Visualization is a mental technique that is a staple for elite runners and superstars like Michael Jordan, Deena Kastor, and Mohammad Ali.  In this episode, Coach Claire walks you through her exact visualization strategy, step-by-step.  This way, if you’ve never done it before, you have the perfect guide; and if you already employ visualization techniques, maybe you can pickup a tidbit or two you can implement.  Visualization turned my running career around and also allowed me to relax and enjoy the days leading up to big races - we hope it can do the same for you! Guided Race Visualization for Runners Most runners quickly learn that running is just as much mental as it is physical. You can train your body, but if you neglect to train your mind, you will never reach your full potential. There are many mental techniques to train your mind for better running and racing. Some are best practiced outside of the run and some you’ll want to use during the run, right when things start to feel tough. I recommend that you practice them just as faithfully as you practice your running for best results. Today, I’d like to go over a mental technique that is a staple for elite and recreational runners called visualization. Alison Felix, Michael Jordan, Deena Kastor, and Mohammad Ali have all relied on visualization before big performances and you can use it too. In my own running, I used visualization before every race. It was one of the many tools that I relied on to run my 2:58 marathon at age 42 and I recommend it to all the athletes I coach. The way visualization works is to imagine every detail of the race so that your brain feels like you’ve already experienced it. And even though visualization implies that you are only thinking of the visual, you want to imagine all the senses you will experience on race day for the most complete effects. Now, I could just explain all the things you should do and include in your visualization, but I’d like to take this a step further. I want to make this bonus Run to the Top episode even more valuable to you, so I’ve created this guided race visualization just for runners. Before we begin this guided race visualization, I want to remind you one more time, this is not meant to be done while you are running.   You can certainly practice visualizing all the race details that you want while you are running easy, but this guided visualization is meant to be done while you are relaxing. Let’s begin. Lie down in a quiet place. Uncross your legs and your arms and rest comfortably. Close your eyes. Take a deep breath in, counting to 5. Hold for 5 seconds then exhale for 5 seconds.  Deep breath in, hold, exhale. We will repeat these deep breaths for a few more minutes until you are totally relaxed. (2.5 minutes) As you breathe, imagine all your muscles getting very heavy as if your body were being slowly filled with warm water. Continue to breathe deeply. Starting at the top of your head, mentally scan your body for any tension. When you find an area that feels tight or tense, take a moment to contract the muscle for a few seconds and then completely release. Continue to breathe deeply, while your entire body becomes heavier and more relaxed. Now that you are completely relaxed, it’s time to visualize your race day.   Breathe normally for a few breaths. Imagine waking up race morning. Where are you? What time does it say on the clock? Imagine taking a nice stretch of your arms with a smile on your face. Today is the day you have been training for and you are excited and ready to go. Imagine getting up, going to the bathroom, and brushing your teeth.  You are getting ready for the day in the running gear that you have carefully laid out the night before. Imagine everything you will wear, from your shoes to your shirt to the race bib pinned on your chest. What will you do next? Picture what you will have for breakfast, what it tastes like, what it smells like. This is something you’ve had many times before and you are confident that it will fuel you and help you feel your best. After your meal, what happens next? You’ll want to use the bathroom again and then head out the door. Picture traveling to the race start, making sure you have plenty of time to arrive early and stay relaxed. How will you get there?  What do you see? How do you feel? If you are nervous, remind yourself that it’s normal. Your nerves are a sign that this is something that is important to you. You want to do well at this race and you are prepared to do your best. You will control what you can, and you’ll let everything else go. Once you arrive at the race, visualize what it will look like.  There may be crowds of people. There may be long lines for the restrooms. Will it be dark? What will the temperature be like?  