Off The Couch

Is it humanly possible to run 100 miles without consuming a single calorie? Would it be possible to run 100 miles in under 24 hours without consuming a single calorie? On May 8th, Mike McKnight set out to find out, and Mike, who is the record holder of the Triple Crown of 200’s, not only accomplished this extraordinary feat, he did it in 18 hours and 37 minutes.

So we talked to Mike about why and when he first thought this was possible; how he prepared and trained for the feat; intermittent fasting and his ketogenic diet; some of the criticism he’s received for even attempting this; and what else he thinks might be possible.

TOPICS & TIMES:

• What is the history of ‘Zero Calorie’ runs? (1:55)
• When & why did you decide to do this? (4:08)
• Mike’s ketogenic diet (6:00)
• Pros & Cons of Intermittent Fasting & Carnivore Diet (12:05)
• Science behind the preparation (14:14)
• What criticism about ketogenic diets do you hear? (16:58)
• What was your biggest concern before starting? (28:52)
• The route itself (32:13)
• What did you consume during the run? (34:50)
• Hardest moment of the day? (36:44)
• What other human “limits” do you want to test? (44:24)
• What did you do when you finished? (45:24)

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We talk to Georgia Porter, co-owner and personal trainer at The Physio Shop in Flagstaff, Arizona, about her dislike of running as a kid; her grandma who was running ultras back before running ultras was a thing; how to incorporate apple fritters and beer into your training regimen; competing at the 2020 US Olympic Marathon Trials; her belief in combining strength training and endurance training; and why all runners would benefit from learning to love strength training.

TOPICS & TIMES:

• Workouts & trivia? (1:54)
• Georgia’s family of runners (3:45)
• Georgia’s ultrarunning grandma (8:35)
• Running at Western Colorado University (10:15)
• Turning point: going off course during a race (12:45)
• Rediscovering joy (17:35)
• Georgia’s approach to training for longer distances (24:13)
• From paramedic to personal trainer (29:10)
• How do you blend endurance & strength training? (34:40)
• What are your running goals? (44:45)
• How to sprint the last 5k of a marathon (52:00)

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Hillary Gerardi won the 2018 Skyrunner Extra World Series Circuit, and yet, she still doesn’t necessarily think of herself as a runner. So Brendan Leonard and I discuss this with Hillary, and, turns out, her hesitation makes a lot of sense once you understand her background and what it is that she enjoys most about being in the mountains.

Hillary was born in Vermont, but has lived in France since 2010, and currently lives in Chamonix, where she works at the Research Center for Alpine Ecosystems, so of course, we discuss all of that, too.

TOPICS & TIMES:

• The hesitation to call yourself a “runner” (2:10)
• Hiking & backpacking in New England (5:03)
• The Hut Traverse in the White Mountains (9:45)
• Getting into trail running & moving to France (14:14)
• Skiing & backcountry accidents (19:40)
• Winning prosciutto (25:42)
• Hilary’s work with CREA Mont Blanc (29:16)
• What did you study in college? (33:47)
• Balancing work & running (37:30)
• Getting into “Skyrunning” (41:55)
• Trail Running vs. Mountain Scrambling (51:40)
• Having fun vs. wanting to win (1:07:19)

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Rickey Gates is a professional runner, a writer, a photographer — and someone who has a whole lot going on. His new book, Cross Country, a 3700-Mile Run to Explore Unseen America, just came out, and it documents Rickey’s 2017 odyssey of running from South Carolina to San Francisco and the people and places he interacted with along the way. We also discuss his Every Single Street project, Hut Run Hut and Bus Run Bus group trips he organizes every year, the current project he’s working on called 50 Classic Trails, and that still doesn’t cover everything that Rickey is up to. Rickey is a very good runner, but an even more interesting person. (Watch the trailer "Cross Country")

TOPICS & TIMES:

• Rickey’s new book, Cross Country (2:35)
• How & how not to travel (6:00)
• Bridging political divisions (10:00)
• The kindness of strangers (14:52)
• From XC racing to long-distance running (20:15)
• The Every Single Street Project (31:05)
• Media Bias, Partisanship, & Becoming More Divided (35:05)
• Rickey’s group trips: Hut Run Hut & Bus Run Bus (47:09)
• Rickey’s upcoming film: Transamericana (52:16)
• Rickey’s current project: 50 Classic Trails (53:55)
• Favorite Books, Music, & Movies? (57:33)

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Late last week, Brendan Leonard and Jonathan Ellsworth talked with @Jenny and Scott Jurek. This probably wasn’t the conversation that you ought to have when you get to talk with a running icon like Scott Jurek and someone who is as accomplished and interesting as Jenny, but, whatever. We had fun, and you will, too. Among other things, we talk about Scott’s very first race; Jenny’s transition from climbing to running; Scott’s love of cooking; Jenny’s ambition to set the Slowest Known Time on the Pacific Crest Trail; and the process of co-writing their wonderful book, North.

TOPICS & TIMES:

• Scott’s very first race (2:00)
• Jenny’s transition from climbing to running (7:52)
• Sharing a cubicle with Krissy Moehl (9:22)
• How Scott & Jenny met (10:15)
• Scott’s love of cooking (15:50)
• Best veggie burgers? (28:25)
• Thoughts on processed vegetarian food? (35:00)
• What’s your current relationship to running? (43:50)
• Goal: Slowest Known Time on the PCT (52:14)
• Co-writing their book, North (54:42)

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Dom Di Tommaso (@domtomato) is a freerunner, a certified mind blower, and the guy behind one of our favorite Instagram pages and YouTube channels in the world. He is also a fascinating person, and a perfect reminder that “running” is not a sport that we should narrowly define. So on our latest Off The Couch podcast, we talked to Dom about his uncommon upbringing; his training, his focus, his injury history, and how he avoids dying doing the stuff he does; similarities between the freerunning community and the long-distance running community; and more. Check it out..

