This episode came straight from a run and a voice memo I actually remembered to record. We’re talking about 75 Hard program, why it’s so appealing, and why it might not be the answer for most of us…especially the women already juggling a full life.

Because a lot of you are already living in “hard.”

So what if instead of adding more rules, more pressure, and more all-or-nothing thinking…we tried something different?

In this episode, I talk about:

•  What 75 Hard actually is and how it works 
•  Why structure and “hard” challenges feel so appealing 
•  How you’re already doing hard things every single day 
•  The pressure women are already under (and the added layers for non-white women) 
•  How the wellness industry keeps you chasing “not enough” 
•  Why all-or-nothing thinking keeps you stuck 
•  The idea behind “75 Human” 
•  What it actually looks like to stay consistent without being perfect 
•  Real-life examples like missing runs, low energy days, and life blowing up 
•  5 simple guidelines to help you stay in it 
•  What real discipline actually looks like 

If you’ve ever felt like you needed to be more disciplined or more consistent to make progress…this one’s for you.

Because you don’t need another challenge that breaks you down just to build yourself back up. You need something that actually supports you while you’re doing hard things.

Enjoying the show?

If this episode resonated, share it with a friend. Make sure you’re following or subscribed so you don’t miss future episodes. Ratings and reviews help more than you know.

• Follow me on Instagram
• Visit my website: www.sunrisetrailscoaching.com
• Want to work together? Learn about 1:1 Coaching
• Free guide: What’s In My Pack? Download here

This week on Dirt Nap Diaries, I’m talking about eating for performance and why trying to lose weight while training for an ultra can backfire fast. We get into underfueling, heavy legs, poor recovery, brain fog, and why carbs are not the enemy. I also talk about the pressure, especially on women, to shrink themselves while asking their bodies to do really big things, plus a quick Cocodona training update and a "foster" dog (Kaibab aka Kai) update because she's now the producer of this podcast.

In this episode, I talk about:

• Why weight loss and peak endurance performance do not go well together
• Signs you may not be eating enough
• Hunger, recovery, and weight fluctuations after long runs
• Why eating carbs matters for endurance athletes
• The pressure to look a certain way in running and why you do not need to shrink yourself to be a better runner

Enjoying the show?

If this episode resonated, share it with a friend. Make sure you’re following or subscribed so you don’t miss future episodes. Ratings and reviews help more than you know.

• Follow me on Instagram
• Visit my website: www.sunrisetrailscoaching.com
• Want to work together? Learn about 1:1 Coaching
• Free guide: What’s In My Pack? Download here

This week I’m talking about something I see all the time in online running spaces: people asking the internet last-minute race questions that should’ve been figured out way earlier in training.

I get it—especially if it’s your first race or a new distance. You’re nervous, you want to do it right, and you’re looking for reassurance. But social media will give you a flood of answers from people who don’t know you, your body, or your training. And that can do more harm than good.

In this episode, I talk about:

• Why asking the internet for race advice often leads to more confusion
• The problem with last-minute questions about shoes, fueling, and gear
• Why race day is not the time to experiment
• The risks of crowdsourcing medical advice instead of trusting professionals
• What it means if you’re asking strangers instead of your coach
• Why first-timer nerves are real—but shouldn’t lead to panic decisions
• How to use your training block to actually prepare (not scramble later)
• Reducing noise before race day so you can stay focused
• Trusting your training, your body, and your own experience

Enjoying the show?

If this episode resonated, share it with a friend. Make sure you’re following or subscribed so you don’t miss future episodes. Ratings and reviews help more than you know.

• Follow me on Instagram
• Visit my website: www.sunrisetrailscoaching.com
• Want to work together? Learn about 1:1 Coaching
• Free guide: What’s In My Pack? Download here

In this episode of Dirt Nap Diaries, I’m breaking down my big Cocodona 250 training weekend where I did 3 back to back to back long runs on course, including the first section out of Black Canyon City, Hangover Trail in Sedona, and the climb up Elden near the end of the race.

Some things went really well. Some things got weird. And all of it gave me exactly what I needed.

I talk about what happens when fatigue stacks, how heat changes everything, what I learned about carrying way more water than usual, why fueling gets harder when you need it most, and how fear of heights very much showed up for me on Hangover Trail. I also get into the stuff people don’t always talk about, like staying in the van by myself, figuring things out on the fly, and how those “little” uncomfortable moments build confidence too.

If you’re training for an ultra, a trail race, or just trying to do hard things while still being a whole-ass human in real life, this one’s for you.

In this episode, I talk about:
 • What 3 back to back to back long runs taught me
 • Why seeing the course matters more than just reading about it
 • Heat, hydration, electrolytes, and carrying enough water
 • Fueling when you do not feel like eating
 • Fear, Hangover Trail, and moving through it anyway
 • Why short breaks can completely change how you feel
 • How fatigue stacking helps expose problems before race day
 • The mental side of solo time, van life, and figuring shit out
 • Why recovery means eating, drinking, and not trying to shrink yourself after a big effort

Enjoying the show?

