost me trying to escape.

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I wanted to find love somewhere.

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I wanted to find acceptance somewhere, like somewhere I could be seen and heard.

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At ages of 12, 13, I think as a teenager, I started to.

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With the fights at home, I probably closed off a lot of my thoughts and feelings from my parents.

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There was no real freedom, especially with the sexuality too, to just be myself and I can just share everything.

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And then imagine going on online dating because that was the only way.

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I was like how else do I meet people at age 16?

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Sending messages, getting nothing back.

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I still remember this very moment where someone I think I had a name was that Sweet Boy or Cute Boy Calvin was my alias name.

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Someone actually went out of their way and was like, hey, there's nothing cute about you.

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Like there's nothing, you're not attractive, there's nothing cute about you.

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And then the crickets for us, like when you're trying to put yourself out like come on, like you're almost like, or seeking, like seeking validation.

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So so much.

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I needed approval, because I didn't have that approval within on myself, um, and that made things worse.

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Like I got to change my body to be accepted.

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But what that actually did, brad, was terrible.

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I did things.

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I went on these, the dieting side of things.

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I would go on these long half marathon runs.

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I've done marathon runs too, but half marathon runs every weekend just to like, like, lose.

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I'll try all these different things with workouts.

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That just didn't work.

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But then what was what I was doing was I would starve myself almost, and then I would binge like crazy.

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I still remember very clearly age 20 I think it was 2020.

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I was an accountant.

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Back then.

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I was following the path of what's the right thing to do.

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So I was an accountant, I was good with accounting and I was sitting inside my Toyota Corona car where, after work I was so fed up, I would go or even in between, I would drive to the supermarket, or even in between I would drive to the supermarket.

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I would go in, buy a big bag of chocolate hokey pokey crunchy we call it in New Zealand chocolate.

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I would go into my car Within 10 minutes.

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I would scoff the whole thing down, gone and that binge eating.

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I would do things like that with ice cream, with crisps, everything, and it was terrible.

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So I was on this crazy cycle where there was this huge addiction, obsession with food.

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Every thought was food.

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Like what do I need to do to control this?

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But it just made things worse because I would go nuts on food, go on this diet.

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I'll shame myself.

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You're not, you're terrible.

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You're a terrible human being.

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You're looking like shit.

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I look at myself in the mirror and just shame myself.

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It's like, well, again I go for a 20k run and if it just think about it now, it feels it's so foreign to me now but I still remember it and it feels so upsetting for my body oh, I can understand.

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Now I I have to ask this because you've been, you've already alluded to your parents and you've alluded that things were tough.

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So I'm just going to ask is when did you come out to your parents and what was that like and did that affect you?

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Yeah, I only came out to my dad in 2020, at age 30.

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Oh, wow, I came out to my mom.

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I first came out to my sister.

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I remember my bedroom at age 15.

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And shortly after I came out to my mom and then my brother.

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I was very fortunate because I was actually a phone counselor for kids.

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So there was this program where I could learn to be a phone counselor and I had a supportive environment where all the phone counselors was gathered together there's like 30 of us, all high school students, and then we would talk about our stuff, so our emotions, what was going on.

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So I came out in that space which made me feel there's the most confidence in doing that.

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So I was very lucky, fortunate, brad, my mom probably.

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It was a bit of a shock and adjustment.

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She didn't think she knew anyone that was gay in her life.

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I was like no, mommy, just we don't know they are gay.

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But she gave me a hug, she loved me, she loves me.

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I'm so grateful for her.

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My sister, brother I'm very blessed in that.

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They were very accepting, so that in itself was fantastic.

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On the front of my dad there was a lot of fears that if I came out, I don't know what could happen.

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If I came out, I don't know what could happen, so I kept that for so many years.

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Yeah, I can imagine that, the fear there.

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Yeah, I had a little bit of fear of my father as well.

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It wasn't for that, unfortunately, it was for me.

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It was a, it was a brain thing.

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I felt like I wasn't smart enough for him to make him proud of me.

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So I it's totally on a much lower level than that.

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But, but I can understand that fear.

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I totally understand the fear.

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So where was so you got the acceptance of your sister, your brother, your mom still had this fear going on with your dad, which is totally understandable and it's not, it's not abnormal where, and you're still fighting this, that you're still fighting this body, shaming how you see your body, and you're not satisfied with that.

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And then you said that you went on the binge purge not purge as in what we think of it, but as diet and exercise to the point where you burn all the calories and then put them right back in.

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You burn the calories and put them right back in.

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I have clients that do that all the time, understandable.

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Where's the calories?

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And put them right back in?

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I have clients that do that all the time, understandable.

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Where's the point?

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Where's the shift and how did it shift when you finally said all right, enough's enough, I'm going to crack down, I'm going to learn and I'm going to do this for me.

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Where did that happen and how did it happen?

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Yeah, thank you for that.

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So I remember that moment very clearly.

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But just before that moment I was going to the gym.

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I started going to the gym, there was this all-amounts running and gymming and I remember seeing there was this personal trainer, jo, she's a beautiful woman and I remember she just had this beautiful smile really just a lot of good energy.

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And I just remember having this casual conversation.

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I just asked her so hey, um, what is it like being a personal trainer?

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And then she asked me so what do you do?

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And I told her I was an auditor.

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It was like a big four fancy accounting firm which all my family, friends and people were like, yeah, joe's doing amazing, but I was my soul was not doing great.

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I was really upset, I wasn't happy with what I was doing.

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But I remember her saying to me like hey, you've got so much energy and you've got so much personality, like I see you doing something different.

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Anyway, she gave me this card to this fitness nutrition school.

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Long story short, I was on this phone conversation with a consultant where he asked me all these questions like, hey, so what if you could be healthy, fit?

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What if you could change people's lives?

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What if you could do these things?

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And I remember sitting in the office on the phone and they're hanging up and they're just sitting there asking myself what if I could really change my life, what if I could not just transform my own health and well up and then just sitting there asking myself, what if I could really change my life?

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What if I could not just transform my own health and well-being but then change the lives of others?

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Even if I change one person's life?

00:17:32.806 --> 00:17:34.750
Wow, how incredible would that be.

00:17:35.559 --> 00:17:38.205
There were a lot of fears and doubts, right Like hey, who are you?

00:17:38.205 --> 00:17:42.106
You're not in great shape, you're not healthy, who do you think you are to help other people?

