From Track Star To Ninja Warrior

James Wilson, 33, has always been a gifted athlete. Now he is the Nati Ninja.

At LaSalle High School and in college, he was a star running back in football – among the top 100 in the country. In track, his times running the 100-meter dash, 400-meter relay and 200-meter dash were among the nation’s fastest (10.62 seconds in the 100- meter).After college, he’s run spartan races and mud runs.

Sitting in front of his television with a buddy, eating Papa John’s, watching season five of American Ninja Warrior (ANW), how could he not be thinking, ‘hey, I can do that.’?

But, he has said, “I ate like crap. I was just an athlete thinking, I can do what those people are doing.”

The Road To ANW

To be a Ninja, it takes a lot more than track speed. Those treacherous courses require almost non-human strength, timing, reflexes, coordination. Still, he was determined. He had a body built for elite competitions. He knew how to train.

James built makeshift obstacles in his parents’ backyard. He began taking to athletes who were Ninjas. He sent in a video submission. AND he got selected for ANW season six (2014) in St. Louis.

That first year he cruised through the course – until his long hair touched the water upon landing low on the cargo net from a jump.

Still, he was determined. He has been in six ANWs since then – the most recent was filmed here in Cincinnati. He was selected from a pool of thousands to be among the 101 competitors. Last season he finished among the top 17 of that region. In Cincinnati, he placed 32^nd.

Training Future Ninjas

More commonly these days you can find James, who has a master’s degree in exercise science, as fitness specialist/personal trainer at the TriHealth Fitness Pavilion or training at or training others at his very own gym – the only official ANW gym in this area.

The Nati Ninja Gym in Blue Ash is open to everyone of all levels of fitness and all ages. It is a place to play and train and live out your Ninja dreams. It is a place where you can hold birthday parties or celebrate other occasions. There are the same kinds of obstacles you would face in the real competition.

And by the way, eight people from James’ gym have been selected for ANW.

As for James’ future on ANW…

“I am in my prime now and this may be my best year on the course,” James said.

Question to James:  What brings out your smile every day?
James: When I go to the gym and the kids want to take their picture with me, I think that is so cool. I take it in and enjoy every moment. At the end of the day though, I am changing lives. I see kids who come to my gym burying their faces in their closes and then transform into these intense athletes. It’s great.

Question: Who is someone who has inspired you?
James: My wife Caitlin, definitely. She, herself, was training for ANW when she had to drop out of contention in 2015 with an Multiple Sclerosis diagnosis. She has the progressive kind of MS but she is young and is fighting it every day. She is my biggest support. She helps me run my gym and has been to every Ninja event. There is no quitting in her.

As to James advice on achieving, he had this to say, “Everybody fails. Without failure, there is no growth. You learn from every experience. Keep pushing.”