Most runners who think they have low iron have never had the right test. And most who supplement for it never needed to.

Dr Alannah McKay is a Senior Lecturer at the Mary MacKillop Institute for Health Research, Australian Catholic University, where she studies iron metabolism in athletes. She trained full-time as a ballet dancer from twelve to eighteen and thinks she was iron deficient through most of it — never tested, never treated. Her PhD, done in partnership with the Australian Institute of Sport, was awarded the Dean's List honour, and she now works alongside Professor Louise Burke on female athlete physiology.

In this episode:

• What ferritin actually measures, and why a haemoglobin test alone tells you almost nothing
• The three stages of iron deficiency — and where you can still intervene
• Why the duration of your run matters more than the intensity
• Hepcidin: the hormone that blocks iron absorption for hours after training
• The thirty-minute window after a run when absorption is best
• Why "100mg" on a supplement bottle is often 20mg of what counts
• Ferrous sulphate vs bisglycinate — and what the evidence actually supports
• What happens to your iron across a hard training block or at altitude
• Home ferritin tests, and why she's not ready to recommend them yet
• How often a recreational runner should realistically get screened

⚠️ Educational only — not medical advice. Supplementing iron without testing carries real risk, including for people with undiagnosed haemochromatosis. Talk to your doctor before changing anything.

Chapters
01:00 From ballet to iron research
02:00 What iron does in the body
05:00 Ferritin, haemoglobin and the three stages
08:00 How iron is absorbed — and what blocks it
11:30 Who's most at risk
16:30 Hepcidin: why training blocks absorption
20:00 The window after your run
23:30 Low carb, keto and iron
25:00 Haem vs non-haem, and vitamin C
32:00 Can you have too much iron?
34:30 Supplement forms
37:00 Symptoms, and why fatigue is a poor signal
39:30 How often to get screened
40:30 Home ferritin tests
43:00 Hard training blocks and altitude
47:00 Dosing: elemental iron, timing and alternate days
54:00 What she'd study next

Find Dr Alannah McKay
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/alannah-mckay
ACU profile and email: acu.edu.au
Google Scholar: scholar.google.com

Book a free 30-minute call

I'm Joost, running coach at Pace Buddies. I coach recreational runners using an aerobic-first approach — building the engine properly before layering speed on top, instead of the other way round.

If this episode left you wondering whether something in your own training is holding you back, book a free thirty-minute call. No pitch deck, no pressure. We look at what you're actually doing now, where the gaps are, and whether coaching would help — and if it wouldn't, I'll tell you that.

Book your free call at pacebuddies.com

The Aerobic Edge is an evidence-based endurance podcast for recreational runners. New episodes with researchers, coaches and athletes who actually know what they're talking about. Follow the show so you don't miss the next one.

Instagram: @pace.buddies

Every fuelling guide tells you to take as many grams per hour as your gut can handle. Prof. Tim Noakes has spent four years arguing the number you actually need is closer to ten.

His position is contested. Prof. Louise Burke argues the opposite, and they published a three-part debate against each other in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in May 2026 — her case, his case, and a joint consensus. All linked below.

Tim Noakes is emeritus professor at the University of Cape Town, author of Lore of Running, and has been in the field since 1976 as both researcher and runner. His 2026 Endocrine Reviews paper works through 160+ studies to argue that endurance performance is limited by blood glucose and the brain monitoring it, not by muscle glycogen.

We go back further than the paper: the day in December 2010 he changed his mind about carbohydrate, what it cost him, his own type 2 diabetes diagnosis despite decades of marathons, and the graph he'd shown hundreds of times without noticing what was in it.

Also: what hypoglycemia actually feels like and why it reverses in ten minutes, what "low carb" means in real grams, fat oxidation above 1.5 g/min, industry funding in sports nutrition, and what any of it means at 40 to 50k a week.

