Ali on the Run Show

"At this level, everyone works really hard. You can't just say, 'Oh, she just works the hardest.' All the elite athletes on that starting line, everyone has their own challenges in their build up and had to overcome those. Everyone has their own story." Emily Sisson just might be having the best year of her life. The professional runner for New Balance kicked off her year by running a 1:07 at the...

"When I started running, people laughed at me. But it was a challenge I needed to do for myself." Dr. Shelby Harris is a clinical psychologist and clinical associate professor at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the neurology and psychiatry departments. She specializes in anxiety, depression, and treating sleep disorders, and is the author of  The Women's Guide to Overcoming Insomnia . What...

"You just have to show up. And I showed up." Not too long ago, Mo Alkhawaldeh was a casual smoker. Today, he's a 2:23 marathoner with his sights set on representing his home country of Jordan in the 2020 Olympic Games. But although Mo is one of the top-ranked runners in the Middle East and Africa, he's not a full-time runner: He works full-time at Princeton University, where he's also the head coa...

"I was in survival mode. What can I do to pay our rent? What can I do to put food on the table?" When Rachel Wyman was five months postpartum with her third child, she opened her first bakery: Montclair Bread Company . Then, when the bakery hit 4,000 Facebook likes, Rachel decided she should do something to celebrate the social media milestone. Despite not being a runner and never having run a rac...

"I never picture myself at the start or during the race or what I'm doing during the race. I just picture myself finishing. That's all I can see." Chirine Njeim is a four-time Olympian — but the four times she's represented her home country of Lebanon haven't all been on the run. Chirine is a former alpine ski racer turned marathon runner. She competed at the Winter Olympics three times, and in 20...

"I was letting life pass me by. I had just gone through all of this insanity, and I wasn't really a participant in my own life. How could I let that happen?" I first met Carrie Kreiswirth in 2011, when a marketing campaign for a local running store brought us together. Several years later, I saw a photo of Carrie on Facebook. She was bald. What had I missed? In the time since we met, Carrie had te...

"I realized, no one on the sidelines is judging me as harshly as I'm judging myself." Welcome to the first episode in the seven-part "You Can Run a Marathon" series, all about getting you through training and to the start line of your first or next 26.2-mile race. Whether you're training for your first, your fastest, or your funnest, we're here to help you reach your goals. Who's "we?" On this ser...

"It's still really unreal to me that I get paid to run. Running is something that I would do anyway. It's not a job, it's just a good time!" It's been a big summer for Allie Ostrander. The Alaska native graduated from Boise State University, signed her first professional running contract with Brooks Running, and made her pro debut at USA Track & Field Nationals, where she finished fourth in the 30...

"As an entrepreneur, just like an athlete, you have to be almost psychotically optimistic. You have to believe, 'We can do this, we can make it back.' You have to have that belief because there's so much headwind." Husband-and-wife team Lauren Fleshman and Jesse Thomas are the co-founders of  Picky Bars and hosts of the Work, Play, Love podcast . Lauren is a former professional middle-distance and...

"I didn't really have the credentials to back up what I wanted to do. I just had a dream and a lot of passion and determination." If you don't already know it, remember the name Kaitlin Goodman. Kaitlin is a professional runner for the Boston Athletic Association and a run coach with a master's degree in public health. She's fast — and multifaceted. Kaitlin, who lives in Providence, RI, and trains...

"When you focus on yourself, you get the best results." Mirinda "Rinny" Carfrae is a professional triathlete and three-time Ironman World Champion. On this episode, Rinny talks about her road to swim-bike-run domination, and how she went from a scrappy basketball player to the fastest woman in Kona. Rinny — who is from Brisbane, Australia, but now lives and trains in Boulder, CO — is a podium stap...

"I pushed myself out of my comfort zone and discovered this tremendous strength that I had. It made me realize that so many of us have amazing gifts within us, but we're sometimes scared to take that leap — so we don't even realize what we're capable of." —Beatie Deutsch Beatie Deutsch is a 29-year-old Orthodox Jewish mom of five living in Israel, by way of New Jersey. And she's earned the nicknam...

"I'm wearing these massive pads that are like six inches deep and waddling around the house. I think I thought the first week would be rough. But it was a month out and I'm still rocking these massive pads. I was never told about that." Every week on these Motherhood Mondays episodes, I've asked my guests, "Who's in your village?" I feel so lucky to be able to say that the two women on today's sho...

