Marathon Handbook Podcast

This week on the Marathon Handbook Podcast, Michael, Katelyn, and Alex kick things off with a recap of Alex's busy wedding weekend on Prince Edward Island, complete with a surprise timed 5K. Then it's into a full Q&A covering some of our most-requested topics: how to fit marathon training into a packed schedule as a working parent, building a smart long-term plan toward a Boston Qualif...

This week on the Marathon Handbook Podcast, Michael Doyle, Alex Cyr, and Katelyn Tocci tackle a stacked mailbag of running questions covering race-day super shoes, chronic blisters, heart rate confusion, and exactly how long your longest training run should be before marathon day. SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS: This episode is presented by Momentous. Use promo code MARATHON for up to 35% off your first ord...

Randi Zuckerberg is best known as the sister of Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg, but in the ultra running world, she's building a reputation entirely her own. After a 20-year running hiatus, Randi returned to the sport in 2023 and has since completed two Cocodona 250s, set the overall FKT on the Baja Sur Trail, and run a marathon PR at the Boston Marathon... all at age 44.In this episode, Jessy C...

How do you plan a running goal that's 2, 3, or even 5 years away and stay motivated long enough to hit it? This week, Michael Doyle and Katelyn Tocci answer listener questions on long-term goal setting for distance runners: the right mindset, how to structure your training years, and when to make the jump from half marathons to the full.0:00 Intro — Alex's Wedding Month & What's Co...

This week on The Running Story, Michael Doyle and Jessy Carveth break down the five biggest stories in the running world including a scary medical emergency involving one of the greatest track runners of all time, a jaw-dropping performance from an eighth grader, a Dutch marathon canceled over a fake paramedic scam, and why Berlin 2026 is shaping up to be the most anticipated marathon of the fall...

The 2027 London Marathon has officially confirmed it will become a two-day event and Michael Doyle and Jessy Carveth are breaking it all down in an emergency episode of The Running Story by Marathon Handbook. On Saturday, April 24th and Sunday, April 25th, 2027, London will host 100,000 runners across two days on the same course, making it the largest marathon event in history and the biggest fund...

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS:This episode is presented by Momentous. Use promo code MARATHON for up to 35% off your first order: https://⁠livemomentous.comWe use RYTHM for easy, convenient blood tests. 15% OFF : https://RYTHM.HEALTH/MARATHON This week, Marathon Handbook news editor Jessy Carveth joins us to talk about everything you need to know to run your goal half marathon. Jessy is chasing a 1:27:30 a...

A 13-year-old from Utah just broke a mile world record that had stood since 1973. Plus: Olympic triathlon gold medalists are hitting the track, a runner completed every single street in Chicago, Yomif Kejelcha could break the half marathon world record in Buenos Aires and the marathon lottery crisis is getting very real. Chapters:0:00 — Intro & show announcements 2:53 — Story 1: 13-year-old An...

Jimmy Whelan raced the Giro d'Italia, wore the EF Education First jersey in the World Tour, and beat Pogačar in a U23 race. Then he broke his pelvis, lost his contract, and messaged his boss from a hospital bed in Europe to say he was done. Less than a year later, he ran a 61-minute half marathon on his professional running debut at Valencia, 13th on the Australian all-time list. He's now...

Why does every marathon training plan include so much easy, slow running — even when your goal pace is well over a minute faster per mile? This week, a question from listener Seth (a former pro cyclist chasing a sub-3 marathon) opens up one of our most useful conversations yet. SUPPORT OUR SPONSOR: Lagoon pillows help us sleep better, so we run better. Want to try? You can save 15% with code MARAT...

It's official, and it's historic: the Cape Town Marathon has been named the 8th Abbott World Marathon Major — the first ever on the continent of Africa. In this surprise emergency episode, Michael Doyle and news editor Jesse Carveth break down the announcement the running world saw coming but couldn't stop talking about (00:37). They walk the full eight-major calendar from Tokyo to New...

Alex Cyr and Alexis D'Souza are back for Episode 4 of For Better or For Worse, the show where a beginner runner and an elite runner chase goals together (and occasionally argue about hockey and boiled eggs).This week, Alexis just finished her biggest training week ever: 21.2km over four runs, but keeps getting post-run headaches. Alex breaks down the nutrition basics every new runner needs to...

This week on The Running Story, Michael Doyle and Jessy Carveth dig into five stories you need to know about: from a politically charged threat to two iconic American road races, to a milestone 22 years in the making, to an elite marathoner trading the roads for a near-vertical mountain race. Chapters:0:00 — Intro & New Independent Podcast Feed Announcement2:42 — Story 1: Trump Golf Course Thr...

