The Running for Real Podcast

Jared Ward is a Dad, a Husband, Olympian, runner, and coach. In that order. Our interview is wide ranging from running form and which shoes can best support your body’s preferred running style, injuries he has worked to overcome, and how to prepare for and run well in the heat, from both a physical and mental perspective. The real gems in this interview are all the mental preparation tips we cover.    If you want to learn some tips for focusing on the mental skills you need to succeed, this interview provides you tools you can implement into your running and racing strategy no matter what your overall pace might be.

Today’s Guest

Jared Ward is a runner, Coach, and a dad, husband and Mormon. He was born in Utah and went to Brigham Young University where he got a degree in Statistics. He is a 6x NCAA All-American, and a 2016 Olympic Marathoner, finishing 6th overall and running his personal best time at 2:11:30. He teaches Statistics at Brigham Young University.

What you will learn about:

• How Jared has explored biomechanics from the standpoint of the statistical side of the research

• How you can work and perform though injury but doing so can set you back longer than being proactive and dealing with it up front with physical therapy and rest. You can’t fake it through a marathon.

• Whether Jared felt the Boston conditions might have been the type of day when he could have performed well (in hindsight of course)

• In warm weather marathons it pays to be a bit cautious at the start of a long race to ensure you have energy at the end, taking extra water early on, slowing slightly can go a long way to helping you finish strong. Performance starts to suffer when you lose 2-4% of your body weight in fluids, which is increasingly an issue if you are a middle of the pack runner and are out there longer.

• Hot weather tips: wearing a hat and sunglasses, carrying ice in your hands, or pour water over your head. Studies have shown that increasing your blood plasma by training for at least 10 days can help your body increase the plasma (and fluid storage) capability in your body.

• How you focus during a race is important. You should have a broad focus at the start on how you feel and what is going on around you. But as you get to the end of a marathon you want to be focused narrowly on your strategy, how your competitors are faring, vs how you are feeling, because you are not going to feel good so need to take your focus elsewhere. We need to have a list of positive things that can help keep us focused.

• As part of his academic research he learned that Boston Qualifiers were running the start of the race more conservatively and closer to their average pace overall than those who didn’t qualify, and were also better at reading and taking advantage of the terrain of the course. Keeping a training log of how your training has gone gives you the data you need to determine about what pace you are ready for so that you don’t overshoot your pace because taper has made you feel so well rested.

• Start with a can do mindset rather than a “have to” mindset, it will help reduce your anxiety. It will help you to run the pace you are prepared to run. You can only run the best race and the best effort you have. If you do that it is liberating.\

•  How Jared manages the balance of family and career with his running. Setting your priorities for the day and then focusing your energy and schedule on those things lets you get done what is most important. If you remove the things that just pass the time and focus on what is truly important it is amazing what you can accomplish.

• Jared’s focus next is on the NY Marathon in the fall and is excited for preparing for that race and some half marathons in Europe as tune up races.

 

Inspirational Quotes:

If you can harness the power of your mind, it is amazing what your body can do.

Your mind has a focus limit as well, saving some of the mental gas tank is critical.

You have to trust your training and the system you have followed. Then run your best and let the rest happen.

Resources:

Last week's episode with Lindsey Hein 

Tina's Update Episode

Tina4Real Podcast 

Running for Real Superstars Community

Jared on Twitter

Jared on Instagram

Jared's website

Buy a Running for Real T-shirt, Tank, or Hat

Thank you to HOKA ONE ONE and Bodyhealth for sponsoring this episode of Running for Real.

HOKA ONEONE Clifton 5 are becoming my new go-to shoe. The first new brand of shoe I had tried in four years, and I put them straight on for an hour, and LOVED them. Feels like you have soft marshmallows to cushion your feet with every step. Get two day free shipping using code running4real

Now I am back to training, guess what was the first thing I did to start making sure I recover quicker (as coming back to fitness really beats your body up!), yep, you guessed it, BodyHealth Perfect Amino! Get 10% off at Bodyhealth.com using coupon code TINA10

 

This update episode covers how I am feeling about my running and motherhood. As it is my 30th Birthday today, this episode kicks off my running giveaway week, and you can enter to win a LOT of prizes this week. I am VERY real with you in this solo episode, but also have advice for pregnant runners and what I learned from my first attempt at getting fit again after having a baby. 

