Over the Next Hill Fitness

Send us Fan Mail Kids are surrounded by sports, fitness content, and devices yet many still do not learn the basic skills to run, jump, balance, throw, and play with confidence. That gap is bigger than it looks, and it is fueling what my guest Jim Baugh calls the “inactivity pandemic” a quiet crisis affecting kids’ physical health, mental health, and long-term habits. Jim has spent years building...

Send us Fan Mail Your strongest running might not happen in your 20s. It might show up after kids, after career pivots, after moving towns, and after you have learned what your body actually needs. That is why I loved talking with Mary Ellen Lemieux, a lifelong recreational runner who says her running is better now at 64 than it has ever been, even if the pace is slower. We get into the details ru...

Send us Fan Mail A lot of people think runners are born, not made. Carmela DiCostanzo-Corkel proves the opposite with a story that starts with a best friend in grade school, turns into half marathon training that felt impossible, and grows into a life built around movement, laughter, and showing up anyway. We talk about why running with someone you trust can be more powerful than any perfect plan,...

Send us Fan Mail Heat doesn’t wait for you to finish the workout. One minute you feel a little “off,” the next you’re cramping, dizzy, confused, or watching your heart rate climb and refuse to come down. That’s why we brought back this conversation with Chris Tolan, a firefighter, paramedic, and search and rescue instructor, to give you a clear, real world guide to heat illness before summer train...

Send us Fan Mail A seven-year-old finishing her very first triathlon is already a big deal, but what grabbed me most was how clearly you can hear confidence being built in real time. Evelyn joins me right after race day to share what felt exciting, what felt scary, and why she signed up in the first place. Her answers are simple, honest, and surprisingly wise: swimming is pure fun, biking hills ar...

Send us Fan Mail Your running plan might be missing the one thing that makes everything else work: strength. I’m joined by strength coach and entrepreneur Chris Ryan, and we get honest about what actually helps runners stay healthy, improve form, and keep chasing goals without getting stuck in the injury cycle. Chris shares his path from competitive sports and Division I track to the real-world tu...

Send us Fan Mail Jeff Galloway didn’t just coach runners, he quietly rewired what many of us believe “real running” is supposed to look like. We’re replaying a conversation recorded in 2023 to honor his impact and to put his most useful ideas back in your ears: run walk run, smarter pacing, fewer injuries, and a better finish when everyone else is falling apart. Jeff shares how he found running as...

Send us Fan Mail A surgeon once told Lionel Pailloncy to give up running after back surgery. Years later, he’s not only running again, he’s finished the original six World Marathon Majors and just took 20 minutes off his marathon PR in Tokyo. From Paris to Boston and beyond, Lionel’s story isn’t about being the fastest, it’s about refusing to let one diagnosis or one hard year define what’s possib...

Send us Fan Mail Nineteen marathons sounds glamorous until you hear what it really takes: 5 a.m. runs before work, hard conversations with yourself at mile 20, and the patience to chase a goal for years. Nicole Gray joins us fresh off Tokyo Marathon to unpack how she went from a struggling first full marathon to earning her Abbott World Marathon Majors Six Star medal and lining up for Boston again...

Send us Fan Mail Running can feel like a club you’re not invited to unless you’re fast, thin, or fearless. That’s why this conversation with coach Lisa Pozzoni landed so hard for me. Lisa started running as an adult, built confidence through personal training and better nutrition, and eventually fell in love with trail running and ultrarunning. Her perspective is refreshingly practical: most of us...

Send us Fan Mail The first climb always humbles you—and sometimes it shows you who you can become. We sit down with Denise Smith and Jana McCarron to unpack how two friends stretched from casual runs to gritty trail miles, including a six-hour loop event with 1,600 feet of gain per lap that rewired their sense of “hard.” Denise shares how a post-college fitness push grew into 10Ks, triathlons, and...

Send us Fan Mail A grade school jab said he’d never be an athlete. A lunch bet said otherwise. Joe Emus joins us to share how finishing dead last at the Toronto Zoo race sparked a lifetime of running—seven Bostons, five World Marathon Majors, and more than a thousand races fueled by community and curiosity. His secret isn’t a shoe or a split; it’s choosing joy over judgment and people over pace. W...