"It's not sexy, but all the little teeny tiny things add up. Invest in recovery, nutrition, and sleep. That's where you're going to see the big gains — even though it's not as much fun to put on Instagram. You'll see it pay off." Sarah "Mac" Robinson is an elite runner, mom of two, and freelance brand storyteller. On this episode, she gets very candid about how her life — on the run and beyond — h...

"There's a fear of the foundation we're standing on having too many cracks in it." Dr. Molly Millwood is a clinical psychologist and licensed psychotherapist specializing in marital therapy and intimate relationships. She's also the author of the just-released book, To Have and To Hold: Motherhood, Marriage, & the Modern Dilemma .  On this episode, Dr. Millwood — a mom of two — expands on many of...

"You are never going to be the woman you were before, and that's great. Because this woman you are now is so much stronger, more powerful, capable of doing so much more. But you've gotta give her some time and space to heal and figure things out a bit." Hitha Palepu has many titles. She's an entrepreneur and the CEO of Rhosan Pharmaceuticals , the author of the book How to Pack: Travel Smart for A...

"If you are struggling, it does not mean that you are failing. It does not mean that you're doing something wrong. It just means that you are coming up against some hurdles, whether they're physical or mental or emotional, and it's important to listen to those and try and understand what's underneath them. But by no means do they imply that you're not going to achieve your goal. You just need to s...

"Everything I thought would happen did not happen." Sashea Lawson is perhaps best known by her social media moniker: "Sassy Fit Girl." Sashea is a mom to 2.5-year-old Skye and three-month-old Marley, and on this episode she talks about what life is like right now as a toddler mom and newborn mom. She talks about why she's been so vocal about making a slow return to fitness after baby number two, a...

"Be happy with your life! Run races that are exciting to you. Set goals that are exciting to you. Maybe it's a goal that everyone in the world has. Maybe it's something that no one has. It doesn't matter. Just be true to yourself. If you're setting these goals that aren't for you, it's not going to fulfill you in the end." You may know Jen Bigham as the 2019 winner of the Eugene Marathon. You may...

"I wish I knew that it was normal to feel this way." —Jill Koziol When Jill Koziol and Liz Tenety were new moms, they felt alone, terrified, and overwhelmed by this new adventure. Five — soon to be six — kids later (two for Jill, three with a fourth on the way for Liz), and Liz and Jill are the co-founders of Motherly, a website, community, and brand for moms in all stages of parenthood. With Jill...

"There's a lot of work that goes into this, and we take it really seriously." —Sarah Lorge Butler Welcome to the first-ever Ali on the Run Show roundtable! I was thrilled and honored to get to have this conversation with four of the women leading the charge reporting on the women's running industry: Erin Strout ( Women's Running ), Sarah Lorge Butler ( Runner's World ), Lindsay Crouse ( The New Yo...

"I thought oh, London Marathon, that sounds cute! So I signed up. And then I was like Paris Marathon? Oh my god, that sounds so cute, too. So I signed up for that, too." In her twenties, April Cargill was a two-pack-a-day smoker working long days and staying up late nights in the fashion industry in New York City. Today, at 55, the Harlem native is a six-time marathoner on a quest to complete all...

"He said, 'I get it. The mountain's too steep.' And I said, 'No. It's just the wrong mountain.'" Jess Movold is perhaps best known as the super positive, super uplifting, super kind and empowering run and strength coach at Mile High Run Club and The Fortitude Strength Club in NYC. She's the current face of  Runner's World (check her out on the cover!), and is the official "Runner's World Coach." S...

"It's not a girl message, and it's not a boy message. It's a human message. It's about celebrating who you are, whatever you are." Kate T. Parker is the photographer and author behind the best-selling books Strong is the New Pretty and  The Heart of a Boy . Her message for children is profoundly simple: You, just as you are, are worthy. You don't need to change who you are. Kids should feel strong...

"It took a while — a lot of runs, a lot of soul searching — to have this confidence now to just show up and say, 'I've earned this. I deserve to be here. I've put in the work to be in this spot.'" Leigh Anne Sharek is the co-founder of the Brooklyn Track Club , which started as an idea a few years ago and has since grown to nearly 250 members. She's the co-host of the Runners of NYC podcast, she's...