The Middle Miles

[REPOST] We are so excited to bring you our conversation with Dr. Kate Ackerman. Dr. Ackerman is the medical director of the Female Athlete Program in the Sports Medicine Division at Boston Children's Hospital and is now on the forefront of research involving female athletes and perimenopause and menopause. There are very few reliable studies involving older female athletes and Dr. Ackerman and he...

Sports Dietician Laura Moretti Reece is back to debunk and demystify some of the biggest topics in sports nutrition.  Topics covered: What are macros and what should my macro goals be per day? Does cortisol make you gain weight? Can you do morning workouts fasted? What does underfueling look like? Is it possible to have too much sugar while training? What should you eat before bed if you are hungr...

We are back with Part 2 of listener questions!  Lots to dive into in this one! What workouts can you do if you can't bike or run, but can walk  How to stop early plantar fasciitis When do you need a recovery drink after a workout?   And when do you not need one? Which is bettter: riding and running by power or heart rate?   Are power and cadence outdoors important to have?  What if you only have t...

Happy June everyone!  It's time for another round of listener questions, and we had so many that we split it up into two parts.  Part 1 answers the questions below: Balancing open water vs pool sessions How do you get over being pummeled in a swim ? How to find the joy in swimming and not overthink everything?   Is a TT bike boring? Is a TT bike harder to ride than a road bike?   How do you clip i...

Race season is here! We know that a lot of listeners are short course athletes, so in this episode, we talk about 10 ways to nail your sprint and olympic distance triathlon.  Whether you are new to short course or a season veteran, there is always something to learn or re-learn. From how to structure training to transition tips to pacing to nutrition, there are lots of good tips in here!   Sodium...

"If you saying everything is fine, you are already lying to yourself. You have to sit down with yourself and deal with everything going on in your head."   This podcast is all about getting control of mental game- in training, racing, and life.   While we are often good at faking it til we make it, it's often better to confront the fears, distractions, or worries that hold us back and work through...

If you are curious about ultrarunning and not sure how to transition from triathlon into ultras, this episode is for you.  Holly Goodman is a top age group Ironman triathlete who was looking to branch out from triathlon and reconnect with her passion for sport.  After completing Kona in 2022, she shifted into ultraunning (well, she also still did an Ironman last year!). Most recently, Holly came i...

Everything is bigger in Texas, they say, and this year's Ironman Texas confirmed that adage.  Big winds and hot temps made the race challenging, but I Race Like A Girl teammate Lindsay Dibona showed why she is a top age grouper, as she swam, biked, and ran her way to an impressive 1st place age group and 5th overall AG female with a 9:59:04. In this episode, we talk about the build up to Texas, an...

You might have heard of Rim to Rim, a hike that traverses the Grand Canyon, which is a bucket list hike for sure.  But did you know that you can add another Rim on there, and head back to the start? Three IRLAG teammates- Nicole Rambsey, Lindsay Long, and Cheryl Kreinbring- planned and trained for months to attempt this epic R2R2R in one single day. The Rim to Rim to Rim is a 40-48 mile hike that...

No athlete goes it alone, but who do you actually need on your team in order to find success as an athlete?  In this episode, we talk about the four different support systems, or buckets, that need to be filled in order to thrive in sport (and in life).  The four buckets: Mental/motivational Educational/Consulting Responsibilities Coaching  And at the end, Angela suggests an acitivity to do to see...

The 128th Boston Marathon is done and dusted!  It was a gorgeous day on the course for spectators, which means the heat posed a bit of a challenge for the runners out there.  In this episode, we talk to Veronique Ranger, Seamus Woods, Pedro Gomes about their builds to Boston and their experience on race day.  Three different athletes, three different builds, and three different race approaches. An...

We are big fans of "controlling the controllables" when racing, and this episode is dedicated to one of the biggest things we athletes cannot control on race day: the weather.  Although we like to *think* we can control the forecast by checking it often in the week leading up to the race (surely it has changed from 20 minutes ago?), the truth is that we must accept and adapt to whatever conditions...

