Run to the Top Podcast | The Ultimate Guide to Running

Why is running harder when it's hot outside? How long does it take to adapt to the heat? Coach Claire explains and also shares six strategies for running in hot weather. Listen now!

In this week's Team RC Update episode, Coach Michael shares some of the awesome race results that are super inspiring at this time and provides more details about our daily live strength training video sessions. Listen now!

In this week's podcast, Coach Ruairi interviews Coach Dylan about his background, career, coaching style, first experience of running a marathon, goals, racing preferences, and many more. Tune in now to get great insights!

Nicholas Thompson: Faster in Your Forties   Nick is the editor-in-chief of WIRED magazine and former editor of newyorker.com. He’s a contributor to CBS News, CBS This Morning, CBS Sunday Morning, and he’s interviewed just about every major tech company CEO out there. Nick is also a fast marathon runner who in 2019, was ranked as one of the top 30 Masters marathoners in the world after clocking a 2:29 in the Chicago Marathon, a personal best he achieved in his 40s.    In this episode, Coach Claire talks to Nick about how he broke through his marathon pace plateau and psychological barriers by changing his technology, his workouts, as well as getting some surprise coaching assistance from Nike. But more than just going deep into the tools, techniques, and training tweaks he made, Nick talks about how his journey with the marathon started and how it’s inextricably entwined with his childhood, his relationship with his complicated father, and how he now sees himself.    It’s not easy to run faster later in life, but Nick’s story shows that it is absolutely possible. It takes a combination of many things including better training, better technology, as well as “belief and want”, to dramatically change your results, even if you're in your 40s or beyond.    Questions Nick is asked:   2:22 You’re in New York City. Are you still run-commuting to work or are you mostly at home these days?   2:56 Can you explain how your father both inspired you and how you also didn’t want to follow in his footsteps?   5:27 In your 40s, the experts at Nike came up to you and asked if they could help you get better. Can you talk a little bit about that experience?   9:12 With all the changes, there’s so many variables, you can’t really attribute any one thing to your success, but do you think it’s just a combination of all the things you mentioned or is there something that stands out as, “Yes, this helped me get faster?”   14:19 Maybe in your 30s, you just didn’t believe it or you didn’t want it as much as you want it now. Could it be something like that?   16:25 What changed between not knowing your pace / effort when you were younger and now monitoring your heart-rate? 18:30 I wrote down a quote from one of your articles that you wrote. “The quantified self is often a neurotic soul.” And that could pretty much describe most runners. So how do you balance that? All the tech is awesome, but doesn’t it make you a little crazy?   20:28 How do you deal with the what ifs?    25:20 What is your feeling on this? What is the allure of the marathon distance?   26:43 You’re not in New York right now but you used to commute, and I would love to talk about run-commuting. Can you give me some tips about run commuting and how to do it for someone who’s thinking about it?   30:44 Assuming races are going on, are you planning on doing Chicago, or something else?   32:11 What advice would you give yourself back when you started running? 34:25 What is the best gift running has given you? 35:24 How can people connect with you? Quotes by Nick:   “I think that running very fast both improves musculature and helps me psychologically.”   “Having a consistent heart rate monitor, and I used one on my arm, giving me constant feedback of not just feel but how fast I was going, was incredibly helpful, both in helping me sort of adjudicate workouts, and two, pacing in the marathons.”   “There had to be kind of a psychological intervention, which I think happened with the new training, the new coaching, the new workouts, that got me subconsciously to accept that my ambition wasn’t just to run as fast as I’d run before I got sick, but that I could go faster.”   “I feel like the heart rate monitor gives you assurance; the watch gives you fear.”   “One of the issues I have as a runner, and I’m sure you have and others have, is that it’s a hobby. I don’t make any money off this.”   “The perfect Nicholas Thompson, perfectly trained, what is his actual top marathon performance? Could I have made the Olympic trials? Probably.”   “I think what has made success late in life possible is failure early in life.”   “One of the things I think I’ve done a good job at is making my training efficient. And the way I’ve made my training efficient is I run to work; I run home from work.” Take a Listen on Your Next Run   Leave a space for libsyn link   Want more awesome interviews and advice? Subscribe to our iTunes channel Mentioned in this podcast:    Run To The Top Winners Circle Facebook Community RunnersConnect Facebook page claire@runnersconnect.net WIRED magazine article: Aging Marathoner Tries to Run Fast After 40 WIRED subscribe Nick Thompson Follow Nick on:   Facebook Instagram LinkedIn Periscope Spotify Strava Twitter We really hope you’ve enjoyed this episode of Run to the Top. The best way you can show your support of the show is to share this podcast with your family and friends and share it on your Facebook, Twitter, or any other social media channel you use. The more people who know about the podcast and download the episodes, the more I can reach out to and get top running influencers, to bring them on and share their advice, which hopefully makes the show even more enjoyable for you!  

