Run Culture Podcast

In this podcast I chat with good friend and long-time runner, Craig Appleby. In a round about way we talk about our experiences with the training paradigm (stress plus rest= adaptation).  We talk about the discipline, flexibility, experience and pragmatic approach needed to best read your body and modify training so that you adapt towards your running goals, rather than away from them.

Here's a podcast I did with Zacca Newman head coach at Run2PB and host of the Better with Running Podcast a few weeks ago. In the chat I talk about a term I have coined 'the runners eco system' and how as runners we have to look holistically at running to get our best outcomes. 

Today, I catch up and have a chat with 'Evolve' Running Head coach, 2:19 marathoner and Australian 50km Record holder, Dion Finocchiaro! We talk about ‘coaching the individual’ rather than just 'coaching the event'… What are the fundamentals? What are the nuances?… When is it important to take a generalist view? When is it important to be specific? I hope a few runners out there enjoy this chat and find it useful!

Today I chat with elite Kiwi marathoner about 'chaos and control' in training… Pending on the circumstances and the individual, we all benefit from both at times….The art lies in working out 'what' we need to control, so that we can be more consistent and somewhat deliberate with our training.....whilst working out where to introduce some ‘controlled chaos’ to nudge resilience and improvement. Enjoy!

Physical prowess is so easy to conceptualize, it's visible. Someone can be; fast, strong, coordinated etc.. Psychological resilience on the other hand is harder to see and for this reason it is often under appreciated. Getting your 'head' right is the first step to rehab/performance success. So, when I see a patient or runner who has a 'highly tuned' mental game, I get excited about working with them.  Reality is, shit happens! Throwing a tantrum isn’t going to change anything. So, if you understand how you think, you will better be able to manage how you feel, behave and act. Reality is not the problem. No matter how true it feels, this is an incorrect assumption. There is nothing good or bad but thinking makes it so.  You are the one that has to adapt. What you can change is what you are thinking of the situation, your perception. You have power over how you evaluate reality and how you respond. 

Over the past week we have seen a range of personalities on our TV sets at the 2022 Australian Open. From the incredibly calm and composed Ash Barty, to the unexpected drama of a Nick Kyrigos game. This week on the podcast I chat to Dave McNeil fresh off his 2nd place in the men’s 10,000m at the 2022 Zatopek Classic. We chat about how personality influences communication, decisions, behaviour and sporting success. If you are interested in further education or listening in regards to personality I’d encourage the Sports Psych Show with Dan Abrahams and Dan McAdams https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/the-sport-psych-show/id1434313037?i=1000522861661 Or if you are interested in some free personality testing (including; the Big 5, Ennegram, Myers-briggs) https://www.truity.com/ is a great website to make you more aware of some of your key character traits.

Ep. 6- What are your running bias's? with David McNeil (Part 2) Today, three time Olympian and Physiotherapist David McNeill and I, continue our chat about some of the common ‘unconscious biases’ that are ever present in all our lives everyday (whether you are aware of them or not). Unconscious biases are cognitive shortcuts that we use in an attempt to better understand the unknown aspects of the world around us. Unconscious biases are often fear or reward driven and allow us to feel comfortable and in control with our lives. Historically, from an evolutionary standpoint, they enabled survival in a less comfortable and certain world, as they allowed us to make decisions quickly. The advantage of this fast, reflexive, intuitive thought, is it enables us to take immediate action. However, it is prone to over-confidence and jumping to inaccurate conclusions. Fortunately, today we are seldom in such imminent life threatening situations. Too much emotional attachment to our running habits, goals, beliefs and identity, can blind us into making errors of judgment. When it comes to optimising running decisions, the presence of ‘reflexive thinking’ makes our brains ill-equipped to handle certain decisions. Slower, reflective and deliberate thought however, allocates attention to the effortful mental activities that demand it, it is much slower, more logical and less prone to error. This episode is the second of two episodes where Dave and I discuss just some of the many common unconscious bias out there. The unconscious bias’ we discuss on this episode are: -Dunning Kruger Effect. -Defamation Professionale. -Bandwagon or Groupthink Bias. -Sunk Cost Fallacy. -Addition Bias. -Status Quo Bias. -Outcome Bias. By being more aware of when our unconscious bias’ are limiting, we can change the way we think and more often than not make better life/running decisions. I hope this chat gets you to self-reflect, as that’s the aim. Enjoy!

