The Back Straight Podcast

Things are starting to settle on the running front for Gladys and Stephen as they set their sights on the big race. This week on the R2B we do the usual weekly training week recap and then get stuck into some chat about tapering for race day. Not long left until we are lining up at Stormont, thanks for following along. Contact us here: Instagram: @thebackstraightpodcast Email: thebackstraightpod@g...

G'day mates, Dan is away in Australia for the week so we are changing things up and releasing a podcast we recorded with Leevale AC athlete Niamh Allen. Back to the usual scheduling next week so we will see you then! Hooroo. Contact us here: Instagram: @thebackstraightpodcast Email: thebackstraightpod@gmail.com Twitter: @thebackstraight

Great episode this week featuring our superstar guests Gladys and Stephen. We are three weeks out from the marathon and therefore we just go over some random topics before diving into the taper week in the next episode! Gladys is fresh off a big win in Larne and Stephen has been taking crowns down in Galway. Thanks for giving it a listen, see you next week! Contact us here: Instagram: @thebackstra...

In this episode we are excited to welcome Lindsey Hunt who is a Senior Sports Scientist at Precision Fuel & Hydration. After the usual introductions and training weeks for Gladys and Stephen, Lindsey chats to us about carb-loading, race day nutrition and some other great insights on caffeine and more! We hope you enjoyed this episode and big thanks for Precision Fuel & Hydration as well as...

Bit of drama this week in the local racing scene but some great events happened including the Queen's 5k, Omagh Half Marathon plus some exciting racing over in Jamaica at the first Grand Slam! We go over the results at Queen's, chat a bit about what happened, then Danny recaps his race at Omagh Half Marathon. Conor Curran joins us mid-way through the episode to recap how he got on over in...

No! Not that gear! This week on the road to Belfast Marathon we are chatting all about running gear and what Gladys and Stephen are going to be using come race day! We also do the usual recap of training weeks for our superstars and both seem to be tracking really well. Thanks as always for tuning in, race day nutrition is up next week! Contact us here: Instagram: @thebackstraightpodcast Email: th...

Big week in the lifecycle of Road to Belfast as Stephen breaks tradition with a 120 mile week! In addition that, we get chatting to Gladys about her week of training that featured both a race and a hard long run. Once we get through the training weeks, our superstar athletes share what is most important to them when it comes to recovery. Thanks for listening and send in any questions you want answ...

Plenty more than what the episode title suggests! Michael and Dan are back to recap results from the Craic 10k, Dunboyne 10k, Coleraine Campus 5k, Portadown Half Marathon and the World Masters Indoors in Florida, USA. In addition to all of that we preview the Queen's 5k happening next week and Michael gives us his pick for the winners. Part 2 of the episode we get Danny to recap his experience in...

Join us (Gladys, Stephen and Dan) as we enter another week of the marathon block for Belfast Marathon! This week we chat to our runners about their experiences in the SPAR Craic 10km, their training weeks and then how they fuel their training in the lead-up to the marathon. Thanks for all the listener questions, keep them coming! Hooroo. Contact us here: Instagram: @thebackstraightpodcast Email: t...

Gladys, Stephen and Dan are back for episode 2 of the Road to Belfast! After a great response to the first episode we thought we had better put out another so here we are. It is the same format this week with Stephen kicking things off by recapping his monster training volume. Gladys goes next where she talks us through her sessions for the week and hints at a big workout she did on the day of rec...

Episode 39 is a BEAST! This a two-parter with all the local results in part 1 and then a brilliant interview with the up-and-coming Frank McGrath. Results in the first half focus on the win by the NI lads at the Intercounties XC in Nottingham, Bohermeen Half Marathon, Walled City 10 Miler in Derry as well as some chit-chat about European Indoors. Part 2 we are joined by Frank McGrath who is cement...

Welcome one, welcome all! This is a very special podcast series brought to you by The Back Straight Podcast! Join us as we follow two local sub-elite runners in their journey towards the Belfast Marathon. Gladys Ganiel from North Belfast Harriers and Stephen Connolly from Annandale Striders will be talking us through their preparation for the big race on 4th of May, we can't wait to see how th...

It's a top-shelf two-parter this week! In part 1 we recap the Senior Cross Country that happened in Lurgan Park, Armagh 5k, Irwin Spiers XC, The League, some indoors results and a brief mention of the crazy half-marathon WR that happened in Barcelona. In part 2 we are joined by TripAdvisor's top-dog and brilliant runner in his own right, Justin Reid! Justin takes us for a trip down memory lane for...

