Rory Joseph Vannais: Chasing a Unicorn

#69: One day in January 2021, two years into his sobriety, Rory Joseph Vannais (he/him) decided to pick 'running' as his personal fitness challenge for the upcoming year. Although he didn't particularly like running, he knew it would be an arduous task that he could put his best effort towards. Only a few months into 2021, he decided to take it up a notch and train for a race: his first marathon. Although the idea was a terrifying to him, he knew he could do it because he had already done the hardest thing in his life: beaten alcohol addiction. With that experience on his back, Rory knew that physical workouts were just an obstacle, and nothing compared to the challenge of overcoming substance use disorder. Since then he's run three marathons and is training for another three marathons this fall, including the New York Marathon which he is running to fundraise for The Phoenix!

Check out the episode to hear more our conversation with Rory, including:

- How being sober is a dream come true, as he gets to be a present father for his kids and a supportive husband, as well as give 100% to his job and still have time to chase his passions.
- The importance of structure and a disciplined routine in his life, and how it's been incredibly impactful for his mental wellbeing and his recovery.
- Having concrete goals to work towards, and whether he achieves them or not, it keeps him driven.
- Why he's always open about the fact he's in recovery, so other individuals know that it's ok for them to be open too.
- His running crew, and how this makes running so much more special to be able to share it with a community.
- The Phoenix Sober Run Crew, which Rory started in his local community and then brought to The Phoenix national virtual platform with fellow Phoenix runners.
- The beauty in making these connections with sober runners from all over the country who have all experienced substance use disorder, but now embrace recovery and are making something substantial out of it.

Check out Rory's fundraising page for the 2023 New York Marathon if you would like to support him and The Phoenix

Sign up for the Virtual Phoenix Sober Run Crew Meetup on The Phoenix mobile app, or on our website here

Follow Rory on Instagram and Strava

Join the Phoenix community & sign up for classes with a single click by downloading The NewForm app! In the app, you can connect with Liz, Bryce and other listeners in The Rise Recover Live Podcast Group. Let us know what you thought about today's episode, and what you'd like to hear in future shows! We can't wait to chat with you there.

Learn more about The Phoenix, sign up for classes, or become a volunteer at https://thephoenix.org/ .

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