The Running for Real Podcast

This episode is for those ultra runners who want to receive great advice and hear great real-life experiences from a world-class ultra runner.

She shares her journey of running a 10k as an out-of-shaped kid to doing her toughest challenge to date, a 1300 km run through New South Wales.

She gives us an insight to her process of mentally preparing for an ultra race.

She shares what motivates herself during low moments of a race, and the important question she asked herself during one of her races.

We talk about Run Against Violence, which is an organisation she founded to help those in situations of family violence.

She gets real and lists the many ways running has had a profound impact on so many levels of her life.

For those interested in starting ultra racing, she discusses the logistics of planning an ultra race: crew, fuel, vehicles, etc.

She mentions the documentary coming out about her next month, and teases us with what is next for her in 2019.

Kirrily Dear

Kirrily Dear is an ultra runner who completed a 1300 km run through New South Wales in 2017 in 19 days, which equals 32 marathons.  She is also an advocate for human rights, and founded Run Against Violence, in 2014, to help those dealing with family violence.

• How Kirrily built up her training to run 500 miles continuously.
• What Kirrily’s advice is if you want to get involved with something you are passionate about.
• How Kirrily made her way to the increased mileage she is able to run now.
• What she means by normalizing the extraordinary.
• How she prepares mentally for ultra distance races.
• Why she chose to DNF 4 of her races.

The challenge isn’t so much the running. It’s putting your feet on the floor the next day, and getting up and doing it again.  It’s that back up that you need to be able to do, being able to do it day after day after day.

What do I enjoy about running?  What is it I don’t enjoy?  The freedom.  I guess it’s had a pretty significant impact on my mental health.

In a way, I would suggest just ignoring the numbers. and just find ways of moving, don’t worry about running even, just walk.

I think when you are working from a sense of pressure rather than the passion, I think that’s, it becomes a struggle.  I think it becomes very difficult.

I don’t ever let myself off the hook.  It didn’t even occur to me to think that it’s too hard.

If you want to succeed, you just have to get up.

Enjoy the moment.  That’s my mantra.

Last week's interview with Hajo Seppelt

Run Against Violence Website

Run Against Violence on Twitter

Run Against Violence on Facebook

Thank you to my new running buddy VI and favorite recovery product BodyHealth for sponsoring this episode of Running for Real.

VI is there to encourage you on tough days, congratulate you on the days you crush it, and remind you of your goals when you need it. You can enter to win your own VI by visiting GetVI.com/running4real

When I was running 90 miles a week as a pro, I would take 5-10 BodyHealth Perfect Amino tablets every day without fail. They helped me recover faster, and feel better. Now they have Perfect Amino XP, which makes it even easier. Get 10% off at Bodyhealth.com using coupon code TINA10

Doping in running has been a huge topic. So, for this episode, I went straight to “the guy” who investigated and is sharing about it.  The guy is Hajo Seppelt, the one who broke the story of doping in Russia.  This busy man was very generous to give me 15 minutes of his time.

As an investigative journalist, he shares his views on the current doping situation compared to years ago.

He explains at length his reasons why doping will continue to happen.

Hajo expresses his thoughts on the IOC and how the president of the IOC is handling the doping situation in Russia.

He explains the risks whisteblowers take to unveil the truth of doping.

We discuss the talk of scrapping world records because of doping.  Hajo frankly shares his perspective on world records and timing at races.

Hajo Seppelt

Hajo Seppelt is a German journalist who has broken multiple doping stories in running and other sports around the world.  He was the one who convinced Yuliya Stepanova and Vitaly Stepanov to speak out about what they saw happening in Russia.  He has been involved with several documentaries on doping, as well.

• What Hajo thinks of the current doping situation compared to several decades ago.
• Why clean sports are not probable.
• How doping could benefit the sport of running.
• What protection whisteblowers are given.
• How doping substances work, how long it remains in the body.

If you would have no timing, then we would concentrate, we would focus on which one.  And that what makes sports for me so meaningful.  That means you race against another, it’s a competition.  It’s not about reaching the next world record.

You can never expect clean sports.  That’s, to be honest, that’s a productive fantasy.

Last week's interview with  Benji Durden 

Hajo's website

Documentary on Kenyan Doping

Documentary on Russian Doping

Hajo on twitter

NPR Article on Hajo

Thank you to Health IQ and favorite recovery product BodyHealth for sponsoring this episode of Running for Real.

