Hi,
Okay, this email is going to be confusing because there are two Matt Johnsons in this story.
There's me—Matt from The Feed, the guy who shows up in your inbox way too often.
And then there's Matt Johnson—U.S. Army veteran, ultra-endurance athlete, and possibly the most relentlessly optimistic human I've ever met. We just signed him as our newest Feed Athlete.
What could be better than double the Matt Johnson?
Here's the thing I've realized about endurance athletes: we all secretly love watching other people suffer. We won't admit it. But when someone announces they're about to do something absolutely insane? We're glued to our screens.
Well, Matt Johnson is about to go through some profound suffering.
Starting this Sunday, he's running the entire state of Texas. Two marathons a day. For three weeks straight.
I'm not trying to sell you anything today. I just want you to follow this epic adventure this month with me. We are bringing you the Texas 1000 on The Feed, and today I want you to sign up for text alerts as each day we are dropping a new video of what's happening.
Go here to support Matt by subscribing to get updates on new videos and also claim a limited edition Matt Johnson Texas 1000 bottle.
How I Found Him
I've been following Matt on Instagram for about a year. His posts kept showing up on my feed—this guy running ridiculous distances with this huge smile, raising money for veterans, posting stuff that made me think "who is this guy and why is he so damn happy about suffering?"
Then I started seeing clips of him training Jelly Roll. Yeah, that Jelly Roll. Out there running with the guy, pushing him through miles.
But what really hooked me? Matt's completely unfiltered. You can feel his suffering come through in every post. He's not polishing it up or making it look easy. When he's hurting, you know it. When it's hard, he says so. That authenticity is rare.
When I got introduced to him a few weeks ago, I jumped at it.
The more we talked, the more his enthusiasm became contagious. He loves doing things that nobody thinks are possible. That energy just pulls you in.
But here's what really got me—where he came from.
The Backstory
Matt's past included some really difficult chapters. The kind where most people would struggle to change their trajectory at all, let alone as dramatically as he did.
He hit rock bottom. I'm not going to go into all the details here—that's his story to tell. But it was bad. The kind of bad where you're not sure if you're going to make it out.
He used fitness and community as tools to rebuild his life from the ground up. Running became central to his recovery. Not just physical recovery—the kind that saves your life.
I related personally so much to this post he had, you can watch it here, “When you fail and bad shit happens you get knocked down you get the fuck up and take another step forward. Because the consistency of taking those steps forwards while get you to where you want to go.” - Matt Johnson.
What He's Doing Now
Last year, Matt became the fastest person to ever run across Texas—841 miles in 17 days. That's averaging 50 miles per day.
Now he's back to run it again. This time, raising money and awareness for veteran mental health and suicide prevention.
Every mile he runs, he's thinking about the veterans who are struggling right now. The ones who need someone to show them there's another way forward.
Why We're Supporting Him
At The Feed, we're drawn to these kinds of stories. The messy ones. The ones about failing hard, getting back up, and refusing to quit.
Matt's not some genetic freak who was born to run ultra distances. He built himself into this person through sheer force of will. And now he's using that platform to help other veterans find their way.
That's the kind of athlete we want to support.
Follow Along
Starting Sunday, Matt's going to be posting updates from the road. Two marathons a day in Texas heat for three weeks—there will be suffering. There will be moments where he questions everything. And there will be moments that remind you why we do this crazy shit in the first place.
That's why we are also bringing you the Texas 1000 every day on The Feed from the start to the end. Go here to subscribe to updates and watch the daily updates. Also grab the Texas 1000 limited edition bottle. Join me in watching everyday.
I don't know about you, but I'm rooting for this guy.
- Matt
Founder
The Feed.
P.S. If you see a Matt Johnson running through Texas and you're not sure which one it is—it's the one who's actually suffering and not sitting at a desk writing emails.