00:17:42.106 --> 00:17:47.000
But that, what if brad?

00:17:47.000 --> 00:17:47.342
Was so powerful?

00:17:47.342 --> 00:17:56.181
It completely opened my mind up and I made this decision from that point of hey, you know what, I'm going to quit accounting, I'm going to leave this thing, I want to just pursue helping other people, I want to go all in.

00:17:56.942 --> 00:18:06.539
And when I made that decision, that's probably the first real, that's probably the solidifying moment in my life, right where I just I just said for the first time I was going.

00:18:06.539 --> 00:18:17.971
I'm doing something just 100% on my own accord, trusting my instincts at the regards of anything else outside of me, because I remember people was like Jared, what are you doing?

00:18:17.971 --> 00:18:22.258
My partner, my manager at the time, was like are you sure you want to do this thing?

00:18:22.258 --> 00:18:25.348
You've studied so much, you get your qualifications, degrees.

00:18:26.121 --> 00:18:30.342
I had a lot of doubt thrown at me Out of good intentions, right, they're afraid.

00:18:30.342 --> 00:18:35.041
Like, hey, personal trainers or nutritionists, they don't make a lot of money, you can't.

00:18:35.041 --> 00:18:37.009
What are you going to do if it fails?

00:18:37.009 --> 00:18:46.922
But I remember the moment telling myself you know what, if I can change my life, okay, I'm going to do everything I can to try and I'm going to fall flat on my face.

00:18:46.922 --> 00:18:54.761
I'm going to keep on trying If I, if everything fails, that's okay, cause I've at least said to me that I've gone in and did it.

00:18:54.761 --> 00:19:01.398
I don't want to be at the end of life looking back and say I just stuck with something cause I had to and never tried.

00:19:01.398 --> 00:19:06.095
And that was probably the defining factor what changed everything of my life.

00:19:06.935 --> 00:19:08.238
And so you just quit.

00:19:08.238 --> 00:19:09.900
You talked to this guy on the phone.

00:19:09.900 --> 00:19:14.906
You said hey, we're going to start this school, and you went to your job and said okay, this is what I'm going to do.

00:19:16.031 --> 00:19:19.661
I'm done yes and no, Because there's like a notice period what I had to give.

00:19:19.781 --> 00:19:20.202
Right right.

00:19:21.509 --> 00:19:23.673
So I started studying and then I had six months of.

00:19:23.673 --> 00:19:24.913
I gave a six month.

00:19:24.913 --> 00:19:26.876
Six month beforehand I said hey, I'm leaving.

00:19:27.416 --> 00:19:28.479
Well, you have six months.

00:19:28.479 --> 00:19:32.083
Wow here You're lucky if they tell you that you can have the two weeks.

00:19:32.763 --> 00:19:32.983
Yeah.

00:19:33.305 --> 00:19:33.965
That's interesting.

00:19:40.490 --> 00:19:40.810
But I had to.

00:19:40.810 --> 00:19:41.191
I was.

00:19:41.191 --> 00:19:43.034
I started getting things into motion whilst that was happening, but it was.

00:19:43.034 --> 00:19:49.525
I was very fortunate because the philosophy where I was learning at, we learned a lot of the science, the physiology, all of the above.

00:19:49.525 --> 00:19:57.040
But there's a big component on the mental side of things, the mindset and one of the things of nutrition was enjoy your food.

00:19:57.040 --> 00:20:01.576
There's no bad foods, even for tea.

00:20:01.576 --> 00:20:05.338
Some people didn't like this, but I thought that was great for me mentally.

00:20:05.338 --> 00:20:08.272
They would have chocolate like tip chocolates.

00:20:08.272 --> 00:20:12.666
It wasn't just salads right tea or serve chocolate or serve.

00:20:13.107 --> 00:20:20.088
And I remember this freedom of being told you can get in shape, be healthy and still enjoy your foods.

00:20:20.088 --> 00:20:22.733
You don't have to just diet.

00:20:22.733 --> 00:20:26.682
So that's the first time in my life going oh wow, is that really possible?

00:20:26.682 --> 00:20:42.423
And that changed things, because giving me that permission to enjoy things almost took away a lot of that attachment and that weird thing with food where I naturally there was a bit of a period, was like, okay, I'm just gonna have a lot of chocolate, I'm gonna do all those things.

00:20:42.423 --> 00:20:48.837
But some point I was like, actually, you know what I actually want to eat healthier, because I want to start nourishing myself.

00:20:48.837 --> 00:20:54.392
Yes, it was no longer about fixing my body to look a certain way.

00:20:54.392 --> 00:20:56.800
It was no longer about cutting things out.

00:20:56.800 --> 00:21:01.852
I was going how can I serve my body the best so I can feel at my best and function at my best?

00:21:03.132 --> 00:21:12.377
yeah, there's a definite connection with starting a challenge or building up your body and food.

00:21:12.377 --> 00:21:16.401
It's to a point where one offsets the other.

00:21:16.401 --> 00:21:28.228
So and I talked about this, I talk about this all the time, and this is so my biggest thing that I found is that when people go out on challenge so I deal with people that are using some sort of challenge.

00:21:28.228 --> 00:21:29.994
That's why this is called Life Changing Challengers.

00:21:29.994 --> 00:21:39.433
They use some sort of challenge where they challenge themselves, but in such a way that they get fit and they learn nutrition on the way.

00:21:39.433 --> 00:21:40.738
Those aren't the goals.

00:21:40.738 --> 00:21:44.830
The goal isn't aesthetics or nutrition or learning about that stuff.

00:21:44.830 --> 00:21:46.256
It's about the goal.

00:21:46.256 --> 00:21:50.417
So, for instance, one of my clients was 240 pounds.

00:21:50.417 --> 00:22:10.472
She was five one and instead of going, okay, well, I'm going to go to the gym, I'm going to learn about nutrition, I'm going to, I'm going to do this diet, she goes I'm going to do an Ironman, I'm going to do a full Ironman and 18 months later, man, I'm gonna do a full iron man.

00:22:10.492 --> 00:22:14.044
And 18 months later he was 120 pounds, sitting on the beach in a size small wetsuit, ready to jump into the ocean.

00:22:14.044 --> 00:22:14.726
Yeah, you know what I mean.

00:22:14.726 --> 00:22:16.834
She took and she learned it on the way.

00:22:16.834 --> 00:22:21.791
But the thing was, is that while we were doing the biking and the swimming and stuff, she's like, well, you know what?

