Between one and two marathons a day for 19 straight days to cross the state of Texas. That's what Matt Johnson did, and this is what he used to fuel it.
Remember Matt Johnson? The guy who just ran across the entire state of Texas—two marathons a day for 19 straight days?
I watched every single episode.
And here's what nobody tells you about these ultra-endurance events: Day 3 is when everything falls apart.
For Matt Johnson, it was his Achilles. He thought he tore it. His crew thought he was done. They were already planning the PR conversation with all the brands involved about how to handle him dropping out.
But on day 4 or 5, something happened that I still can't fully explain.
Matt was walking through this foggy valley in Texas—literally looks like a Civil War movie, he said—when a brown stallion came running out of the fog from a thousand yards away. Ran right up to the fence, bowed its head, and just waited.
Matt was in misery. Looking at his watch. Thinking he didn't have time for this.
But he remembered the promise he made to his fiancée, Amanda: "No matter what, we will always stop to pet the horses."
So he went down into the grass. Pet this horse. Started sobbing.
Got back on the road and kept moving.
From that moment on—mile 20 that day through the finish 15 days later—the Achilles never slowed him down again. Still had tightness, but the pain that almost ended everything? Gone.
Matt told his crew, "I think God healed me through a horse."
Whether you believe that or not doesn't matter. What matters is that Matt Johnson finished what he started. 891 miles across Texas. Raising $140,000 for veteran mental health.
The Products That Got Him There
Look, I'm not going to pretend the products made Matt tough. He did that himself.
But when you're running 30-50 miles a day for nearly three weeks, the details matter. A lot.
Matt's go-to every single day was what his crew called the "pink drink"—The Feed Lab Hydration in Wild Berry. His exact quote to me: "No bullshit, the best thing I've ever had."
He drank it religiously. Some days it was all day long. Other days when his palate changed, they'd switch to pickle juice and salt tabs. But The Feed Lab Hydration was his foundation.
For solid fuel, Matt would crush half a Styrkr Bar+ in one bite. Yes, half the bar. Then stick the other half back in his belt for later. The 45g carbs plus 15g protein combo kept him going when gels weren't cutting it.
But here's what really moved the needle for Matt's recovery: Dream Shot.
Every single night. Non-negotiable.
His routine: Finish running around 6:00-6:30 PM. Shower immediately. Eat his plate of food (grass-fed ribeye, mashed potatoes with a stick of butter, 4-5 eggs). Take 3mg melatonin with food. Then an hour later, another 3mg melatonin with Dream Shot right before bed.
His sleep scores on his Whoop? Consistently green. Seven and a half to eight and a half hours of deep sleep every night while sleeping in an RV and running two marathons a day.
Matt told me the biggest thing he noticed: "I'm waking up less and I feel like I'm sleeping deeper."
The other two products he never missed: SwissRX Synthesis and Nitric Oxide Pro every morning. He called them non-negotiables because "when you're eating the way you're eating out there for multiple days, you're missing a lot of your micronutrients."
The Lesson Matt Learned
I asked Matt what the most important fueling lesson was from this whole thing.
His answer: "It doesn't matter if you're hungry. It doesn't matter if you don't want to eat. You have to adapt. You will fail if you don't."
He told me about a friend who recently tried running across Utah. On day 2, the guy refused to eat. Matt called him directly: "If you are not going to eat or take in any type of carbs right now, you're done and you might as well just quit."
Harsh? Maybe.
But Matt lived it. He knows what happens when you stop fueling. He watched himself walk the last 50K of Leadville in 2022 because he didn't eat anything after mile 56.
So yeah—adapt or fail. Have multiple options ready. Test everything. And when race day comes, be willing to pivot when your body says no to what worked in training.
Try What Matt Used
If you're training for anything hard—an ultra, an IRONMAN, a brutal training block—these are the products that got Matt Johnson across Texas:
The Feed Lab Hydration (Wild Berry) - His "pink drink" and daily go-to
Styrkr Bar+ - Half a bar in one bite, 45g carbs + 15g protein
Dream Shot - Every night for deep, restorative sleep
SwissRX Synthesis - Morning non-negotiable for recovery
SwissRX Nitric Oxide Pro - Morning boost for endurance
Matt's journey raised $140,000 for veterans who need it. Every gym membership funded through Valor Fit is potentially saving a life.
That's what happens when you refuse to quit. Even when your Achilles is screaming. Even when your crew thinks you're done. Even when everything tells you to stop.
You keep moving forward.
P.S. If you want to watch the full journey, all 19 episodes are up on YouTube. Fair warning—you'll probably cry at least once. I did.
Photo Credits: Nick Daniels and Drew Darby