Do female runners need fasted runs? Is it safe and effective for women? Coach Hayley explains in this week's ExtraKick podcast episode. Tune in now!

Is stretching before a run good or bad? Why should runners care about increasing flexibility? How to improve your flexibility? Coach Claire clarifies and also discusses various techniques that you can use to improve flexibility. Listen now!

With all the cancellations and delays of future race events, what areas you should focus on now to reach your running and fitness goals? When could racing start up again? Find out in today's podcast from Coach Micheal.

In this week's Up-Tempo talks episode, Coaches Dylan and Ruairi talk about recovery. How long should you rest between your intervals? What type of recovery it should be? How to manipulate the recovery periods to get the most out of your training and achieve the right goal?

Mario Fraioli: Re-Examine Your Relationship With Running   Mario Fraioli is a running coach, writer, and podcaster who has helped athletes accomplish goals including first finish lines, personal bests, Boston Marathon qualifying times, national championship titles, Olympic Trials appearances, international podiums, world championship teams, national records, and the Olympic Games. He is a former senior editor of Competitor magazine, and currently writes the morning shakeout weekly email newsletter and hosts the morning shakeout podcast, both great sources of information and inspiration for runners.   This is a very difficult time mentally for all of us who have had races canceled and are not sure when things will actually get back to normal. Mario has some great thoughts about adopting a flexible mindset during this time to reap some different benefits from running than you would while training for a big event. Mario shares with us some of the advice he gives to his athletes on how to approach training right now, including his thoughts around the fall marathons, events which may or may not actually happen.   We also find out why the sport of track and field frustrates Mario so much, how he feels about social media for athletes, if he’s participating in virtual races, and how running with his puppy, Tahoe, is going.    Questions Mario is asked:   2:16  With so much uncertainty about races this year, what gets you out the door and what advice do you have for others to keep up their fitness? 4:07 What kinds of changes are you making to your athletes' schedules? 7:42 How do you think various types of stress affects training? 9:23 What can you tell us about your current running streak? 11:39 What advice or guidance do you have for people considering doing a running streak? 12:30 How hard is it to go to open-ended training from a very structured type of training regimen? 14:34 How do you compare the experience of personal running success to coaching your athletes to success? 15:55 Why do you think that in a sport millions of people participate in, that track and field is not more popular in the US? 25:02 We've just learned that Berlin is out for the fall, so now there are 4 major marathons planned in 8 weeks.  Any predictions?  Training advice for September Boston? 29:51 What are your thoughts on virtual races? 31:01 Do you have any tips for running with dogs? 32:15 What advice would you give yourself back when you started running? 33:29 What is the best gift running has given you? 34:34 How can people connect with you? Quotes by Mario:   “The way that I’m thinking about training right now for everyone that I work with is that it needs to be sustainable and there is no point to trying to get really, really fit right now because you can’t hold that for very long.”   “Running gives me a sense of normalcy, a sense of routine, and it serves as the foundation for the rest of my day.”   “I know because I’ve been doing this for long enough that when I run first thing in the morning, even if I feel crappy, I never regret it and the rest of my day is better as a result.”   “I don't, just in my life in general, don’t plan too, too far ahead. I think that’s a dangerous way to do things, so I like having just a little bit of structure, but I’m not super tied to it and if I need to pivot, I can do that pretty easily.”   “I get much more out of helping someone else get closer to their goal and being a part of their journey and seeing them do something that they didn’t think was possible, or helping pick them up when they’ve been down, than I do myself.”   “In general, athletes need to race more so that there’s a narrative to follow there if you’re a fan.” Take a Listen on Your Next Run   Want more awesome interviews and advice? Subscribe to our iTunes channel Mentioned in this podcast:    Run To The Top Winners Circle Facebook Community RunnersConnect Facebook page Mario Fraioli The Morning Shakeout Follow Mario on:   Instagram Twitter We really hope you’ve enjoyed this episode of Run to the Top. The best way you can show your support of the show is to share this podcast with your family and friends and share it on your Facebook, Twitter, or any other social media channel you use. The more people who know about the podcast and download the episodes, the more I can reach out to and get top running influencers, to bring them on and share their advice, which hopefully makes the show even more enjoyable for you!

How to feel your pace for different types of workouts? What is the best way to ensure you're getting the right physiological benefits from your workout? Coach Hayley explains in this episode.