00:22:21.791 --> 00:22:32.119
I just burned so many calories, I just just worked myself, I'm not putting back in, I'm not going to put back in into my body stuff that is not good for it, right?

00:22:32.119 --> 00:22:40.692
So here you're on this big, you're on this challenge for yourself to feel better about yourself, both inside and outside, and you're.

00:22:40.692 --> 00:22:52.480
Then they gave you the permission to enjoy your food and you're like, okay, I'm going to enjoy my food, but I'm not going'm gonna enjoy my food but I'm not gonna put crap back in, because I just worked myself and I've been striving to get better.

00:22:52.480 --> 00:22:55.554
So I'm gonna enjoy my food, but I'm gonna enjoy good food.

00:22:55.554 --> 00:22:58.701
Is that kind of the way that you were thinking about that point?

00:22:59.612 --> 00:23:01.476
absolutely and I love that story.

00:23:01.476 --> 00:23:02.719
Right, that's the biggest.

00:23:02.719 --> 00:23:03.800
That's fantastic.

00:23:03.800 --> 00:23:04.883
Where so she must.

00:23:04.883 --> 00:23:11.041
That's exhilarating on the beach and that goal and having something exciting that she's going towards, that's beautiful.

00:23:11.041 --> 00:23:12.384
That's exactly right.

00:23:12.384 --> 00:23:20.539
When, having that mindset, I started competing in powerlifting as well as part of starting to run a personal training studio.

00:23:20.539 --> 00:23:26.442
I very much believe in if you want to help people practice what you preach.

00:23:26.442 --> 00:23:38.760
I had my own train, I got my own help and then one of the trainers that I was helping me actually run the studio with my business, with my workouts, saw potential in me with powerlifting.

00:23:38.760 --> 00:23:44.059
So he got me into that and that was exciting too, similar to the story that you just shared, brad.

00:23:44.059 --> 00:23:47.011
So I started to feel my body to get stronger.

00:23:47.011 --> 00:23:54.378
I feel my body to perform and do better in the sport, and that was a big, powerful factor in the journey.

00:23:55.319 --> 00:23:58.162
So yeah, so like I use this experience.

00:23:58.162 --> 00:24:02.926
You said you use powerlifting and you probably saw I mean powerlifting.

00:24:02.926 --> 00:24:09.837
I know I see it with some people in the gym that started it and their body changes so fast when you're doing powerlifting.

00:24:09.837 --> 00:24:14.298
So I can imagine so you use that as as your challenge, as powerlifting.

00:24:14.298 --> 00:24:15.202
That's fantastic.

00:24:15.202 --> 00:24:20.598
So can I want to step back here, because all of a sudden you just start talking about no, that's fine.

00:24:20.618 --> 00:24:22.310
Hey, under you told the story.

00:24:22.310 --> 00:24:24.494
I'm cool but I'm interested on in so.

00:24:24.494 --> 00:24:39.298
So here in the states most people they'll start, they'll get their personal training certificate and then they'll go work in a gym and then if they've got it, if they got enough going on and they got enough finances and they can get it, then they'll start their own studio or they'll start a gym or whatever.

00:24:39.298 --> 00:24:53.839
But you're saying what it sounded like is you got your certificate, you got trained in it and you opened a studio yeah, yes, so it was, but there was no factors there, so I it was a home studio, so I okay from space of home.

00:24:54.280 --> 00:24:59.394
I also started running boot camps in the park, but I just yes, I've never.

00:24:59.394 --> 00:25:02.199
I think I just yeah.

00:25:02.199 --> 00:25:07.905
When you ask that, right, that's true, but I just I didn't see myself paying rent at a gym.

00:25:07.905 --> 00:25:16.330
I didn't see myself, um, I think that was a deciding factor for me at the time was I want to do my own thing?

00:25:16.330 --> 00:25:27.559
I really I had that taste of what if I could create this thing according to my vision and I just ran with it and I never, I just didn't look back from that nice.

00:25:28.181 --> 00:25:36.511
Yeah, so was that the birth of the daring academy no, so it started with Bruce Lee personal training of course, capitalize on it.

00:25:36.511 --> 00:25:37.693
You go man.

00:25:37.693 --> 00:25:39.037
I, yeah, I get that.

00:25:39.037 --> 00:25:40.298
If you got it, use it.

00:25:40.298 --> 00:25:43.104
I totally agree at first.

00:25:43.344 --> 00:25:48.962
a lot of the coaching when I did was primarily fitness, personal training, nutrition.

00:25:48.962 --> 00:25:56.458
Obviously, as you build relationships with clients, they will share personal challenges too, and I would be there to listen and that.

00:25:56.458 --> 00:25:59.378
But the coaching I do now has transformed.

00:25:59.378 --> 00:26:05.141
The Daring Academy is, I would say, 10, 20, 30 steps ahead from that.

00:26:05.161 --> 00:26:06.703
Okay, all right.

00:26:06.703 --> 00:26:14.718
So you started with bootcamps and turning out of your own home and I know plenty of people that do that so it's a regular progression.

00:26:14.718 --> 00:26:16.273
How long did you end up doing that?

00:26:16.273 --> 00:26:17.417
What was the next step?

00:26:18.279 --> 00:26:20.577
Yeah, so I did that for good.

00:26:20.577 --> 00:26:22.015
You know what I love, brad.

00:26:22.015 --> 00:26:23.035
I was thinking about this the other day.

00:26:23.035 --> 00:26:28.352
Actually, there's nothing like starting and just going all in on something.

00:26:28.352 --> 00:26:32.692
I remember that excitement and buzz of the fears of the unknown am I going to get a client?

00:26:32.692 --> 00:26:34.215
Is this going to work out?

00:26:34.215 --> 00:26:38.670
But that lasted for a good two, three years of just building.

00:26:39.490 --> 00:27:02.997
But at some point I think I probably my dating life got in the way for a little bit where, maybe for a year or so, there was a bit of a almost like a passion, maybe not lost, but I got into the grind of things where it became I wasn't.

00:27:02.997 --> 00:27:05.392
I was running it by myself, right, and I wasn't.

00:27:05.392 --> 00:27:14.961
I had personal training, friends, but I was almost in a bit of a plateau where I felt like I was stuck just going through the motions for a year or so.

00:27:14.961 --> 00:27:22.762
This is going to take on a complete detour, brad, but I started singing, performing, when I was 15, 14.

