Long runs, weekly mileage, and faster workouts are all important - but they won't help you improve if you don't prioritize a healthy lifestyle.

Without proper nutrition, you won't have as much energy to tackle your training.

Without enough sleep, recovery will be sub-par and some of your hard work will be wasted.

Without reducing stress, the risk of over-training and injury increases (and you'll rarely feel good).

So it makes sense to give yourself every advantage and set yourself up for success, especially if you're gearing up for a big race or attempt at a personal best.

When you get these "little things" (which are not so little) right, it makes training much easier to accomplish.

After all, success in running depends on the lifestyle that surrounds the training.

So I invited No Meat Athlete founder Matt Frazier on the podcast. In just the last few years, Matt has implemented a staggering number of changes to his life:

• He adopted a vegetarian diet - and then vegan
• No Meat Athlete was born and quickly became a world-wide movement
• He improved his marathon from 4:53 to 3:09 to qualify for Boston
• Not wanting to settle, he started running ultras - including a 100-miler
• He's given up oil and experimented with other habits like journaling, meditation, and fruitarianism

If you've ever tried to start a new healthy habit, you know how difficult this can be on top of your other obligations like work and family.

And I wanted to know how to make all of these "little things" easier to implement in your life.

Because if you're not sleeping well, eating right, and eliminating stress the other 23 hours of the day, then running a longer distance or racing a Personal Best is going to be that much more difficult to achieve.