Today’s Guest

It's ME! Okay, not a guest as such, but I am giving you an update. By now you know me (and if you don't, you won't have to look far to find out more!). Bailey is 6 months old now, and life has changed a LOT since my elite running days!

What you will learn about:

• This isn't so focused on learning, think catching up in a coffee shop ;)

 

Inspirational Quotes:

Not sure I have any of those ;)

Resources:

Last week's episode with Lindsey Hein 

Tina4Real Podcast 

Running for Real Superstars Community

Find me on Twitter

Find me on Instagram (LOTS of giveaways here!)

Find me on Facebook

Buy a Running for Real T-shirt, Tank, or Hat

Thank you to Bodyhealth for sponsoring this episode of Running for Real.

Now I am back to training, guess what was the first thing I did to start making sure I recover quicker (as coming back to fitness really beats your body up!), yep, you guessed it, BodyHealth Perfect Amino! Get 10% off at Bodyhealth.comusing coupon code TINA10

Lindsey Hein, is the podcast host of the “I’ll Have Another” Podcast. Lindsey and I cover being runner moms, running while pregnant and restarting post delivery, and the timing of having your kids. The main focus of this podcast is a discussion about how you might want to start your own podcast on a subject that most interests you and how to grow it. We go over how Lindsey came up with the idea for her podcast, how she researched the style of other podcast hosts to learn how she wanted to build her interviewing style. Listening to different styles teaches you a lot about how different hosts have changed and matured over the years. If you have wanted to grow your personal social media presence, this episode is full of tips that you can use as you follow your dream.

Today’s Guest

Lindsey Hein is a mom runner of three little boys with another little boy on the way. With all of that she finds time to also act as an RRCA Certified running coach and the producer and host of the “I’ll Have Another” podcast series. Lindsey began running Cross Country in high school at the urging of a friend. She has run 13 marathons and a Half Ironman Triathlon. She lives in Indianapolis with her husband and growing family.

What you will learn about:

* Does Lindsey find having multiple children adds to the chaos in her house as each one is added or does it get easier?

* How her sons reacted when they learned the new baby on the way was another boy

* How running has changed with each pregnancy and her advice for other women trying to run while expecting. Did she feel pressure to keep running with each baby? How to find alternative ways to manage the stress that running used to help you deal with.

* How Social Media gets in our heads and drives our behavior rather than trusting ourselves to do what works for us.

* How her podcast has become more running focused over the years but is a place for casual conversations with people she is interested in learning about.

* How to get over being nervous when interviewing guests. Focus on what you think your listeners want to hear from this person and what you want to learn from them.

* How to find your focus, learn from others, and doing what brings you joy. You need to be in the moment.

* How Lindsey loves meeting her guests but truly loves connecting with her audience. How it is a special feeling to know that people are appreciating her passion. The people are the best part of this job.

* Shamelessly reach out to people you want to have on your show or who you think your guests want to hear from. Be persistent. But make it a personal request, it has to be individualized and genuine.

* Be consistent, if you say your podcast will be out on a given day of the week, make sure you honor that. Even if it means a solo episode.

* Lindsey tells us the favorite things she has learned from some of her guests.

Listen to the Running for Real Podcast here:

Inspirational Quotes:

We think that time is passing us by but for many of us, our fastest times are a bit later in our life. Take the pressure off and know that your hard work does pay off.

We are all unique and need to focus on our own life and not compare. Just do you.

If you are going to start a passion project, you just have to start it, not worry about whether it will make you money. Hone in on your passion.

Don’t let one specific passion define your life. it is what you do, not who you are.

Resources:

Last week’s episode with Dr Emily Kraus

Tina4Real Podcast 

Running for Real Superstars Community

I&#...