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS:This episode is presented by Momentous. Use promo code MARATHON for up to 35% off your first order: https://⁠livemomentous.comWe use RYTHM for easy, convenient blood tests. 15% OFF : https://RYTHM.HEALTH/MARATHON Figuring out your marathon goal pace is one of the trickiest parts of training, especially if you've never run 26.2 before. This week, a listener named Phil sends in...

A packed week in running. Michael and Jessy cover five big stories including a time that would have rewritten the record books and an exclusive from the CEO of one of the world's best marathons. 0:00 Intro & Jessy's Unbound Gravel 2003:00 10K in 26:01 — The Fastest in Human History (Unofficial)5:30 Yomif Kejelcha Signs With Valencia Marathon6:30 Exclusive Interview: Valencia CEO on the...

It was a big race weekend for the Marathon Handbook crew, and one of them won their race outright, beating every single finisher. SUPPORT OUR SPONSOR: Lagoon pillows help us sleep better, so we run better. Want to try? You can save 15% with code MARATHON. Go to https://LagoonSleep.com/marathonhandbook and take the 2-minute sleep quiz to find your match. Alex ran the Canadian 10K Road Championships...

Thomas Watson fills in for Michael Doyle this week as he and Jessy Carveth run through five stories dominating the running world right now — from a doping controversy that broke the internet to a heartwarming marathon moment featuring the sport's greatest athlete. Cape Town Marathon emerged as one of the most significant races of the year, not just for the performances on the day but because i...

We're cracking open the voicemail bag this week and taking on your best marathon training questions. SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS: This episode is presented by Momentous. Use promo code MARATHON for up to 35% off your first order: https://⁠livemomentous.com We use RYTHM for easy, convenient blood tests. 15% OFF : https://rythmhealth.com/marathon Timothy from St. Louis wonders why his cadence barely ch...

The fall marathon season is already taking shape and Michael Doyle and Jessy Carveth are here to break it all down. On this episode of The Running Story, the team runs through the five biggest stories from the past week in running. In this episode: The Soweto Marathon prize-money scandal — six months after the November 2025 race, the winners are still owed roughly $15,000, runners-up about $7,000,...

Jakob Ingebrigtsen is one of the most dominant runners on the planet: two Olympic golds, multiple world championship medals, and five world records by age 25. He's also coming back from February Achilles surgery and rebuilding toward a season that could include three more world record attempts. Jessy Carveth sits down with Jakob for a candid, gear-nerd-friendly conversation about how he's...

It's the May Mailbag — and Michael, Alex and Katelyn are getting personal. With their spouses conveniently out of the house, the three of them dig into what it's actually like to be in a relationship with a runner: pace mismatches, "morning person" catfishes, who gets the long-run slot on Sunday, and what happens when your non-running partner slowly, accidentally becomes a runner...

Michael and Jessy run through the five most intriguing stories in running this week. Rachel Entrekin became the first woman to win Cocodona 250 outright, demolishing the overall course record and finishing nearly 10 miles ahead of the next runner. We dig into the body-composition science behind why women keep closing — and surpassing — men at extreme ultra distances, and acknowledge the tragic dea...

SUPPORT OUR SPONSOR: This episode is presented by Momentous. Use promo code MARATHON for up to 35% off your first order: https://⁠livemomentous.com Michael Doyle and Alex Cyr (Katelyn is on a well-earned vacation) reset the Marathon Handbook Super Shoe Power Rankings for Spring 2026. We cover the full overall Top 10, including prototypes, then run a second Top 10 of the most accessible super shoes...

Michael and Jessy are back after covering Boston and London, and this week's five stories cover everything from a polarizing youth running debate to one of the most shocking marathon debuts in American history. In this episode: An 11-year-old from Indiana, Ben Dick, ran 1:20:14 at the IU Health 500 Festival mini marathon — reportedly the fastest half ever run by a boy his age. He dropped his d...

SUPPORT OUR SPONSOR:Lagoon pillows help us sleep better, so we run better. Want to try? You can save 15% with code MARATHON. Go to https://LagoonSleep.com/marathonhandbook and take the 2-minute sleep quiz to find your match. The two-hour marathon barrier is gone. At the 2026 London Marathon, Sebastian Sawe became the first person ever to run under two hours on a record-eligible course — and Yomif...