Episode Overview

Title: Adaptive World Champion Francis Loye Talks Fitness Competitions with MS
Podcast: Living Well with Multiple Sclerosis (Overcoming MS, S7E25)
Date: December 2, 2025
Host: Geoff Allix
Guest: Francis Loye – Endurance athlete, proud dad of three, and 2025 Neuro Minor Hyrox World Champion in the first adaptive division

In this inspiring episode, Francis Loye shares his transformative journey with multiple sclerosis (MS), moving from shock and fear after his diagnosis to becoming an adaptive athletic world champion. The discussion goes beyond athletic achievements, delving into mindset, resilience, the vital power of community, and practical lifestyle adaptations using the Overcoming MS (OMS) approach. Listeners get a candid look at Francis’s daily life, training regimen, diet, handling family matters, and what it means to thrive and compete with MS.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Francis’s Diagnosis and Early Challenges

• Diagnosis Story: Francis recounts his first MS symptoms during a cycling trip in Mallorca at age 41: “What I described as my arms ghosted me...a real frightening experience” [01:35].
• Went through “fear for my future...shame around being sick...and guilt around the impact it would have on my family” [02:25]. These emotions ultimately became his “fuel for change.”
• Francis noticed a possible relation between symptom escalation and the COVID booster, though he never had COVID itself [03:23].
• Early symptoms included cog fog (cognitive difficulties), pins and needles, and numbness.

2. Finding the Overcoming MS Program and Building Community

• Discovery of OMS: Found the program just before meeting his neurologist, after “avidly searching for hope” [04:30].
• OMS stood out for not pushing products/supplements and aligning with Francis’s values: “It was really empowering...what really moved me was the generosity of the community” [05:10].
• Early support from OMS members like Alex and Gabriel was pivotal when he was “really, really vulnerable.”
• Ongoing focus on paying it forward to others in the community: “As a community, we get each other and we’re here to sort of lift each other up” [05:57].

3. The Power of MS Community Support

• Only people with MS truly “get it”: “I don’t think anyone gets it unless you’ve got MS, including your neurologist...other people with MS understand straight away” [06:21].
• Francis emphasizes the hidden gem of OMS is the sense of community—people who “understand the journey you’re on...and encourage each other” [06:35].
• Built international friendships and maintains ongoing support networks.

4. Adapting Lifestyle: Diet, Exercise, and Mindset

• Diet and exercise pillars were relatively easy to adapt due to prior healthy habits; biggest shifts were eliminating dairy and meat [07:33].
• Most challenging: “The hardest pillar was the emotional side of things...managing stress and staying grounded” [07:44].
• Drew from Joe Dispenza’s work to reframe the MS journey—not as a battle, but a quest for balance: “For me, it’s trying to find equilibrium...and channeling that into our sense of purpose” [08:22].
• On mental fitness: “It’s your mind—you have to work on that, it’s not something that comes naturally” [08:57].

5. Family Life and MS

• Vitamin D supplementation for kids, less processed food at home—though, “We’re not perfect” [10:21].
• Uses sports and competition as a way to talk about MS with his children: “What speaks louder than anything is your actions...by a dad living well, training hard, showing up every day” [11:11].
• Personal motivator: Son Jack’s request to bring home a trophy for school show-and-tell helped push him during races [11:37].
• Openness evolved over time: Only recently started talking with his kids about his treatments.

6. Attending an OMS Retreat

• Felt nervous attending, but found it “really powerful”—connecting in vulnerability and honesty [12:40].
• Key takeaway: “It was just full of compassion for one another...people who shared that journey” [13:40].
• Built friendships (notably with Ross, his ongoing gym accountability partner) and expanded his support network.

7. What is an Adaptive Hybrid Athlete?

• Hybrid athlete: Someone who trains in both endurance and strength (functional) disciplines [15:04].
• Adaptive divisions accommodate neurological conditions with categories (Neuro Minor/Major) and adjustments to race lengths, weights, and more [15:50].
• Describes the inspiring adaptive athlete community, including athletes with visual impairments and amputees.