Lindsey Hein, is the podcast host of the “I’ll Have Another” Podcast. Lindsey and I cover being runner moms, running while pregnant and restarting post delivery, and the timing of having your kids. The main focus of this podcast is a discussion about how you might want to start your own podcast on a subject that most interests you and how to grow it. We go over how Lindsey came up with the idea for her podcast, how she researched the style of other podcast hosts to learn how she wanted to build her interviewing style. Listening to different styles teaches you a lot about how different hosts have changed and matured over the years. If you have wanted to grow your personal social media presence, this episode is full of tips that you can use as you follow your dream.

Today’s Guest

Lindsey Hein is a mom runner of three little boys with another little boy on the way. With all of that she finds time to also act as an RRCA Certified running coach and the producer and host of the “I’ll Have Another” podcast series. Lindsey began running Cross Country in high school at the urging of a friend. She has run 13 marathons and a Half Ironman Triathlon. She lives in Indianapolis with her husband and growing family.

What you will learn about:

• Does Lindsey find having multiple children adds to the chaos in her house as each one is added or does it get easier?

• How her sons reacted when they learned the new baby on the way was another boy

• How running has changed with each pregnancy and her advice for other women trying to run while expecting. Did she feel pressure to keep running with each baby? How to find alternative ways to manage the stress that running used to help you deal with.

• How Social Media gets in our heads and drives our behavior rather than trusting ourselves to do what works for us.

• How her podcast has become more running focused over the years but is a place for casual conversations with people she is interested in learning about.

• How to get over being nervous when interviewing guests. Focus on what you think your listeners want to hear from this person and what you want to learn from them.

• How to find your focus, learn from others, and doing what brings you joy. You need to be in the moment.

• How Lindsey loves meeting her guests but truly loves connecting with her audience. How it is a special feeling to know that people are appreciating her passion. The people are the best part of this job.

• Shamelessly reach out to people you want to have on your show or who you think your guests want to hear from. Be persistent. But make it a personal request, it has to be individualized and genuine.

• Be consistent, if you say your podcast will be out on a given day of the week, make sure you honor that. Even if it means a solo episode.

• Lindsey tells us the favorite things she has learned from some of her guests.

 

Inspirational Quotes:

We think that time is passing us by but for many of us, our fastest times are a bit later in our life. Take the pressure off and know that your hard work does pay off.

We are all unique and need to focus on our own life and not compare. Just do you.

If you are going to start a passion project, you just have to start it, not worry about whether it will make you money. Hone in on your passion.

Don’t let one specific passion define your life. it is what you do, not who you are.

Resources:

Last week's episode with Dr Emily Kraus

Tina4Real Podcast 

Running for Real Superstars Community

I'll Have Another Podcast

Lindsey's podcast with:

Deena Kastor

Kellyn Taylor

Jackie Merritt

Lindsey on Twitter

Lindsey on Instagram

I'll Have Another on Facebook

Buy a Running for Real T-shirt, Tank, or Hat

Thank you to HOKA ONE ONE and Aaptiv for sponsoring this episode of Running for Real.

HOKA ONEONE Clifton 5 are becoming my new go-to shoe. The first new brand of shoe I had tried in four years, and I put them straight on for an hour, and LOVED them. Feels like you have soft marshmallows to cushion your feet with every step.Get two day free shipping using code running4real

Thanks to Aaptiv for supporting the podcast. New members get 30% off annual membership at http://www.aaptiv.com/running4real

Dr. Emily Kraus specializes in sport related injuries in athletes. Emily herself has run 6 marathons (with a PR of 2:53), and ran the 2016 Boston Marathon, finishing as the 56th female overall. Pelvic, hip, and sacral injuries in runners can stop you from doing what you love for weeks or even months, and they are becoming more common. What can we do to stop them from happening and how can we make sure what we eat is helping us to stay healthy not making us injury prone?

Emily is also an advocate for ensuring young athletes do not succumb to high school burnout by having sport pushed to the extremes, either by themselves, their coaches or their parents. Emily has a strong passion for the promotion of a lifetime of health and wellness and a focus on injury prevention.

Today’s Guest

Dr. Emily Kraus is a Sports Medicine and Orthopedics Specialist at The Stanford Children’s Health Center.  Her focus is on rehabilitation of sport related injuries especially in young athletes.  Her passion is in running medicine, running and cycling biomechanics, injury prevention including the prevention of bone stress injuries in runners, and the promotion of health and wellness at any age of life.