How will you feel? Will you eat or drink anything? What will it taste like? Imagine yourself going through your warm up. You are jogging slowly and the motion helps soothe your nerves, while getting your blood flowing. Your warm up routine is so familiar to you from all the practice that you’ve done and you are feeling very good and relaxed. Now it’s time to head to the starting line. Picture the crowd of runners, all of them as excited and nervous as you are. Feel the energy and see their smiles. Imagine that you can store up all that energy inside you so that you can use it later on in the race. Hear the starting gun go off and feel your legs begin to run.  Imagine yourself consciously controlling your pace so that you don’t go out too fast. This is your race, you are prepared, confident and strong. As you continue to run, look at your surroundings. Notice the trees, people, spectators, buildings, every detail of the scenery. Feel the breath in your lungs, the sweat starting to shine on your skin.  Feel your feet gliding over the ground, your legs and arms in perfect alignment. As the race continues, think about the challenges you might encounter and how you will overcome them while still remaining calm.  Imagine your shoe coming untied, the laces slapping at your ankle every step.  How will you overcome that? Imagine your fueling and hydration plan going well. Taste the gel on your tongue and feel the cool water refreshing you. Imagine the fatigue that will start to creep into your legs. How does that feel? Remember that you have felt fatigue in your training and you are prepared for this.   Negative thoughts will enter your mind when your effort starts to rise. Listen to that voice. What is it saying to you? How will you respond?  Imagine yourself accepting that the negative talk will come, but you don’t have to be affected by it. You have practiced overcoming tough challenges and you will be even more prepared this time. What kind of mantras will you say to yourself when these challenges come? Simple, positive phrases that are meaningful to you can push back even the strongest negative voice, so think about those now. As the race unfolds, imagine your confidence growing as the effort gets harder. Yes, this is the toughest part of the race, but this is why you are here. You have trained for this both physically and mentally and it’s time to make yourself proud. As you get closer to the finish line, imagine yourself smiling through the intense effort. Your breathing and your legs feel heavy, but you have plenty of power inside you to get to the finish line strong.  Imagine that there is a very powerful magnet hidden in your race bib and one on the finish line clock. The harder you run, the more you are being pulled by an unseen force, propelling you forward.   See the time on the clock that you want to see. Hear the crowd roaring and the race announcer calling your name as you cross the line, strong, sweaty, and happy. You did everything you could today, no matter what the challenges, and you are grateful that your body gave you this experience. And now, let’s slowly and gently come out of your visualization and return to full consciousness.   Deepen your breath with a long inhale, then slowly exhale. With each breath, slowly become more aware of your surroundings. Gently wiggle your fingers. And then your toes. Continue to breathe deeply for two more breaths. And now, open your eyes. You should feel relaxed, calm, and better prepared for an amazing race day, no matter what happens. This week’s show brought to you by…  AG 1 Ask yourself - do you get enough green veggies each day? I'll admit, I don't. It's tough to fit all of those greens in with an active and busy lifestyle. But getting in your fruits + veggies is SO crucial as a distance runner for recovery, digestion, and optimal performance. That's where Athletic Greens is a gamechanger. One scoop has 75 bioavailable vitamins, minerals, and whole food-sourced ingredients including a multivitamin, multimineral, probiotic, green superfood blend, and more. That means fewer stomach issues, more focus and energy throughout the day (because the workday matters just as much as the morning run), and overall ... just feeling healthier. Look, if you're struggling to get those fruits + veggies in - or if you keep buying them but they always go bad in the fridge - Athletic Greens will make getting those micronutrients simple and delicious. Get 5 BONUS travel packs and a year's supply of Vitamin D when you order at athleticgreens.com/rttt. Get yours now! CONNECT, COMMENT, & COMMUNITY: Leave a review on Apple Podcasts! A great FREE way to support the show! Follow RunnersConnect on Instagram Join the Elite Treatment where you get first dibs on everything RTTT each month! Runners Connect Winner's Circle Facebook Community  RunnersConnect Facebook page