If this episode resonated, share it with a friend. Make sure you’re following or subscribed so you don’t miss future episodes. Ratings and reviews help more than you know.

• Follow me on Instagram
• Visit my website: www.sunrisetrailscoaching.com
• Want to work together? Learn about 1:1 Coaching
• Free guide: What’s In My Pack? Download here

What actually matters in training?
Honestly…not your pace.

In this episode, I’m talking about the three things I care about more than pace when it comes to trail running and coaching: consistency over perfection, effort over pace, and joy over comparison.

I get into what consistency really means when life doesn’t go to plan, why so many runners go too hard on easy days, and how comparison can quietly chip away at something you used to enjoy. I also talk about why honest feedback matters so much, whether that’s with a coach or just with yourself, and how these three things shape the way I coach athletes.

This episode is for the runner who’s been too hard on herself for missing a run, questioning whether easy effort is “enough,” or feeling thrown off by what everyone else seems to be doing.

In this episode, I talk about:

• Why consistency matters more than a perfect week
• What consistency really looks like with running, strength training, and honest feedback
• Why easy effort needs to actually be easy
• How going too hard too often can leave you tired, plateaued, and frustrated
• The role of effort in both training and real life
• Why joy matters more than comparison
• How to check in with yourself when training starts to feel heavy

Questions to ask yourself after this episode:

• Am I being consistent?
• Am I putting the right effort in the right places?
• Am I still finding joy in this?

If this episode hit home, share it with a friend, send it to your group chat, and leave a rating or review so more everyday trail runners can find the show.

Enjoying the show?

If this episode resonated, share it with a friend. Make sure you’re following or subscribed so you don’t miss future episodes. Ratings and reviews help more than you know.

• See episodes 4, 16, 19, 25 and 31 to dive into effort and data.
• Follow me on Instagram
• Visit my website: www.sunrisetrailscoaching.com
• Want to work together? Learn about 1:1 Coaching
• Free guide: What’s In My Pack? Download here

The internet has been losing its damn mind over the LA Marathon shortening their course because of heat.

Suddenly everyone’s an expert on “integrity.”
 People arguing about medals.
 People deciding whether runners should even accept them.

Which led me to one very simple question:

Why the hell do we care so much about someone else’s medal?

Because if you look a little closer, this conversation isn’t really about medals at all. It’s about something that pops up in running all the time — gatekeeping, insecurity, and the weird obsession with suffering being the only thing that makes effort legitimate.

So today we’re talking about it.

In this episode we talk about:

• The LA Marathon course change and the internet meltdown that followed
 • Why running culture still has a serious gatekeeping problem
 • Why insecurity shows up so often in endurance sports
 • The strange suffering culture we glorify in running
 • Why race directors sometimes have to modify courses for safety
 • What a finisher’s medal actually represents
 • Why someone else’s finish line has absolutely nothing to do with yours

Running is not a zero-sum sport.

Someone else getting a medal does not erase your effort, your training, or your finish line.

Enjoying the show?

If this episode resonated, share it with a friend who’s excited about a goal this year.
Make sure you’re following or subscribed so you don’t miss future episodes. Ratings and reviews help more than you know.

• Follow me on Instagram
• Visit my website: www.sunrisetrailscoaching.com
• Want to work together? Learn about 1:1 Coaching
• Free guide: What’s In My Pack? Download here

Today we’re talking about effort over pace because if you don’t understand the difference, you’re way more likely to plateau, overtrain, or mentally spiral (and I don’t want that for you).

Effort is the stimulus. Pace is the result.
If you chase the result instead of managing the stimulus, that’s where you get diminishing returns… in training, at work, and in life.

This episode is equal parts educational and real-talk. We get into why easy runs are mentally hard, why comparison wrecks your effort, and how to actually start training in a way that builds fitness that lasts.

In this episode, we talk about

• Why effort matters more than pace (especially on trails)
• The quick-and-dirty RPE refresher
• Easy effort and why most people mess it up
• Hard efforts and why they matter (raising the ceiling, clearing lactate, building race capacity) — without getting too science-y
• The grey zone trap: not easy enough to recover, not hard enough to improve
• Diminishing returns: why pushing harder doesn’t automatically equal better results
• Why easy runs are so hard mentally:
• Comparison (Strava, Instagram, race lists, pace talk with friends) and how it hijacks your training
• Giving yourself permission to run your effort and stop proving something every day
• Tactical tips to walk away with (simple, doable wins)

The lines to remember

Effort is the stimulus. Pace is the result.
and
Easy feels wrong because we’ve been conditioned to equate struggle with value.

Enjoying the show?

