HOW TO STICK AND MOVE IN LIFE – WITH KIDNEY FIGHTER MARC CORONEL
Jon and Bryan speak with the Kidney Fighter, Marc Coronel, about how boxing has helped him overcome his kidney disease and live his best life.
In this episode, Jon and I speak with the Kidney Fighter, Marc Coronel, about his battle with kidney disease and what he learned from nearly losing his life.
Marc was an amateur boxer preparing to turn pro when a routine physical diagnosed him with FSGS. Over the next eight years he would eventually find himself on dialysis and needing a kidney transplant, which he recently received from an unexpected family friend. Marc talks us through the highs and lows of his experience, and all that he learned from it.
We’ve been sharing Jon’s kidney disease story over the past two weeks, but his is far from typical. Marc’s experience is what most people go through, although few have been able to use it to lift up their communities the way Marc has. We are so happy to get to share his story with all of you.
SHOW NOTES
We talk with Marc about boxing, his kidney disease, and the what you learn from nearly losing your life:
Early Life and Intro to Boxing
– Marc was an academically strong student who socially couldn’t get along with other kids, resulting in fighting and altercations
– How Marc was the first test case for the “Scared Straight” program
– The way boxing changed the way he navigated interactions with others and learned to balance himself and his emotions
– The many life lessons he gained from boxing, including his mentality to stick and move, being prepared each and every day, and staying focused on the task at hand
Marc’s Approach to Life
– His father’s experience in the ICU with covid-19 and what he appreciates from that experience
– Why you can’t bring your problems to every situation you’re in
– What it means to get the championship belt in life
– Why so many of us keep digging the holes we are digging and fail to stop a problem in its tracks
– Why what success can’t show you, rock bottom can
– Why your grit needs to be stronger than your passion or your dreams
– His focus on daily prayer and giving back thanks and why we need to keep doing what we did to achieve success once we get what we wished for
– His belief that cause and effect works one way: what you cause in your body affects the world around you, not the other way around
– What his brand LIFESTYLE athletics means to him and what it represents
– The poor thought processes and habits we accept in our lives that lead us to have poor health outcomes, including getting diagnosed for kidney disease
Marc’s Diagnosis and Kidney Disease Experience
– A random physical at 26 years old identified his FSGS despite the fact that he was in prime shape
– Why it is difficult to reconcile the diagnosis when you don’t look, feel, or act sick
– All the questions that challenged him when he was first diagnosed, and how he dug himself into a hole for six months before he refocused on boxing and regained his footing
– The kidney disease forced him to pursue coaching instead of boxing, which led to new avenues for success and helped him to develop into a more well-rounded person
– The experience of fighting kidney disease as a constant battle with himself, not just the medications and bills and other requirements
– How Marc used social media to make people aware of his situation and to find 32 potential donors, which helped him get a transplant 9 years faster than the average
– The lengths his donor went through to donate her kidney, and how strong and committed she was to doing it and seeing it through
– What people don’t know about the process of being a living donor
– How hard it is to deal with kidney disease, dialysis, and transplants, and why it’s essential to care about yourself to get through it
– Jon and Marc’s new motto: “I wasn’t given this disease to die from it. I was given this disease to show other people how to beat it.”
– Why he now feels kidney disease was the best thing that happened to him in his life, because it showed him what he is made of and the impact he can make on his community
– And, finally, what the words Go Be More mean to Marc!
If you liked this episode, check out Jon’s Kidney Disease Story and our interview with Ron Sarmiento.
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Recorded August 17, 2020.
References:
A New Kind of Fight – Huffington Post
Former Boxer Knocks Out Kidney Disease – FoxLA
The Living Donation Process – OrganDonor.gov
Guest:
Marc Coronel – @kidney_fighter, MarcCoronel.com