What you will learn about:

• How she balances her practice and running (her PR is a 2:53 marathon at the Mountains To Beach Marathon in May) by running with friends in the morning or during mid-day breaks at the clinic.
• How important it is to find a supportive coach that can help you reach your goals without overtraining and balance your training around your lifestyle and responsibilities.
• How even as a physician in the field you are not immune to making the mistakes of not taking the time to honor the need for the body to heal and recover
•  How hip and pelvic recovery post childbirth is influenced by all the changes the body undertakes to make having the baby possible in terms of ligament changes and recovery. We also cover how the bones need to recover as well because of the strain having a baby and breast feeding impact bone density. There is also not a bunch of research on returning athletes to competitive fitness levels postpartum.
• We discuss the importance of adequate nutrition in support of both training and rebuilding in order to ensure adequate bone health and bone density. Under-fueling in general puts runners, both male and female, at a far greater risk of bone injuries, both insufficiency fractures and fatigue fractures. Under-fueling can come in terms of the amount the athlete is eating, the timing of the nutrition intake and the quality or mix of the foods eaten.
• How Calcium, Vitamin D and Iron intake, even without anemia, can also impact bone health and how important it is that your physician checks your levels if you are feeling low energy or are suffering frequent bone issues.• When you are recovering from any injury, it is not uncommon to experience pain in other areas as the body adapts to returning to activity. It may also mean you need to engage in other strengthening activities like strength and cross training.
• With pelvic stress issues/fractures it often worsens with running, and may start to develop with walking, or increases when stopping. It may also feel like a deeper groin pain or back pain. If it increases with all weight bearing it is time to have it looked into. Some pain may also arise from glute or other strength imbalances and a good form coach can help.
• We also discuss high school burnout and the need for young athletes to play multiple sports and build in off seasons and alternatives to avoid overuse injuries and avoid burning out. It is important that young athletes not exceed their age in terms of hours per week of participation in their sport of choice. The goal is to make them a lifetime athlete, not a flash in the pan.

 

Inspirational Quotes:

Growing bones and muscles need to be able to develop in a balanced fashion, which means alternating sports played and time off from training.

Resources:

Last week's episode with Matt Llano

Tina4Real Podcast 

Running for Real Superstars Community

Nancy Clark Podcast episode 

The Right Diet Can Help Prevent Running Injuries

Emily's work website

Emily on Twitter

Emily on Strava 

Email Emily: [email protected]

Buy a Running for Real T-shirt, Tank, or Hat

Thank you to Bodyhealth and Aaptiv for sponsoring this episode of Running for Real.

Now I am back to training, guess what was the first thing I did to start making sure I recover quicker (as coming back to fitness really beats your body up!), yep, you guessed it, BodyHealth Perfect Amino! Get 10% off at Bodyhealth.com using coupon code TINA10

Thanks to Aaptiv for supporting the podcast. New members get 30% off annual membership at http://www.aaptiv.com/running4real

Matt Llano has a half marathon PR of 1:01:47, marathon PR of 2:12:28, but although he has run really fast, this podcast focuses on discussing the importance of being open and vulnerable and using that to feel more powerful as a runner and person. Matt is the perfect person to talk to about this, and you are sure to be inspired by his words. He was one of the founding members of the HOKA ONE ONE Northern Arizona Elite Team and was a taste tester for Shalane Flanagan’s cookbook (are we not all so jealous!). Matt is probably best known though as the first openly gay American professional runner.

Are you ready to harness the power within you by living as your authentic self? Then this podcast interview with Matt can help you learn a path to get there and the power it can bring to your life and running.

Today’s Guest

Matt Llano, an American distance runner, was one of the founders of the Hoka One One Northern Arizona Elite team. He ran for the University of Richmond where he graduated with a Triple Major in Theater, Psychology and Latin American/Iberian Studies. He came out to the world as gay in 2013 and had his story featured on ESPN. He wanted to provide a role model for gay youth, and athletes of all ages and talents.