00:27:22.762 --> 00:27:34.528
And the same mentor from the fitness college she saw, she's heard me sing, she loved what I was doing and she, every single time she saw me, she saw leadership potential in me.

00:27:34.528 --> 00:27:35.854
But I remember she would always ask me.

00:27:35.854 --> 00:27:38.446
So why are you not performing professionally?

00:27:38.446 --> 00:27:39.632
Why aren't you doing this thing?

00:27:39.632 --> 00:27:42.865
Every single time I'll say, hey, I've got personal training clients.

00:27:42.865 --> 00:27:43.248
I have to.

00:27:43.248 --> 00:27:44.792
I'm doing this studio thing.

00:27:44.792 --> 00:27:46.155
I can't leave them behind.

00:27:46.155 --> 00:27:59.673
But at one point I remember cracking, she asked me it's similar question to when I started training studios like hey, if you were offered a performing contract right here, right now and you can be the leader in the show, would you do it?

00:27:59.673 --> 00:28:03.240
And I remember like, okay, damn it, I think I would.

00:28:03.240 --> 00:28:13.981
So I did it all over again, brad, I packed up and I decided I was going to audition for schools in London to go perform in central London, west End and do this thing.

00:28:13.981 --> 00:28:15.713
I made that decision back.

00:28:15.733 --> 00:28:16.978
I think it was 2016,.

00:28:16.978 --> 00:28:19.384
Start of January 2016.

00:28:19.384 --> 00:28:22.217
No, it was end of 2015.

00:28:22.217 --> 00:28:33.663
But within three, four months I sent off these applications, was accepted into three of the top schools in london and then by september of 2016 was 2016.

00:28:33.663 --> 00:28:41.342
That year I flew, I packed up, left everything, had support of amazing people my friends, family, social, sport, new zealand.

00:28:41.342 --> 00:28:47.721
They were super great with this and I went to london to study for a year of master's in musical theater.

00:28:48.624 --> 00:28:55.459
Um bit of a detour, sorry, no, you have no idea how similar you and I are.

00:28:55.459 --> 00:28:57.702
Okay, no clue.

00:28:57.702 --> 00:29:01.251
So I, I got out of the military the first time.

00:29:01.251 --> 00:29:14.215
Well, I had done musical theater and studio theater prior, and then I went into the military and I, just towards the end of the military, I went and I saw a show.

00:29:14.215 --> 00:29:15.219
I was living in DC.

00:29:15.219 --> 00:29:17.994
I saw a show and I was like, oh my God, I need to get back on stage.

00:29:17.994 --> 00:29:24.012
And so I started going back on stage and so right afterwards, yeah, for the next year it was show after show after show.

00:29:24.012 --> 00:29:27.881
So I get it, I totally get it.

00:29:27.881 --> 00:29:30.632
Now I was more of an actor, more studio theater.

00:29:30.632 --> 00:29:32.876
I did do musicals and I love to dance.

00:29:32.876 --> 00:29:36.671
I grew up ballet, tap and jazz modern.

00:29:36.671 --> 00:29:38.535
So I get it.

00:29:38.535 --> 00:29:39.656
And I did musicals.

00:29:39.656 --> 00:29:41.260
I enjoyed studio theater more.

00:29:41.260 --> 00:29:42.963
But I totally understand.

00:29:42.963 --> 00:29:48.558
I've been in this, I've been in triathlon and stuff for a while and I keep telling myself you know what?

00:29:48.558 --> 00:29:52.330
I'm gonna take a season off and go do some theater and then come back.

00:29:52.471 --> 00:29:57.842
It's because I guess so I yeah, no, I get it that you just come back, so all right.

00:29:57.842 --> 00:30:01.857
So how long were you singing and how did you find your way back?

00:30:02.439 --> 00:30:03.201
yeah, thank you.

00:30:03.201 --> 00:30:04.329
Thank you for sharing that bread.

00:30:04.329 --> 00:30:13.996
Sometimes I almost when I especially especially when I Instagram or that I don't share too much of that because I sometimes think it confuses people who is this guy?

00:30:14.490 --> 00:30:25.976
But what happened was, after I started performing in London, I did a few shows in Germany and then I started touring around the world on a cruise ship as one of the lead singers.

00:30:25.976 --> 00:30:30.413
This was when COVID happened was, but then COVID happened and then COVID happened.

00:30:30.413 --> 00:30:49.073
So I was sent back home to New Zealand and just backtracking a little bit, brad, during my year studying at the Royal Academy of Music was probably another massive light transforming part of my life, because I think what happened was I grew very comfortable with the personal training studio.

00:30:49.073 --> 00:30:50.075
I knew what I was doing.

00:30:50.075 --> 00:30:51.839
Everything just made sense.

00:30:51.839 --> 00:30:55.997
Right, a lot of those feelings that I've experienced in my childhood.

00:30:55.997 --> 00:30:58.142
I never truly addressed it.

00:30:58.142 --> 00:31:07.464
I never really addressed or healed that side of myself, but at this, when you're training for acting, you can't not be vulnerable.

00:31:07.464 --> 00:31:10.491
So there was a lot of Plus.

00:31:10.491 --> 00:31:22.640
I was 26 and I was surrounded by these incredible 20, 21, 22-year-old performers who were just more experienced, and I felt like I was going backwards.

00:31:22.640 --> 00:31:29.471
But it stripped away a lot of my armor and shell, where a lot of those feelings started to come up.

00:31:29.471 --> 00:31:38.655
I cried the most ever, probably in 2016, 2017, in that year, just from everything like the pressures of this, everything life-changing.

00:31:38.655 --> 00:31:49.201
But I think that led on to a few things that which takes if we take go to 2020, now with COVID um, with all of that, 2020 I was.

00:31:49.201 --> 00:31:52.287
I started 2016.

00:31:52.287 --> 00:31:54.490
I started meditation.

00:31:54.490 --> 00:31:57.576
So I started to learn how to meditate because of my dating struggles.

00:31:58.278 --> 00:32:02.615
But I remember the moment in 2020 I was spending back home.

00:32:02.615 --> 00:32:07.311
I was thrown back home, leaving my parents again at the age of 30, turning 29, turning 30.

00:32:07.311 --> 00:32:08.044
I was leaving my parents.

00:32:08.044 --> 00:32:09.299
I was meditating back home, leaving my parents again At the age of turning 29, turning 30, I was leaving my parents.

