RunChats with @RonRunsNYC

This episode image of Stefanie Flippin effortlessly flying through the air truly epitomizes Hoka's slogan, 'Time To Fly'! Stefanie Flippin is a dynamo with a huge heart, and channels it to power through long days as a foot and ankle surgeon, pro-athlete for Hoka, running coach with Lift Run Perform, and someone deeply invested in her community.

She developed her love for trails and the mountains running with her dad at 7-years-old, watching him float over the hills, then come back down to get her and finish together. It wasn't until medical school that Stefanie started taking her running seriously and it really helped relieve stress and gave her mind a break from studying. Running 20-milers late at night, after crazy long shifts at Cook County Hospital during residency with her now-husband Mitchell forged their partnership. Running in an exhausted, sleep-deprived state with brain fog, unknowingly building all of the tools she would need to become a rock star at the 100-mile distance.

Stefanie is the 2021 USATF 100 Mile National Champion and 2-time Tunnel Hill winner (2020 & 2021), with a 14:04 100-mile PR—which breaks down to 8:26 per mile pace!!! Stefanie enjoys pushing herself to the absolute limit to learn what she's truly capable of—which she had the chance to see at the 2022 USATF 100 Mile race, where she hit some dark patches early on at mile 40, but powered through and rallied to make the podium with help from her amazing pit crew.

Topics discussed include:

Transformation over 100 miles, the individual journey, best practices, lessons learned, fueling—gear—mindset, med school/surgical residency, her husband Mitchell—partnership—PIT CREW MAGIC, coming back from the dead, giving your best not being tied to race result, overcoming imposter syndrome, self-belief, growth, journaling, coaching, helping her athletes with mindset & self-belief, community, giving back to patients, athletes, and the running community.

Stefanie is a force of nature who cares deeply for her patients, athletes, and the running community. I enjoyed this convo immensely and learned so much from it!

I hope you all enjoy this convo as much as we did!

If you enjoy the episode, it would mean the world to me if you would rate the podcast or write a review and share feedback wherever you get your podcast groove on.

Connect With Stefanie:

Instagram: @stefanieannflippin

Connect With Ron:

Personal Instagram: @ronrunsnyc

Podcast Instagram: @runchats_with_ronrunsnyc

Facebook: https://fb.me/runchats

Website: https://ronrunsnyc.com

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Produced by: David Margittai | In Post Media

Website: https://www.inpostmedia.com

Email: [email protected]

Social: @_margittai

© 2022 Ron Romano

At age 13, Erin Genova's appendix burst, and she was hospitalized for a week. While she was there, she watched the Boston Marathon on TV and was so inspired she said, "I am going to run that one day!" That is where her amazing running journey began! Erin made good on that promise, running 3:42 in her 1st Boston in 2002, during her senior year of college at BU, on a sponsor's invitation bib from John Hancock.

We discuss:

-Post kids: her 8-year Boston streak (2005-2012) being broken from surgical complications on Violet's childbirth and the physical and mental trauma from an artery being nicked during her C-section and missing the race

-The Bombing: how she felt guilty for not being there and how she stopped running completely until 2016, when a work colleague convinced her to join him on lunch runs at their gym and on the Charles River

-Boston Marathon 2018: how she ran on the Charles River in the monsoon that day and came back inside to work and watched Des WIN, inspiring her to want to run Boston again

-The Come Back: running a 3:18 in Erie in 2018, BQing, and then plateauing at 3:14. Reaching out to Brendon O'Leary because she sees his athletes hitting big goals and hires Olympic Trials Marathoner Casey Kilareski of O'Leary Racing Team, who makes key tweaks to her training and runs PR's in 5K & 10K before everything shuts down for Covid

-Bec's Beasts: her stress level was very high with Covid, working from home, running outside with a mask, and not being able to race. She found an INSPIRING instructor, Becs Gentry, of Peloton and connected with a core group of athletes (Bec's Beasts) and super-positive community that kept her going and reinvigorated her running again

-Her comeback post-COVID: CIM Race Day. Diving deep into an AMAZING, breakthrough performance where she ran a 2:58—a 16-minute PR! Trusting in the belief of a friend and training partner, Tyler, to take the big swing and run with the sub-3 pace group. Having the support of Team ORT and their runners, who were there that weekend, and family from home

-Post CIM: Winning a 5K, continuing to get faster and stronger

-Community Service: How Erin is a Girl Scout troop leader for daughter and 16 girls

I'm so INSPIRED by Erin's 2:58—a 16-minute PR—at CIM and am stoked to follow what comes next! Erin is incredibly goal-driven, fiercely competitive and strong, and is setting a great example for her two children, Violet & Cooper, to follow (and they are 2 of her BIGGEST fans)!

