Overcoming Limitations with Jessper Maquindang: From Asthma to Ultra Marathons, From Low Expectations to High Achievements.

“What got you here, won’t get you there.” ~ Jessper Maquindang

About Our Guest:

With over a decade of experience as a Company Culture, Employee Engagement, and Team-Building Consultant, Jessper Maquindang has mastered transforming workplace environments. Graduating from the University of Southern California with an Executive Master’s Degree in Leadership, his holistic, data-driven approach addresses unique challenges. He’s received Santa Clarita Valley’s “40 Under Forty” award for leadership contributions and served on JCI USA’s executive board, mentoring young leaders. Jessper’s achievements include enhancing engagement, facilitating impactful retreats, and providing executive coaching. Beyond his professional pursuits, he’s an avid marathon trainer, business book reader, and traveler. His commitment extends to voluntary work with the American Red Cross, building resilient communities.

SHOW NOTES & LINKS: 

• Website: https://www.famileadconsulting.com/

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CORE THEMES, KEYWORDS, & MENTIONS:

• resilience, ultra marathon runner, high expectations, low expectations, Asthma, marathon runners, 26.2 miles, setting goals, limitations, overcoming limitations, training, full marathon, San Diego Marathon, beating Asthma, overcoming Asthma, consistent effort, achieving your goals, trail race, team building, team leadership, company culture, adaptability

For more Remarkable Episodes, Inspiration, and Motivation, please visit https://davidpasqualone.com/

Transcript

Overcoming Limitations with Jessper Maquindang: From Asthma to Ultra Marathons, From Low Expectations to High Achievements.

David Pasqualone: Hello, friend. Welcome to this week's episode, the Remarkable People Podcast with our friend Jessper Maquindang. Jesper has had a history of asthma. He was 20 years old and decided to stop, not stop his life, but stop. Being limited. He went ahead and started training for not only a marathon, but now years later.

He's an ultra marathon competitor and he has taken this and he shows people how it parallels in all areas of our lives, whether it's our personal, or the workplace. So he talks about low expectations. He talks about high expectations. He talks about how we can achieve not only our dreams, but things we never thought possible.

And he reverse engineers the success he had into practical steps. So you and I can [00:01:00] also hopefully emulate that same success and more. So at this time, check out the Remarkable People podcast with our friend Jessper.

Welcome to the Remarkable People Podcast: The Remarkable People Podcast, check it out,

the Remarkable People Podcast. Listen, do Repeat for Life,

the Remarkable People Podcast.

David Pasqualone: Hey Jessper. How are you today?

Jessper Maquindang: David? I'm doing well. Thank you for having me. How are you man?

David Pasqualone: I'm fantastic. Remarkable even. So I just spent a couple minutes telling our listeners and friends across the world, a small piece about you and what to [00:02:00] expect in this episode. So before we begin and get into your life story and what you're passionate about and what you're going to help our listeners with today, if you were to guarantee our community one truth, one powerful practice that you're going to share with them that if they apply their lives, they're going to be a better human.

What would that be today? 

I would say it's a message of resilience. If you stay focused on what you're trying to achieve and you don't, there are many things that will slow us down, but if you keep going, if you keep pushing, you'll eventually reach what you strive out to do. 

I agree completely. The Bible does Old Testament new.

It says the just man falls seven times, but rises up again. So if we just keep being resilient, we keep being consistent, we will fulfill our calling. So ladies and gentlemen, we are going to learn all about Jessper. We're going to take a short commercial break and we'll be right back.

David Pasqualone: Hello, [00:03:00] friend, what can we tell you in 60 seconds? A lot. We can tell you that God loves you. We can tell you that we love you. We hope you enjoy this episode of the podcast. Please share it with your friends and family. Also, you gotta have sheets, you gotta have blankets, you gotta have pillows. Why not have the best and save a ton of money for your family?

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David Pasqualone: All [00:04:00] right, ladies and gentlemen, we are back here and my friend, tell us about your origins. Where are you from? Where did your life begin? You know everything that happens to us, good, bad, ugly, pretty and pretty ugly. It makes us the men we are today.

So where did your life begin? 

Jessper Maquindang: Absolutely. Now for me, growing up with asthma and becoming an ultra marathon runner, that's my story. When growing up, I believe I started experiencing symptoms of asthma around second grade. And when other people realize you have these limitations, they start to hold lower expectations of you.

And when they hold lower expectations people. People start to that potential you have on you, it's, it's not the same. So growing up, growing with asthma, there's, you hear the stories of that kid who stays indoors, they look out the window, see all the other kids [00:05:00] having fun. They're playing, they're playing soccer, they're running around.

