“By listening to myself, I was able to achieve amazing things” ~Julia Chi Taylor

Hey Conscious Runners! As always, I’ve got another fantastic interview for you. Today, former elite runner, mentor, healer and founder of  Running Conscious, Julia Chi Taylor and I sit down for a chat about me. Yes, that’s right. The tables have been turned and I’m being interviewed. My name is Lisah. I am a masters runner, mother, author, certified running coach and the heart and soul behind The Conscious Runner. Using a mind, body and soul approach to running, I help you become a stronger, faster, more injury-resistant runner and feel GREAT while doing it!

I wasn’t always a runner. I was a competitive swimmer for over 15 years, with my highpoint being the 1994 Middle Atlantic Conference champion in the 50 meters freestyle. While waiting for swim season to start in college, I figured I’d give cross country a try. The feeling I got after completing my first run was like nothing I’d ever experienced before. From that point on, I was hooked. But it wasn’t always a smooth ride. I had these massive lungs that allowed me to run for what seemed like forever, but my body wasn’t able to handle the impact demands of running. Muscle imbalances, weakness, training errors and less than optimal running form led to one injury after another. I’ve had everything from stress fractures, to patella tendinitis, to IT BAND syndrome, to SI joint pain to plantar fasciitis.

Through it all, I was able to achieve a 1:16:32 half marathon, a 35:23 10k and a 2:43:59 marathon, compete in the 2003 and 2004 World Cross Country Championships in Switzerland and Belgium and almost qualify for the 2004 Athens Olympic marathon. So I know the frustration that comes from not being able to run when you want to run. I know the excitement of getting close to a goal race only to be derailed by injury weeks before. I know what it feels like to sacrifice other things you enjoy, only to have your running dreams not come to fruition. I know what it’s like to deal with an overly critical mind.

I completely enjoyed my interview with Julia and know you will too.

[Tweet “”By listening to myself, I was able to achieve amazing things” ~Julia Chi Taylor”]

[Tweet “”Above all, have fun” ~Lisah Hamilton”]

Until next time, run strong, run long and be present.

“Once you notice something, it is so much easier to get rid of it” ~Jackie Linehan

Hey Conscious Runners! Today, I’ve got another fantastic episode for you. I’ve got runner, meditator and creator of The Peaceful Runner, Jackie Linehan on the other side of the microphone with me.  As soon as I heard about Jackie’s approach to running and staying injury free, I knew I had to interview her.

Jackie believes if we don’t know how to properly deal with and release our emotions during stressful events, they remain in our bodies until our body feels safe enough to release them. When we do allow negative thoughts and feelings to take over and we get down and depressed, the negativity creates stress and tension in the body—the perfect conditions for an injury to develop. Jackie believes we need to learn how to deal with these emotions in a positive way and allow them to easily move in and out of our bodies. In a nutshell, we need to keep our mind happy in order to keep our body happy so that we can keep running injury free!

[Tweet “”I am here and the time is now” ~Jackie Linehan”]

[Tweet “”Once you notice something, it is so much easier to get rid of it” ~Jackie Linehan”]

Until next time, run strong, run long and be present.

Hey Conscious Runners! As always, I’ve got another fantastic interview for you. I’ve got elite runner, mentor, healer and founder of  Running Conscious, Julia Chi Taylor on the other side of the mic with me. From a very young age Julia knew all she needed to do was to ‘run free’. To allow running take her where it wanted to. To stay in the step. To be in the moment and experience running as meditation on the move. But practicing it proved to be far more difficult. Julia found in mastering her running she became better equipped to master other aspects of life; especially relationships. Julia believes the better the relationship we have with ourselves, the better we are able to relate to one another. Julia sees all relationships as mirrors reflecting who we are. The clearer we are of past hurt and the emotional baggage, the more able we are to be in a relationship in the here and now.

Running Conscious was born from Julia’s own well spring of experience, years of running, years of exploring relationships and years of working in other people’s lives as a coach, mentor, healer, counsellor and educator.