THE PAPERSEndocrine Reviews review: https://doi.org/10.1210/endrev/bnaf038The 10 g/h triathlete trial: https://doi.org/10.1152/ajpcell.00583.2024

THE BURKE DEBATE (Am J Clin Nutr, May 2026)Burke — Yes: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajcnut.2026.101268Noakes — No: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajcnut.2026.101269Joint consensus: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajcnut.2026.101271

Prof. Noakes co-founded Nutrition Network and The Noakes Foundation, both built around low-carbohydrate nutrition — discussed openly in the episode. For information only, not medical advice.

ABOUTThe Aerobic Edge is an evidence-based endurance running podcast hosted by Joost, running coach at Pace Buddies. Aerobic-first marathon coaching for recreational runners.

Book a free 30 min consultation on: https://pacebuddies.com

There comes a point in a race where it stops being about fitness. Deena Kastor — Olympic marathon bronze medallist and American record holder for nineteen years — is unusually specific about what to do when that moment arrives.

We cover where her mental training started under coach Joe Vigil, the hill where she changed the words in her own head, and the practices she kept for decades:a daily gratitude list, and building joy into the sessions she dreaded. She also explains what an easy run is supposed to feel like (her Kenyan teammates called it a massage), how she handles start-line nerves with three memorised reasons she should succeed, and what she does in the last third of a marathon when it starts to fall apart.

She also pushes back on the usual line about comparison, and on what to prioritise when you get injured.

0:00 Intro

1:53 Who Deena Kastor is

5:22 Where the mental training started

10:57 What an easy run should feel like

16:09 Building joy into your week

27:02 Reframing disappointment

33:29 Start-line nerves

36:11 The last third of a race

44:01 Comparison

48:21 Injury

55:01 One takeaway

Book: Let Your Mind Run.

Instagram: @deenakastor

Website: deena-kastor.com

Coaching: pacebuddies.com

Most runners assume nasal breathing works because it gets you more oxygen. It doesn't — and today's guest explains what's actually going on instead. Zack Kramer, a strength and conditioning coach who rebuilt his practice around breathwork after years in CrossFit, walks through the real mechanism behind nose vs. mouth breathing: it's not oxygen uptake, it's CO2 tolerance.We cover what functional breathing actually looks like day-to-day, why mouth breathing becomes a hidden habit for so many runners, how to train your diaphragm like any other muscle, and a simple pre-run warm-up that speeds up nasal adaptation. Zack also shares his own month-long transition to full-time nasal breathing — including what didn't work.KEY TAKEAWAYS1. Nasal breathing isn't about getting more oxygen in — runners are already near-saturated (95%+). It's about CO2 tolerance, which delays the urge to breathe harder at a given pace.2. Nasal adaptation typically takes about a month of consistent practice; committing fully (24/7, including sleep) speeds it up.3. The diaphragm is a trainable muscle — a tired diaphragm pulls oxygen-rich blood away from your legs and arms before it pulls from anywhere else.4. A short CO2-buildup warm-up (exhale breath holds, ~2 minutes) can shortcut the rough first 5–10 minutes of a run.5. Chronic nasal issues (deviated septum, congestion) are common and manageable with nasal dilators — full nasal breathing isn't an all-or-nothing requirement.* Website / coaching: http://athletebreathcoaching.com* Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/athletebreathcoach/PaceBuddiesWebsite / coaching: http://pacebuddies.com* Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pace.buddies/* Strava: @pace.buddies

