In this episode of Soul Sisters, hosts Elise and Alice discuss their highlights, challenges, and key learnings from the year, covering personal anecdotes and reflections on running and life. It gets bit deep, reflective and vulnerable, actually! But the conversation is still never too far from a ridiculous detour about sporks, etc.

The team also discuss holiday plans, including the Grinch’s (Alice’s) strong opinions on snowy Christmas decorations that don’t make sense for the southern hemisphere. They review the recent On Track Nights: Zatopek 10k meet and finish answering a few listener questions and proffering a couple of Christmas gifts to you (recommendations).

Finally, thanks to all the listeners for your support this year! You’ve been an absolute dream! We’ll see you in 2025. xox

This episode of Sole Sisters kicks off with some misguided Black Friday purchases from Alice; and Elise battling lack of sleep thanks to her kelpie’s bout of doggy gastro. Elise recaps her recent 10k race, while Alice has been shopping around the run club scene.

For the main topic, Alice and Elise dive into the importance of cross-training to complement any running program. With fewer road running events on the calendar this time of year in Australia, it’s all about building the base you need for the next training block. That means focusing on making your body stronger and more resilient for the training ahead through non-running activities like cycling, swimming, but above all – strength training.

The duo dissect Valencia Marathon which happened on Sunday, throwing a spotlight on Andy Buchanan’s new Australian Record of 2:06:22 and Izzi Batt-Doyle running 2:22:59 to become the 3rd fastest Aussie woman all time.

The episode closes with the usual recommendations, and we’ve added a bonus one here of Sara Hall hammering for 2nd place at London Marathon during covid.

Alice’s Instagram: @alicebaquie

Elise’s Instagram:  @elisebeacom

Run With It: @runwithit.pod

--

Intro/outro music by Dan Beacom

Graphic design by Kate Scheer

London is one of the most diverse and vibrant cities in the world, but only about 5% of the championship or “good for age” places for London Marathon are filled by runners from ethnic minorities.

Marcus Brown is making strides to change that. He is the founder of One percent Running Club, which aims to bridge the gap between traditional athletics clubs and run crews, creating a space where runners from diverse backgrounds feel comfortable chasing performance goals. Marcus is also the host of A Runner’s Life podcast and a six-star finisher of the Abbott World Marathon Majors.

We chat about accessibility and diversity in running, what he thinks of Sydney being added to the Abbott World Marathon Majors and how he’s progressed from being a 4:55 marathoner to breaking 3 hours a total of nine times.

Marcus’ recommendation: Still I Rise by Maya Angelou

Marcus’ Instagram: @marcus1rc

A Runner’s Life podcast: Spotify

Run With It Instagram: @runwithit.pod

Elise’s Instagram: @elisebeacom

--

Intro/outro music by Dan Beacom

Graphic design by Kate Scheer

In this episode of Sole Sisters, Alice and Elise start off with some “pits and peaks” of the last two weeks, including an ill-fated train journey and Alice’s aqua aerobics debut. The topic of the day is how to choose your next race. The duo go through all the key considerations including, bucket list marathons, weather conditions, and how to incorporate a holiday into a marathon trip without pissing off your partner (actually, they don’t solve that one). There’s also a preview of Valencia Marathon, including some insights into Izzi Batt-Doyle’s exquisite preparation, plus the usual listener questions and recommendations. Saddle up. 

Matt Fox has been chasing a sub-2:20 marathon for the past few years, and after about eight attempts, he finally did it this year in Chicago, running 2:19:31. And after toiling so long to hit that mark, he managed to do it again four weeks later in Indianapolis where he ran another PB of 2:18:41!

In this conversation, we talk about some of the factors that led to these results, including speed work, nutrition, weight training and improved sleep. We also cover the recent women’s marathon world record which went down in Chicago, as well as doping and changes to the running media landscape since he started Sweat Elite. TW: We talk about diet and weight loss between 40-45 minutes so skip that part if that’s triggering for you.

Matt Fox founded media company Sweat Elite in late 2016 and has since interviewed and filmed training sessions of more than 250 professional athletes. You can check out those videos on the Sweat Elite YouTube channel.  

Matt has a background in middle-distance running, having competed at an international level in the 800m and 1500m in 2006-2013 before transitioning to the half marathon and marathon. He placed 5th in the Australian National Championships in the 800m on two occasions and 2nd at the Australian National Junior Championships. Matt debuted in the half marathon and marathon in late 2017- running 1:22 and 2:59 before gradually lowering his personal bests over the following years to 1:06 and 2:18. Matt continues has raced in 20+ marathons and has a goal of breaking 2:16 in the coming years.

Matt’s Instagram: @mattinglisfox

Sweat Elite Instagram: @sweatelite

Sweat Elite videos: YouTube

Matt’s gift for the listeners: Make it count video by Casey Neistat

Run With It Instagram: @runwithit.pod

Elise Beacom Instagram: @elisebeacom

--

Intro and outro music by Dan Beacom

Graphic design by Kate Scheer

Alice and Elise are back for another edition of Sole Sisters. This week the focus is the “offseason”, which is the wedge of time for recovery, relaxation and fun (non-running) activities after a key race.

Not going to lie, this episode is slightly manic – the duo go from talking about Alice’s experience with ritualistic burnings under a full Costa Rican moon, to that time Elise ended up in Costa Rica after being deported from a neighbouring country.