If this episode resonated, share it with a friend who’s excited about a goal this year.
Make sure you’re following or subscribed so you don’t miss future episodes. Ratings and reviews help more than you know.

• See episodes 4 and 19.
• Follow me on Instagram
• Visit my website: www.sunrisetrailscoaching.com
• Want to work together? Learn about 1:1 Coaching
• Free guide: What’s In My Pack? Download here

Pacers…they can be the best thing that happens to you at mile 80…or the reason you’re suddenly redlining, annoyed, and questioning every friendship you’ve ever had.

In this episode, I’m breaking down what pacers are actually for (hint: not to turn you into an elite robot), when they help the most, and when they can quietly mess with your race in ways you don’t see coming until it’s too late.

We’re talking:

• What a pacer’s job really is (and how it can change hour to hour)
• Why “high energy” isn’t always helpful energy
• The biggest ways pacers accidentally hurt a race (pushing pace, nonstop talking, anxiety spirals, making it about them…yikes)
• How to choose the right pacer for your personality (quiet, chatty, hype, neutral, tough love…all valid)
• Why communication is the whole damn thing (pacers aren’t mind readers)
• When I’d prioritize pacers (overnights, late stages, harder sections…aka when your brain starts acting feral)
• Logistics that matter more than you think (especially when cell service is trash)
• A quick nod to tools like UltraPacer if you want to get nerdy with planning without losing your mind

Bottom line: pacers aren’t required, they aren’t always allowed, and they aren’t a magic ticket to finishing. They’re a tool. And like any tool…if it doesn’t match the job, it’s gonna be a problem.

Enjoying the show?

If this episode resonated, share it with a friend who’s excited about a goal this year.
Make sure you’re following or subscribed so you don’t miss future episodes. Ratings and reviews help more than you know.

• ultraPacer: race & adventure pacing strategy
• Follow me on Instagram
• Visit my website: www.sunrisetrailscoaching.com
• Want to work together? Learn about 1:1 Coaching
• Free guide: What’s In My Pack? Download here

Aid stations can be a lifesaver… or a total time-suck spiral where you stand there eating random stuff, forget your poles, and walk away somehow less prepared than when you arrived.

In this episode, we’re talking aid stations. Not in a “here’s what to eat” generic way… but how to use them intentionally based on your distance, your stomach, your sweat rate, and your actual goals. Because aid stations aren’t about copying what the person next to you is doing. They’re about supporting your race, your body, and your brain.

What we cover:

• Why aid stations are a mental and physical stabilizer (aid station to aid station, baby)
 • What’s usually at aid stations (from “minimal aid” basics to the full-on grilled cheese situation)
 • The electrolyte caution nobody wants to talk about (bring your powder, use their water)
 • How to assess mid-race without overthinking it: hydration, fuel, feet, and the “oh crap I haven’t eaten” moment
 • The real deal on drop bags (what they are, what to pack, and why “don’t put a bunch of bullshit in there” is solid advice)
 • Common aid station mistakes: waiting to eat, forgetting to refill, and losing 20 minutes without realizing it
 • How the strategy changes from 25K to 50K/100K to 100+ mile chaos logistics
 • How to practice aid stations in training using your car (including cooling strategies like ice bandanas and bra ice… yes, we’re going there)

And because I can’t help myself… we also talk about how aid stations are a lot like life. Pauses are necessary. But pauses without intention can drain you. So whether you’re taking a break in a race or a break in your day, the question is the same: what do you actually need right now so you can keep moving forward?

Enjoying the show?

If this episode resonated, share it with a friend who’s excited about a goal this year.
Make sure you’re following or subscribed so you don’t miss future episodes. Ratings and reviews help more than you know.

• ultraPacer: race & adventure pacing strategy
• Follow me on Instagram
• Visit my website: www.sunrisetrailscoaching.com
• Want to work together? Learn about 1:1 Coaching
• Free guide: What’s In My Pack? Download here

Crew can be an incredible asset on race day and it can also quietly make things harder if expectations aren’t clear.

In this episode, we’re talking about what crew is actually for, when it makes sense to have crew and how to use support in a way that helps instead of overwhelms you.

We get into:

• what crew should and shouldn’t be responsible for
• how crew roles change as race distances get longer
• why not everyone needs the same type of support
• common crew mistakes (with a lot of grace)
• how to communicate expectations before race day
• and why a smaller, aligned crew often works better than a big one

This is for anyone who wants support that matches their needs instead of adding stress when things get hard.

Enjoying the show?

If this episode resonated, share it with a friend who’s excited about a goal this year.
Make sure you’re following or subscribed so you don’t miss future episodes. Ratings and reviews help more than you know.

• Follow me on Instagram
• Visit my website: www.sunrisetrailscoaching.com
• Want to work together? Learn about 1:1 Coaching
• Free guide: What’s In My Pack? Download here