THE RUNNING EFFECT PODCAST

Olympic middle-distance star Emily Mackay joins us today, fresh off a blazing new 3,000m personal best set in February in Boston.  Emily, who currently runs for Team New Balance Boston, is coming off a tremendous 2024 season where she represented Team USA in the Paris Olympics. She qualified for the 1,500m after coming in second during the trials with a time of 3:55–which puts her third all-time f...

We have officially released 500 Episodes of The Running Effect Podcast. This one honestly means a lot. Because I had direct control over that number. At the end of the day, I can't control how many people listen, where I sit on the charts, etc, but I can control my work and my effort. 500 is the result of a dream and journey I started almost five years ago and a consistent effort to create somethi...

Fresh off a national record and his electrifying 800m performance at the Millrose Games, Cooper Lutkenhaus returns to the podcast today.  Cooper, a Texas native and only 16 years old, is already being lauded for his ferocious and insanely strong kick during racing. Recently, he set a new indoor high school national record in the 800m, flying to a 1:46.86.  Prior to showing up to the Millrose Games...

Professional triathlete, two-time Olympic Silver Medalist, and recent HOKA signee, Morgan Pearson, joins the show today to discuss all things training and running. Morgan was raised in New Vernon, New Jersey, and grew up as a competitive swimmer, ocean lifeguard and runner. Morgan went on to compete in cross country and track and field while at the University of Colorado, where he was a five-time...

Versatile distance runner and HOKA professional, Ahmed Muhumed, joins the show today to discuss his humble beginnings and his ambitions for the future.  Ahmed was born and raised in Ethiopia, before coming to the U.S. with his family in 2011. He started running in middle school, and then became a cross country and track star at West Salem High School in Oregon. (Ahmed won back to back cross countr...

Coach, athlete, mom, author, Sara Slattery comes on the podcast today for the first time!  Sara has a diverse and impressive resume, which began in high school when she ran for Mountain Pointe High in Arizona.   Sara went to run at the University of Colorado, where she placed 8th at the 2000 NCAA Women’s Cross Country championships, becoming the first frosh to win All-American honors at Colorado....

THE CAM MYERS SPECIAL  Fresh off breaking the world U20 indoor mile record, Cam Myers, joins the show today amidst the hype of an incredible start to his 2025 campaign.  Cam, who hails from Australia, became the second-youngest runner in history to break the four-minute barrier in the mile in 2023. He kicked off 2025 by running a 3:53.12 at the Dr. Sander Invitational–taking almost two seconds off...

We are joined today by one of the best high school cross country coaches in the country, Kelly Christensen. Coach Christensen leads Niwot High School in Colorado. They recently won the High School Nike Cross Nationals boy’s race in December. The team put together one of the best finishes in NXN history, totaling just 70 points, and emerged as the first boy’s team to capture the title in Colorado h...

Today on the podcast is one of the most successful coaches in our sport, Mark Coogan.  Coach Coogan has had an illustrious career as both a runner, coach, and parent, and is currently leading the New Balance team–an elite distance running crew that began in 2014. (Notable stars on the team include Elle St. Pierre and Parker Valby). Coach Coogan's personal running journey started at Bishop Feehan H...

THE DEENA KASTOR SPECIAL  On the podcast today is the inimitable Deena Kastor–bronze medal legend and women's distance running record-holder. Deena was born in Waltham, Massachusetts, but went to high school in Agoura Hills, California. Deena has opened up about being  adopted at birth  and how that has impacted her life. Deena has one daughter.  At Agoura High School in California, she won three...

Brock is back baby. Digital creator and collegiate distance runner Brock Kelly returns to the podcast for round three today to discuss all things running and life. Brock is a senior at Mississippi College, has a popular YouTube page, and is a budding entrepreneur. Through three-plus seasons he has compiled the following PRs: 1:55.03 in the 800m; 3:51.00 in the 1500m; 4:11.19 in the mile; 14:49.20...

Wilma Nielsen, the Swedish mid-distance phenom from Oregon, joins the show today to discuss her recent breakthroughs in running.  Wilma is fresh off breaking the school record in the mile in January at the Dr. Sander Scorcher indoor meet at the Armory in New York. This six-second PR places her number three all time in the NCAA for the indoor mile and number two on Sweden’s all-time indoor list.  ...