I completely enjoyed my chat with Julia and know you will too.

[Tweet “”By listening to myself, I was able to achieve amazing things” ~Julia Chi Taylor”]

[Tweet “”When I started to push, things would always go wrong” ~Julia Chi Taylor”]

[Tweet “”The still points are where the truth of us resides” ~Julia Chi Taylor”]

[Tweet “”If we trust ourselves we can trust everything” ~Julia Chi Taylor”]

[Tweet “”I love to run faster, even though I’m slower” ~Julia Chi Taylor”]

Until next time, run strong, run long and be happy.

Hey Conscious Runners! Welcome to another amazing interview. Today, I have runner and co-founder of Chi Running, Danny Dreyer on the line with me. Danny is an accomplished Ultra Marathon runner (races longer than a marathon) and has raced every distance from a 10K to 100 miles. He has successfully completed 40 ultra-marathons since 1995, finishing in the top 3 in his age group in all but one. In August 2005 he placed second in his age group in the USATF National 50k Championships.

He  has lived a lifestyle steeped in holistic living, meditation, and personal wellness for over 30 years. Healthy eating, physical exercise and rejuvenating activities are mainstays in his life and the foundation of what he teaches. Danny is also one of the artists on the Running Deep album of guided meditations for runners that I’ve been raving about. So, if you haven’t had a chance to get that album, be sure you test out a few of the sample tracks to see if its something that can enlighten your running.

[Tweet “”Running is my creative space to build stillness” ~Danny Dreyer”]

[Tweet “”Make running an intuitive sense of mind, body movement” ~Danny Dreyer”]

[Tweet “”It doesn’t have to be gut wrenching, ever” ~Danny Dreyer”]

Until next time, run strong, run long and be happy.

Hey Conscious Runners! Welcome to another amazing episode of The Conscious Runner Podcast. I have runner and physical therapist Brad Beer on the line with me. Brad didn’t set out to be a runner, in fact, he had his heart set on becoming a professional triathlete. While training for a triathlon, Brad had a pretty serious bike accident that split the cartilage in one of his knees. He could not run, let alone squat without significant pain. Realizing his dream of becoming a professional junior triathlete, he kept himself busy surfing, going to the gym, finishing school and starting his career as a physical therapist. During that time he also got surgery on his knee. But he never forgot how much he loved triathlon and running.

Being time poor in his physical therapy practice, along with the need to stay fit, one day he decided to go for a 20 minute run. To his surprise, his knee did not hurt. He figured he’d test it with a longer distance by running 30k. It still didn’t hurt, so he hoped in a marathon and still, there was no pain.

And so began his journey to improve his running performance. And interestingly, he got the triathlon bug again and after a 10 year absence from triathlon and a 12 year absence from swimming, Brad qualified for the World Championships and won an Australian title. After that race, he hung up his suite, goggles and bike and has since been focused on running and his physical therapy practice, POGO Physio.

POGO Physio has been recognised by the Gold Coast Business Excellence Awards for our customer service and excellence in physiotherapy and pilates services by being awarded several Excellence Awards. POGO was awarded the ‘Trades, Professions, and Services Awards in 2009, 2011, and 2012, and an award in the Wellness category in 2013.

At POGO Physio, Brad believes that all people deserve access to complete and remarkable physiotherapy services. We believe that all people ought to be able to perform at their physical best so that they can enjoy the physical things that they love to do in life: sports, recreation, and exercise.

I absolutely enjoyed my chat with Bread and  know you will too.

[Tweet “”Everyone can run pain free” ~Brad Beer”]

[Tweet “”Running does not inevitably have to lead to injury” ~Brad Beer”]

Until next time, run strong, run long and be present.

Hey Conscious Runners! I’m so excited to bring this episode to you. Today, I’ve got vegan, ultra marathoner and founder of No Meat Athlete, Matt Frazier on the mic with me. I am a long time fan of what Matt’s doing for the running community. His site is a great reminder that one approach doesn’t fit everyone. No matter what your diet is, you can make it work with running.