Finally, rather than being punished for the way the rest of the country does not look after themselves, we can be rewarded for taking the time, effort, and heart we put into our sport. Health IQ gives us better rates for being active, and you can learn more at Healthiq.com/runningforreal

When I was running 90 miles a week as a pro, I would take 5-10 BodyHealth Perfect Amino tablets every day without fail. They helped me recover faster, and feel better. Now they have Perfect Amino XP, which makes it even easier. Get 10% off at Bodyhealth.com using coupon code TINA10

Doesn’t everyone love a good running story? Well, you’ve come to the right episode because this one is full of them. Benji Durden’s delightful stories truly document his journey of running.

Benji begins by taking us through his journey of getting into marathons. He shares how he has become famously known for saying, “Anyone who runs a marathon is sick.”

He gives us advice on listening to our bodies and not expecting too much from ourselves too soon.

We talk about information overload, i.e. watches, and what he sees as being better at the beginning of his career compared to now where information overload can sabotage us.

Working towards faster times, it is easy to let expectations take over and beat ourselves up. Benji describes and shares examples of how he worked and currently works with expectations.

Benji recalls personal stories of the Olympic trials and the 1980 boycotted Olympic games.

Athletes often think that because they are healthy that a physical ailment won’t happen to them. Benji openly shares his experiences with cancer and chemo treatment.

Benji Durden

Benji Durden has a smoking fast PR in the marathon of 2:09, and has run 25 sub-2:20 marathons in less than a decade’s time. He is one of the 461 athletes who received the Congressional Gold Medal after the Olympic Games was boycotted in 1980. Currently, he and his wife time races in and around Boulder, Colorado, where they live

• How Benji divides up his races to keep motivated.
• How he used the hard / easy approach to get a 4 minute marathon PR.
• Why he used to train in double sweats.
• What made him walk away from his first marathon saying, “Anyone who runs a marathon is sick.”
• How pomegranates are involved in his running for real moment.
• How someone mistook him for a space alien.

There is no perfect plan for everyone, like there is no perfect nutritional plan.

Well, part of it is you have to enjoy the process. It’s not simply about how fast you can run. It’s about the whole process. If you’re not having a good time with your training, and you’re not having a good time with racing, something’s wrong, you’re not doing it right.

One of the things you have to learn is patience and don’t try too hard. I mean, you gotta try, but not too hard. You have to listen and know your limits. If you don’t know your limits, you find out the hard way what they are.

For me, it’s always been about running against other bodies. The clock always wins. If you focus too much on that, you never win. You are never satisfied. Being satisfied is part of the goal.

The first ten miles or so I consider a fast social run. Then the next ten miles is sort of a transitional period. And by the end of that, I’m trying to pick out people I going to catch.

Last week's interview with Richie Hardcore 

Thank you to the supportive Health IQ and favorite recovery product BodyHealth for sponsoring this episode of Running for Real.

Finally, rather than being punished for the way the rest of the country does not look after themselves, we can be rewarded for taking the time, effort, and heart we put into our sport. Health IQ gives us better rates for being active, and you can learn more at Healthiq.com/runningforreal

When I was running 90 miles a week as a pro, I would take 5-10 BodyHealth Perfect Amino tablets every day without fail. They helped me recover faster, and feel better. Now they have Perfect Amino XP, which makes it even easier. Get 10% off at Bodyhealth.com using coupon code TINA10

If you are looking for a unique episode, this is it.  It is about social change.

This episode is for anyone who may have an alcohol or drug problem or feel socially isolated.

Richie gets into the positive physical and health benefits running can do for us.  He elaborates on this by explaining the positive social aspects of connecting to people and to the world in general.

He explains why it is difficult for people to come over to the running side, stick with it. and trust the process.   We discuss how joining a runner’s group could transform your life.

Our conversation leads us into talking about drugs and alcohol and the social connection they are used for.

He states many people who feel isolated or lack confidence find what they need in substances.  He gives us a list of ways we can come away from a bad situation in our lives to gain confidence without the use of drugs and/or alcohol as coping mechanisms.

We discuss how the amount of time we spend on our training/running can leave us socially isolated as those using drugs or alcohol don’t understand our perspective.  He gives us ideas and options to use to compromise with friends for socializing instead of dissolving the whole relationship.

He describes what changes in his life have led him to be an advocate for social change and to be an example of a life someone would like to live.  He shares how his friends who are still using alcohol and drugs are helping him, as well.

Switching gears, we talk about how the bad things that happen to us, like injuries, can actually be good things in the long run if we learn from them and share with others.  He gives us examples of this from boxing to posting your honest authentic thoughts on social media.

Richie Hardcore

Richie Hardcore is a martial artist and Muay Thai boxer from New Zealand who uses running as an essential part of his training and for those he trains. He has run seven half marathons and one marathon to date. Richie is an advocate for social and political change. In addition to being a speaker on mental health, runner, and radio host, he is also a community worker reducing alcohol and drug harm.