8. Training Regimen and MS Management

• Prefers training daily: “It’s harder to take a day off than it is to go to the gym” [18:15].
• Athletic history in triathlons and Ironman events provided strong endurance base.
• Notable race: Mallorca 312km–a personal milestone and closure after experiencing first MS symptoms there [19:45].
• Hyrox competitions required renewed focus on running and balance training to manage left-side weakness [20:45].
• Emphasizes sleep and active recovery (like weekend sea and sauna dips) [21:30].
• “I always feel better after I train. Sometimes you wake up...don’t want to do it—but by the time I finish, I come out refreshed” [21:30].

9. Triumph at the Hyrox World Championships

• Overview: First year for adaptive division, tough qualification process—only three per category globally [21:57].
• Time-zone and jet lag challenges; competition at 11pm UK time.
• Power of international adaptive athletic community—parade of nations, friendships, and cross-encouragement [23:07].
• Sport became Francis’s means for communicating about MS, breaking down his earlier reluctance to disclose his diagnosis [24:00].

  “You have a duty to communicate this...to give other people hope about what’s possible” – Advice Francis received from another athlete [24:40].

• Wants to serve as an example of living well with MS for newly diagnosed people.

10. Diet for High-Performance with MS

• Eats lots of fish, egg whites, plant-based protein (uses Form protein powder) [25:44].
• Worked with a nutritionist to ensure enough carbs/protein to fuel both performance and recovery.
• Adheres to OMS principles: Minimizing processed foods, focusing on whole foods, supplementing protein as needed [26:44].

11. Advice to the Recently Diagnosed and Newcomers to OMS

• Top tip: “Make peace with it as soon as you can...I fully understand that can be really, really difficult at the start because it can feel all-consuming” [27:04].
• Managing mindset as a muscle that must be trained—“anything negative was fueling my MS, and I wasn’t going to let that happen” [27:36].
• Favorite quote:

  “It’s not the cards you’re dealt, but how you play them that really counts” [28:00].

• Encourages finding your “tribe”—use OMS to network, form friendships, and draw strength from shared community.

Notable Quotes and Memorable Moments

• On Emotions at Diagnosis:
  “I recall the three main emotions I had—fear for my future...shame...guilt around the impact it would have on my family. But those feelings became my fuel for change.” – Francis Loye [02:25]

• On OMS Program:
  “OMS was something that didn’t push supplements, didn’t push products...it aligned to my values, especially around lifestyle and mindset.” – Francis Loye [05:10]

• On the Power of Community:
  “The biggest hidden gem of OMS is that power of community...People who get each other, if you have a bad day, you can ping them a message.” – Francis Loye [06:35]

• On Mindset:
  “For me, it’s trying to find that equilibrium...just reflecting, maybe that was my body’s way of saying no at a time in my life where I needed to readjust.” – Francis Loye [08:22]

• On Family Motivation:
  “I remember Jack, my youngest boy, wanted Daddy to come home with the trophy for show and tell...that was my motivator going round the course at the dark times.” – Francis Loye [11:37]

• On Triumph and Purpose:
  “Sport has given me the medium to communicate what this journey has been like for me, which I would have found really difficult before.” – Francis Loye [24:25]

• Advice to the Newly Diagnosed:
  “Don’t let it define who you are...You are more than two letters. Find your tribe.” – Francis Loye [28:28]

Timestamps for Important Segments

• [01:35] – Francis’s diagnosis, initial fears, and emotional impact
• [04:30] – Discovering Overcoming MS and early community support
• [06:21] – On the unique understanding within the MS community
• [07:33] – Adapting diet, exercise, and especially emotional health
• [10:21] – Approaching family health, talking to children about MS
• [12:40] – OMS retreat experience and community impact
• [15:04] – Adaptive hybrid athletics explained; categories and community
• [18:15] – Francis’s training regimen, recovery, and maintaining motivation
• [21:57] – Qualifying for and winning at the Hyrox World Championships in Chicago
• [25:44] – Diet strategies for athletic performance with MS
• [27:04] – Key advice for people newly diagnosed or starting OMS

Summary

This episode with world champion Francis Loye offers an uplifting, practical, and deeply human look at living—and excelling—with multiple sclerosis. Francis’s journey from diagnosis to competitive success demonstrates how lifestyle, attitude, and community can transform fear and uncertainty into hope and achievement. His actionable advice, relatable anecdotes, and honesty will resonate with anyone facing MS, whether they’re newly diagnosed, athletic, or simply striving to live well.