Matt got started running in one of the most interesting ways. One day, he and some friends of his got the idea to run a marathon. This was interesting because Matt had hated running his whole life. But here he was, training to run his first marathon an on top of it he was going after a Boston qualifier. But that didn’t happen, he missed the mark by 104 minutes. This really hit him hard. But it wasn’t surprising, he knew nothing about running, his training was terrible, his pacing was terrible, the whole thing was a mess. He could not believe he was that far off from the qualifying time. It really caused him to take a good hard look at himself.

It was at that time the seed to do everything he could to qualify for the Boston Marathon was planted. He wanted to be the kind of person who could achieve such a feat. So, with relentless pursuit, be began to chase that goal. But it wasn’t smooth ride, his lack of running, training, form knowledge led to a cycle of injury and recovery. He read books, followed plans, got advice and made adjustments to his training, form and mindset and 4 years later, he was finally able to complete another marathon and yes, qualify for Boston.

But that wasn’t enough, he wanted to push his mind and body even further, he became a vegan, runner, ran a 100 miler and inspires others every day.

[Tweet “”It doesn’t have to be stressful if you do it gradually” ~Matt Frazier”]

[Tweet “”You don’t get super powers on race day” ~Matt Frazier”]

Until next time, run strong, run long and be happy.

Hey Conscious Runners! Hope you all are having a fantastic week. I’m so excited to bring this long awaited episode to you today. As you know, there is more to running than just running. We have to pay attention to the little things, such as following sound training principles, strength training, mobility, recover and yes, nutrition. well, today is all about nutrition. I’ve got Strength and Conditioning Specialist and weight loss and nutrition expert James Mullins on the line with me. 

Although James had participated in sports and athletics for most of his life, he was never 100% committed to fitness until my father died and he then really began to look at his health and how it was impacting his life. He was overweight, had high blood pressure, and was unhappy with how he looked and felt. At this point, he decided to start my transformation. For the past ten years, James has been focused on improving his personal fitness and gaining as much knowledge and information possible about training, conditioning, weight loss and nutrition.

James prides himself by helping others take control of their lives both mentally and physically and has helped many people get up and running on the road to personal fitness. With his knowledge and experience, he  can help you make healthy, realistic, sustainable lifestyle choices without the fads, quick fixes, and gimmicks – to help you improve your health now, and for the long-term.

I absolutely loved my rapid-fire, nutrition Q&A session with James and know you will too.

[Tweet “”Make it a life long thing.” ~James Mullins”]

Until next time, run strong, run long and be happy.

Hey Conscious Runners! I’m so excited to be bring you this episode today. I’ve got 8 time NCAA Division one qualifier and coach Cory Smith on the line with me. I met Cory about a month ago. I was sitting at home thinking it would be great to have someone review my training plans. And then instead of just thinking about it, I decided to do something about it. I headed over to Google and searched for coaches in my area. Within minutes, Cory’s name popped up. I read his bio as an athlete and a coach and decided to reach out to him.

I had never met or spoken to him before, but knew this was something I needed to do. So, I sent him an email asking if he would be will ing to review my training plans. Immediately, he said “yes”. But it was more than that. He went on to talk about how important getting feedback from others was to him and how happy he was to help. Not only did he review my plans, we met to discuss them. To day he went above and beyond anything I would have expected would be an understatement. And if you’re looking for a coach, who knows what they are doing and who cares, I recommend him.

Cory is a USA Track & Field Level 2 Endurance Certified Coach. He started guiding athletes in 2009 when he co-founded Villanova Elite, a running club providing support to post-collegiate distance runners.  As club founder, Cory helped guide several of their athletes to multiple personal bests.  Today, he is the Head Coach of Run Your Personal Best. Cory first entered the national running scene in high school, where he qualified for the National Cross Country Championships and earned a spot as one of the top 25 cross country runners in the US.  As a member of the track & field team, he held three Maryland State records and finished his high school career with the 6th fastest 2 mile in the US.

