Every runner has a starting line that didn't look like a starting line. For Lilia Martinez, hers looked like a dance floor. Ballet first, then tap, then jazz, the thing that finally stuck because it gave her room to move without a script. Running wasn't the plan. It showed up later, the way a lot of meaningful things do, in the form of a New Year's resolution with roommates and a half marathon she signed up for without fully understanding what she'd agreed to.

That's basically the whole theme of this one. Saying yes before you feel ready. Lilia talks about training through the Nike Run Club app, learning the sport from scratch with a coach on the other side of a screen in Mexico, and slowly building the kind of belief that doesn't stay contained to running. That belief turned outward into El Barrio Running, the community she co-founded in New York City two years ago that's grown from six runners to fifty showing up most Saturdays.

We get into structure versus freedom, dancer versus runner, and the imposter syndrome that convinces so many people to add a qualifier to their own accomplishments. I run, but I'm slow. I run, but I've never done a marathon. Lilia's answer to all of it: maybe the run doesn't need a qualifier. Maybe showing up is the whole point.

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INTRODUCING: The After Dark Tour Series, Embracing The Starting Line With Emily Abbate

Every run is a new version of you. That's the thing nobody tells you when you're standing there in your first pair of running shoes, wondering if you're allowed to call yourself a runner yet. You are. You already are. You were the moment you decided to lace up, not the moment someone else decided you'd earned it.

In the first episode of our After Dark Tour series, I’m sitting down with Emily Abbate from the Hurdle podcast. Emily started running in 2008 the way a lot of us do, hoping to improve her health, and ended up gaining so much more — self confidence, happiness, and a new passion. We talk about the difference between running for a goal and running for your soul, why community is the thing she wishes she'd trusted sooner, and why a hilly and humid course in LA turned into one of her favorite race memories ever.

We also get into what I think coaching actually is. Spoiler: it's not building something that wasn't there. It's uncovering something that already was. If you're new to the sport, or new to After Dark Tour, or just need a reminder of why you started, this one's for you.

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Episode 150. Come Back

It's not about being away. It's about coming back. Could be about coming back to running or the team or racing or coming back to record another podcast after a few weeks away. This episode is all about making sure that if and when you decide to come back you come back as best as you can and coming back as best as you can means doing... well, you're going to need to listen to the episode to find out what exactly you need to do to come back as best as you can. 

Cheers and thank you for listening!

And extra thank you for checking out (and following) the new accounts for Coach Bennett's Book found below.

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Episode 149. Lessons From The Road

I've been on the road a lot lately. I was in Berlin. I was in Washington, DC. I was in Boston. I was in London. I was in Copenhagen. I was in Amsterdam. I was in New Jersey. I'm in Chicago. And I'll be in Bolder in just a few days. Explains why this episode is being dropped a few days later than usual. Also explains my inability to fall asleep when it's time for bed. But all this travel also inspired this episode. Because all this travel has inspired me. Actually, it's not the travel. It's all of you that I've met and spoken to and hugged and cheered on that inspired me. It's your stories and your running that has inspired me. So, I'm sharing what I saw and what I heard. I'm sharing what I learned. I'm sharing lessons from the road. 

Cheers,
Coach Bennett

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Want to pre-order a signed copy of my book? Click here and order your copy of This Is About Running. This Is Not About Running. from Thunder Road Books. 

Hey Colorado! Come out to the Shakeout Run and the stick around for the LIVE Q&A with me and Conner Mantz at the Boulder Theatre on Sunday May 24th. Details are one click away. 

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Episode 148. Running Isn't Complicated. Runners Are. 

Sure, running may seem complicated. But, it's not. Don't let the internet and social media fool you. Running is a simple sport. It's the runners that make it complicated. And that's what also makes the sport so interesting and always fresh. You are in fact a new version of yourself each and every time you come back to the starting line for a new run. 

So, sit back or start a run or go for a walk and enjoy this episode where I break down what not complicated about running and how we runners add our complication to make running... not complicated... but maybe not so simple either. Sounds complicated doesn't it? Well, don't worry. It's not. 

Cheers and thank you for listening, 

Coach Bennett

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Episode 147. 5 Ways To Build More Endurance

Endurance. You need it for just about anything great in life. And that absolutely includes running. Because running is one of the great things in life. That's why we're going to talk about some way to build more endurance so you can run and live more. Some of the ways are obvious. Which is why they get overlooked. And some are not so obvious. Which is why they also get overlooked. Well, none of them will get overlooked by you anymore... assuming you listen to this episode.

Chears and thank you for listening to the show,

Coach Bennett

AND BE SURE TO CHECK OUT HOW YOU CAN PRE-ORDER MY BOOK BELOW 

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Episode 146. Racing Better 

For so many racing your best only means running your fastest. Not only does that mentality limit the your chances for a successful race it also lowers your chances at running your fastest. So, we're going to talk about ways you can race better so you have your best chance at racing your best. And I'll have you know that I recorded this episode in a hotel room in London and we all know that episodes of Coach Bennett's Podcast  recorded ion hotel rooms tend to be straight bangers. 

Cheers and thank you for listening, 

Coach Bennett

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Episode 145. I WROTE A BOOK!

Seriously. I did. I wrote a book! And I want you to read it. Because I'm really proud of it and I believe that it's a book that both runners and non-runners alike will enjoy and be better for having read it. It's called This Is About Running. This Is Not About Running. It's dropping on September 1st, 2026 but it is available for pre-order now. This episode gives you some background on how this all came to be, why I wrote the book, what's in the book, who the book is for (hint: everyone), and allows me to once and for all finally say, I WROTE A BOOK!

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The book is available in many places. If you do not see your location represented in these links or when you search for the book on your favoroite bookstore sites please let me know. I'll be adding additional links for pre-order here and on all my social media sites as they become available. 

Cheers and thank you for listening (and reading),

Coach Bennett

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Episode 144. STOP

There's a whole lot of stuff that runners do that they shouldn't do. The cool thing is that if runners stop doing things they shouldn't do they'll have more time to do the things that they should do. And if you can start doing the things you should do and stop doing the things you shouldn't do then you'll have a better time doing the things you want to do and you'll do those things better. Pretty sweet how it all works out. That's why I spend this episode going over a list of things that runners should stop doing. You should start listening to "STOP" right now. 

Cheers and thank you for listening. 

Coach Bennett

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Episode 143. New Starting Lines

It's that time of year. (It's always that time of year.) We start to show up at starting lines. And not just any kind of starting lines. New starting lines. We start. We start over. We start again. And that means we need to make sure that we are ready for what's next. That's why I brought in a rock star for this episode. That's right. She's back! The one. The only. Coach Bennett the Greater aka Coach Bennett the Creator aka Show Up Society aka Tammie Bennett. She's back to share here wisdom and guidance and inspiration. So, if you're looking to cross a starting line then this episode is for you. 

Make sure you check out Coach Tammie and the Show Up Society here. 

Cheers and thank you for listening!

Coach Bennett the Other

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