'Why do we run?' Today, in the first episode of 2022, Caden Shields (Kiwi Physio and 2:15 marathoner) and I jump back on the show and chat about ‘why we run’  This is such an important question to ask yourself as a runner. The importance of running and the meaning you get from it changes over the years.  We recommend everyone else to do the same, get honest and reflect on ‘why you run?’ Is it the friendships formed? A sense of belonging? The mental and/or physical health benefits? Improved self esteem and confidence in ones self? Is it the chase to better oneself? To get fitter? To run faster? The toil of chasing a goal? The life lessons learned? Does it make you a better person? Knowing your ‘running why’ will mean you are more likely to make decisions about your running that are more aligned to your values.

Ep. 4 Are your aware of your unconscious running bias'? with David McNeill Today, three time Olympian and Physiotherapist David McNeill and I, chat about some of the common ‘unconscious biases’ that are ever present in all our lives everyday (whether you are aware of them or not). Unconscious biases are cognitive shortcuts that we use in an attempt to better understand the unknown aspects of the world around us. Unconscious biases are often fear or reward driven and allow us to feel comfortable and in control with our lives. Historically, from an evolutionary standpoint, they enabled survival in a less comfortable and certain world, as they allowed us to make decisions quickly. The advantage of this fast, reflexive, intuitive thought, is it enables us to take immediate action. However, it is prone to over-confidence and jumping to inaccurate conclusions. Fortunately, today we are seldom in such imminent life threatening situations. Too much emotional attachment to our running habits, goals, beliefs and identity, can blind us into making errors of judgment. When it comes to optimising running decisions, the presence of ‘reflexive thinking’ makes our brains ill-equipped to handle certain decisions. Slower, reflective and deliberate thought however, allocates attention to the effortful mental activities that demand it, it is much slower, more logical and less prone to error. This episode is the first of two episodes where Dave and I discuss just some of the many common unconscious bias out there. The unconscious bias’ we discuss on this episode are: -Confirmation bias, - Association bias, -Framing bias, -Authorative bias -and Anchoring bias. By being more aware of when our unconscious bias’ are limiting, we can change the way we think and more often than not make better life/running decisions. I hope this chat gets you to self-reflect, as that’s the aim. Enjoy!

What is ‘Running IQ’? ‘Running IQ’ is a new term that I have coined to reflect the rationality and accuracy of one’s decision making ability in relation to the sport of running. Not enough has, ‘been said or done’ about the all too common; naïve, emotionally thwarted or flawed ‘Decision-making process’ amongst runners. A runner with a high running IQ is dialled in to their own, individual running needs. They more often than not make; true, factual, real and helpful training and racing decisions given their circumstances. High running IQ is a learned skill, it comes easier to some than others but it is certainly something that you can improve over time. The Recipe to Developing your Running IQ: -Acknowledge current knowledge base, values, perspectives and beliefs. -Undergo a process of honest self-Introspection/reflection -Develop a curiosity for accurate answers. -Allow time for considered decision making. -Embrace being wrong and uncomfortable. -Invert the problem to identify what you really need to know -Undertake varied and expansive experiences and experiments. -Introduce Objectivity into your decision making. - Surround yourself with people who will challenge your opinions and are also seeking accuracy. -Be a great listener. -Be patient, persistent and passionate about the process. -Form and refine accurate Mental Models relevant and specific to you and your circumstances. -Have an adequate margin of safety, no one can predict the future with complete certainty.