00:32:09.299 --> 00:32:10.836
I was meditating a lot.

00:32:10.836 --> 00:32:14.441
There was suddenly eight months of nothing, being unemployed.

00:32:14.441 --> 00:32:24.038
I was spending a lot of time with myself, and then I remember my parents got into another fight and I was brought back a lot of things.

00:32:24.038 --> 00:32:29.080
But there was this moment, in this conversation with my father.

00:32:29.080 --> 00:32:35.221
So my mum got into a car crash and she was fine, but she some whiplash, but she was okay.

00:32:35.221 --> 00:32:36.784
But my dad he was.

00:32:36.784 --> 00:32:38.294
There was often a fight, right.

00:32:38.294 --> 00:32:55.105
So my dad I think he's probably going through guilt, maybe like he caused it, and there's a lot of stuff and I remember seeing my dad in tears in front of me and my usual old self would have tried to fix their relationship again, do the same thing.

00:32:55.105 --> 00:32:56.010
That never worked.

00:32:57.032 --> 00:33:04.952
But because I was being the meditation, spending time in nature, I was so present with myself.

00:33:04.952 --> 00:33:27.289
I remember this very clear moment in the garage I was looking my dad's eyes and he was crying and for the first time I didn't see him as my father, but as a human being with all his flaws and ups and downs and just everything as a whole, holistic, just without the attachment of my childhood and every baggage I've accumulated.

00:33:27.289 --> 00:33:41.445
And there was this eureka, this crazy moment of it's really hard to describe this bread, but I felt almost all those nearly 30 years of stuff went, boom, just left.

00:33:41.445 --> 00:33:46.726
It's almost, it's like a spiritual thing where my whole body I still remember this moment so well.

00:33:46.726 --> 00:33:53.663
I felt this tingling light sensation top of my head and I was so more alive than I've ever felt.

00:33:53.663 --> 00:33:56.896
And I felt this even with my dad crying.

00:33:56.957 --> 00:34:01.833
But I felt this joy, not so much for his pain, like I was taking love, just for life.

00:34:01.833 --> 00:34:14.179
This joy like my intuitive self came through for the very first time and that was, um, people thought there was a whole week of just bliss.

00:34:14.179 --> 00:34:18.173
From that moment, brad of just this, like wow, this is what life is.

00:34:18.173 --> 00:34:21.963
I remember I started going on facebook lives for the first time.

00:34:21.963 --> 00:34:24.702
Friends, family they thought I was losing my mind.

00:34:24.702 --> 00:34:28.838
They thought I was going nuts, like they was like jared, what's happened to this guy?

00:34:28.838 --> 00:34:30.123
Like what is going on?

00:34:30.123 --> 00:34:32.472
People were worried for me, like is he okay?

00:34:32.472 --> 00:34:36.605
But that is another key moment, right, that life changing.

00:34:36.605 --> 00:34:52.213
My life has gone like upwards from that moment, um, I actually, when people say losing my mind, losing your mind, that losing my mind is a damn good thing, because that mind carried so much bad, it carried a lot of things that weren't serving me.

00:34:52.213 --> 00:35:02.617
So for the first time, I felt this, I experienced this bliss I didn't truly experience before.

00:35:03.297 --> 00:35:28.809
Do you think that a lot of what was going on was that not only did you already fear your dad, but because you also didn't share a piece of him, of you with him and you kept having this fear, but the ability for him to cry in front of you, let the fear go and with letting the fear of your dad go, now you see him as an equal.

00:35:28.809 --> 00:35:36.152
He's not somebody that's so far above you.

00:35:36.152 --> 00:35:36.514
He's an equal.

00:35:36.514 --> 00:35:37.818
He's a man just like you and that kind of said hey, you know what?

00:35:37.818 --> 00:35:38.782
He's a guy just like me.

00:35:38.782 --> 00:35:40.306
He has feelings just like me.

00:35:40.306 --> 00:35:41.130
He's vulnerable.

00:35:41.130 --> 00:35:44.677
Now, just like me, I don't need to be fear of him.

00:35:44.677 --> 00:35:46.762
And that just let the floodgates go.

00:35:46.762 --> 00:35:50.469
Yeah, yeah, did you hug your dad at that point?

00:35:51.635 --> 00:35:55.070
yeah, we had a hundred, I think.

00:35:55.070 --> 00:36:04.815
At that moment I think he saw me smiling and he was like I saw his eyes, even behind the tears.

00:36:04.815 --> 00:36:21.114
I saw his eyes light up in a way like a recognition, where he almost when I think about it now, it's almost like there was a cry, there was all that stuff going on, but he almost like I could see that there's another, that behind behind all that stuff.

00:36:21.114 --> 00:36:26.679
And I think I gave him a I, yeah, I gave him a hug and then I went for a run after that.

00:36:26.679 --> 00:36:28.746
I think I'm trying to remember the specific details now.

00:36:28.766 --> 00:36:35.362
Yeah yeah, see, yeah, that makes a lot of sense, but that is a I don't.

00:36:35.362 --> 00:36:40.329
I'm not a psychologist, I don't know, but it just you could see that I know that it happened.

00:36:40.329 --> 00:36:45.434
I had almost had the same experience, where I grew up with a fear of my dad.

00:36:45.434 --> 00:37:01.780
I just I wanted him to be so proud of me and any little tiny failure was detrimental to my life at one point finally seeing him as a person and that's why I was, that's why it was what was my, my hypothesis of what you went through, because I went through the same thing.

00:37:01.780 --> 00:37:11.768
But all right, so so you, finally, you finally got rid of this, the shame and the and this, whatever it was that you were holding on to.

00:37:11.768 --> 00:37:14.177
Yeah, so what happened after that?

00:37:14.177 --> 00:37:14.539
What did?

00:37:14.539 --> 00:37:15.905
What happened with your business?

00:37:15.905 --> 00:37:18.530
What did you do professionally after that?

00:37:19.291 --> 00:37:22.759
so this was my partner, my husband, now husband.

00:37:22.759 --> 00:37:24.161
He was living in london.

00:37:24.161 --> 00:37:25.503
I was in new zealand.

00:37:25.503 --> 00:37:30.235
We're trying to find a way to be together, but what happened after that week?

00:37:30.235 --> 00:37:36.257
Where was I had that one week of bliss right of the shame gone, but it wasn't.