In other words, it’s flush with travel stories and off-piste anecdotes, with some good running-focused chats in between, including why it’s so important mentally and physically to give your body a break after a marathon (even if the super shoes trick you into thinking you’re fully recovered).  

Alice’s Instagram: @alicebaquie

Elise’s Instagram:  @elisebeacom

Run With It: @runwithit.pod

-- 

Intro/outro music by Dan Beacom

Graphic design by Kate Scheer

Vanessa Wilson describes herself as a mum and PE teacher from the outer burbs of Melbourne who likes to run. But Vanessa is seriously downplaying her ability – perhaps because she’s genuinely shocked by how far her running has come.

She’s almost unwittingly just become the 13th fastest Australian woman marathoner of all time, running 2:28:34 at Berlin Marathon this year, which she achieved after breaking her wrist at the 2km mark of the race! This is such an inspiring conversation for anyone chasing big goals while juggling family, work and life. Vanessa's advice: 1. Be consistent; 2. Don't do too much; and 3. Listen to your body.

With a background as a Body Pump instructor and an AFL boundary umpire, Vanessa, 42, had little exposure to the running world until 2017. After the birth of her daughter Anja, she started jogging to regain fitness, encouraged by her husband (and coach) who was a former elite athlete. Her first running goal was to break 25 minutes at Parkrun, which she did sooner than expected. She joined Glenhuntly Athletics Club and had natural speed, finding love for the 1500m and breaking the 5-minute barrier that year. Her Parkrun times continued to come down and by the end of 2018 she had broken 20 minutes.  

The foundations for marathon training were built during Covid when Vanessa had time to add more running load, including a long run. She made her marathon debut in 2021, running 2:40:20 at Melbourne Marathon. In 2022, she ran 2:39:52 at Melbourne and set a new Victorian Masters W40 record in the 1500m. In 2023, she made a big breakthrough, running 2:34:36 in Berlin, before bettering her PB with a 2:31:45 in Hannover earlier this year. Watch this space! 

--

Run With It instagram: @runwithit.pod

Intro/outro music by Dan Beacom

Graphic design by Kate Scheer

Elise Beacom and Alice Baquie have teamed up for a new fortnightly series called Sole Sisters. Tune in for running insights, sisterhood vibes, life misadventures and many detours along the way.

In episode 1, the duo discuss Alice’s unconventional preparation for Melbourne Marathon. In her debut marathon build up, Alice ran no more than 10km four times per week, with a hell of a lot of pilates, swimming, cycling and surfing in between. Listen in to find out why she took on this challenge, and how it played out on the day. No spoilers, but it involves corded headphones, flat Coke and lots of sister support!

Let us know what you think of the show. And if you have any questions, send them through to @runwithit.pod and we’ll answer them on the next episode.

--

Intro/outro music by Dan Beacom 

Graphic design by Kate Scheer 

Jaryd Clifford experienced one of the cruellest Paralympic Games you could imagine. First, he was disqualified in the 5000m after crossing the line in bronze medal position. To really rub salt in the wounds, he missed out on another bronze in the 1500m by 0.01 of a second. Ouch.

In his first podcast appearance since his Paris heartbreak, Jaryd speaks about what went wrong, the lessons he learnt the hard way and how he’s bouncing back with optimism and excitement for the future. We talk about the positives that can come from experiencing failure and why your inner circle is so important for helping you recover from disappointment. The lessons in resilience that Jaryd shares can honestly be applied to anyone in any situation. This is a must listen!

At the age of 25, Jaryd Clifford has already achieved so much. He’s a world champion, world record holder and three-time Paralympian for Australia in the category for vision impairment across multiple distances. He won two silver medals in the T13 5000m and the T12 marathon, and a bronze in the T13 1500m at the Paralympics in Tokyo. Jaryd is sponsored by Nike, has a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations and Politics/Criminology, and does public speaking in his spare time.

--

Jaryd’s Instagram: @jarydclifford

Run With It Instagram: @runwithit.pod

Intro/outro music by Dan Beacom

Graphic design by Kate Scheer

Brit de Groot is the first to admit she’s not great at meditation. Instead, she uses running to quieten her brain. Having discovered the power of running for her own mental health, Brit is sharing the good vibes around. Whether she’s convincing metal musicians to go jogging, fundraising for mental health, or leading Flow State, a run club for women with a focus on mental wellbeing rather than performance, Brit does a hell of a lot for our community.

In this episode we talk about the explosion of run clubs (including our thoughts on the trend towards using them for dating), women’s safety on the run, music, grief, and why Brit so strongly advocates for mental health awareness (TW: women's safety and suicide). I can’t think of a more fitting episode release for World Mental Health Day.

Brit has worked in the music industry for the past 15 years. She started running in 2020, and since then has become entrenched in the Melbourne running community. She finds people are often surprised that she can exist in the two worlds of music and running due to the stereotypes associated with both.

After losing a close friend in early 2021, Brit started her journey into mental health advocacy and awareness, with a particular focus on helping those in the music industry. Flow State Run Club was born in 2022 to create a safe space for women runners.

Flow State meets at the Running Company store in Albert Park at 6pm on Wednesdays. All femme-identifying runners welcome.

Brit’s instagram: @brit_degroot

Flow State: @flow.state.rc

Run 2 Cure Neuroblastoma: Join Hazzy’s team @Run2cureau on 10 November in support of Neuroblastoma Australia.

If this episode has brought anything up for you, reach out to support services in your area. Here are a couple of numbers you can call in Australia:

• Beyond Blue – 1300 22 4636 (open 24/7)