But you see that kid stuck inside just looking out, wishing what could have been growing up, I didn't want that story to define me. As I was growing up, I was defined by major goals, and I happened to see those accomplishments by marathon runners. And one day, one day I told myself, Jessper, I'm going to run a marathon.

I'm going to run 26.2 miles. And at the, at the time I, I was just inspired, but people ask me why I set that goal and it's directly relevant. Two my limitations growing up with asthma. I wanted to show that it was possible, and then growing up, I took it step by step. Of course, I wasn't going to run 26.2 miles overnight.

What I did was the first day, put my training shoes on the second day, put my training shoes on, and [00:06:00] then taking a few steps. Third day, put my training shoes on, take a few more steps, and the fourth day, put my shoes on, take a few more steps, and so on and so on. And it was to a point while I was training, signed up for my first 5K and of course I was nervous because it was my first official race, but I'm glad I did it.

And reset, finish line afterward. Kept training and signed up for my first 10 k. Then of course the challenge was growing, but I'm glad I signed up and reached the finish line and then did more training and reached my first half marathon, and then did that. And of course, the challenge kept growing.

But then when it came time to sign up for my first full marathon I was very nervous because this was the first time I was running 26.2 miles. Major goal for myself. Major goal for many people. But I kept on training and it was about October, 2014, I signed up [00:07:00] for the San Diego Rock and Roll Marathon as my first one.

It just sounded really cool. Rock and roll Marathon the way it's designed, you have bands, different bands playing music at every mile, and I just remember San Diego, it was a cold morning, it was 7:00 AM. These races start pretty early. And I am just looking out into the distance from the starting line thinking to myself, very nervous.

What what did I just sign up for? This is, this is making me nervous, but I just remember telling myself at the starting line. I put in so much time and effort to get this far. It's too late to turn back. And when that starting bell rang at the starting line for everyone to go, you know, I just remember starting to take my first steps.

Going through the early parts of the trail, again, looking up in the distance, still feeling nervous because this is the first time I'm running a full marathon. And of course, just over time when you put more miles into your legs, you start to feel a little bit more of that pain and [00:08:00] pressure mile 10, mile 11, mile 12.

You can just feel more pressure in your legs. But I just remember telling myself, Jessper, trust your training. You did put in a lot of ti time and effort to get this far. Then of course when you put more miles mile 19, mile 20, mile 21 I just remember my legs just tightening up so much. It was, it was getting pa painful.

I could feel the pressure. There's a quote from Martin Luther King Jr. That reminds me of just overcoming obstacles. I don't remember the exact quote, but I'll paraphrase it. If you can't run walk, if you can't walk, crawl, I don't recommend crawling at a marathon. But metaphorically keep going.

And that's exactly what I did. I just remember the close to the final miles, mile 23, 24 so much pressure on my legs, but again, told myself to trust my training, put in so much time and effort. And then when I finally hit the finish line at 26.2 miles, [00:09:00] that sense of joy. It just felt really good to finally cross that finish line.

So it's a story of just resilience. A lot of obstacles coming your way, but if you keep pushing yourself you can achieve what you set out to do. 

David Pasqualone: Yeah, I, that's amazing and a beautiful truth, and it's awesome that you get to do that. So, how old were you from that initial putting on the pair of shoes to when you ran this, the San Diego Marathon?

Jessper Maquindang: So it was in my twenties is when I finally decided to take steps to achieving that goal. 

David Pasqualone: Okay. And then how many years was it before you were running that marathon? 

Jessper Maquindang: Oh, it was, I would say took me about a year to train. So again, getting those steps in, into the 5K, 10 k half, and then the fall. So give myself a year of training.

David Pasqualone: How did you, first off, where were you from? Where, like where were you living? Were you in California at the time or did you 

Jessper Maquindang: travel? 

David Pasqualone: Yes, 

Jessper Maquindang: so for me it was in, I was in [00:10:00] California, so born and raised in California. 

David Pasqualone: Okay, so you just drove down to San Diego, which is beautiful. And then when you were training.

How did having asthma at that point, and you know, doctors your whole life tell, you'd never be able to do that. How did you overcome the asthma and make your body adjust and learn a better way? 

Jessper Maquindang: That's right. It's that consistent training because the first few days, yes, I could feel the pressure in my chest.

