CLIFcast

At Clif, the health of our planet is incredibly important to us–and so is the health of our Clifsters. With Bike for Power, a special one-of-a-kind project at the Clif gym, we found a way to take care of our planet and our people at the same time! When employees pedal our spin bikes, they generate power back to the electrical grid. Joe Phillips and Lauren Kanouse, the two Clifsters who spearheaded this pedal power project, told us they hope to generate enough electricity to support a three bedroom, two bath house for 10 days! Take a listen...

The Boston Marathon is one of those items you find on bucket lists: It’s a dream come true for many, and regardless of how it all turns out, it’s an amazing experience. As you will hear on this ClifCast, it’s like running through a parade. The enthusiasm of the crowd is both exciting and deeply touching. Here, we speak with a handful of runners on how they train, what they eat and their best advice is for the big day.

When food analyst turned activist Robyn O’Brien was feeding breakfast to her four kids, one of them had a severe allergic reaction which caused her alarm. She went on a mission to better understand our food system and, in so doing, discovered she wanted to fix it. Called “food’s Erin Brockovich,” we spoke with O’Brien about the current and evolving state of food manufacturing in the US and her role in bringing awareness and change to it. We also hear from Matthew Dillon whose own experience with the food system has been an inspiration to Robyn and her movement.  

We discuss the latest USDA Dietary Guidelines to understand their implications for us as athletes and active people.

Clif Bar Pace Team Leaders, Darris and Star Blackford, provide advice on how best to tackle the challenges of the Boston Marathon course – and make that run down Boylston truly triumphant!

Team Clif Bar athlete Ian MacNairn visits us from his home in Canada and talks about the different ultra-running races he’s done, how he manages his nutrition as a diabetic and what he hopes to pass on to the next generation.

Many people run to clear their mind and improve their mood. We know that physical activity has a positive effect on mood, studies show this. But how does food affect our mood? In this episode we explore how running and eating changes the way we feel and highlight some great mood boosting foods.

University of Toronto PhD candidate Nanci Guest talks about her research on the effects of gene-nutrient interactions (nutrigenomics) on athletic performance. According to Nanci, much of how our body reacts to certain nutrients is due to our genetic composition. By understanding our individual genetic composition we can figure out what best to eat, when, how much and why. In this episode, she shares what she has learned in her research and tells some true stories of how she has seen athletes improve their performance based on their nutrigenomics.