Run to the Top Podcast | The Ultimate Guide to Running

The Secret Pre-Race Technique Used by Olympic Runners: A Step-by-Step Visualization Guide for Your Next Race

Do you ever look at other runners, in person or on social media, and think “they are so much faster than me” or “they are real runners, not me”?  Well, you’re not alone and unfortunately this mindset can prevent you from enjoying everything running can be. Well, Erin Azar is on the podcast today to… Help you overcome these negative thoughts and develop a stronger mindset Document her journey as a new runner and what helped her get feel like a “real runner” How to get over comparing yourself to other runners on social media and their seemingly  perfect running accounts. Win a FREE Copy of the Easy Running Plans book written by Coach Jeff! What I love about Erin is that she is everything that a real runner really is.  So many people who are starting off say, oh I’m not a real runner because I’m not fast or skinny or experienced.  Erin is changing all of that and to be honest, she’s the only running account that I want to follow right now. I know you are going to love her as much as I do no matter what kind of runner you are. CONNECT, COMMENT, & COMMUNITY: Leave a review on Apple Podcasts!  A great FREE way to support the show! Follow RunnersConnect on Instagram Runners Connect Winner's Circle Facebook Community  RunnersConnect Facebook page Follow Erin on Instagram Follow Erin on TikTok This week’s show brought to you by… LMNT When coaching endurance runners of all levels to be their best, I always emphasize the need for proper hydration with the right balance of electrolytes.  Most athletes I’ve coached are surprised to learn that their sodium needs are actually much higher than they expected and it’s been hurting their performance.  Part of the reason athletes need much more sodium than they think is not just because they lose electrolytes through their sweat, but also because athletes tend to eat very healthy diets.  They’ve been told that salt is a bad thing in food and frequently don’t get enough for their lifestyle.  Much of the science of sodium is based on people who eat highly processed diets which also are very low in potassium.  It could actually be the low potassium levels causing the issues that sodium has been blamed for!  What is clear is that both sodium and potassium at the proper levels are essential for high performance (and for life in general!).  That's why we partnered with LMNT to offer a free sample pack of their electrolyte mix. Head to drinklmnt.com/runnersconnect to get yours now. The Sample Pack includes 8 packets of LMNT (2 citrus, 2 raspberry, 2 orange, and 2 raw unflavored).

Do You Ever Feel Like You’re Not a “Real Runner”? Erin Azar Shows You How to Overcome That Mindset

Is race day coming up?  Whether this is your first big race or you're a seasoned vet, this episode will help you be sure that you don’t miss a critical step of your race day prep! In this episode, you’ll learn: Top tips and advice for preparing for race days How to optimize your nutrition as a runner Planning your race gear & logistics: travel, lodging, strategy, and clothing The mental race: expert pacing tips & managing expectations and anxiety What to do (mentally and physically) before and after you cross the finish line Plus, get our free race day guide checklist here so you can have the peace of mind you have everything you need! If this is your first big race you don’t really know what to expect.   Hopefully, your taper has been going well and you are starting to dream about all the possibilities of how the race will go. But your actual race day is uncharted territory. So today, we’re going to go over all the things that you need to pay attention to and plan for on race day. Because when you prepare for as many details as possible, you are setting yourself for the best race you can run. Now, if this is not your first marathon, this is a perfect refresher course to make sure that you don’t forget anything. Your goal is to take away as many decisions as possible on the day itself, so you are ready to run with a calm mind, knowing that you’ve done everything right.   You want to control the things that are within your control and let everything else go. To help me out with this race day prep episode, I invited Coach Elisabeth Scott to the show. Elisabeth is a marathoner, coach and podcast host at runningexplained.co.  What I love about Elisabeth is that she takes complicated running topics and breaks them down into really easy explanations. Elisabeth found running like many of us do, by just wanting to get in shape and change her outlook on life.  And she made a lot of mistakes along the way.  I’ll let her explain more about that, but I think that’s what makes her so relatable and interesting. We go into all the details about what you should eat and wear and how to plan every little thing you can to ensure that your big day is as stress free as possible. Also at the end of the show, I’ll share a little story about a race day that I didn’t plan so well and how that went.  Here’s a hint–it didn’t go great. Learn more about Running Explained Listen to The Running Explained Podcast Follow Running Explained on Instagram Connect with Running Explained on Facebook  CONNECT, COMMENT, & COMMUNITY: Leave a review on Apple Podcasts!  A great FREE way to support the show! Follow RunnersConnect on Instagram Join the Elite Treatment where you get first dibs on everything RTTT each month! Runners Connect Winner's Circle Facebook Community  RunnersConnect Facebook page GET EXPERT COACHING AT RUNNERSCONNECT!