For the second part of this bonus episode on the Armagh International Road Races we are joined by the 3rd placed man in the 5k, Sebastian Lörstad. Sebastian amazed everyone when he basically ran a time trial in the event leading from the gun and stringing out the race until he was unfortunately passed in the home straight. Sebastian is still happy enough with his 13:36 and unofficial 5k age group...

Off the back of a brilliant iteration of the Armagh International Road Races for 2025 we were lucky enough to be joined by the women's 3k winner, Verity Ockenden. Verity talks us through her set-up in Northern Italy, training methodologies, the Armagh 3k race and what is next! Verity also talks to us about mental health and elite athletics and shares some great insights on this for runners of...

The title basically says it all for episode 37! We have tonnes of results from a plethora of different races that happened recently as well as a few previews of some exciting events on the horizon. Results wise we have two cross country league fixtures to go over, Trim 10 Mile, European Clubs XC in Portugal and some National Records have fallen. On the preview front we will be talking all things A...

For episode 36 we are joined by two legends of the local running scene. First up is Vincent Bradley who is a local at the Queen's Parkrun alongside his daughter Meabh. Meabh and Vincent have been turning out every Saturday to Parkrun, rain, hail or shine and have now ticked over the 200 Parkrun milestone. Meabh and Vincent are fantastic ambassadors for running and are loved dearly by all they meet...

We are joined by none other than Ciara Mageean for our first episode of 2025! Ciara is a true local legend and international running superstar. She is a 5-time Irish record holder and has won multiple medals at a number of championship events such as gold in the 2024 European Champs 1500m. Ciara gives us the full low-down on her move back to Belfast, training set-up, reflections on 2024 and what i...

East Down and now one of Providence's finest athletes, Anna Gardiner, joins us for episode 34 of the Back Straight! Anna is fresh off a bronze medal team result at the prestigious NCAA Cross Country and a stellar performance in Turkey at the Euopean Cross. Anna talks us through the ins-and-outs of American college running, from the cafeteria all the way to private jets! We think Anna is a true ico...

Big recap episode this one! We brought in well-known running nerd, Conor Curran, to help us properly analyse an assortment of recent races. We get chatting on the Seeley 10k, European Cross. Country, Valencia Marathon and the NCAAs. Thanks for listening, you will hear from us soon! Hooroo. Contact us here: Instagram: @thebackstraightpodcast Email: thebackstraightpod@gmail.com Twitter: @thebackstra...

The title says it all! For this week's episode we are joined by a legend of Northern Irish running, and the Seeley especially, Ben Branagh! Ben has won the event 3 times during his prestigious running career and gives us the inside line on what it takes to run well through Ormeau Park. We chat about the main players for the 2024 event and how we think it is all going to go down. Send us your predi...

It was a brilliant day in Irvinestown for the National Cross Country Championships, and who better to help us recap the races than the winners themselves! We are delighted to be joined by the 2024 champions Keelan Kilrehill and Anne-Marie McGlynn for this very special episode. We hope you enjoy it! Hooroo. Contact us here: Instagram: @thebackstraightpodcast Email: thebackstraightpod@gmail.com Twit...

Big interview this week as we are joined by the current king of Parkrun, Nick Griggs! In part 1 of the episode we chat about the results of the Novice Cross Country in Finn Valley. From there we transition to a preview of the British and Irish Masters Cross Country and National Cross Country which are both happening this coming weekend! Stacked weekend of racing in the muck, lots to look forward t...

It is marathon season y'all! In this episode we are delighted to be joined by Caitlyn Harvey of Roadrunners AC. First up, Michael and Dan recap the Dublin Marathon and Valencia Half and then in part 2 we have a special interview with Caitlyn after she once again rewrote her marathon PB in Dublin by posting a brilliant 2:42. Caitlyn talks to us about how she trained for it, what it was like to expe...

Big Back Straight Bonus Episode! This one is very road-running forward with hints of fast PBs. We are stoked to welcome Welsh marathoner, Natasha Wilson, to the podcast alongside Candour Athletes Tony McCambridge and Conall McClean who recently ran sub 30 min at the Leeds Abbey Dash 10k. For those of you that don't know who Natasha is, she is a former national record holder in the marathon for Wal...