Chapters

00:00 Episode preview00:38 Welcome & Zack's background — football to CrossFit to breathwork03:36 Breathwork courses that shaped his approach (Oxygen Advantage, XPT)05:20 What is functional breathing?07:33 Why nasal breathing is so hard to maintain09:46 Why nasal breathing matters — filtration & nervous system14:21 CO2 tolerance introduced15:39 What CO2 actually is, and why tolerance matters18:57 Does CO2 tolerance improve performance?21:31 Adaptation period & living with chronic nasal congestion22:10 Nasal dilators — show and tell25:43 Where to start with a runner28:25 How long does nasal adaptation actually take?30:35 Running with low-intensity nasal breathing problems34:42 The oxygen myth — debunking "mouth breathing = more energy"36:04 Training your diaphragm like a muscle39:03 Why a tired diaphragm steals blood from your legs40:31 Gear demo: the Breather Fit device42:46 Gear demo: the Isocapnic device43:44 How to actually use the devices — sets, reps, progression46:18 Breath training during intervals and rest periods48:12 The pre-run warm-up that speeds up adaptation52:27 Breathing for relaxation and recovery55:09 365-degree breathing technique58:25 How to practice belly, back, and side expansion59:17 Where to find Zack & closing

Most runners try to fix their form by chasing numbers — 180 steps per minute, a midfoot landing, a shorter stride. Paul Mackinnon thinks that's the wrong end of the problem.Paul runs The Balanced Runner in Melbourne and has spent close to a decade coaching running technique full time, working with Olympians like Galen Rupp and Brett Robinson alongside recreational runners with sore knees. His argument: cadence and foot strike aren't settings you adjust. They're outcomes of how the rest of your body moves. So he starts at the top — the arms and torso — and lets the legs reorganise underneath.We get into where the 180 rule actually came from, why forcing a foot strike can move an injury rather than fix it, and how he uses an old way / new way comparison so runners can feel a change instead of being told about it.I did a session with Paul before recording this, so some of what you'll hear I felt myself.Paul Mackinnon* Website: https://tbrunner.com* Instagram: https://instagram.com/thebalancedrunnerJoost Dekker — Pace Buddies* Website: https://pacebuddies.com* Free 30-minute consultation: http://pacebuddies.comChapters00:00 Intro00:54 From field hockey to running technique03:04 Canberra, dirt trails, and feet that sounded different04:53 Why physics has to come first06:40 What a first session actually looks like09:11 Feel it before you change it10:33 A word from Pace Buddies11:08 Why top-down instead of chasing cadence12:28 The arm swing: where it starts14:39 How arms change your foot strike17:59 What a good arm swing feels like20:15 Elbows, not hands22:29 Letting the athlete make the choice23:22 Old way, new way26:37 One cue at a time31:11 How long before it becomes a habit34:03 Better is better37:11 Does technique make you faster?39:36 The 800m data, clarified40:51 The 180 cadence rule44:18 Stride length and cadence are two levers47:27 Why your watch data doesn't tell the whole story49:28 Heel, midfoot, forefoot — does it matter?53:49 How to spot overstriding yourself55:59 Where to find Paul1:00:39 Outro

For a hundred years, runners have blamed "lactic acid" for burning legs and fatigue. It's one of the most persistent myths in sport — and it's wrong.In this episode I talk with Dr. Michael Lindinger, exercise physiologist and former professor at the University of Guelph, who spent decades studying what actually happens to lactate and acid in working muscle. We get into what lactate really is (a fuel your muscles, heart, and brain burn — not a waste product), where the burning sensation actually comes from, why the soreness days after a marathon has nothing to do with lactate, and what "clearing lactate" really means for your training.If you've ever been told your legs were full of lactic acid, this conversation will change how you think about fatigue — and about what your interval sessions are actually building.Note: Dr. Lindinger works in the nutraceutical field; this is disclosed where supplements are discussed.----------------------------------------CHAPTERS 01:48 — Who is Dr. Michael Lindinger03:12 — What lactate actually is (and the 1930s myth)05:34 — The infusion study: lactate as fuel, not waste06:42 — Lactate as an oral supplement and the glucose-sparing effect08:44 — Lactate fuels the whole body — even the brain09:49 — A word from Pace Buddies10:22 — Where lactate is made, and why "anaerobic" is the wrong word12:37 — What really causes fatigue: potassium, sodium, phosphate13:32 — The phosphocreatine system: instant but short-lived16:15 — The burning sensation — cytokines, not lactate19:25 — Why the last 3K of a marathon burns (and it isn't lactate)20:27 — Post-race soreness: damage and inflammation, not lactate21:57 — What "clearing lactate" means when lactate rises23:41 — Fat burning, and why lactate is always being produced24:25 — How the whole body buffers and reuses lactate26:19 — Hitting the wall: running out of glucose27:32 — How fast the body clears lactate after hard efforts29:55 — Hydrogen ions, acidosis, and why lactate isn't "lactic acid"33:43 — Can you train lactate clearing?37:21 — Fast-twitch vs slow-twitch: where the burn happens39:03 — Do buffers work? Bicarbonate, beta-alanine 42:18 — The massage therapist myth43:21 — "Clearing lactate" in plain terms: what training really builds