All the Final Details You Need For A Stress-Free Race Day with Elisabeth Scott

The three weeks before your marathon are critical to your success on race day.  If you do too much, you’ll leave your speed in training.  But if you do too little, you can start losing fitness. In this episode you’ll learn… How to taper your mileage and training with the exact workouts you need How to change your eating patterns to recover and fuel right How to create a healthy mindset and calm your anxiety about the big day Grab your free download of our exclusive Marathon Taper Nutrition Plan! Full transcript and show notes here. CONNECT, COMMENT, & COMMUNITY: Leave a review on Apple Podcasts!  A great FREE way to support the show! Email Coach Claire Follow Claire on Instagram Follow RunnersConnect on Instagram Join the Elite Treatment where you get first dibs on everything RTTT each month! Runners Connect Winner's Circle Facebook Community  RunnersConnect Facebook page GET EXPERT COACHING AT RUNNERSCONNECT! This week’s show brought to you by: Timeline Nutrition Improving your mitochondria is one of the best things you can do for your health, with Mitopure from Timeline Nutrition, it has never been easier.  Mitopure restores mitochondrial function, so every cell in your body has the energy to do its job and keep you healthy and functioning right. Mitopure comes in powder form to mix into your favorite smoothie, Protein Powder if you are looking for a great 1,2 punch of muscle support, or softgels. Go to timelinenutrition.com and use my promo code CONNECT for 10% off the plan of your choice.  Athletic Greens Athletic Greens has released a big update to the name of their flagship product. The Athletic Greens we love is now called AG1. If you’re someone who struggles to get in all the fruit and veggies you need, or who wants to get more consistent but always falls off, or you end up finding tons of fruits and veggies gone bad in the fridge, AG1 will make it simple and delicious.   If you want to try them out and get a special bonus of 5 travel packs and a year’s supply of vitamin D, head to athleticgreens.com/rttt.  I know you’ll love how easy it will be to finally be consistent with your fruit and veggie intake. Give it a try at athleticgreens.com/rttt

Don't Risk Your Race - How to Plan The Perfect Taper for Your Best Marathon

There is a deep divide among runners about which is the best running shoe and the big super shoes seem to be winning.  Is this because they are better, or is it just clever marketing with a big budget?  Steven Sashen thinks it’s the latter. In this episode you’ll learn: why the barefoot/minimalist movement isn’t dead how a “natural” shoe can improve foot strength what the big brands don’t want you to know The beauty of running is that you really don’t need much more than a pair of shoes to get started. But does the kind of shoe really matter? Absolutely. Hundreds of millions of dollars has been spent on the development of running shoes that promise to propel you farther and faster than you’ve gone before, while also delivering a smooth ride and making your feet look good. Steven Sashen is the co-founder, along with his wife Lena Phoenix, of the minimalist footwear company Xero Shoes and he is also a master’s level sprinter.  He claims not only that true minimalist shoes are better for your feet, but they are better for your running.   He takes issue that you need super shoes to run your best and in fact you might be causing more harm than good if your goal is to run for life. And a fun fact, when Xero Shoes was just getting started, Steven and Lena appeared on the hit show Shark Tank, where they turned down a $400,000 offer from Kevin O'Leary.  I ask Steven about that experience, the pros and cons of each type of footwear, and where we go from here.  It’s a lively and controversial conversation that just might have you rethinking what you put on your feet.   CONNECT, COMMENT, & COMMUNITY: Leave a review on Apple Podcasts!  A great FREE way to support the show! Email Coach Claire Follow Claire on Instagram Follow RunnersConnect on Instagram Join the Elite Treatment where you get first dibs on everything RTTT each month! Runners Connect Winner's Circle Facebook Community  RunnersConnect Facebook page GET EXPERT COACHING AT RUNNERSCONNECT! This episode is sponsored by LMNT When coaching endurance runners of all levels to be their best, I always emphasize the need for proper hydration with the right balance of electrolytes.  Most athletes I've coached are surprised to learn that their sodium needs are actually much higher than they expected and it's been hurting their performance.    Part of the reason athletes need much more sodium than they think is not just because they lose electrolytes through their sweat, but also because athletes tend to eat very healthy diets.  They've been told that salt is a bad thing in food and frequently don't get enough for their lifestyle.    Much of the science of sodium is based on people who eat highly processed diets which also are very low in potassium.  It could actually be the low potassium levels causing the issues that sodium has been blamed for!  What is clear is that both sodium and potassium at the proper levels are essential for high performance (and for life in general!).  When I race, I don't crave sweet, I crave salt and LMNT is the perfect way to hydrate and replenish the electrolytes I need to perform and feel my best.  Head over to DrinkLMNT.com/RUNNERSCONNECT for your salty samples. 

