The Strength Running Podcast

Pro ultramarathoner and trail runner Abby Hall joins us to discuss transitioning to longer distances after being a middle-distance athlete, when she thinks it's a good idea to drop out of a race, what surprised her most when she started competing in long trail races, and what she considers her biggest failure. Abby has  placed in the top 10 at races like UTMB CCC, Lake Sonoma, and North Face 50 Mi...

I first became aware of Max King in 2014 when he won the World Warrior Dash Championship. I realized - after winning my own Warrior Dash in 2012 - that  runners are often the best OCR competitors. Before I first interviewed Max, I studied his career and was absolutely amazed by his accomplishments in virtually every discipline there is in the sport of running: Trail races Ultramarathons Cross coun...

Anna Mae is actually a recent entry into the world of ultramarathons. She debuted at the 2015 Way Too Cool 50k - only to have her finish time qualify as a top-10 all-time performance. Today, her sponsors include: HOKA ONE ONE Suunto Honey Stinger She's the current course record holder (and 2019 winner) of the Speedgoat 50 Miler. You can usually find her exploring trails and mountains near her home...

Today you're going to hear from three Ultramarathoners on how they fuel for races, what their post long run fueling looks like, and how things might be different if they were training for shorter races. It's helpful to study ultramarathoners when it comes to fueling, even if you have no interest in running ultra distances, because it's here that fueling becomes virtually as important as the traini...

Dr. Marc Bubbs, ND, CISSN, CSCS is a former strength coach and the current Performance Nutrition Lead for Canada Basketball. He's written the new book Peak: The New Science of Athletic Performance That is Revolutionizing Sports   that discusses: The microbiome and how to resolve gut problems Sleep hygiene and circadian rhythms Endurance nutrition and refueling Emotions and mindset He regularly pre...

Base training gives runners a foundation of fitness in three major areas: aerobic capacity, strength, and neuromuscular coordination (or leg speed). Aerobic capacity  is built through easy mileage, long runs, and workouts like tempos, progressions, and fartleks. Strength  is also built with high mileage and long runs, but also includes strength routines and  core workouts . Neuromuscular coordinat...

Jason is back with another coaching call episode, this time featuring a runner named JT who is committing to train more diligently for his upcoming 5mi race on Thanksgiving. He's currently training through the Texas summer heat and curious about setting an appropriate time goal, how to work through tune-up races, whether time trials work the same way, and how to pace his goal race. JT is a member...

Our conversation today features the creative lead and owner of XPollination Productions, Mr. Jeremy Green. Jeremy is a road cyclist and was damn close to being a pro during his younger years. He's taken that same drive and intensity to his filmmaking. His company makes educational video courses for coaches and athletes and has focused on several track and field disciplines as well as golf and tenn...

To help us think more clearly about our mental skillset, I'd like to introduce you to Matt Pendola. Matt Pendola is a polymath and exactly the type of person I love bringing on the podcast. His diverse background includes success in not just coaching, but his education and his athletic career. Athletically, he's posted quite a few major accomplishments: He Won the Elite Spartan World Championships...

Today's episode is all Q&A about strength training for endurance runners featuring a guest cohost, Ms. Tina Muir! Tina is the host of the incredibly popular Running for Real podcast, a past guest here on the Strength Running Podcast, and a former professional runner. We're discussing many aspects of strength work: Do runners need upper body exercises? How often should we get in the weight room? Is...

What you're about to listen to is a coaching call where we talk about Riley's running background, the types of training he has experience with, and how he can structure the next 4 months of his running to not only finish his first half, but also race it well. Riley is a member of Team Strength Running, the most affordable virtual coaching group you can join. These behind the scenes coaching call o...

Us distance runners are used to metering out our effort, cautiously sipping fuel to conserve energy, and waiting for the perfect moment to strike. We're creatures of patience, willing to grind for miles and execute a well-planned pacing strategy over the course of a race. But none of that happens in the 800m. In the half mile - possibly the "perfect" middle distance event - caution and patience ar...

Katy Sherratt joins us on the podcast today to discuss the mission of Back on My Feet and the power of running to combat homelessness. And it is  quite  powerful! The organization has helped more than 7,000 and every dollar invested into Back on My Feet returns $2.50 to the local community. Talk about a positive return on investment! In this conversation, we're discussing: Why she initially chose...