00:37:36.257 --> 00:37:44.278
I wish it was that straightforward and it just lasted I understand um, what actually happened was I remember.

00:37:44.721 --> 00:37:49.672
So I was going on these facebook lives because I felt my heart wanted to share that with the world.

00:37:49.672 --> 00:37:54.289
Something just came as I wanted to share it, right, even if some people thought I was going nuts.

00:37:54.289 --> 00:38:17.983
On the last, one of the last shares, I started talking about mental health and I remember one of my friends friends and was on there and some of his family, and right afterwards I saw Facebook lives make logically, people come on and probably most people jump off.

00:38:17.983 --> 00:38:19.144
People are busy, do things.

00:38:19.144 --> 00:38:31.213
But in that moment, because I was talking about mental health, I started panicking afterwards because some of my friends at that time they had mental health struggles.

00:38:31.213 --> 00:38:34.447
I was freaking out that I said the wrong thing.

00:38:34.447 --> 00:38:44.795
Other the story in my of Jared you said something and you really hurt these people and that's why they came on and left, which is completely rubbish.

00:38:44.795 --> 00:38:50.452
But in that moment my mind made it real and I had my first ever panic attack.

00:38:50.452 --> 00:38:57.090
I think what was going on when I looked at it was this bliss moment, but then all of that stuff.

00:38:57.170 --> 00:39:02.599
It doesn't just disappear and that shame doesn't just go away and just gone.

00:39:02.599 --> 00:39:06.128
That all flooded back, so that panic attack.

00:39:06.128 --> 00:39:10.478
What it did for me was the best thing, because then I just seeked out help.

00:39:10.478 --> 00:39:31.695
I found a beautiful spiritual counselor Her name's Nancy I still meet her at the moment when I started the healing process at a deeper level and that unlocked things, where I started to heal at such a level where acceptance and look, everything I shared with you just now, brad, I would not have dared share beforehand.

00:39:31.695 --> 00:39:35.829
I would have guarded that close to my chest, feeling so much shame about it.

00:39:35.849 --> 00:39:47.110
Like all of this is not okay because I was not in tune, accepting of my feelings but from doing the work, sharing this is some of the stuff is not comfortable, right, but it's okay.

00:39:47.110 --> 00:39:53.115
There's like a self-acceptance and from that moment I had this, I would say, downloads.

00:39:53.115 --> 00:40:04.576
There's like a strong, intuitive knowing, like Jared, you need to get back onto this and you need to do this work, help other people with this, because what you're going through right now isn't just for you.

00:40:04.576 --> 00:40:07.369
You didn't heal your heart just for yourself.

00:40:07.369 --> 00:40:16.726
This is powerful and you can help other people, not just with their bodies, not just with the physical thing, but their mind, their emotions and do the whole thing.

00:40:16.726 --> 00:40:20.615
And there was this calling like jared, your healing is to heal other people.

00:40:20.615 --> 00:40:21.666
Like, do this thing.

00:40:21.666 --> 00:40:25.565
And that voice was strong, just like when I left accounting for personal training.

00:40:25.565 --> 00:40:29.036
This one was stronger, and that was when the Darren Academy was formed.

00:40:30.204 --> 00:40:32.197
Nice, I'm going to.

00:40:32.197 --> 00:40:33.485
I just want to step real back.

00:40:33.485 --> 00:40:34.606
And then this is going to be.

00:40:34.606 --> 00:40:36.188
This is going to make you think for a minute.

00:40:36.188 --> 00:40:58.007
So, in order to get to that point where you're able to release what you did and then realize that there's more to it, do you think that would have happened without the fact that you are already in shape?

00:40:58.027 --> 00:41:14.409
So, basically, what I'm saying is did that physical fitness that you had and then having the confidence to go to London and do that and then come back, allow you to give the tools to release it and then realize that you've got your, that you've had to go deeper.

00:41:14.409 --> 00:41:21.690
Would you think that would have happened if you weren't, if you didn't go through the, the fitness journey first?

00:41:22.331 --> 00:41:25.295
yeah, that's such a question, man.

00:41:25.295 --> 00:41:28.148
I love that everyone's in their own paths right.

00:41:28.148 --> 00:41:49.217
Journeys can look so different for everyone, but for me, I think everything was laid out the way I was meant to, because pursuing physical fitness, getting into powerlifting, pursuing musical theatre, all of that gave me so much confidence and courage to follow my heart, to follow what felt good and true.

00:41:49.217 --> 00:41:54.021
And every single time, right when you do something that's scary, it builds confidence.

00:41:54.021 --> 00:42:06.565
It's like a, it's almost like like today life can throw me so many different challenges and there's like a knowing like, hey, I can handle this because I've already overcome so much.

00:42:06.565 --> 00:42:25.418
So every piece of that gave me the courage to explore the emotions, to say, hey, jared, maybe it's time to go where truly, truly really is going to uncover things, whereas before no, probably I would say probably not I'll probably be too afraid to truly go there.

00:42:26.342 --> 00:42:34.614
That's amazing and it's an interesting thing because if you listen to, if you listen to like Andrew Frisella, do you know Andrew Frisella?

00:42:35.565 --> 00:42:37.208
He does this thing called 75,.

00:42:37.228 --> 00:42:38.652
Have you ever heard of 75 hard?

00:42:39.233 --> 00:42:40.456
yes, yes okay.

00:42:40.516 --> 00:42:41.927
So he's the guy that developed that.

00:42:41.927 --> 00:42:47.347
His name is andrew forsella and he's like a straight shooter, he's the we, he's like.

00:42:47.347 --> 00:42:55.768
He's like joe rogan, unpolished, yeah, you know, straight shooter like david goggins, just like, really just hands it to you.

00:42:55.768 --> 00:42:56.630
You know what I mean?

00:42:56.630 --> 00:42:57.472
No filter.

00:42:57.472 --> 00:43:01.891
So I don't know where I was going with that now, okay, but anyway so.

00:43:01.931 --> 00:43:11.159
But that's what basically is like these guys say okay, start with fitness and you'll move into this mental aspect.

00:43:11.820 --> 00:43:30.755
It's like like you get yourself into that point where you have the confidence now to move into the mental aspect and then the mental aspect actually gives you more, even more energy and internal desire and motivation to keep going, and it's you seem to have followed that path which is over the last, what?