Mid-distance track sensation, Tinoda Matsatsa, joins the show today amidst an impressive sophomore campaign at Georgetown. Tinoda, who hails from Boyds, Maryland, is off to an electric start to his collegiate running career, and seems poised to continue to chase records and wins no matter where he goes. So far in his young college career he has run the following PRs: 48.88 in the 400m; 1:45.17 in...

Today's conversation on the podcast is one that I've been wanting to have for many years now. I have the privilege of sitting down with and learning from Steve Magness.  I was first impacted by Steve's work in 7th grade and have been a loyal follower ever since, consistently being impacted by his work.   Steve is an acclaimed author, performance coach, and former collegiate track and cross-country...

Cole Sprout returns to the podcast to breakdown his final seasons at Stanford. The long-time Cardinal, originally from Littleton, Colorado, most recently competed at the Washington-Dempsey Indoor meet on January 17 and 18 (where he came in ninth in the mile with a time of 3:57.64 and second in the 3k with a time of 7:45.24).  He also threw down at the very competitive Boston University Sharon Coly...

Sadie Engelhardt returns to the podcast today.  Back on the podcast is the 18-year-old American track and field mega-star from Ventura, California.  Sadie is a senior at Ventura High School, where she has had a storied career and is considered one of the best high school runners ever.  The NC State commit (and only the third girls competitor from California to be named Gatorade Best Player of the...

Today, the next director and head coach of the Northern Arizona University Cross Country program, Coach Jarred Cornfield, returns to the podcast. With legendary Coach Mike Smith stepping down, Coach Cornfield takes over one of the most storied programs in the country. This was announced this past fall. It's an exciting time for Jarred and the program, but he wasn't just handed this job; he earned...

Back on the podcast is my good friend, Sam Parsoni. And today, here's here to spill the tea. He's not holding back. You the listener will be blessed being a fly on the wall for a conversation that is normally reserved for private-conversations. Sam is a free-agent and goes IN-DEPTH on the realities of the sport, the ins and outs of contracts, how companies take advantage of athletes, his hope for...

He's coming for it all.  2025 is the year of Hobbs Kessler.  Back on the podcast today is 21-year-old mid-distance Olympic star Hobbs Kessler, who is gearing up for the Wanamaker Mile at the Milrose Games in New York City on February 8, 2025. (Hobbs came in 2nd last year at this race with a time of 3:48.66; fellow American star Yared Nuguse took the win.) Hobbs was most recently on the episode rig...

Today's discussion on the podcast is one of depth around the hot topic of NCAA roster limits and how they will fundamentally change the nature of the NCAA forever. In my opinion, there's no better person to have this conversation with than Liberty University's Assistant Track Coach and Meet Director, Mark Fairley. Coach Mark recently written a letter to Congress in hopes of standing before a Feder...

The NXN Champion returns to the podcast today! Last month, Jane won NXN in dominant fashion, running a course record time of 16:32 in Portland, Oregon. She won by over 40-seconds in muddy, rainy, cold conditions.   Two weeks earlier, she recorded the fastest 5K ever in high school girls XC, running a 15:50 in the NXR Southwest race this past November. She's only the second girl to break 16 on a XC...

Today's conversation is one of my favorite in recent memory. I have the privilege of speaking with 26-year-old track and field star Gabbi Jennings. Gabbi is from Slidell, Louisiana, where she attended First Baptist Christian School. Gabbi notched 44 state titles in Track and Cross Country during her time there. Yes, you read that right. FORTY FOUR. Gabbi then competed at Furman University and was...

Today's podcast is a simple, yet deep conversation that covers five ways you can take your running to the next level in 2025.  To have this conversation with me and share these five things is Coach Paul Stafford. Paul is an extremely successful athlete himself having been All-ACC in Cross Country and All-PAC 12 in the 5k. He spent stints at both Flordia State and Colorado. He holds PRs of 4:08 in...

THE COACH ED EYESTONE SPECIAL Today on the podcast is Ed Eyestone, not only one of the best distance coaches in the history of collegiate and professional running, but also a well-rounded person who loves theater and reading and has evolved a ton through his years of miles. Ed is a BYU athlete and coaching legend. Even though he was cut from his high school baseball team, he won a state XC champio...

Today's podcast will give you three tangible ways you can improve your mental performance in 2025.  Body follows mind. Yet we as athletes rarely focus on (or know!) how we can improve our mental game.  Luckily for you all today I have the privilege of sitting down with my good friend, Shannon MAPP, NCCP! If you're not familiar with Shannon, she's the mental performance counselor who works closely...