We are thrilled to share an incredibly inspiring story on this episode of Health Gig. Chris Nikic is the first athlete in the world with Down Syndrome to complete an Ironman. Chris is joined by his friend and coach Dan Grieb, who is the CEO of Home to Sell Team at Keller Williams and has completed 17 Ironman races himself. Together they discuss making the world a more inclusive place, where they draw their inspiration from, and how they motivate each other. Chris recently authored “1% Better: Reaching My Full Potential and How You Can Too” which will be published on October 5th, 2021. You can preorder it now on amazon here.

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Show Notes

[02:41] They don't treat me special. Instead of treating me special, they allowed me to be gifted.
[5:50] I thought I can't just step away without giving this gift that I've learned a way to someone else. And that's the gift of an Ironman. See, success is not about what you do, it's who you become in the process.
[6:12] Those habits, not only do they sustain you in your training to be an Ironman, but they also make you a good dad. They make you a good husband.
[9:32] Life imitates sports and sports imitates life.
[16:31] For him, he's running a race 100% on trust and friendship with me, because he doesn't know how long it's going to end.
[17:30] After the race, we learned that Chris had fire ants under his timing chip the remainder of the race. So he spent another 12 hours to 13 hours being bit, but his dream was so important to him that fire ants couldn't stop him.
[19:26] Even though he has a disability, he still has the dream, and his dream was big enough and real enough for him that he was willing to do whatever it took to get it. \
[20:27] If we all got in touch with our dreams the same way Chris is in touch with his dreams, we would start accomplishing a lot more in our lives.
[22:15] We did it because we wanted to set the bar high for the next person with Down Syndrome that came behind us.
[25:14] Don't assume that your person with special needs isn't exactly what a typical person like myself needs in my life.
[25:55] I'm hoping that more people with Down Syndrome will offer their gifts to the world instead of worrying about their gift being a burden to the world.
[34:26] Our goal is to continue to raise the bar for people with intellectual disabilities like Chris and to inspire people that have intellectual disabilities, and those who don't, to get 1% better every day.
Thank you for joining us on Health Gig. We loved having you with us. We hope you'll tune in again next week. In the meantime, be sure to like and subscribe to this podcast, and follow us on healthgigpod.com.

“[My parents] don't treat me as ‘special’. Instead of treating me special, they allowed me to be gifted.” - Chris Nikic
"When Chris first started, he came in dead last his first race. Do you know the smile on his face was just as big when he came in dead last as it was when he completed a full Ironman? And it's because his brain and the way he lives his life is different than the rest of us.” - Dan Grieb
“Success is not about what you do. It's who you become in the process." - Dan Grieb

Keywords

#ChrisNikic #DanGrieb #Ironman #DownSyndrome #Disability #Inclusion #Triathlon #Athlete #OnePercentChallenge #Perseverance #Diet #Exercise #Coach #Family #Relationships #Running #Biking #Swimming #Inspiration #Health #Wellness #HealthGig #Pandemic #COVID19 #TriciaReillyKoch #DoroBushKoch

Ep. 126: Your Personal Best with Chris Nikic and Dan Grieb

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Show Notes