00:43:30.835 --> 00:43:53.728
This is my sixth, seventh episode, ninth episode, I think, and I've seen that, and that's the reason why I had to ask you, because I'm actually seeing patterns and it's different, for I mean, it's a different route for everybody, but it seems to, hey, start with the body, which leads you into the mind, which makes your body stronger, which makes your mind stronger, and then they come up with this spiritual path which is what you seem to have.

00:43:53.728 --> 00:43:59.485
So tell me so now, tell me about the Daring Academy and some of your have.

00:43:59.485 --> 00:43:59.706
So tell me.

00:43:59.706 --> 00:44:09.574
So now tell me about the daring academy and some of you some tell me some about give me some good, great anecdotes about some people that you helped and what are the, what's the process that people go through with you yeah, so we start off.

00:44:09.614 --> 00:44:13.668
We have a flagship 10-week program, but every I'm learning every day.

00:44:13.668 --> 00:44:16.534
I'm brad, so every single person help.

00:44:16.534 --> 00:44:19.739
It's an honor and I learn new things and I'm training too.

00:44:19.739 --> 00:44:37.572
So that breath work and ice therapy there's a lot of new things I've been training along this journey, but essentially what I do with each single person is there's a system in place of workouts I program that and nutrition, that.

00:44:37.572 --> 00:44:40.347
These are the things to do and there's accountability.

00:44:40.347 --> 00:45:11.672
And then we also have group sessions where we group together, we come on and we talk about they, talk about their challenges, different things they go through, but I would say it at its essence is me using everything I've gone, every challenge I've overcome, and that vision and taking all that belief because I've seen this so many times now, I've done it for myself and I've seen so many clients go through this I see what they could do and a lot of times when they come to me they go Jared.

00:45:11.713 --> 00:45:12.755
But you don't know my story.

00:45:12.755 --> 00:45:14.050
I can't lose 10 pounds.

00:45:14.050 --> 00:45:15.168
I can't lose 20 pounds.

00:45:15.168 --> 00:45:16.934
I've been trying, I can't get in shape.

00:45:16.934 --> 00:45:17.956
I can't lose 20 pounds.

00:45:17.956 --> 00:45:19.155
I've been trying, I can't get in shape.

00:45:19.155 --> 00:45:19.516
I can't do this.

00:45:19.516 --> 00:45:20.297
There's a lot of mental barriers.

00:45:20.297 --> 00:45:22.978
Right, I'm too busy with work, a lot of stuff going on.

00:45:22.978 --> 00:45:24.739
I'm too addicted to alcohol.

00:45:24.739 --> 00:45:27.282
I've always, I've never been fit my whole life.

00:45:27.302 --> 00:45:28.623
So I'm going to share one story on this.

00:45:28.623 --> 00:45:29.242
Is this guy.

00:45:29.242 --> 00:45:29.867
He found me.

00:45:29.867 --> 00:45:32.072
So I was on Quirty, a magazine.

00:45:32.072 --> 00:45:34.259
He found me from the magazine article.

00:45:35.682 --> 00:45:37.527
I remember our very first conversation.

00:45:37.527 --> 00:45:39.472
I had so much belief in him.

00:45:39.472 --> 00:45:41.025
He was sharing his struggles.

00:45:41.025 --> 00:45:50.494
His father passed away, which kind of triggered him to look after himself better this and then he wanted to look after his health.

00:45:50.494 --> 00:45:56.090
He also wanted to look and feel better and I was like, yeah, we can do this, we can do this.

00:45:56.090 --> 00:46:01.797
And the back of his mind, he didn't tell this to me on the day, but only months later that he was going.

00:46:02.579 --> 00:46:05.262
Jared is dreaming.

00:46:05.262 --> 00:46:06.545
He's very optimistic.

00:46:06.545 --> 00:46:09.713
He doesn't know my situation, he doesn't know who I am.

00:46:09.713 --> 00:46:11.096
He doesn't know I can't do this.

00:46:11.096 --> 00:46:14.871
I can get maybe a bit fitter, but I don't think he truly understands.

00:46:14.871 --> 00:46:17.971
But just every step I would just dug in.

00:46:17.971 --> 00:46:23.516
So every time those fears and doubts would come up I would just say reflect back to him like this is the vision.

00:46:23.516 --> 00:46:25.628
We can get you here one step at a time.

00:46:25.628 --> 00:46:26.891
The workouts and nutrition.

00:46:27.632 --> 00:46:37.306
I do a lot of deep mindset work with the people I help as I get them to envision, let's say, with an iron man, with, with powerlifting or athletes do this right.

00:46:37.306 --> 00:46:38.913
So we envision success.

00:46:38.913 --> 00:46:40.307
What does that success look like?

00:46:40.307 --> 00:46:42.534
What does that feel like if you're inside their body?

00:46:42.534 --> 00:46:43.536
What is that going to?

00:46:43.536 --> 00:46:47.625
What are you going to do when you're 20 pounds lighter, when you're really healthy, fit, strong?

00:46:47.625 --> 00:46:48.567
What are you going to be doing?

00:46:48.987 --> 00:46:54.168
And I just get them to just continuously see that every single day, at the face of fears and doubts.

00:46:54.168 --> 00:47:08.702
He went from someone who's never been truly fit in his life and he always struggled to a year later being the golden fitness boy in his family, friends and his.

00:47:08.702 --> 00:47:15.847
He's in his mid to late 30s now too, by the way, so we're not talking his 20s or 30s like mid 40s, getting the best shape of his life.

00:47:15.847 --> 00:47:32.684
He's brought on a lot of incredible other guys who's all changed their lives too because of them, and now fitness is the most normal, natural thing for him eating healthy, all of that is so ingrained in him now and that's so exciting yeah, yeah, then that's right.

00:47:32.804 --> 00:47:33.809
That's the biggest thing, right?

00:47:33.809 --> 00:47:38.532
Fitness and nutrition should be like brushing your teeth yes it's it basically should be.

00:47:38.833 --> 00:47:41.559
now, obviously, clients are different.

00:47:41.559 --> 00:47:43.204
They've got a race that they're doing.

00:47:43.204 --> 00:47:44.288
They have a challenge that they're doing.

00:47:44.288 --> 00:47:47.085
They're climbing mountains, they're doing ultra marathons and all that stuff.

00:47:47.085 --> 00:47:48.208
They've got something to look forward to.

00:47:48.208 --> 00:47:49.391
But you know what?