Dr. Jose Antonio, co-founder and CEO of the International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN), joins The Aerobic Edge to go through what the evidence actually says about protein, buffering supplements, and caffeine for endurance athletes.We cover why the protein-kidney myth persists despite years of contrary data, why most national protein guidelines are too low for anyone trying to race rather than just finish, and why sodium bicarbonate — historically avoided for its GI side effects — deserves a place next to beta-alanine, creatine, nitrate, and caffeine as a serious performance supplement.We also get into the practical side: how to fit more protein into a training day without overhauling your diet, when supplementation timing actually matters and when it's just convenience, and why endurance athletes underestimate how much a central, brain-driven sense of fatigue shapes race-day performance.

• 00:34 – Origins of the ISSN
• 06:04 – Debunking the protein-kidney myth
• 14:03 – How much protein you actually need
• 20:38 – Amino acids vs. protein shakes
• 33:07 – The six supplements with real evidence behind them
• 34:32 – Sodium bicarbonate as a performance buffer
• 42:09 – Caffeine dosing and timing
• 44:56 – Central fatigue and race-day mindset
• 54:55 – Nitrate/beetroot juice
• 59:20 – Where to find Jose Antonio

Guest Links

• Instagram: @supphd
• ISSN Instagram: @THE_ISSN
• ISSN Annual Conference: Jupiter, Florida, every June

Want a structured, evidence-based approach to your own training? I coach recreational runners toward their personal best, building real aerobic fitness that shows up on race day. Book a free 30-minute consultation call at pacebuddies.com.

Your HRV dropped after a hard session. Most runners take that as proof they trained hard. Marco Altini says it's proof of the opposite.

Marco is the founder of HRV4Training, an advisor at Oura, and an endurance coach. He came to physiology the long way round — from computer science and early wearable prototypes, back to university to study sports science, because he wanted to understand the bodies he was measuring.

In this conversation we cover what HRV actually measures, why "higher is better" is wrong, how to build your normal range, morning vs night measurement, what to change when your baseline drops, why a falling HRV in taper week is the good news, and why the data should make you need the data less.

Find Marco on Substack, where he writes about HRV, training and coaching.

Want structured, evidence-based coaching? Book a free 30-minute call at pacebuddies.com

Find Marco:

• HRV for Training App
• Marco Altini - Personal Website

What if the pain in your knee, your Achilles or your foot has almost nothing to do with the spot that hurts?

In this episode of The Aerobic Edge, I sit down with movement specialist Helen Hall — the person runners often turn to as a last resort, after they've tried everything and been told they might never run again.

Using one of the most advanced motion analysis systems in the world (affectionately known as Doris), Helen has spent decades uncovering why repetitive injuries keep coming back.

Her core message is deceptively simple: most injuries below the waist have their root cause above the waist — in your head and shoulders — or in your feet. Pain shows up where your body works hardest, but that's rarely where the problem actually begins.

We start with the head. Helen walks through what a forward-leaning head really does to your body: at 15 degrees it effectively weighs around 12 kilos, at 30 degrees roughly 18, at 45 degrees about 22. That's not a strength problem — as Helen puts it, there isn't a weak sinew in your body. It's a massive energy leak, and your hardest-working joints pay the price.