And in addition to that, just the pressure in my legs the, I was really getting into a new activity. But over time, when you take the steps. Do it consistently. And not to put way too much pressure on yourself, but to find something that fits you. But doing it over time I started to get used to that.

Of course in the big races, you could still, I could still feel my the pressure on my lungs. But again, it's not about putting all that pressure on yourself. It's about reaching a level that [00:11:00] feels comfortable enough for you, but to keep it consistent and keep going. 

David Pasqualone: And then were there any breathing exercises or any medical like hacks I guess, that help you adjust to the 26 miles hard for anybody to do, let alone somebody who's had asthma for 20 years.

So is there anything like breath exercises or holding or just get your ass out there and run? 

Jessper Maquindang: That's right. That's an excellent question. I remember with another marathon that I was running. I was following a pacer, and those are the people who keep you on track for a certain period of time that you're trying to achieve.

And I remember in the middle of the race the pacer looked at me and he said, Hey, you're breathing weird. And I realized I was breathing too fast. And over the, you know, a couple more steps, he was telling me slow down. Slow your breath. Take a deep breath. Don't put too much pressure in breathing.

Just slow down. And just upon hearing [00:12:00] that I just adapted my breathing style to really slow it down. And not to put too much pressure on myself, but that is something that I had to think about as I was out in the trail. 

David Pasqualone: Nice. Very good. So. Talk about your life from the San Diego Marathon to today.

Where have you been and where are you headed next? 

Jessper Maquindang: Absolutely. So for me, I have accomp since then, I have accomplished about 16 marathons. I, I mean, after the first couple of marathons, I, I just remember telling myself, wow, this is. This is a lot. This is painful. I mean, even during the race, I just remember the pain and the pressure.

But when you, when you go online and you see another cool marathon coming up, I, I just realized, oh, I wanna ch I, I just have to try that again. But then again, I do want to challenge myself. And then over time I signed up for various marathons especially ones that are out of state. I've [00:13:00] ran in Alaska, I've ran in Hawaii, so it's just given me an opportunity to travel and seeing the world in a different way.

And upon running these marathons, it's not just about the running itself, but it's about the values that it has taught me, especially when it comes to that message of resilience. Overcoming obstacles, reminding myself that when I push. Through these challenges push to that wall and overcome them.

It reminds me that yes, things are possible when you put in the time and effort and you put in the consistency, that consistent effort. And when you continue to really push yourself in moving forward you can achieve what you're. What you set your, what you set yourself up to the goal is you're attempting to accomplish.

David Pasqualone: Yeah. And talk about that. When you were a kid, did you run [00:14:00] around and play with the other kids and just have to stop sometimes? Or did you limit your, were you limited to, I can't even try that. Like what was your upbringing like? 

Jessper Maquindang: Absolutely. So playing with kids I mean, many times I wouldn't put too much pressure because I knew I had asthma.

I didn't want to put that stress on my lungs, but I would still play around. At the same time, just my family. I remember my parents telling me now that I have asthma stay indoors stay away from pollen, stay from, stay away from dust. Stay away from dog for essentially it's a dangerous world out there.

So I just remember growing up with these conditions and I didn't really feel comfortable just with those types of things defining me. And then over time, again just looking for new goals and ways to challenge myself I knew that I could overcome these limitations that were set upon me and limitations that I've set upon within myself.[00:15:00] 

David Pasqualone: I think that's awesome. Essentially, you went from your family saying, stay away to run j Jesper. Run. Right? It was like, go, go. And to do a marathon is intense for anybody as, and you did several and now you're into ultra-marathons. Describe to our audience who aren't familiar what an ultra-marathon is. 

Jessper Maquindang: Yes.

So an ounce ultra marathon is anything above the standard 26.2 mile marathon. Marker. So for me, I've done two 50 K ultra marathons, which translates to about 31 miles. And I just remember signing up for my first one. Of course, I was absolutely nervous because marathons in and of themselves are already a lot.

But ISI was inspired by the challenge. I signed up for my first one which was a trail race. And fortunately it was near my neighborhood, so it was easy to get to. And I just remember getting up really early thinking to myself, [00:16:00] okay, I've done, I, I feel like I've done enough marathons. Should, would this be a piece of cake?

But again once you're actually on trail you feel the that pressure on your legs and there were many hills that were spread across the entire course. I mean, it's a great metaphor that these obstacles that come in your way keep pushing yourself forward and you'll get over them and get through them as long as you put in that effort.

David Pasqualone: Beautiful. Now, where are you today, Jessper? Where are you headed next? 