What you will learn about:

* How Matt’s running talent was not evident until later than most, as he was a more diverse athlete as a kid and dabbled in an after school running program, tried swimming, soccer, basketball and baseball. In high school he learned that running was the thing he was passionate about even though he was not as good at it to start.

* How Matt strives for a sense of personal fulfillment with each workout each day.

* How Matt believes in being open and honest as a professional and letting people know what is going on in their lives. There is a lot of power in being vulnerable.

* How Matt started working with HOKA ONE ONE and how well they support him as a whole person vs just as an athlete. Everyone has a story and HOKA ONE ONE has been helpful in working with him to celebrate the diversity in sport.

* Matt and I discuss our experience with running in HOKA ONE ONE shoes for the first time and how we went from being skeptics to falling in love with running in them. His favorite is the Clifton as it is so versatile.

* How Matt was hit by a car while running in 2011 and suffered a traumatic brain injury. Matt discusses his recovery process over the next 5 to 6 months while his brain healed. He now runs with a RoadID and is hyper aware of cars and traffic now.

* Matt and I discuss being and living an authentic life and doing what feeds your passion not what earns you awards or money of fame. Find what allows you to have that passion as a part of your life. Another part of living your passion is raising up the others around you even if they are your competitors. Being part of a team and a unit is important.

* We discuss Matt’s next steps as he moves on from the northern AZ team and his desire to eventually run the Boston Marathon.

* Why Matt decided to work with McKirdy Trained rather than head out on his own from a coaching perspective.

Listen to the Running for Real Podcast here:

Inspirational Quotes:

Running gave me a sense of personal fulfillment before it became a long term pursuit.

Everyone has a story and has things in their lives that have brought them to where they are today, and I have found inspiration in all of the people I have come in contact with.

Lifting others up does not stifle our individual effort, it enhances everyone’s success.

Resources:

Last week’s episode with Kim Dawson 

Tina4Real Podcast 

Running for R...

Matt Llano has run 1:01:47 and 2:12:28, but although he has run really fast, this podcast focuses on discussing the importance of being open and vulnerable and using that to feel more powerful as a runner and person. Matt is the perfect person to talk to about this, and you are sure to be inspired by his words. He was one of the founding members of the HOKA ONE ONE Northern Arizona Elite Team and was a taste tester for Shalane Flanagan’s cookbook (are we not all so jealous!). Matt is probably best known though as the first openly gay American professional runner.

Are you ready to harness the power within you by living as your authentic self? Then this podcast interview with Matt can help you learn a path to get there and the power it can bring to your life and running.

Today’s Guest

Matt Llano, an American distance runner, was one of the founders of the Hoka One One Northern Arizona Elite team. He ran for the University of Richmond where he graduated with a Triple Major in Theater, Psychology and Latin American/Iberian Studies. He came out to the world as gay in 2013 and had his story featured on ESPN. He wanted to provide a role model for gay youth, and athletes of all ages and talents.

What you will learn about:

• How Matt’s running talent was not evident until later than most, as he was a more diverse athlete as a kid and dabbled in an after school running program, tried swimming, soccer, basketball and baseball. In high school he learned that running was the thing he was passionate about even though he was not as good at it to start.

• How Matt strives for a sense of personal fulfillment with each workout each day.

• How Matt believes in being open and honest as a professional and letting people know what is going on in their lives. There is a lot of power in being vulnerable.

• How Matt started working with HOKA ONE ONE and how well they support him as a whole person vs just as an athlete. Everyone has a story and HOKA ONE ONE has been helpful in working with him to celebrate the diversity in sport.

• Matt and I discuss our experience with running in HOKA ONE ONE shoes for the first time and how we went from being skeptics to falling in love with running in them. His favorite is the Clifton as it is so versatile.

• How Matt was hit by a car while running in 2011 and suffered a traumatic brain injury. Matt discusses his recovery process over the next 5 to 6 months while his brain healed. He now runs with a RoadID and is hyper aware of cars and traffic now.

• Matt and I discuss being and living an authentic life and doing what feeds your passion not what earns you awards or money of fame. Find what allows you to have that passion as a part of your life. Another part of living your passion is raising up the others around you even if they are your competitors. Being part of a team and a unit is important.

