Alec Merlino is living a big life, pursuing his dreams, exploring opportunities, pushing his limits in endurance sports, and figuring it out as he goes along.

Having walked away from a full-time career to pursue a life unscripted, we're sure Alec has come upon a moment or two of uncertainty as he creates his life. We dive into it all during this episode.

Alec came into our awareness after moving to Carlsbad, and I believe it was during one of his endurance challenges of which he has done his fair share -  5k a day, Calendar Club Challenge, going for a KOM on Kauai and most recently plunging into an ice cold bath every day of the year. For you Survivor buffs, you may know Alec from Season 37, aired in 2018, and also in the global obsession White Lotus, Season One.

We were so grateful to sit down in person with Alec earlier this month and hope you enjoy his adventurous spirit and unwavering belief in his dreams.

Thank you for joining Jess and BJ for this episode; if you are enjoying this commercial-free content, make your pledge, as little as $5/month, on patreon.com/yogitriathlete today.

In this episode, we discuss:

- Roots of his love for cycling

- Detachment from outcomes

- Craving big challenges

- Why endurance sports?

- Life moments that led to being on Survivor

- KOM love

- The upbringing that shaped his adventurous life

- From panic attacks to riding with full presence

- Lone wolf mentality

- Leaning into fear, doubt, and anxiety to move through it

- Alec's relationship to patience

- The journey of life IS the joy

- Rule of thirds

- Desire to push the mental limits more

Namaste-

Jess