If you’re a keyboard monkey like me who loves to escape the dark room on weekends and get dirty in the real world, i.e. you consider yourself a “Weekend Warrior,” then you’ll love today’s episode as much as me because this interview blends two of my favorite passions: Creative work and obstacle course racing.
My guest today is Nick Montgomery, a film editor who likes to run around in the mud and lift heavy things up hills for fun. He maintains that his lifestyle balance of pushing creative limits in storytelling with pushing physical limits in the outdoors and in the gym has been key to avoiding total burnout at both.
Having lived most of his life as a world-class couch potato, Nick has experimented with many fitness, nutritional and workplace lifestyle trends to find the ones that work for him. While there is no “right” lifestyle for everyone, he believes that you can realistically achieve many of your goals in life without them interfering with one another, as long as you are honest and mindful of the path you must take.
Nick and I dive deep down the rabbit hole into what it truly takes to prioritize regular exercise and balance it with a demanding day job, and furthermore we chat about the power of mapping out your priorities and living life with intention. No doubt more than you bargained for when listening to two nerds talk about running through the mud, right?
As a special bonus for this episode, if you’re a weekend warrior getting ready for your first obstacle course race like a Spartan Race or Tough Mudder, I’ve put together an OCD-worthy checklist of everything you need to pack for your race. Follow your click to my Spartan Race Checklist.
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Here’s What You’ll Learn:
- The power of mapping out your day and being intentional
- OCR for mental resiliency
- Conserving mental energy to be more creative by planning
- Learning how to fail over and over again
- Developing resiliency to stress
- How to make space for training and how to train efficiently
Useful Resources Mentioned:
Our Generous Sponsors:
This episode is made possible by Ergodriven, the makers of the Topo Mat, my #1 recommendation for anyone interested in moving more at their height-adjustable workstation. Listen, standing desks are only great if you’re standing well, otherwise you’re constantly fighting fatigue and chronic pain. Not like any other anti-fatigue mat, the Topo is scientifically proven to help you move more throughout the day which helps reduce discomfort and also increase your focus and productivity. And they’re really fun and a great conversation starter.
Guest Bio:
Twitter|Instagram
Nick is a film editor who likes to run around in the mud and lift heavy things up hills for fun. When he’s not working feverishly at a desk assembling horror movies and commercials, he is obsessively training in Obstacle Course Racing (OCR). He maintains that his lifestyle balance of pushing creative limits in storytelling with pushing physical limits in the outdoors and in the gym has been key to avoiding total burnout at both.
A self-taught camera operator, vfx artist and (finally) editor, and having lived most of his life as a world-class couch potato, Nick has experimented with many fitness, nutritional and workplace lifestyle trends to find the ones that work for him. While there is no “right” lifestyle for everyone, he believes that you can realistically achieve many of your goals in life without them interfering with one another, as long as you are honest and mindful of the path you must take.
Show Credits:
This episode was edited by Curtis Fritsch, and the show notes were prepared and published by Jakin Rintelman. Special thanks to Krystle Penhall and Sarah Furie for helping to spread the love!
The original music in the opening and closing of the show is courtesy of Joe Trapanese (who is quite possibly one of the most talented composers on the face of the planet).
Note: I believe in 100% transparency, so please note that I receive a small commission if you purchase products from some of the links on this page (at no additional cost to you). Your support is what helps keep this program alive. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
Zack Arnold
Zack Arnold (ACE) is an award-winning Hollywood film editor & producer (Cobra Kai, Empire, Burn Notice, Unsolved, Glee), a documentary director, father of 2, an American Ninja Warrior, and the creator of Optimize Yourself. He believes we all deserve to love what we do for a living...but not at the expense of our health, our relationships, or our sanity. He provides the education, motivation, and inspiration to help ambitious creative professionals DO better and BE better. “Doing” better means learning how to more effectively manage your time and creative energy so you can produce higher quality work in less time. “Being” better means doing all of the above while still prioritizing the most important people and passions in your life…all without burning out in the process. Click to download Zack’s “Ultimate Guide to Optimizing Your Creativity (And Avoiding Burnout).”