How to End the Addiction Cycle & Transform Your Life

Rich Roll

Apr 6, 2026

Episode description

Max Jolliffe is the Moab 240 course record holder, elite ultrarunner, and one of endurance sport's more unlikely origin stories. We discuss his multi-generational family history with addiction, the prescription that started a decade-long spiral, the jail cell that changed everything, the tools of sobriety that became the blueprint for athletic performance, and more. READ MORE👉🏼 http://bit.ly/richroll979
✌🏼🌱 - Rich

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00:00:00 Introduction
00:01:16 Nature of 200+ Mile Races
00:05:03 Personal Background & Family Struggles
00:08:43 First Encounters with Addiction
00:10:03 Opioid Crisis & Transition to Heroin
00:13:13 Family Breakdown & Homelessness
00:17:52 Finding Recovery & Early Sobriety
00:20:26 Suffering, Motivation, and AA
00:23:24 Getting Sober: Jail & AA
00:27:08 Sponsor Break
00:31:01 Willingness & the Nature of Change
00:34:15 Life Transformation & Support Systems
00:35:35 Complicated Relationship with Father
00:37:37 Skate & Surf Culture Upbringing
00:43:50 First Steps into Running
00:48:42 First Marathons & Realizing Talent
00:50:12 Breakthrough Ultra Performances
00:51:53 Running as Emotional Regulation
00:52:44 Transferring Addiction & Balance
00:54:53 Sponsor Break
00:59:15 Sobriety Tools Applied to Running
01:03:43 Learning & Growth in Ultrarunning
01:06:32 Growth of Ultrarunning & Future Trends
01:10:44 Personal Growth & Overcoming Adversity
01:12:20 Reflections on Change & Sobriety
01:16:18 Mindset, Never Quit, and Ego
01:21:09 Imposter Syndrome & Self-Perception
01:25:00 Upcoming Races & Training Focus
01:30:07 Training Routine & Life Post-Corporate Job
01:37:15 Motivation & Love for the Process
01:38:24 Support System & Coaching
01:39:43 Message of Hope & Possibility

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Thanks To The Team: Jason Camiolo, Dan Drake, Morgan McRae, Blake Curtis, Desmond Loh

* * * * *

NEW TO RICH?
Hi I'm Rich Roll. I'm a vegan ultra-endurance athlete, author, podcaster, public speaker & wellness evangelist. But mainly I'm a dad of four. If you want to know more, visit my website or check out these two the NY Times articles:
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Mindsip insights from this episode:

Run by feel, not data, to achieve marathon PR

By setting his watch to only show the time of day and ignoring all other metrics, the speaker ran a marathon PR by focusing on feel rather than data.

#exercise

#training

Use stair climber to transition into running safely

The speaker's entry into running began with hour-long sessions on a stair climber because his ankles, previously broken, were not yet strong enough for running.

#exercise

#running

Leverage pain as motivation for personal growth

The speaker believes that pain and suffering are his biggest motivators in life, a lesson learned from overcoming addiction.

#addiction

#personal-growth

Use ultra-running to reconnect with emotions

An ultra-runner speculates that his draw to extreme endurance sports comes from being so desensitized by past trauma that it's the only way for him to feel anything.

#endurance

#trauma

Leverage sobriety to enhance ultra-running resilience

The mental fortitude for ultra-running is built on the belief that no race will ever be as hard as getting sober and kicking a heroin addiction in jail.

#addiction

#resilience

Utilize Tyvek suit for effective heat training in extreme conditions

To prepare for extreme heat races like Badwater, the speaker performs active heat training by wearing a Tyvek painter's suit while on a stair climber in a hot garage.

#DIY

#exercise

Master sleep strategies for 200-mile races

In the world of 200-mile races, no one has truly cracked the code on the optimal strategy for managing sleep deprivation.

#sleep

ultramarathon

Leverage intense exhaustion to build resilience against irritations

Intense physical exhaustion from training can create a mental 'force field' that makes you more content and resilient to daily irritations, mimicking the relief once sought from drugs.