Send us Fan Mail What actually happens between mile 48 and mile 100, when your brain is tired, your stomach is bored of sugar, and the trail turns to cambered sand and black mud? We sat down with sisters Lyndsi and Kendell to unpack their first 100 miler at the Wolverine 100—how they trained, why they split mid-race, and the small choices that kept them moving when comfort vanished. We trace the l...

Send us Fan Mail Mud, rain, and a first-ever DNF set the stage for a comeback story packed with practical wisdom. I sit down with ultrarunner Andy Chaffee to retrace how a soaked 75-mile stop at Indiana Trail 100 became the catalyst for smarter fueling, better decisions, and two confident 100-mile finishes. From childhood races and college running to post-grad burnout and re-entry through Ironman,...

Send us Fan Mail A quiet decision on an elliptical becomes a marathon finish and a night spent pacing through rough trails and stranger-than-dreams moments. We sit down with Cheryl to unpack how a three-year journey, a steady base, and a simple run-walk plan turned doubt into durable progress—and why a 5:02 felt like proof, not luck. From her first 5K to crewing and pacing a 100-miler, she shares...

Send us Fan Mail What turns a hard “never” into 26.2 miles? For Karen Goudy, it was a second chance at running, a training partner who wouldn’t quit, and a plan that flexed with real life. We talk through the whole arc—from misdiagnosis and time off to crossing a warm, humid finish line in Toronto—with the practical details most runners wish they knew sooner. We map out the training backbone that...

Send us Fan Mail A Facebook group started after a post-marathon lull turned into a global home for older women who run—and the stories behind it will make you lace up. We sit down with Sherry, founder of Old Ladies Running, along with Erin and Diane, to explore how a simple idea grew into nearly 18,000 members who celebrate first miles, comeback races, and everything in between. The heart of it is...

Send us Fan Mail What if your body isn’t underperforming… it’s protecting you? We sit down with Renee McGregor, renowned sports and clinical dietitian, to unpack Relative Energy Deficiency in sport and why so many runners and active people feel flat, injured, or anxious despite training harder than ever. Renee explains how the body prioritizes movement when fuel is low and quietly turns down hormo...

Send us Fan Mail Forget the anti-aging hype—let’s talk about getting strong enough to live the life you want. Coach and author Heike Yates joins us to unpack what midlife really means, why it isn’t a number, and how to trade comparison and guilt for confidence and capacity. We go deep on the mindset shifts that matter, the workouts that keep you independent, and the practical tools that help you r...

Send us Fan Mail What if your training plan wasn’t just about miles, but the mindset that keeps you steady when life tilts? Jamee joins us to share how running became the backbone of nine years of sobriety, a pressure valve for anxiety, and the bridge back to endurance after three kids. From a fearless first half marathon run too fast and unfueled to a deliberate, coached build for Chicago, her st...

Send us Fan Mail What if one friend’s “we could train” turned into a new life, a new community, and a marathon that needs a passport? Kathy joins us to share how a reluctant walker became a purpose-led runner who lost over 100 pounds, found her pace in the back-of-the-pack party, and discovered a mission bigger than finish times: raising funds so people with cancer can pay their bills through Gard...

Send us Fan Mail What happens when a violinist with zero athletic experience decides to see if she can run a single mile? For Ashley Raines, it sparked a transformation that defied all expectations—including her own. Ashley joins us to share her captivating journey from complete non-athlete to endurance sports competitor. Just a few years ago, she was the person who joked, "If you see me runn...

Send us Fan Mail What happens when you decide to take up running at 50 years old? Patricia Gonzalez never thought she'd live long enough to see her half-century birthday, but when she did, she made a remarkable decision that would transform her relationship with her body and herself. Against the backdrop of a divorce and having recently quit smoking, Patricia laced up her running shoes for th...

Send us Fan Mail What does it take to run 189 marathons across all seven continents and every U.S. state? Meet Sheilagh Galinsky, who at 80 years young, shares her extraordinary athletic journey that began at age 45 when a friend's marathon medal sparked her curiosity. Sheila takes us through her remarkable running adventures—from navigating glaciers and battling katabatic winds in Antarctica...

Send us Fan Mail At 58 years old and 250 pounds, Deb Bahr faced a pivotal moment. Concerned about her future health and longevity, she made a decision that would transform her life: she would become a triathlete despite not having run since her 20s, biked since childhood, or properly swam before. Deb's remarkable journey unfolds as she shares how she taught herself three disciplines from scra...