We were lucky to catch up with Doug Guthrie recently and have shared our conversation below.

Doug, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Risking taking is a huge part of most people’s story but too often society overlooks those risks and only focuses on where you are today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – it could be a big risk or a small one – but walk us through the backstory.

I had a few coaching clients while I was still in fulltime sales. My daughter convinced me to get Certified through USA Triathlon to more legitimize my coaching business. Before I completed the certification classes I was offered a part time position at the YMCA coaching the Triathlon and running program. The hours of the YMCA program would conflict with my “prime time” sales hours. I knew I could not do both well. I decided to take the part time position and a big pay cut on a leap of faith. The program grew exponentially in the 4 years I was coach. I worked with “couch to” athletes just beginning their triathlon and running journey. I had to develop skills in working with very new people to the sport as well as basic to advanced swim instruction. I would have never had the exposure to this many athletes without taking the position. Unfortunately Covid killed the program but the lessons and skills I learned I use every day in my coaching business.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Like many, I launched my mid life athletic career after a bad medical report. I was running a successful construction business in Florida at 35 years old. I worked 80+ hour weeks in a highly stressful environment. My personal heath suffered. I had terrible eating habits, I drank alcohol every day and I was a heavy smoker. I was forced to make a life changing decision and fortunately I made the right decision. I began taking care of myself and exercising. I fell into the sport of triathlon and 2 years after my first triathlon I completed my first Ironman distance race. I decided that my goal would be to qualify for the Ironman World Championship in Kona Hawaii which is reserved for only the top 1-2% of the world. I trained every day of the year and faced many challenges in my journey. ( years after I set my goal I finally qualified for the World Championship in 2013. Since then I have qualified 6 times for the event and coached many others to fulfill their dream of qualifying for the World Championships. I am able to apply the lessons I learned to new athletes helping them achieve their goals much faster than they would be able to do on their own.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Over the nine years I was training for my first Kona qualification I suffered many setbacks. I tried and failed 3 times to qualify. Qualification is earned by your finish at a qualifying Ironman distance race. Athletes are classified by 4 year age group categories. For instance if you are 40 years old you would compete against all males 40-44 years old. A Kona qualification would be earned by finishing at the top of the age group category, There could be 3 or 4 slots available for 300-400 athletes competing in that age group. I would train all year for a one day (race) past/fail test. I had one shot each year so If I failed I had to wait another year for another opportunity. I failed 3 times and then broke my leg in a bike accident and missed the next year healing. I stayed focused on the goal and they year after I broke my leg I earned my first Kona Qualification

Can you talk to us about how your side-hustle turned into something more.

As my coaching business grew I came to a point where I had to take a leap of faith and become a full time coach. My sales upline and I had a discussion one day. She asked me about my passion for sales and coaching. My passions were in coaching. I did not have enough athlete clients to become a full time coach. She challenged me. Unless I made the commitment to become a full time coach I never would have enough clients. I became a full time coach that day. Since then I have helped numerous athletes reach goals in triathlon and running including many Boston Marathon qualifiers and several Kona qualifiers. Last year I partnered with Adrienne Bunn. Adrienne set a goal to become the youngest finisher at the Ironman world Championships in Kona. She received special entry into the race because Adrienne has Autism. Adrienne and I worked together all summer and on October 12, 2023 she accomplished her goal as the youngest finisher at the World Championships with a time of 12 hours and 41 minutes. I served as her guide on race day. I continue to work with athletes of all backgrounds and abilities across the country helping them achieve their dreams.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.gu3training.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gu3training/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/doug.guthrie.5