It's time for a reality check.   For most of us, our base season might be coming to a close and many of us are building to our first race of the season. You've got to put in the work and put in the time.  And if you want to reach the goals you have set, you need to remember that it's not going to come to you.  Topics covered: How to find the time and motivation Change the plan/ change the goal So...

Injuries happen to most athletes. And when injured, it's not just the physical recovery that can be challenging, but also the mental load of navigating that injury can be just as difficult.  Authors Cindy Kuzma and Carrie Jackson have created one of the best resources for helping athletes bounce back from injury with their book "Rebound," and their online group and podcast entitled, "The Injured A...

It's not always the fittest person who gets to the finish line first.  All the fitness in the world doesn't matter if you don't know how to use it in a race.  So in this episode, we talk about how and when to race with your head, and how and when to race with your heart. Spoiler alert: the best performances come when you can successfully tap into both sides of your athlete persona.  However, there...

How much data is too much data?  When does technology help you perform better,  and when does it hold you back?  In this episode, we dive into training metrics. From CTL to TSS, from heart rate to power, from Strava to Training Peaks, we try to help you differentiate between the positives and negatives of  big data.  Have a listen! 

Most people know Dave McGillivray as the Boston Marathon Race Director (since the late 1908s), but did you know he raced the Ironman World Championships 9 times, or that he completed the World Marathon Challenge at age 63 a few years ago, running 7 marathons in 7 days on 7 continents?  He also is inducted into 7 Hall of Fames, created the Dave McGillivray Finish Strong Foundation, and yes... he fa...

Our very knowledgeable friend and teammate, Christine Saleeba, is back to answer more questions about injury, recovery, and everything in between!  Topics covered in this episode: Bone vs soft tissue injuries- how do you know? Upstream/downstream pain Mobility- Do I stretch? Do I strengthen? What to do when PT isn't working? What kind of discomfort can I train through? 5 things that someone could...

We go a bit "lighter" in today's episode with some "mythbusting" about pro triathletes.  How much money do pros really make from sponsorships and prize money?  What's happening at their pro race briefings before races?  How many hours a week do they train, for real? Do they like sharing the course with age groupers?  Real talk, real answers... fact or fiction: pro triathlete edition! Have a listen...

Ever wonder how and why training plans are structured the way they are?  What exactly happens during the base and build and peak weeks of training?  In this episode we try to demystify the different phases of a race build.  We talk specific workouts, how long each phases lasts, and make distinctions between short and long course plans.  We also talk a little bit about the taper and why it's so var...

Adam Grant's new book "Hidden Potential" is filled with information about how to improve and succeed, so we decided to invite you, our listeners, to read the book and send us your insights and takeaways. Whether you connected with this book as an athlete, a coach, a supervisor, a parent, or anyone that helps others perform, we appreciated your input.  And if you have not read the book, we try to s...

Last week, we wrapped up another successful I Race Like A Girl training camp in Clermont, Florida.  We asked athletes at camp to write down questions for us to answer. Their questions were great. We really loved the last one! Here are a few questions that we address in this podcast! Paddles- do we really need to use them? Should I sign up for an xterra or gravel tri if I don't have access to run t...

Sports Dietician Laura Moretti Reece is back to continue our discussion on fueling for athletic performance. Topics covered in this episode: First signs of Red-S and underfueling Bone stress injuries   Unintentionally underfueling Orthorexia and "clean eating" Social media influencers and food   Dietary trends and shifts Low carbohydrate availability and fat adapted  Race weight   What happens to...

Eat the Salami!? We are back with Part 2 of new things to try to become a better athlete.   Which of these do you already do or which ones can you improve on?   And guess who put the last one on the list?   Nap   Stay mobile   Get a coach Know when to pivot   Eat the salami! Have a Listen!   

There's something to be said for mastering the basics when training and racing- prioritize sleep, eat well, keep your easy days easy so your hard days can be hard... we could go on and on.  We LOVE the basics!  But we also love to think outside the box and find new ways to challenge ourselves.  In this 2 part episode, we present 10 things to try to make you stronger, faster, fitter, and rethink th...