The Middle Miles

Welcome to Season 2 of the podcast!  Thank you to everyone out there for continuing to listen, for hitting that follow button, for leaving a review, and for emailing us your thoughts and ideas.   Keep them coming!   Today we wanted to kick off the year by talking about what it takes to be a successful athlete, with insights from a coaching perspective and from our own athletic experiences.   Succe...

We have a BONUS episode for you before we begin season 2.   We couldn't sit on this one!    Honestly, we have been waiting for a year to do this podcast.   Way back in January of 2022, Amy got into a minor car accident that turned into a major injury that derailed *almost* her entire 2022 season.  And we kept saying, "This journey would make a good podcast once Amy is better."  Almost one year lat...

Our guest is Kirsten Miller, a Board Certified   Holistic Nutritionist   who is also a triathlete and part of IRLAG.   In this episode, we talk about what to do when what you HAVE been doing isn't working anymore. Maybe you are gaining weight even though nothing has changed in your diet or exercise routine.   Maybe you are having gut issues that you have not had before.   Maybe you just don't feel...

The holiday season is often a joyous one- family, friends, parties, presents, food, and drink. Yet all of this merriment packed in over 4 weeks can leave us athletes feeling a bit overwhelmed when we try to figure out how to fit our training into all of this good stuff.   This episode will help you navigate these next few weeks, in sport and in life. The first half of this podcast focuses on findi...

What does it take to train for and complete a sucessful Ironman? Age Group athlete and I Race Like A Girl teammate Lindsay Long  recaps her Ironman Arizona race as a first timer, and also shares her experience in building to this challenging event.   A race is the celebration of months and months of hard work dedication and planning, so whether you are thinking about doing your first Ironman, or j...

Not sure what to ask for or to give this holiday season?  This week, Angela and Amy have some fun talking about their favorite swim, bike, and run items and give gift ideas, from big (new bike?) to small (lock laces?).  Remember to  shop local when you can, and also remember that a lot of online retailers are small business with just a few employees, so support small business in general!  Have a l...

Today we take a deep dive into how to become a stronger and faster runner by laying out six areas you need to pay attention to in order to see gains in your running.   Spoiler alert- there is no quick fix.   It takes time, effort, and an enjoyment of the process of improvement. Week by week, month by month, and year by year.  Six topics (from more "simple" to more involved): Sneaker Choices Nutrit...

This episode is all about strength training. We answer listener questions and give some specific ways you can get stronger in the off season and also talk about the new research that shows that you should still be strength training in the on season, as opposed to just maintaining, especially if you are an over-40 female.  Topics covered: Why strength train Benefits to cycling and running You need...

In this episode, we take a deep dive into the sneaker industry with Russell Stevens, from Topo Athletic.   Russell is the product manager for Topo (a local company based in Massachusetts), so we first ask him what a product manager does, and how he got into the industry.   We then talk all things sneakers- how to choose the right pair; how sneakers are designed and tested; what is the deal with "d...

It's been a while since we have done a coach Q and A, so we loved answering our team's questions in this podcast. We answer questions for all types of athletes, from duathletes to gravel racers to runners to triathletes (of course!). We cover topics like post workout and race fueling, advice for buying a TT bike, and how to move up to a longer distance. And as usual, sometimes Angela and Amy have...

We all know that Angela Naeth does not shy away from a challenge or a new experience, and so when the opportunity arose to go bike packing, she was in. And even after she found out that they would be riding almost 150 miles a day, she still packed her stuff (first in grocery bags, as you will hear) and headed off to Pennsylvania for what turned out to be a wild adventure. From riding with no light...

Hot, and we mean, HOT off the race course in Kona, we have a recap of the women's race from two amazing athletes, Veronique Ranger, a Zoot athlete and Leah Roberts, a teammate on IRLAG with us, and also a good friend.   We recorded this the day after their race and the day before the men's race, while sitting overlooking the Pacific Ocean.   This year was the first year that Kona was two days: the...

Our guest for this episode is Dede Griesbauer, a professional triathlete and ultra distance athlete and now, an Ironman commentator. One of the reasons we wanted to interview Dede is because she is still achieving high levels of athletic success at 52 years old.   She just was 4th in Augusta 70.3 this year, last year was 5th at Lake Placid.  And in 2020, she set the world record for the Ultraman d...