Following high school Cory attended Villanova University where he was consistently a top performer earning 8 NCAA D1 Regional Qualifiers including 2 at the NCAA D1 National Championships.He earned multiple honors in both cross-country and track & field including Big East and Mid Atlantic. Cory holds a personal records of 3:45 – 1500 meters, 4:03 mile, 8:05 3000 meters, 14:13 5k and the most recent of 1:10:28 1/2 marathon in November 2014.

In this episode, Cory and I go deep into the anatomy of a designing a training plan and more.

[Tweet “”You should run because you enjoy it.” ~Cory Smith”]

[Tweet “”You train the athlete for who they are, what event they are running and what they can do.” ~Cory Smith”]

Until next time, run strong, run long and be happy.

Hey Conscious Runners! Today, I’ve got an amazing interview for you! It is with Jason Stephenson, one of the amazing artists on Running Deep. The album of guided meditations for runners that I’ve been raving about for the past two months. Jason is also the founder of Relax Me Online and Meditation Masters TV- sites that explore the mind, body and soul connection.

The importance of meditation came to Jason in his early 20’s, during a troubled time in his life. He used meditation to gain a deeper understanding that he was more than his physical body. One experience in particular stuck out. While meditating in a local National Park , totally at one with nature, Jason experienced something magical. For a few moments, he had everything he had ever wanted, could want right here right now. It was an intense experience that left him wanting more.

Having an interest in Buddhism, Jason attended a 10 day Monastic retreat at Nan Tien Temple in NSW, Australia. It was from this point that Jason knew he had to continue on this path of seeking a deeper peace within himself and his world he lives in. In 2009, Nan Tien Temple asked Jason if he would like to perform in a Buddhist song contest in Taiwan. It was here Jason performed on stage in Taiwan and won an award in an International Buddhist song contest. Combining his love of music and love of meditation, Jason knew he was on the right path.

Recently, Jason completed his Usui Reiki First Degree Certificate and has completed a Diploma of Neuro-Psychological Immunity (H & H College Queensland, Australia)– a course where Jason says, “he really began to understand the power and connection between health of the mind and body.”

In this episode Jason opens up about his life before meditation, his drug use, promiscuity, panic attacks and more. We can all learn from Jason’s experience and use it to find more depth and meaning in our own. I had a lot of fun with Jason in this episode and I know you will too.

[Tweet “”Meditation is bringing a light to the part I play in the world.” ~Jason Stephenson”]

Until next time, run strong, run long and be happy.

Hey Conscious Runners, I’m so excited to be bringing you this episode today! This is really a special one to me. It was inspired by a conscious runner who has been diligently going through 45 Days to Building Your Strong Running Body-No Gym Required, a strength training and injury prevention course in The Conscious Runner membership Program. When he first started the program, he was sore, but after a few weeks, he got to the point he was no longer sore and wanted to increase the challenge of some of the exercises in the program. After I responded to him, I decided to ask this and other questions to friend and certified strength & conditioning specialist, James Mullins and record it.

Although James had participated in sports and athletics for most of my life, he was never 100% committed to fitness until my father died and I then really began to look at his health and how it was impacting his life. He was overweight, had high blood pressure, and was unhappy with how he looked and felt. At this point, he decided to start my transformation. For the past ten years, James has been focused on improving my personal fitness and gaining as much knowledge and information possible about training and conditioning. While trying to ensure he was getting the best information and training to help meet his fitness goals, he began the pursuit of becoming a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist. Becoming a fitness professional allows him to offer the knowledge and skills he’s attained to help others reach their fitness and conditioning goals. James prides myself by helping others take control of their lives both mentally and physically and has helped many people get up and running on the road to personal fitness. With his knowledge and experience, he  can help you make healthy, realistic, sustainable lifestyle choices without the fads, quick fixes, and gimmicks – to help you improve your health now, and for the long-term.

I absolutely loved my rapid-fire, strength Q&A session with James and know you will too.