TOPICS & TIMES

• What sports were you into growing up? (5:59)
• Freerunning vs. Parkour? (23:14)
• What’s your craziest idea? (33:49)
• Progression & training (36:48)
• Injury history (42:44)
• How to handle massive drops & landings (51:32)
• Track & Field: what would be your best events? (59:13)
• Your strengths & areas where you want to improve? (1:03:25)
• The freerunning community (1:08:45)
• Acting, Movies, & Freerunning (1:14:43)

Instagram: @domtomato

YouTube: DomTomato - DIVING FRONTS 2019

YouTube: ’FreeDom’ - 2019

YouTube: DomTomato - DIVING FRONTS 2018

YouTube: Dom Tomato Channel

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We talk to Topo Athletic founder, Tony Post, about serving as the CEO of Vibram USA; founding Topo Athletic; minimalist and maximalist shoes; Topo’s design philosophy and process; and more. 

TOPICS & TIMES:

• Moving to Boston, working for Rockport (1:15)
• Were you always into running gear? (5:20)
• “Craftsmanship” in the running shoe industry (7:47)
• The decision to start your own shoe company (10:21)
• Vibram and the “Born to Run” affect? (14:19)
• The minimalist movement (21:10)
• Where is there consensus on shoe design? (31:20)
• What is Topo’s approach to fit? (35:55)
• What differentiates Topo Athletic? (40:49)
• Topo’s trajectory (44:20)
• Which Topo shoes are you running in the most? (46:51)
• New Topo products? (52:16)
• What’s the best question I haven’t asked you? (58:47)

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Eric Schranz has been a staple of the trail running and ultrarunning world for over a decade — both as a passionate runner, and as the host of Ultrarunnerpodcast.com. And since Eric spends so much of his time writing about and interviewing other runners, Brendan Leonard (semi-rad.com) and I thought it would be fun to put Eric in the guest seat. So Brendan and I talked with Eric about how he got into running; his work in the music industry and politics; getting started at ultrarunnerpodcast.com; the art of conversation; how running media differs from other sports media coverage; and a whole lot more — including, a rather spirited discussion about the best bank robbery and heist movies of all time.

TOPICS & TIMES:

• When & How Eric got into trail running (1:45)
• Working in the music industry & politics (7:20)
• Joining Ultrarunnerpodcast.com (13:52)
• Making it full time (17:30)
• The art of conversation (20:28)
• Finding stories and guests (24:30)
• Running media vs. other sports media (33:07)
• What are your running goals? (40:05)
• Cutting out caffeine and alcohol (50:46)
• Ranking the best heist movies (52:39)

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Ryan Van Duzer has a YouTube series called, Running with Ryan. And last fall, as our Off The Couch co-host, Brendan Leonard, was nearing his goal of running 52 marathons in 52 weeks, Ryan had Brendan as a guest on Running with Ryan. So we thought we’d give Brendan the chance to turn the tables and have him interview Ryan, and that proved to be a good idea. They talk about snakes; biking across the country; starting his YouTube channel; the Burning Man Ultra; and a whole lot more.

TOPICS & TIMES:

• Running the Caballo Blanco Ultra (1:55)
• Bringing his mom along for adventures (7:32)
• Running BOLDERBoulder 10K at age six (9:06)
• Snakes (12:55)
• Suffering at his first marathon (18:06)
• Launching a career in travel journalism (21:54)
• Moving from television to YouTube (27:25)
• “Running with Ryan” Series (30:25)
• Preparing (or not?) for his fourth Javelina 100 (35:07)
• Maintaining “relentless” positivity (46:10)
• Burning Man Ultra Marathon (50:11)

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Joe Grant is an endurance athlete, a mountain runner, a reader, a writer, a thinker, a filmmaker, and, as you are about to find out, an exceptional storyteller.

And in this conversation, Brendan Leonard and Jonathan Ellsworth talk to Joe about how he got into running; racing (and winning) the 2008 Caballo Blanco Copper Canyon Ultra and how that affected his life; his Tour de Fourteeners, a self-powered and self-supported link up of all Colorado’s 14,000-foot peaks by bike and on foot; and a whole lot more.

TOPICS & TIMES:

• How Joe & Brendan met (1:55)
• Joe’s background (6:45)
• Film: The Middle Way (10:30)
• From Rollerblading to Running (16:40)
• Greyhound Bus Road trip (20:05)
• Developing a Minimalist Aesthetic (23:25)
• Learning to run in Kenya (26:45)
• Running the Waldo 100K (32:50)
• Running (and winning) the 2008 Caballo Blanco (35:53)
• How the Caballo Blanco race affected Joe’s future (41:17)
• 2008: Kilian Jornet & a changing of the guard (47:00)
• Turning running into a career (51:43)
• Other creative interests & pursuits? (53:53)
• Joe’s mom’s amazing relationship with running (56:50)
• Running on your own terms (1:01:44)
• The “Runner’s High” & continuity with life (1:06:40)
• The Marathon Monks of Japan (1:19:25)

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