Jessper Maquindang: Absolutely. So for me, especially with the lessons I've learned, what I do is I help leaders build stronger teams, and I take. What I've learned from running those marathons and ultra marathons and applying it within what they can do to really build a stronger team, a more effective company culture.

And a lot of that has to do with being adaptable, [00:17:00] especially in today's fast-paced world, because when we look at the rate of change, it's always been moving fast, but. We can see that it continues to move at a faster and faster pace. So when I'm working with leaders really encouraging them to look at their options, look, work with their team, and see what they can do to really adapt to move in this fast paced world.

Another is that sense of resilience. There will be many challenges, but when they work closely with their team and seeing what. Is working and what's not working, and taking what works and multiplying it that can really move them forward. And another is that sense of change because when we look at the decisions that leaders make, sometimes, again, similar to adaptability they have to make decisions that are different from the original path they took just because the world is moving at a fast pace.

Again, just taking different values. From what I've [00:18:00] learned in running marathons, I apply that in helping leaders grow and succeed in building more effective teams. 

David Pasqualone: Now, and like you said, not everybody might be interested in running a marathon. However, those same principles, those same just core life values, they overlap in everything and they're the same, you know, a shed, a house and a mansion.

They're different scale, but it's the same building construction. You gotta let the foundation first. You know, there's an order to it. So if you were talking to somebody right now and they're afraid to get outta their comfort zone personally or professionally, it doesn't matter if it is running they're first 5K, it doesn't matter if it's starting that new business.

What advice, like steps, and it's different for everybody, but what are some foundational steps or paradigm outlook changes that you'd advise them to ask questions [00:19:00] to ask themselves or things to try to get moving forward with something different to challenge their life? 

Jessper Maquindang: Absolutely. So I would share three things.

The first thing is what got you here won't get you there. It's a certain mindset that God is here. And using that same mindset will keep us in that same path. The second thing I would share, and I typically share this when I talk about company culture and the six most dangerous words in any organization or business is we've always done it that way.

We've always done it that way. The six most dangerous words in any organization. And the third part is if we're going to continue holding ourselves to low expectations we're going to stay at those low, low expectations. Like that saying goes shoot for the moon. Even if you miss you'll fall upon the stars.

It's the same thing when we're trying to reach new goals in our lives. We don't want us hold ourselves to our low [00:20:00] limitations or anything that defines us to those low standards. We want to look ahead and see what's possible. Because again, when we see what we can do and what we see, what we're capable of, it's a really we're really opening up the doors to reaching for a new level of greatness.

David Pasqualone: I love it. I love it. So if somebody wanted to continue the conversation, what's the best way for them to get ahold of you? 

Jessper Maquindang: Absolutely. You can find me on my website@familyconsulting.com, or you can reach me on LinkedIn. Search for Jesper MCing, lift off conversations about leadership development, team building, company culture, personal growth, professional development.

Just love to have those conversations. 

David Pasqualone: Awesome, Jessper. Awesome. Thank you for your time today. Before we wrap up this episode, ladies and gentlemen, go to the show notes, check out Jessper's website, check out his links to social media. Continue the conversation by [00:21:00] reaching out to him. If he or I can help you, we absolutely will.

And don't forget to share this, your friends and family. Not so we can get more listeners, but so we can help more people. And Jessper, before we go, do you have any final thoughts or anything else that you just feel led to share with our audience? 

Jessper Maquindang: Absolutely. There's a quote from John Maxwell that I'm so inspired by, and I wanna share this with everyone.

And John Maxwell has said, when you help people grow and develop, it brings a sense of. Great joy and satisfaction and that's what I encourage people to do, help other people because that sense of joy and satisfaction will return to you. 

David Pasqualone: Beautiful. Well, thank you for taking your time to share your insights with us.

I think it's truly Remarkable that someone with asthma, you know, medical science isn't all it's cut out to be. Right. It used to be a practice with humility and now it's a profession with arrogance. So you showed the doctors that only God can limit you and he won't [00:22:00] do that. So it's been fantastic having you on the show.

Thank you again, my friend. 

Jessper Maquindang: Thank you, David. Great to be with you. 

David Pasqualone: Absolutely. Ladies and gentlemen, like our slogan says, don't just listen to the great advice Japer gave us. But do it. Repeat it each day consistently like you discussed, so you can have a great life in this world, but more importantly to attorney to come.

So I'm David Pasqualone Malone. This was our Remarkable friend, Jessper, and we'll see you in the next episode. Ciao. 

Welcome to the Remarkable People Podcast: The Remarkable People Podcast, check it out,

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