00:47:49.391 --> 00:47:55.556
Them getting up doing the workout, finding the workout, doing their nutrition, it's like it's just like brushing their teeth.

00:47:55.556 --> 00:48:05.711
You know what I mean, but what they get out of it when they're on these really long runs or on these really long bike rides.

00:48:05.731 --> 00:48:06.934
They're doing 5,000 meters in the pool.

00:48:06.934 --> 00:48:07.657
It's what's going on in here.

00:48:07.657 --> 00:48:08.880
Yes, that is what is becomes healthy.

00:48:08.880 --> 00:48:13.068
So, yeah, it's an incredible, I mean totally incredible feeling.

00:48:13.068 --> 00:48:17.920
And when you see other people, I like, just like you, just like how, oh you're.

00:48:17.920 --> 00:48:19.523
You just like glowed.

00:48:19.523 --> 00:48:21.449
You know what I mean when you talk about this person.

00:48:21.449 --> 00:48:23.353
You just glowed, you know.

00:48:23.353 --> 00:48:24.536
And people say that all the time.

00:48:24.536 --> 00:48:34.653
It's like when I'm, if I've done the race, or I'm just there at the race and I see my clients coming across the finish line and they're smiling and it's like, it's like the best thing in the world.

00:48:34.653 --> 00:48:35.456
So I get it.

00:48:35.456 --> 00:48:36.126
It's addictive.

00:48:36.126 --> 00:48:45.679
Yeah, it's definitely addicting, but you're, but the fact that they're, you're accomplishing something, that you're out there, so so what's so?

00:48:45.679 --> 00:48:47.007
What's so you're?

00:48:47.007 --> 00:48:47.771
You're in new zealand.

00:48:47.771 --> 00:48:50.056
Now you said that you've been traveling and around.

00:48:50.056 --> 00:48:50.344
What do you?

00:48:50.344 --> 00:48:51.487
What have you been up to lately?

00:48:51.487 --> 00:48:52.367
What's been going on?

00:48:53.248 --> 00:49:06.257
yeah, so we my partner we actually did a one year because everything's we have, our guys are based in America, europe, all over the world, asia, dubai, canada.

00:49:06.257 --> 00:49:13.873
So we actually decided we've been in Auckland for nearly a year now, but we're going to go, we're packing up and going again.

00:49:13.873 --> 00:49:33.135
So we're starting first with Toronto in June and, yeah, we're gonna go go around and meet new people and and I'm all about, I think, the longer I've lived that it's just trusting and intuition and following what feels truly right.

00:49:33.135 --> 00:49:42.253
And it was only a month ago where we decided there's a calling for us to go and I just said hey, let's do this let's pack up and go.

00:49:42.804 --> 00:49:46.876
It's going to mean selling our furniture and everything, but that's the hardest.

00:49:46.876 --> 00:49:50.476
It's taking us to something exciting.

00:49:51.286 --> 00:49:57.018
Well, if you find your way from Toronto and you get yourself down to Florida, you got to look me up.

00:49:57.018 --> 00:49:59.632
And yeah, because I would love to meet you in person.

00:49:59.632 --> 00:50:07.389
I think it would be an amazing experience and have a cup of coffee or tea or whatever, or beer, even, and just in chat.

00:50:07.389 --> 00:50:07.992
I would love that.

00:50:07.992 --> 00:50:10.793
So if you're doing all those travels, just make sure you keep in contact with me.

00:50:10.793 --> 00:50:18.414
But, on that matter, how can people get in contact with you and maybe learn a little bit more about the Daring Academy?

00:50:19.684 --> 00:50:20.927
Yeah, so the best way to reach me?

00:50:20.927 --> 00:50:30.574
Firstly, the daring academy the primarily the community is for gay men, so targeted just because of the gay men body image struggles.

00:50:30.574 --> 00:50:32.557
There's like a whole thing there.

00:50:32.557 --> 00:50:44.755
I do have vip one-on-one clients with all genders or orientations as well, but the best way to find me is the jared bruce lee j-a-r-o-d spelled on the screen here bruce lee on instagram.

00:50:44.755 --> 00:50:46.139
You can reach me there.

00:50:46.139 --> 00:50:52.407
If any of this resonates, I would love to hear anyone's stories that they want to share that send me a dm.

00:50:52.407 --> 00:50:53.289
It's always open.

00:50:53.289 --> 00:51:06.612
There's also wwwthedairianacademycom where you can find me over there, but Instagram is the best way to actually have a one-on-one real conversation and I think that's always the best way to move forward.

00:51:07.576 --> 00:51:07.956
Excellent.

00:51:07.956 --> 00:51:10.393
Well, I will make sure that I put that in the show notes.

00:51:10.393 --> 00:51:17.498
So, hey, look for those links and follow Jarrod Bruce Lee on Instagram.

00:51:17.498 --> 00:51:19.972
I've seen some of his things on there and it's pretty amazing.

00:51:19.972 --> 00:51:22.931
I don't know who's your photographer, but he's really awesome.

00:51:22.931 --> 00:51:27.934
So take a look, look at some of his stories and, if you want to get in touch with him, go ahead and DM right there on Instagram.

00:51:27.934 --> 00:51:28.346
Check out thedaringacademy.

00:51:28.346 --> 00:51:35.498
com and Jarrod man, it has been a journey with you.

00:51:35.498 --> 00:51:37.063
It has been so great.

00:51:37.063 --> 00:51:41.132
I so appreciate you coming on and you're in New Zealand and I'm over here.

00:51:41.132 --> 00:51:48.556
So again, I guess we're talking to the future, because for you it's actually 4-4, right, it's April 4th.

00:51:49.847 --> 00:51:53.072
Yeah, it's still April 3rd over here, so we're still talking to the future.

00:51:53.072 --> 00:51:55.472
I love that man, I love that.

00:51:55.985 --> 00:51:57.186
So again, thank you.

00:51:57.186 --> 00:51:58.628
Thank you so much for joining us.

00:51:58.628 --> 00:51:59.389
I really appreciate it.

00:51:59.389 --> 00:52:01.271
I think it's an amazing experience.

00:52:01.833 --> 00:52:02.793
Thank you for having me, Brad.

00:52:02.793 --> 00:52:07.340
It's an honor and pleasure and I hope someone gets something from this conversation today.

00:52:14.025 --> 00:52:16.226
Oh, I'm sure that they did, and for all of you, thank you very much and we will see you in the next episode.