I hope you all enjoy this convo as much as we did!

If you enjoy the episode, it would mean the world to me if you would rate the podcast or write a review and share feedback wherever you get your podcast groove on.

Connect With Erin:

Instagram: @eringenova

Connect With Ron:

Personal Instagram: @ronrunsnyc

Podcast Instagram: @runchats_with_ronrunsnyc

Facebook: https://fb.me/runchats

Website: https://ronrunsnyc.com

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Produced by: David Margittai | In Post Media

Website: https://www.inpostmedia.com

Email: [email protected]

Social: @_margittai

© 2022 Ron Romano

Brendon O'Leary epitomizes Boston strong and proved it in the 2012 Boston Marathon, where temps hit 89 degrees and there was carnage on the course. In a race of attrition, he was shocked to pass Geofffey Mutai, the 2011 winner—who ran 2:03:02, on the side of the road and kept his focus on getting in enough fluids and showed us all how to stay in the fight, running 2:34, placing 41st overall & 25th American.

In 2014, the year after the bombing, Brendon had his breakthrough race, running 2:29, feeding off the crowds who were chanting "USA!" for Meb—who broke the tape in 2:08—and that big energy helped carry him home over the last 3 miles! Truly epic to rock your PR on such a historic day!

We discussed Brendon's experiences running in the sub-elite field at the New York Marathon in 2016, 17, & 18 and compared and contrasted the courses and what they require.

We closed focusing on the close-knit, family culture they've created at Team ORT and examined three big breakthroughs by their athletes:

-The Soto's father/son team from Guatemala, who both ran sub-3 in 2018 at the Chicago Marathon, qualifying to run Boston together.

-Stephanie Plummer running 5 marathons in 63 days, earning her Abbott World Marathon Majors Six-Star medal and finishing the last race at CIM with her fastest time, 3:42.

-Erin Genova smashing through the sub-3 barrier at CIM, running 2:58 for an 18-minute PR.

I'm stoked to see Brendon get fully healthy and start racking up some fast times again soon. And I'm equally excited to watch him and Casey Kilareski, who ran the Olympic Trials marathon in ATL, continue to grow Team ORT!

I hope you all enjoy this convo as much as we did!

If you enjoy the episode, it would mean the world to me if you would rate the podcast or write a review and share feedback wherever you get your podcast groove on.

Connect With Brendon:

Instagram: @olearyracingteam

Coaching Intake, Team Store, Running Plans, & More: https://linktr.ee/Olearyracingteam

Connect With Ron:

Personal Instagram: @ronrunsnyc

Podcast Instagram: @runchats_with_ronrunsnyc

Facebook: https://fb.me/runchats

Website: https://ronrunsnyc.com

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Produced by: David Margittai | In Post Media

Website: https://www.inpostmedia.com

Email: [email protected]

Social: @_margittai

© 2022 Ron Romano

Kim Conley has had a storied career as a professional runner, proudly repping the USA eight times, including at the 2012 Olympic Games in London & 2016 in Rio! Kim has won two national titles—10,000m & 1/2 marathon—and earned the bronze medal at the 2019 Pan-American Games in the 5000m. Kim holds PR's of 15:05 (5K), 31:35 (10K), & 69:44 (1/2M)—all pre-carbon shoes!

After a 10-year sponsorship run with New Balance, Kim is a free agent and is excited for her next chapter as she moves up to the marathon with the goal of running in the 2024 Olympic Trials, shooting for her 3rd Olympics.

In 2021, Kim began Coaching with McKirdy Trained and is currently finding joy helping her athletes build their plans, hit big goals, and is drawing inspiration from the work ethic of her 29 athletes.

We discuss:

-Key coaches who had an impact: Larry Meredith, Mr. Walsh, Drew Wartenburg (her husband)

-Key Races: 2012 Trials (coming from 5th to 3rd in last lap with a lean at the tape), 2014 US Champs edging Jordan Hasay in front of a hometown crowd and her whole family who were in town for her sister's wedding in Sacramento

-Her 2012 & 2016 Olympics experiences

-Finding joy & inspiration coaching

-Creating a running camp

-Community service (in 2018 Kim joined the board of the USATF Pacific Foundation, which awards grants to Olympic hopefuls)

Kim's journey and story are so damn inspiring! I'm stoked to follow the next chapter.

I hope you all enjoy this convo as much as we did!