• How being authentic can inspire others.
• How you can gain confidence in your life without drugs or alcohol.
• Why the bad things that happen to you in life are not always bad.
• How everyone has the potential of helping someone else.
• How Richie advocates for social change.

If you just start, everything else will fall out of that.

Social connection is vital for just our mental health and our emotional health.  And, yet, we are living in a world that is increasingly isolating us.

I believe you become a mirror for people around you when you take strong value-based stances like that.  And people don’t always like what they see.

I always say that, when you fight, you either win or you learn, you know.  There is never a loss.  Because whenever you don’t get your hand raised in a fight you obviously haven’t done something as well as the other person.  It allows you to come and explore what the gaps in your game are.

Last week's interview with Camille Heron

Brene Brown

Richie's website

Richie on Instagram

Richie on Twitter

Richie on Facebook

Thank you to my new running buddy VI and favorite recovery product BodyHealth for sponsoring this episode of Running for Real.

VI is there to encourage you on tough days, congratulate you on the days you crush it, and remind you of your goals when you need it. You can enter to win your own VI by visiting GetVI.com/running4real

When I was running 90 miles a week as a pro, I would take 5-10 BodyHealth Perfect Amino tablets every day without fail. They helped me recover faster, and feel better. Now they have Perfect Amino XP, which makes it even easier. Get 10% off at Bodyhealth.comusing coupon code TINA10

Camille Herron let’s the magic come out in this high-energy interview as she likes to do in every race she runs.

Ultra-distance running is gaining popularity. This episode is for you if you want to learn great strategies for improving your ultra races and how to recover faster afterwards.

Camille takes us through her graduate school years and shares how she applied her studies of whole body vibration to analyse herself as a runner. She explains why strength training is beneficial, and the impact of stress on the body.

Camille trains by running 100 miles per week. She explains why making the modification to multiple training runs is an important ingredient to allow her to run this much injury free.

Do you love secrets? Camille shares her secret of what she does that allows her to bounce back quickly from races and to do back to back marathon races.

In addition to running, she takes us through her nutritional and sleeping habits that are necessary for maintaining high mileage. She, also, shares with us that certain drink she includes in her race strategy.

We wrap up with stories from some of Camille’s most recent races: Comrades, Tunnel Hill 100, and Western States. We hear up close and personal stories of these races.

Camille Herron

Camille Herron is an ultra-distance runner who has been running, on average, 100 miles per week for 11 years. She is the 2017 Comrades Champion and the 100 mile world record holder at 12:42:40. She has a Master of Science in Exercise and Sport Science with a thesis on bone recovery through whole body vibration training.

• How Camille is able to work, train, run and deal with life happening without getting injured.
• Why blood flow is important to recovery.
• How Camille can bounce back from a marathon race.
• How Camille can run 100 miles per week for 11 years injury free.
• What Camille’s unique nutrition tip is during a race.
• How Camille is breaking the mold with ultra-marathon long runs.

Stress, just stress in general, you know, can break you down, and it impacts, like, everything.

It’s actually better to divide up the stress into multiple bouts rather than a single bout.

To basically enhance recovery, it all comes down to blood flow.  Not just running, but walking or standing.

Let the magic come out.

I finished my first 100 miler, and, I mean, I felt like I could have kept going.

Last week's interview with Mo'Ath Alkhawaldeh

Camille's website

Camille on Twitter

Camille on Instagram

Thank you to my new running buddy VI and favorite recovery product BodyHealth for sponsoring this episode of Running for Real.

VI is there to encourage you on tough days, congratulate you on the days you crush it, and remind you of your goals when you need it. You can enter to win your own VI by visiting GetVI.com/running4real

When I was running 90 miles a week as a pro, I would take 5-10 BodyHealth Perfect Amino tablets every day without fail. They helped me recover faster, and feel better. Now they have Perfect Amino XP, which makes it even easier. Get 10% off at Bodyhealth.com using coupon code TINA10

Running has been known to change us physically and mentally.  It is also able to change us emotionally through empowering us by building our self-confidence.  After listening to this episode with Bhumika Patel, you will see what I mean.

Bhumika takes us through her journey from thinking it was impossible to run to becoming sponsored by Adidas.

She shares with us how her running changed her parents’ perspective on the sport.

Coming from India, there are many adjustments Bhumika had to make in order to run.  We talk about running co-ed in Bangalore, running clothes, how she feels about wearing them in a race, and how she handles men there staring at her wearing them.

She describes the changes she sees with people’s views of running in India since she started in 2009.

She takes us through the differences in the race experience she noticed after transitioning from the small races in India to racing internationally.

