Trail Runner Nation

Ryan Green PhD has directed his mental prowess into the running shoe. Ryan Green is the managing partner in Varsity Sports, a running specialty store with 4 locations in Louisiana. He holds a PhD in kinesiology and a certified Athletic Trainer.

• How many miles should your shoes last?
• Yea or Nay to rotating your shoes?
• Shoelaces
• zero drop
• washing machines
• running gait and more

Sally McRae joins us to talk about the most common questions and issues she is asked by the athletes she coaches:

• How do I deal with injuries?
• How much do I need to run?
• What about Cross Training?
• Nutrition?
• Why are you the "yellow runner"?
• How do you balance being a Mom, business owner, coach and STILL find time for your personal training?

Dr. Steven Gangemi joins Faith, Don and Scott to talk about important trail running topics:

• Spray on tans.
• Groupon.
• Glycemic index.
• Trigeeks.
• Crossfit peeing.
• Knee pain.
• Groupon.
• Is orange the new tan?
• Running depression.
• Spray on tanning.
• Waking up at night hungry.
• Racing too often.
• Skippy Super Chunk Peanut Butter.
• Periodization.
• Groupon. Simple!

Sally McRae joins us to talk about the most common questions and issues she is asked by the athletes she coaches:

• How do I deal with injuries?
• How much do I need to run?
• What about Cross Training?
• Nutrition?
• Why are you the "yellow runner"?
• How do you balance being a Mom, business owner, coach and STILL find time for your personal training?

In the shadow of the 2013 Western States 100 mile endurance Run, Scott, Faith and Don talk about the WS100 experience. What's all the hype? Is it different than any other run? We take on the experience of the volunteers, pacers, crew and runner.

Dominic Grossman and Katie Desplinter have had the benefit of running in the lead pack for many years. What you may not know about them is that when they are not racing, they are avid volunteers pacing or crewing others. Dom and Katie record this podcast pre-Western States 100 - where Dominic paced Tim Olsen to his second win in the second hottest year.

We talk about strategies that can help you pace or crew AND how you, as a racer, can help your pacer and crew help you.

We join Ultralegend Tim Twietmeyer and Ultrarunner/Race Director Craig Thornley as we discuss the "Rules of the Trail" Who knew there are 18 rules for running Western States 100? Apparently each rule is a result of a circumstance that actually happened happened during the race.

In the Northern Hemisphere, we are now approaching the heat of the summer. Make sure you prepare yourself by listening and learning from a couple people that really know how to train for heat. Jimmy Dean Freeman, SoCal Coyotes, joins us with his friend Danny Westergaard. Danny has run Badwater 6 times and done a triple crossing of Badwater (875 miles). In seven years, Danny has crossed the Death Valley 16 times!

• How long should it take to become aclimated?
• What strategies work best?
• What advantages will you have if aclimated?

Ian Torrence has a deep resume of trail ultras:

• Finished over 170 ultras and has won over 50!
• In 1999, he finished 16 ultras and 1 marathon and won 12.
• In 2002, he completed the Grand Slam of Ultras
• 18 JFK finishes including 11 top ten finishes

He currently resides in the trail running mecca of Flagstaff, AZ where he trains and coaches for McMillan Running as their ultra-marathon coach. Ian talks to us about his experiences and how his body and training has changed over time, how he has adjusted his training to continue to race successfully and tips he feels will help you build a bonk proof body.

Gary Avery said, "Optimal Stress + Optimal Rest = Optimal Progress"

Greg joins us from McMillan Running, an online resource / coaching for runners, to discuss how important REST is in our training. He explains why "the most difficult situation is to be the fittest spectator at a race". In a recent Runner's World article, "Give it a Rest", Greg explains how better we perform when we incorporate rest into our training schedules: rest during our weekly program and after a race.

Closing Song: "Feeling Way Too Damn Good" by Nickleback.