If you've ever ran, biked, or hiked on a trail, this interview will hit home! Adam Buck is a professional trail builder who also happens to have been a high school track star turned pro mountain biker, sponsored by Red Bull. He's lived a wild life, most of which has taken place in the great outdoors. 

Everyone talks about racing hard, a hard workout, a hard interval session, a hard tempo run. But what does Hard really look and feel like? Pacing yourself based off effort is tricky but it is a super valuable skill to develop. We cover the key feelings and mental cues to be hitting during races and training in order to nail that effort!

Rich Ryan of the Reinforced Running Podcast swings by today! Rich is a fast runner, successful podcaster, excellent endurance and nutrition coach, and has been hitting some really fast time trials lately! We chat through his transition from college running to OCR racing, eating disorders, trying to train for off road racing while living in downtown Philly, and his nutritional philosophy for endurance athletes. 

We are only as tough and strong as our support system. Every successful human and athlete is held up by a clearly defined "Why" and a strong and honest Accountability Partner. Learn how to identify and establish your safety net in order to maximize your athletic potential!

Kirk interviews Brakken about Spartan's evolution as as race, brand, and company. From a grassroots movement to a worldwide phenomenon, Spartan Race has essentially created a sport out of thin air and Brakken was there to witness it from the beginning. Today is filled with nostalgic memories, old race stories, critiques and compliments for Spartan's business model, and much more!

As a runner, do you need to be on Strava? Today we dive into:

• What is Strava?

From collegiate 800m All-American to 100 mile Ultra Runner, Ean has worked to redefine himself as an endurance athlete. He represents the struggles of the everyman: running his own construction business and raising four kids while trying to fit in 70-80 mile training weeks. One of the grittiest athletes we have ever competed against, Ean continually seeks out races that test how far he can truly push his body.  

Our mental game is the key to our performance. Far too often, our true athletic ceiling is WAY higher than we think it is. Today's episode gives you the blueprint to unlock better performances.

Race predictor workouts. Training for downhills as a flatlander. Setting your personal HR zones. Using HR for interval workouts. Are massages useful? When should I time trial? How to stay injury free as a heavier runner. Drug testing in OCR. Our thoughts on minimal shoes. 

All these and many more are addressed today! 

As many athletes have progressed into their "off season base building" stage of training, the questions we've received have shown a growing concern that they will lose their hard earned speed during this time. Today we address that single issue completely!