Bhumika is using running to benefit the lives of others.  She shows us how Pinkathon has been beneficial to her colleagues at IBM even after the race event.  She also tells us about the work she does for underpriviledged visually impaired females.

Bhumika Patel

Voted by Women’s Running magazine as one of the 21 women changing the running world, Bhumika Patel is a role model for women’s running in India and world wide.  She is the ambassador and the IBM coach for Pinkathon in Bangalore.  She is active in giving under privileged visually impaired females a chance at running races.   She is currently sponsored by Adidas.

• What it is/was like as a women to run in India.

• What the difference is between racing in India vs the London Marathon.

• What is Pinkathon and how has it benefitted the IBM community where she works?

• How Bhumika along with Samarthanam Trust for the Disabled work with visually impaired female runners to support them in running races

They run very close to you, and that gives you collective energy.  It gives you a big boost. 

Whatever you have learned, you come full-circle and you are able to impart it to someone who absolutely needs it.

Last week's interview with Mo'Ath Alkhawaldeh 

Runners World Article on Bhumika

Pinkathon

Samarthanam Trust for the Disabled

Thank you to Health IQ and favorite recovery product BodyHealth for sponsoring this episode of Running for Real.

Finally, rather than being punished for the way the rest of the country does not look after themselves, we can be rewarded for taking the time, effort, and heart we put into our sport. Health IQ gives us better rates for being active, and you can learn more at Healthiq.com/runningforreal

When I was running 90 miles a week as a pro, I would take 5-10 BodyHealth Perfect Amino tablets every day without fail. They helped me recover faster, and feel better. Now they have Perfect Amino XP, which makes it even easier. Get 10% off at Bodyhealth.com using coupon code TINA10

In this interview we hear from Mo’ath Alkhawaldeh from Jordan, who shares a different story compared to my other episodes.

Starting with his first 10k in Beirut, Mo takes us through his running journey sharing running-for- real stories of races and people he has met along the way. He tells us about the advice he received from Deena Kastor and Meb about his goals.

Coming to the U.S. for academics, he takes us through his transition from living in Jordan to living in the U.S. and the progress he made with his running on a university team.

He describes the differences in running Jordanians perceive compared to those in the U.S. or the UK.

We discuss Ramadan and how he physically, nutritionally, and mentally trains through this time.

Like many runners I have spoken with, Mo, too, is an advocate of positive change. He speaks very passionately about the NGO he works for called Generations for Peace.

We discuss the ability for professional athletes to make a pretty comfortable living in the U.S. compared to Jordan. He describes his first-hand experience of running in the U.S. as it relates to sport doctors, physios and women runners.

He very eloquently explains what running is really about, and gives wonderful examples of how running can affect us emotionally.

Mo’ath Alkhawaldeh is a Jordanian long distance runner who is a promoter for peace.  He works with Generation for Peace, an organization that uses sports to build peace by bringing youth together.

• How Mo’ath transitioned to study in the U.S. and run for university.
• How Mo is using his experiences and knowledge of what the U.S. has to offer runners to benefit others in Jordan.
• What Mo thinks makes runners want to change things for the positive.
• What Generations for Peace (GFP) is, its purpose, and how it is used by countries around the world. Also, why he focuses on the parents when the programme is for the youth.

Running is one of the hardest sports, I think, in my opinion. It’s hard to do it. It’s hard to start. The problem is getting people out the door is the hard part. Once they are out, they’re out. They will love it. They will stick to it. That’s what happen to me.

I just realized it’s all about, you know, getting the job done, and focus.

If you wanted to be a pro, you have to live like a pro life.

I owe running a lot because I met a lot of people from different background, different religion, different color, different countries, different nations. But when we sit together, we speak the same language.

It is an individual sport, but when you do it, you do it to other people.

Running is like when I do it, I get together with people, I learn from people, and I run with people. That’s how I see it.

Last week's Recap Episode

Washington Times Article on Mo'Ath

Generations for Peace

Support Mo by visiting his fundraising page for St Jude Research Hospital

Mo's website

Mo on Facebook

Mo on Instagram 

Thank you to our new sponsor Health IQ and favorite recovery product BodyHealth for sponsoring this episode of Running for Real.

Finally, rather than being punished for the way the rest of the country does not look after themselves, we can be rewarded for taking the time, effort, and heart we put into our sport. Health IQ gives us better rates for being active, and you can learn more at Healthiq.com/runningforreal

When I was running 90 miles a week as a pro, I would take 5-10 BodyHealth Perfect Amino tablets every day without fail. They helped me recover faster, and feel better. Now they have Perfect Amino XP, which makes it even easier. Get 10% off at Bodyhealth.com using coupon code TINA10