• We discuss Matt’s next steps as he moves on from the northern AZ team and his desire to eventually run the Boston Marathon.

• Why Matt decided to work with McKirdy Trained rather than head out on his own from a coaching perspective.

Inspirational Quotes:

Running gave me a sense of personal fulfillment before it became a long term pursuit.

Everyone has a story and has things in their lives that have brought them to where they are today, and I have found inspiration in all of the people I have come in contact with.

Lifting others up does not stifle our individual effort, it enhances everyone’s success.

Resources:

Last week's episode with Kim Dawson 

Tina4Real Podcast 

Running for Real Superstars Community

Matt on Twitter

Matt on Instagram

Matt's website

McKirdy Trained Coaching

Buy a Running for Real T-shirt, Tank, or Hat

Thank you to HOKA ONE ONE and Aaptiv for sponsoring this episode of Running for Real.

HOKA ONEONE Clifton 5 are becoming my new go-to shoe. The first new brand of shoe I had tried in four years, and I put them straight on for an hour, and LOVED them. Feels like you have soft marshmallows to cushion your feet with every step. Get two day free shipping using code running4real

Thanks to Aaptiv for supporting the podcast. New members get 30% off annual membership at http://www.aaptiv.com/running4real

This Olympic sport psychologist will take us through the mental issues we face as runners and in our day to day lives. This interview provides real and practical advice in how we can maximize our performance  by building balance into our lives and a strong focus on what is the most important thing in our lives right now. Kim is a runner, triathlete and mother that has worked with Olympians and Professional sports organizations.

Today’s Guest

Kim Dawson is a sports and exercise psychologist at the Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario Canada.  She has worked with elite athletes, Olympians and professional sports organizations for over ten years, helping them develop the mental side of their performance.  Her company, Mind2Achieve works with individuals and companies, offering leadership training, group dynamics workshops, and personal performance psychology.  Kim is a mom of two and lives in Waterloo.

What you will learn about:

• How sports psychology is becoming more prevalent but is changing from what it was many years ago. It has become much more open and accessible than it ever way in the past. The only concern is to be sure that the practitioner has built the experience necessary on the psychology side.
• All of us can use the services of someone to help us in our mental training as we are all balancing the needs of our busy lives. The practitioner can assist all of us in figuring out how to fit our goals into your already busy lives so that you have balance in your life and are positioned to achieve what you want to achieve.
• In order to focus on several things, you need to be sure to build in the appropriate support system around you to help pick up the things you cannot juggle effectively on your own.
• Determine what running means to you, and realize that it can change across the seasons of your life. It can be exercises, it can be a coping tool, it can be “me time”. Just be sure you are not using it to run away from something difficult in your life and using it as an avoidance mechanism.
• What is your go-to strategy for coping with stress and your natural tendencies. How do you manage fear or pain so you can make adjustments accordingly. What defines success for any race, because each one can have a different motivation. And what you need on any given day can vary.
• How to determine if you need an ongoing relationship with s Sport Psychologist or whether a few sessions can give you tools to work with as you go forward. How you can learn to control the controllable things and let go of the others so we can cope with them. How to be able to learn what it is you really want out of your life and how to move forward. For each athlete, the answer can vary, the individual needs to decide how much help and support they need and when.
• How she believes that she doesn’t need to be on site the day of a big race, she has provided the skills needed to cope mentally and has built in them the resources within themselves to not need to be dependent on her as a coach. How she has found that a couple of weeks before pretty much everyone has an “oh crap I can’t do that” and it is important to know that everyone has those and you can get past it. Our emotions, behaviors, and thoughts might not also align right at the right point in time and now to work through when to focus on each one. Those are as important as your physical peaking from training.
• How some nerves are good, we want the adrenaline as it helps us perform. But when it progresses too far and into anxiety, it is fear based. Many recreational runners start thinking of the race before they even get there. It is important to do some visualization of all parts of the race, right from the night before and preparation so you can manage the nerves. There are techniques to warm up mentally as well as physically so you manage the stress and they have to be practiced ahead of time so you can take control of your emotion and walk yourself back down.
• How to use a tool of writing yourself or coach an email that describes the race and how you plan to run it. Then after the fact review what you actually did and what you did or did not follow in your plan and how you can learn from it.