From there we get practical: how to use nothing more than your phone to see your own posture honestly, her wall exercise for finding true upright (which I try live on the recording), and why "upright and at ease" feels like leaning back to almost everyone.

Then one of my favourite parts: the arm swing. Helen invented a cue she calls the lemme — a figure-of-eight, the sideways infinity symbol. She shows the difference between pumping your elbows (which roots you to the spot) and rolling the shoulder girdle in that figure-of-eight (which sends you forward, opens your stride and makes you lighter on your feet).

We also cover walk-run strategy — including a runner in her sixties who ran a 4:19 marathon off almost no training — and go deep on feet: Morton's neuroma, numb toes, and a remarkably simple foot-wiping habit that helped one barefoot marathoner drop from 5.5 hours to 5 hours with no other training.

A quick note: Helen demonstrates several of these exercises on camera. If you're listening to the audio, you'll be missing those visuals — so for the movements, I'd recommend watching the video version on YouTube.

What you'll learn:

Why pain below the waist usually starts above it

What a forward head really costs you — energy leak, not weakness

How to check your posture with just your phone

The wall exercise for finding true upright

The lemme: how a figure-of-eight arm swing opens your stride

Why walk-run can make you faster, not slower

How to wake up "asleep" feet with a simple daily habit

About Helen Hall:

Movement specialist and author. Her second book, The Smooth Runner: 20 Ways to More Speed for Less Effort, is on the way.

Find Helen:

Website: helen-hall.co.uk

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/helenhallpfm/

Connect with Pace Buddies / The Aerobic Edge:

Website: pacebuddies.com

Book a free call: cal.eu/pacebuddies/freecall

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Erin Carson: Mobility, Strength & Moving Better for Life | The Aerobic Edge

What does it really take to stay strong, mobile, and injury-free as a runner — not just for your next race, but for the rest of your life?

In this episode I sit down with Erin Carson, strength coach behind some of the best endurance athletes in the world, including ultra-running GOAT Courtney Dauwalter. Based in Boulder, Colorado, Erin has built a unique niche at the intersection of strength, mobility, and endurance performance. Her approach is refreshingly holistic: it's never just about muscle, but about the nervous system, fascia, posture, and even mood and freedom of movement.

We start with Erin's journey from Division One basketball in Canada to becoming a sought-after strength coach in the endurance world, and why her background shaped a "train the person for what they actually want to do" philosophy.

From there we get into the practical stuff every runner and triathlete can use:

• Why a strength coach is so focused on mobility — and why mobility is not the same as flexibility
• The three key areas of mobility that anchor everything: ankles, hips, and the thoracic spine (and how a knee problem often starts somewhere else entirely)
• A simple at-home self-test for your pelvis and hamstrings, and why "tight hamstrings" usually aren't the real problem
• Why most running injuries happen on the landing — not the push-off — and why this gets worse running downhill
• What "training age" means, and where beginners should actually start with strength work
• Why you should evaluate your strength program by how you run, not how you compare to everyone else in the gym
• How to train effectively at home with minimal equipment — adjustable dumbbells, bands, and a stability ball
• Why understanding the "why" behind each exercise matters more than mindlessly following a list
• Staying strong in the final third of a race, when posture and form start to break down
• Strength, mobility, and quality of life as we age — and why your daily choices today shape your final decade

Whether you're training for your first marathon or chasing a personal best, this conversation will change how you think about strength and movement — on the road and in everyday life.

🔗 Find Erin Carson:
Website: ecfitstrength.com
YouTube: Mobility Monday — new every Monday
Instagram: ecfit_strength

🎧 The Aerobic Edge Podcast
Hosted by Joost Dekker, founder of Pace Buddies.
Helping recreational runners train smarter through aerobic development, movement quality, and injury prevention.

If you enjoyed this episode, follow the show, leave a review, and share it with a running friend who could use it. Got a question or topic you'd like covered? Reach out — I'd love to hear from you.

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