After 100 episodes of the Strength Running Podcast, Jason announced a survey to get your feedback. What format episode is your favorite? Do you prefer longer or shorter episodes? What would you like to see MORE of? And of course, what can be improved? After analyzing hundreds of responses, there are some clear trends on what you like and would like to see in this podcast. In this episode, Jason ta...

Matt Phillips is a running injury and performance specialist from England who's written for most major media platforms and has spoken at numerous international conferences. You might recognize him! He's a massage therapist, video gait analyst, and is also the host of the Run Chat Live Podcast (I was recently a guest here !). In this conversation, we're covering a lot: When is gait retraining a goo...

Menachem Brodie is an exercise scientist, USA Cycling Expert level coach and USA Triathlon certified coach, and a graduate of an American College of Sports Medicine Accredited program with a bachelors in Exercise Physiology. He also has experience working in physical therapy, Emergency Medicine, and even with sports like basketball and CrossFit. By now, you've noticed that I love speaking with gue...

Alexandra Ellis is a polymath, having studied and worked in many different areas of exercise science, fitness, and coaching. She has a degree in Exercise Biology and has amassed nearly 1,000 hours of yoga training. Alex also has additional education in: Human Dissection (of course, this was the first thing we talked about) CrossFit Mobility Movement education with Sarah Court, DPT Regeneration Tec...

Today's episode is about recovery, and specifically recovery through three different perspectives: acute recovery - or what you do immediately after a hard workout or race, recovery as preparation - or what you do in training that makes recovery easier, and finally long-term recovery from season to season so you can avoid over-training and burning out. It's helpful to talk about recovery from diff...

Today's podcast episode features one of the lead coaches for Rogue Running , a massive running group in Austin, Texas. After discovering the Running Rogue podcast and learning more about the group, I instantly recognized Chris McClung as a thoughtful coach who truly "gets" training (he's not going to tell you to run less, run faster...). In this conversation, we focus on three key areas: How he le...

Borrowing an idea from our mutual friend Nicole Antoinette , Kate has decided to choose courage over comfort when it comes to showing up and racing. When it comes to getting the most from our bodies, all of us have some trepidation about the discomfort of racing. It can be unpleasant and downright painful. But deciding to "go all in" and embrace that fear is the only way we can reach our potential...

You're about to listen to Strength Running's first live show with author Matt Fitzgerald. If you're not familiar with Matt, he's written more than 20 books about sports nutrition, endurance, running, and the marathon including my favorites, The Endurance Diet, Brain Training, Racing Weight, and Diet Cults. This was recorded in front of a live audience at the Tattered Cover bookstore in Denver, Col...

I ran competitively against Peter while we were both in college. He was at Tufts University while I ran for Connecticut College. Bromka was faster. In college, he was consistently a Varsity runner for their competitive Division III cross country team. But while he was a very good college runner, I wouldn't say he was a standout athlete. Things started to change post-collegiately when Peter started...

Brad Stulberg is a polymath whose first book with coach Steve Magness,  Peak Performance ,  was one of my favorite reads from 2018. His work focuses on helping athletes, business executives, and other top performers improve their chances of success by work on: Defining a path for long-term progression Mental toughness Developing sustainable motivation and purpose How to get into a deep-focus "flow...

You might know Craig as the 2013 Pan-American Jr. Games 1500m champion or the 4th place finisher at the 2016 US Olympic Trials in the 1500m. More recently, Craig won the USATF indoor mile and set a blazing 3:53 mile PR. His list of personal bests is eye-popping: 800m: 1:46:03 Mile: 3:53.93 5k: 14:20.27 Craig is a fun guy to talk with because he doesn't take running too seriously. He's a fierce com...

After college, Deena traveled to Amarosa, Colorado to train under Coach Joe Vigil. That's when her running took off. To discover why and how this happened (it wasn't better training), Deena joined me on the Strength Running Podcast to discuss the mental journey she's taken throughout her career. Our conversation focuses on several topics: How to turn negative thoughts into positive thoughts - whil...