 

Inspirational Quotes:

I’m a big proponent of “not yet”.  There are always consequences and sacrifices for everything you decide to do.  Be aware so that you don’t lose the options that might be available if you pay attention to your choices.  There are times and seasons for your passions in your life.

Running is a very self-involved endeavor.  It is something that can take away from other aspects in your life if you are not mindful and careful of the right balance or you risk losing something important.

If not now, when?  Are you satisfied with just performing or do you want more?

It is all about the action plan for how you are going to get there, not what you want.

Our experience can be lessons that take us forward or anchors that hold us back.  We can’t stay in the place that makes a disappointment an anchor and learn to use the lessons to move forward with what we want.

Resources:

Last week's episode with Jason Fitzgerald

Tina4Real Podcast 

Running for Real Superstars Community

Kim's website

Kim on Twitter

Email Kim : [email protected]

Buy a Running for Real T-shirt, Tank, or Hat

Thank you to HOKA ONE ONE and Aaptiv for sponsoring this episode of Running for Real.

HOKA ONEONE Clifton 5 are becoming my new go-to shoe. The first new brand of shoe I had tried in four years, and I put them straight on for an hour, and LOVED them. Feels like you have soft marshmallows to cushion your feet with every step. Get two day free shipping using code running4real at hokaoneone.com 

Thanks to Aaptiv for supporting the podcast. New members get 30% off annual membership at http://www.aaptiv.com/running4real

Jason Fitzgerald is a best selling author, coach, 2:39 marathoner, and winner of the 2017 Influencer Award for Men’s Health in the UK.  

This episode will cover  many of the common running questions and mistakes that we have all made over time.  I expect it will serve as a great resource going forward for a variety of questions we all face as we progress as a runner.  Jason and I start off with how to learn the signals your body is sending you and how running on a track for hard workouts can really help you dial into what your correct race pace should be.  

We cover how your recovery and easy pace runs are often slower as training miles increase as your body needs more time to recover from the harder workouts and your body really needs time to recover from those harder efforts.  You want to be faster on race day, not necessarily faster on your easy days.

Are you a beginner or seem to be getting injured a bit too often?  We cover the host of things that can cause the injuries and how you can modify your training to avoid them in the future.  Are you strengthening your body in the right way?  Are you ramping up your milage too fast, are you running too quickly?

You will learn how periodized strength training can assist you in being a stronger runner with strong muscles and connective tissue needed to drive you across the ground.  The fastest runners are also often the strongest runners.   

Jason and I cover the causes of cramping on longer efforts (especially the marathon).  Are you prepared for the distance and how to get that way.  Are you also prepared for the pace you are trying to run and how to adjust your pacing accordingly.  Should you be making up skipped workouts?

Today’s Guest

Jason Fitzgerald is a USATF running coach and offers online running, strength training, injury prevention and nutrition training with his company Strength Running.  He started the company in 2010 hoping to assist runners avoid the mistakes that sidelined him in his own running career.  He is also a best selling author of two books and numerous articles for Competitor Magazine, Daily Burn and Active.  He lives in Denver Colorado with his wife and family (of 3 kids under age 5).

What you will learn about:

* He started Strength Running after almost quitting running from an IT band injury in 2008/2009.  He realized while recovering that if he wanted to keep doing what he loved, he needed to change the way he was training, and believed that he could help others do the very same thing.  The site trains those from beginners to those training for 100 mile races and more.

* How running on the track for your harder/race pace training can help you learn how to understand what race pace feels like while running, as well as mentally afterwards by reviewing the splits in the data.  After doing lots of runs on the track you will begin to learn exactly what your race pace feels like from an effort perspective.  It takes lots of trial and error but you learn each time you try.

* Your recovery runs should be Comfortable, Controlled, and Conversational.  Your easy pace runs would normally be slightly faster than those but still really comfortable and you should be able to sustain the effort.  Your easy pace can and should also change based on how you feel that day and what your earlier workouts were earlier in the week and how well you had recovered.