If you enjoy the episode, it would mean the world to me if you would rate the podcast or write a review and share feedback wherever you get your podcast groove on.

Connect With Kim:

Instagram: @kfconley

Website: https://kimfconley.com

Connect With Ron:

Personal Instagram: @ronrunsnyc

Podcast Instagram: @runchats_with_ronrunsnyc

Facebook: https://fb.me/runchats

Website: https://ronrunsnyc.com

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Produced by: David Margittai | In Post Media

Website: https://www.inpostmedia.com

Email: [email protected]

Social: @_margittai

© 2022 Ron Romano

I am stoked to share this convo with local NYC running rockstar and co-founder of the Lost Boys Track Club Tim Rossi. It's been fun watching Tim's progression, as he continues to rip faster and faster times (2:31 Marathon & 1:11 1/2M PRs) and keeps honing his craft. We dove deep on the NYC running scene, Lost Boys vibe and culture, and the power of community.

We discuss:

-Team sports & coaches who've impacted him

-His intro into running & being welcomed into the community

-The local NYC running scene

-Olympic Trials standards & the NYC women who inspire 

-The genesis of Lost Boys 

-The Speed Project & Hood to Coast

-Running with Shalane Flanagan & Wesley Korir at NYC

-His 2:31 NYC Marathon in 2018 & the lessons learned

-The 50th NYC: DNF vs living cheering section to cheering section, celebrating NYC running (Boogie Down Bronx Runners, We Run Uptown Crew, Brooklyn Track Club)

-Community & giving back

I can't tell you how excited I am to continue following Tim's journey and seeing what new heights he reaches!

I hope you all enjoy this convo as much as we did!

If you enjoy the episode, it would mean the world to me if you would rate the podcast or write a review and share feedback wherever you get your podcast groove on.

Connect With Tim:

Instagram: @timrossi

Lost Boys Instagram: @lostboystrackclub

Connect With Ron:

Personal Instagram: @ronrunsnyc

Podcast Instagram: @runchats_with_ronrunsnyc

Facebook: https://fb.me/runchats

Website: https://ronrunsnyc.com

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Produced by: David Margittai | In Post Media

Website: https://www.inpostmedia.com

Email: [email protected]

Social: @_margittai

© 2022 Ron Romano

What an amazing, inspiring journey Mary Denholm has been on! From aiming for a BQ in her 2nd marathon and nailing a 3:03 in 2016, to running a 2:42 at CIM in 2019, punching her ticket to run the Trials in Atlanta. Mary's time seeded her 189th for ATL, where she rocked a personal-record time of 2 hours, 41 minutes, 8 seconds on a demanding course in swirling winds, finishing 51st! That outstanding result on a tough day against a stacked field earned her a start in the PRO field this year in Boston.

Her progress and journey haven't been linear and all of those races and life experiences have forged her mental grit and resiliency. Mary had a tough day at Grandma's, nearly dropped out, and decided to help a bunch of other women go sub-3 that day.

At Twin Cities, Mary ran with her friend Liz Camy for 25M, but couldn't stay with her the last mile. Liz qualified and Mary missed her OTQ by 13 seconds!

By far the most impactful, in February, just a month before her big Trials race in Atlanta, she was asked to move out of her marital home, ending her 10-year marriage. She loaded up her truck and dog, Max, and moved to Flagstaff, bouncing around, crashing on friends couches and airbnbs, getting very little sleep due to the stress. Not running for a week and missing a last key long run workout piled on even more anxiety. She opened up to her coach, Nick Klastava—who reassured her that the fitness was there—and to some of her close training partners, who gave her support, and made her feel loved at a time she needed it most.

Mary is a beacon of positivity and a great ambassador for our sport. She dreams big, shares her goals, and inspires and encourages others to believe in themselves and get to work! She has a great partnership with her coach and is also coaching and helping athletes hit their goals for Lift Run Perform.

I'm stoked to see Mary get after it in the pro field at Boston and take aim at the new trials standard of <2:37!

I hope you all enjoy this convo as much as we did!

If you enjoy the episode, it would mean the world to me if you would rate the podcast or write a review and share feedback wherever you get your podcast groove on.

Connect With Mary:

Instagram: @eatrunandbemary

Coaching & Other Links: https://linktr.ee/marydenholm

Connect With Ron:

Personal Instagram: @ronrunsnyc

Podcast Instagram: @runchats_with_ronrunsnyc

Facebook: https://fb.me/runchats

Website: https://ronrunsnyc.com

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Produced by: David Margittai | In Post Media

Website: https://www.inpostmedia.com

Email: [email protected]

Social: @_margittai

© 2022 Ron Romano

I'm so grateful to Ben for jumping "On" from the Houston Half Marathon to share his exciting news of signing with On Running, where he'll be rocking his new kit in a stacked field and taking a swing at the Canadian National Record (61:28)!