The Secret The Big Brands Don't Want You to Know: The Case for Minimalist Running Shoes with Steven Sashen

How do you KNOW that you are ready to race a marathon?  And not just run it, but race it in your dream goal finishing time? In this episode you’ll learn… The SEVEN key signs that will tell you if you are ready The most important factors of successful marathon training How to know for sure that you’ve done enough If you are training for a marathon, now is the time that you are really starting to feel it.  The miles have been piling up, the long runs are getting longer, and race day is getting closer and closer. You’ve been keeping your head down and getting the work done and trying not to worry too much about the 26.2 miles or 42 kilometers that you will be racing soon. But no matter how confident you are in yourself and in your training, there’s a little voice inside your head that is always asking, am I ready?  Have I done enough? Okay, for some of us, that voice isn’t so little!  So how can you tell if you're ready for  the marathon in a few weeks?  And how do you know if the finishing goal that you’ve been dreaming about is realistic or not? I mean, we all dream of running faster or farther than we ever have before.  But we can’t truly know that we’re capable until we do it.  Or can we? In today’s bonus episode Run to the Top, I’m going to reveal the 7 signs that say you're finally ready to crush your marathon goal.  This is exactly what you’ll need to know if you are a first-time marathoner, or if you’re running your hundredth.  But, I’m also talking to those of you out there who keep trying and trying and just missing that elusive dream goal time.  Have you finally done enough this time? Most first-time marathoners are just happy to be able to finish a marathon, but once you have that first one behind you, almost everyone wants to know if it can be done faster. The quick answer to the question is no one knows!  You can be the most highly trained elite marathoner in the world and if you get a terrible day, you might not make it to the finish line.  That's just the harsh reality and sometimes heartbreak of the marathon.  You train for months on end and it ends up being a crap shoot on just one single day. But let's assume that weather is not a major factor (and that’s a BIG IF).  How do you know that you've done enough to prepare yourself for what you think you can accomplish?   For anything but your very first marathon where you are simply trying to finish, goal marathon pace should feel a step harder than easy. The more experienced you are at the marathon, the more you can push the effort level.  If you've had a good build-up, the goal pace should be something that felt pretty hard the first few weeks, more manageable in the middle, and good (but still a little scary) toward the end of your cycle. But there’s more to it than that. There are actually seven major signs that you are ready to race the marathon. Consistency Matters More Than Perfection The first thing to do is look back at your training log.  How consistent were you with your mileage and fitting in your runs?  Consistency is hands down, without a question, the single most important aspect of good training.  Running stable mileage without big gaps in training or big swings in mileage is key to being well prepared.  Your runs don't all have to be Instagram-worthy, but just showing up day after day is what matters most. If you were grading your runs like you were in school, I’d like to see the vast majority of them in the B range.  If you are always turning in A+ performances, your training is either far too easy for your fitness, or--and this one happens far more often--you are working way too hard and are risking injury or leaving your best work in training. When training for a marathon, good enough really is good enough. Solid Long Runs The second thing I look at as a coach is your long runs.  Did you get all or most of them in?  Did the majority of them go well or were you strapped to the struggle bus the whole time?   Simply running long at a slow pace does tremendous things for your aerobic system, but adding the extra challenge of some speed to a long run can really test your legs for the big day.  Fast finish long runs are great at signaling how you might hold up in the marathon, especially if you paired the run with a moderately paced steady run the day before and still survived.  Teaching yourself to keep running hard when tired is exactly the skill you will need on race day so if you have a time goal in mind, you definitely should have been practicing this. If you’ve had a few terrible long runs, guess what?  So have most of us.  One or two bad runs are a small part of the bigger picture, so they are unlikely to change your fitness.  And the best thing about a bad run is that it’s still a run and it’s still making you a better runner. Prioritizing Recovery The next thing I want to know is how well you are recovering from those hard days and those long, hard runs.  Are you able to run easy the next day with minimal to no soreness in the last few weeks before the race?  Or do you have to take extra recovery time to get to feeling yourself again?   At the beginning of your training cycle, it's very normal to have leg soreness after hard workouts, but the goal is to build strong legs that can handle what the marathon has to throw at you.  A well-designed training plan will build tough, durable legs that can go the distance without being completely trashed the next day. That’s because soreness is not always a good indicator of a good workout.  Soreness happens when you go beyond what you are used to, but lack of soreness doesn’t mean that you are not building and growing.  