In this episode, we take all of those topics that are posed on social media and give you the skinny on what is true and what is not true. And because one size doesn't fit all, there is often gray area with many of these topics, but we try to stick to fact or fiction. Let's see if you agree with us!  And after you listen, send us a fact or fiction topic YOU want to see use talk about at iracelikeag...

In this episode, we are joined by pro triathletes Lenny Ramsey and Amanda Wendorff, who both raced Ironman Wisconsin last week.  If you have not heard, IMWI was a brutal day.  It rained pretty much nonstop, with over 3.6 inches of rain, along with a flood warning and temps in the 50s.    1700 athletes were registered, 1400 started, and only 1000 finished the race.   Lenny and Amanda (who placed 5t...

"Bicycle crashes are not bike accidents."  This quote is front and center on Bike Law's website and we take a deep dive into bike law, bike advocacy, and the rules of the road in this podcast. Rachael Maney is the Director of the Bike Law Network and of the non-profit Bike Law Foundation. The goal of the bike law network is to be bicycle advocates as well as legal advocates, and to pursue cycling...

It is September, and although the weather might still feel like summer, there is definitely a shift in the air. Race companies are opening up races for next year, teams are accepting new members, and we athletes are already thinking about what we want to do next season. So in this podcast, Angela and Amy decided that it was a good time to hit pause, take a breath, and give a little advice on how t...

In this podcast, we talk to Marley Blonksy. Marley is one of the founders of All Bodies on Bikes, and one of their tag lines is "All Bodies Are Good Bodies. All Bikes Are Good Bikes." In this episode, we talk about both subjects- bodies and bikes.   We touch on bikepacking, feeling comfortable in our bodies, social media, gravel racing, role models in the cycling community, and how Marley left a h...

Therapist (and triathlete) Sara Davis is back to talk about anxiety in sport.   From training to racing to injury, many athletes struggle with fear and anxiety.   We share stories and Sara gives concrete advice to help anyone (triathlete or not) "train your brain" to perform at your best, in life and sport.   Some topics covered: What is anxiety Are certain people prone to anxiety How anxiety spil...

Fresh off the mountains in Colorado, we bring you the Leadville 100 MTB race recap, the fourth race in the Lifetime Grand Prix series for Angela.  We also have a special guest, Amy's husband Seamus, who raced Leadville as well. Leadville is one of the toughest races on the mountain bike circuit and it's a bucket list race.   Athletes race at elevation (up to 13,000 feet); the race is 104 miles lon...

We are so excited to share our talk with Brenton Ford of Effortless Swimming.  We've been fans of Brenton's for a while - we follow his Instagram and his YouTube channel, and we think that Brenton produces the best swim instruction content out there. It's clear, focused, and easy to understand.  In this podcast, we cover a lot of ground.  From the top three things triathletes need to fix in the wa...

In this episode, Angela and Amy talk all things travel.   Even though they have mentioned a few travel tips in past episodes, they put it all together here, from when to travel to a race, to hotel vs airbnb, to how to get your bike there. They also talk about traveling solo. Through this conversation Amy and Angela find out that they disagree over a few things, which goes to show that there isn't...

We are so excited to bring back Christine Saleeba for another edition of Ask the PT.  Topics: Most common triathlete injuries How much PT do you need?  Can you manage it on your own?    Tip and tricks for doing your exercises and sticking to it Top PT exercises for runners/triathletes Most efficient dynamic warm up before a run to prevent injury   How long does it take to get muscle tone back afte...

This week, we recap Angela's Crusher in the Tushar Gravel Race, part of the Lifetime Grandprix series, and Amy's local gravel grinder race in Plymouth.   We compare courses and talk about the difference between a large hugely publicized event like Crusher in the Tushar, and a little local race. We also talk more about gravel in general - you never know what you're going to get when you sign up for...

We have a great Ask the Coach Q and A this week!  We collected questions from our I Race Like A Girl and Girls Get Gritty teammates!  Lots of great info in here! Strength Training In Season What to do when nutrition plan fails Clean bike = more watts??   Acclimating to heat/humidity Running with power- worth it? How much open water vs pool time in summer? Recovery after a big race Favorite thing t...