We discussed closing a great chapter with Reebok and Reebok Boston, his gratitude for them believing in him, and the support given. The close friendships built over many shared miles and experiences with Colin Bennie, Graham Crawford, Robby Andrews, Justyn Knight, and Josette Norris.

The exciting new chapter with On, how this new deal came together, how their goals align and how collaborative the process was, and how stoked he is to join a talented roster with Oliver Hoare, Alicia Monson, George Beamish, Joe Klecker, and Morgan McDonald.

How his fall buildup with Coach Fox and training partner Colin Bennie has him stronger and fitter than ever leading to big wins at the Canadian 10K Champs and Manchester. Ben's big future goals of stepping up to the Marathon, and qualifying to run 26.2 for Team Canada in Paris.

I'm rooting hard for Ben to RIP a fast one in Houston against a stacked field and have another signature tape breaking moment and I'm so excited to follow his running journey with On moving forward!

I hope you all enjoy this convo as much as we did!

If you enjoy the episode, it would mean the world to me if you would rate the podcast or write a review and share feedback wherever you get your podcast groove on.

Connect With Ben:

Instagram: @ben_flanagan

Connect With Ron:

Personal Instagram: @ronrunsnyc

Podcast Instagram: @runchats_with_ronrunsnyc

Facebook: https://fb.me/runchats

Website: https://ronrunsnyc.com

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Produced by: David Margittai | In Post Media

Website: https://www.inpostmedia.com

Email: [email protected]

Social: @_margittai

© 2022 Ron Romano

Lisa DeNardo is a badass single mom to five amazing kids who has overcome some huge life obstacles. She loves to play in the mountains, enjoying ski/snowboard and hiking adventures with her kids. Lisa was in a 7-year marriage, filled with domestic violence and abuse, and it was life or death. Through the help of Victims of Prevention, they secretly moved, got legal help and counseling, and completely rebuilt their life. Lisa is strength personified!

As a kid, Lisa forged a deep connection to running, recalling vividly how the cinder track felt beneath her feet the first time she won a race at a Jessie Owens Meet when she was 8 years old. Lisa had real talent as a runner, competing all four years in the 4x400 at Penn Relays. She earned a scholarship to run at West Chester State, but gave it up because she was feeling the pressure of how to make it all work and decided to focus on Art at school.

Fast forward 20 years, to the onset of the pandemic. When others were out in search of toilet paper, Lisa went out and scored a pair of running shoes. It was time to get reacquainted with her old friend. She laced 'em up and ran every day with her son, who runs high school cross country.

Sharing miles together was special and lit the fire, and her love of mountains and play led her to her new love—Ultrarunning.

"Lacing up those running shoes when there was nothing to do but run felt like the return of an old familiar friend. It felt powerful. Like, here we are again. Let's get to it. We've got unfinished business."

Lisa won some age group awards at trail races, worked her way back from a stress fracture in her foot, and recently finished her 1st Ultra at the JFK 50 Mile. Once Lisa saw that she still carried her passion and drive for running, she jumped all-in to ambassador programs for Altra Running, UltrAspire, and Bigger than the Trail, and connecting with other athletes through these communities has been a game-changer.

I'm so grateful for Lisa sharing her amazing journey and I'm excited to follow her adventures! I hope you all enjoy this convo as much as we did!

If you enjoy the episode, it would mean the world to me if you would rate the podcast or write a review and share feedback wherever you get your podcast groove on.

Connect With Lisa:

Instagram: @lisadenardo

All Links: https://linktr.ee/lisadenardo

Connect With Ron:

Personal Instagram: @ronrunsnyc

Podcast Instagram: @runchats_with_ronrunsnyc

Facebook: https://fb.me/runchats

Website: https://ronrunsnyc.com

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Produced by: David Margittai | In Post Media

Website: https://www.inpostmedia.com

Email: [email protected]

Social: @_margittai

© 2022 Ron Romano

In 2006, Karin Reemts lost a dear friend to leukemia. She founded "Joggin for Jenn," and over the next 4 years raised $10000+ for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society by running half/full marathons. The key race was the 2006 Chicago Marathon. Karin trained for and ran that race for Jenn—and for all those that couldn't run. Karin had found her "why" and discovered running for a greater purpose!