* How runner specific strength training and cross training can can aid you in injury prevention and recovery.  How important those things are to have a long running career vs a quick running career.  Strength training can be used for both injury prevention but also for making you stronger, more coordinated and able to push off the ground with more force.  To run fast you need to be strong and forceful.

* Cramping is more a sign of running longer or faster than you have prepared your body for rather than an electrolyte balance.

Many of the common running questions and mistakes that we have all made over time are covered today.  I expect it will serve as a great resource going forward for a variety of questions we all face as we progress as a runner.  Jason and I start off with how to learn the signals your body is sending you and how running on a track for hard workouts can really help you dial into what your correct race pace should be.

We cover how your recovery and easy pace runs are often slower as training miles increase as your body needs more time to recover from the harder workouts and your body really needs time to recover from those harder efforts.  You want to be faster on race day, not necessarily faster on your easy days.

Are you a beginner or seem to be getting injured a bit too often?  We cover the host of things that can cause the injuries and how you can modify your training to avoid them in the future.  Are you strengthening your body in the right way?  Are you ramping up your milage too fast, are you running too quickly?

You will learn how periodized strength training can assist you in being a stronger runner with strong muscles and connective tissue needed to drive you across the ground.  The fastest runners are also often the strongest runners.   

Jason and I cover the causes of cramping on longer efforts (especially the marathon).  Are you prepared for the distance and how to get that way.  Are you also prepared for the pace you are trying to run and how to adjust your pacing accordingly.  Should you be making up skipped workouts?

Today’s Guest

Jason Fitzgerald is a USATF running coach and offers online running, strength training, injury prevention and nutrition training with his company Strength Running.  He started the company in 2010 hoping to assist runners avoid the mistakes that sidelined him in his own running career.  He is also a best selling author of two books and numerous articles for Competitor Magazine, Daily Burn and Active.  He lives in Denver Colorado with his wife and family (of 3 kids under age 5).

What you will learn about:

• He started Strength Running after almost quitting running from an IT band injury in 2008/2009.  He realized while recovering that if he wanted to keep doing what he loved, he needed to change the way he was training, and believed that he could help others do the very same thing.  The site trains those from beginners to those training for 100 mile races and more.
• How running on the track for your harder/race pace training can help you learn how to understand what race pace feels like while running, as well as mentally afterwards by reviewing the splits in the data.  After doing lots of runs on the track you will begin to learn exactly what your race pace feels like from an effort perspective.  It takes lots of trial and error but you learn each time you try.
• Your recovery runs should be Comfortable, Controlled, and Conversational.  Your easy pace runs would normally be slightly faster than those but still really comfortable and you should be able to sustain the effort.  Your easy pace can and should also change based on how you feel that day and what your earlier workouts were earlier in the week and how well you had recovered.
• How runner specific strength training and cross training can can aid you in injury prevention and recovery.  How important those things are to have a long running career vs a quick running career.  Strength training can be used for both injury prevention but also for making you stronger, more coordinated and able to push off the ground with more force.  To run fast you need to be strong and forceful.
• Cramping is more a sign of running longer or faster than you have prepared your body for rather than an electrolyte balance.  It is also impacted by whether you have paced yourself properly in the early stages of a race.
• How long term thinking can help you learn to rest, recover and get healthy rather than running through pain or issues.  How as a coach he has to spend more time keeping runners from running when they should be resting rather than having to push them to do more.  What you should consider doing if you miss workouts due to life issues.

 

Inspirational Quotes:

It is important from a wholistic perspective to consider ourselves athletes that specialize in running rather than just runners.

“The most important run is tomorrow’s run.  Don’t do anything today that will negatively impact your ability to run tomorrow.” - Tom Foreman

Intensity Density:  if you make it so the density of your training impairs the intensity of your training, overall your training will suffer and/or you will risk injury.   

I love runners, we are all sort of geeky and nerdy and special.

Resources:

Last week's episode with Luke Tyburski 

Tina4Real Podcast 

Running for Real Superstars Community

Jason's website

Jason on Twitter

Jason on Instagram

Jason on Facebook

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