During the pandemic, Karin felt like she was running around in circles and felt a bit rudderless. She learned about RIVS plight from brother Jacob and took to heart something he said, "lets breath life into RIVS by running, walking, and moving our bodies."

Karin hired Jacob as her coach and he taught her to focus on effort & time, add variety to her paces, and to trust the process. For the past 18 months, Karin has put all her energy into spreading awareness and raising funds for RIVS and completed the PRP Virtual Race series of Team Peak Run races: 25K, 50K, 50M, 100K—which benefitted Bigger Than The Trail—all while staying healthy.

Karin and husband Patrick had a 5+ year IVF journey to have their children, Baxter and Cassidy. Because it was such a rough, uphill battle to get pregnant, Karin poured every last ounce of herself into being the best mom. Ultimately, that took a big toll and she lost herself along the way. Her husband insisted she schedule 10 minutes a day for herself—which slowly grew to an hour—and the "Happy Mama Project" was born.

Soon Karin was running again, which had always helped her manage anxiety. When home schooling during the pandemic, her kids helped out too, suggesting when Mom "needed to get in a run." This part will resonate with all the moms out there that we love, who take on so much for their families.

We discuss: family life, youth sports, swimming, running, triathlon, mentors (Coach Showers & Coach Holm), running for a greater purpose, Joggin for Jen, Team RIVS, Bigger Than the Trail, hiring a new coach and positive changes made with Jacob Puzey, the Happy Mama Project, anxiety, how Running for RIVS galvanized so many, the running community.

I'm so grateful for Karin coming on and sharing her inspiring story! I hope you all enjoy this convo as much as we did!

If you enjoy the episode, it would mean the world to me if you would rate the podcast or write a review and share feedback wherever you get your podcast groove on.

Connect With Karin:

Instagram: @the_happy_mama_project

All Links: https://campsite.bio/thehappymamaproject

Connect With Ron:

Personal Instagram: @ronrunsnyc

Podcast Instagram: @runchats_with_ronrunsnyc

Facebook: https://fb.me/runchats

Website: https://ronrunsnyc.com

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Produced by: David Margittai | In Post Media

Website: https://www.inpostmedia.com

Email: [email protected]

Social: @_margittai

© 2022 Ron Romano

Anh Bui has been on a quest to break sub-3 and would dream about what it would feel like while pushing through her toughest workouts. When she arrived in Chicago—off what felt like the perfect buildup—the universe had other ideas and she had to walk off the course at mile 14 and take her 1st DNF. It was physically painful, humbling, and Anh felt like she had let herself, her coach, and her closest supporters down.

Anh asked her coach Matt Hensley of Boulder Underground if they could take another sub-3 crack at CIM and he advised her to focus on getting healthy. This is where Anh put her unique skills as a DPT & CSC to use.

She built her own rehab program, with a big focus on PT & strength, and worked tirelessly to get back to running. It wasn't a certainty she would run until 5 days before CIM, but through incredibly hard work, she arrived healthy, with no expectations, just 8 weeks after Chicago.

She met up with Ana (from NYC) and friend Kim at mile 3 and they worked beautifully together as a team. Against all odds, she got to have that day she had been dreaming about, running 2:58:33 and SMASHING the sub-3 barrier.

The agony and ecstasy of running, just eight weeks apart. Tears of joy, hugs, and celebrating with her assistant coach Nicole and coach Matt, who were both there to support her in Chicago and now at the finish line at CIM. So many lessons learned in this one.

When Anh isn't crushing races, she's deeply involved in the running community operating her PT Practice out of Renegade Running in Oakland, leading Wellness Wednesday workouts focused on injury prevention, strengthening, and mobility.

She's also a USATF1 Run Coach who understands how all of these areas need to come together to be the best running version of yourself. Here's to hoping she follows through and publishes that rehab program we discussed *wink wink*

I'm so excited to follow Anh's inspiring journey and I hope you all enjoy this convo as much as we did!

If you enjoy the episode, it would mean the world to me if you would rate the podcast or write a review and share feedback wherever you get your podcast groove on.

Connect With Anh:

Instagram: @runresilientlydpt

Website: https://www.runresilientlydpt.com

Connect With Ron:

Personal Instagram: @ronrunsnyc

Podcast Instagram: @runchats_with_ronrunsnyc

Facebook: https://fb.me/runchats

Website: https://ronrunsnyc.com

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Produced by: David Margittai | In Post Media

Website: https://www.inpostmedia.com

Email: [email protected]

Social: @_margittai

© 2021 Ron Romano