Often, lack of soreness shows healthy adaptation, which means you are absorbing the training well. If you’ve been consistent, gotten most of your long runs done well, and have made sure that you are recovering right, you are almost halfway there to nailing that goal marathon time.  There are four more ways to tell if you are ready. Goal Pace Starts to Feel Pretty Good Number four might be a little obvious, and it's how does goal pace feel?  At the beginning of the cycle, a few miles at race pace typically feels on the harder side, but as you get closer to the race, goal pace should start feeling pretty good.  It's certainly still significantly harder than easy pace, but it should not be a struggle to maintain it for several miles.  After all, you are going to be running at that pace for hours!  If you are sucking wind after 30 minutes and it's three weeks before your race, it's highly likely your goal is far too aggressive. Now there is one caveat to this. If you are training in harder conditions than you predict your race to be, race pace is going to feel much harder at home.  For example, I’m coaching an athlete named Katy who lives and trains in hot, sweaty Florida.  But her race is in cool and dry North Dakota.  So when she is running marathon pace, her effort level is much higher than we hope it will be on race day.  Well, at least at the beginning. That also means that the opposite is true.  If you are cruising along down your cool and perfect home roads and your marathon is predicted to be any of the 4Hs hot, hilly, humid, or at a higher elevation, what is easy for you at home is not going to feel easy on race day, so adjust your expectations accordingly. Fueling and Hydration The next factor in the equation is fueling and hydration.  Have you found what works for you and practiced it until it's second nature?  Nearly all of your long runs and many of your later-stage fast workouts should be done fully fueled, practicing your race day nutrition, including what you will eat the night before the race.  Nutrition is what makes marathons more than twice as hard as halves.  If you skimp on this section and don't have a well-practiced plan for the race, you could be in big trouble. Healthy at the Starting Line As a coach, I also want to determine how healthy you are.  Are there any lingering injuries that you've been pushing through that haven't properly healed?  Have you been truly honest with me and with yourself about how severe an injury is?  Athletes are strong, stubborn people and we don't want anything, especially a little injury, to get in the way of running.  But if you neglected to take care of a tweak, a niggle, or an ouch with proper recovery, then pushing harder than you've ever gone before on race day is a huge risk that might not be worth the potential reward. I know that you’ve been working so hard and for so long for this one day to arrive.  But if you are injured before you start, you are risking couching your running for a very long time. Mental Strength The last factor is arguably the most important of all.  How well have you trained your brain?   If you want to reach your potential in the marathon, or really at anything hard, you've got to dig down into a part of yourself that is a little dark and a little uncomfortable.  Running hard for hours on end is hard.  And if you don't want it bad enough, all the safety features that your brain has at its disposal to keep you from dying will come out in full force.   This is why you run hard in workouts.  It’s  not only to build your physical strength, but also to see if you've got what it takes to push past the point where reasonable people slow down or stop. Now to do that on race day takes discipline that is 100% mental and which can be trained..  Your brain has to override the feelings of excitement and adrenaline at the beginning of the race to keep your pace under control.  You've got to learn to stay calm when you see a split that you don't like on your watch and remember that the first 20 miles is just a warm up for the real 10K race.   You've got to let go of fears of failure and follow your plan.  You've got to prepare yourself ahead of time that the last 5-10k of the race will be very, very, very hard if you are doing it right. But you will keep running anyway. So if all seven signs are resonating with you, then congratulations, you probably have a realistic goal in mind and are ready to race. If none or only a few of the points I've mentioned are true, then it's time to take a step back and rethink your goals.  After all, would you rather cross the finish line with a smile on your face knowing you ran the best race you could or skeleton walk the last 10 miles in pure agony because you overshot your goal? Making a realistic plan for your race is essential to finishing the marathon with a performance you can be proud of. Of course, even if you are perfectly prepared, in the best shape of your life, anything can happen on race day that will be completely out of your control.  You will have to roll with the unexpected with a calm mind and adjust as you go. And remember, there’s really no such thing as a good race or a bad race because they both make you a better racer.  Most people actually say they learn more from a bad race, but of course no one wants them to happen! But if you’ve been consistent, with solid long runs, good recovery, goal pace feels good, fueling and hydration is dialed, you’re healthy and mentally strong, you are as prepared as you can be. Now as long as you don’t overdo during your taper, there’s nothing that can stop you from running your best race.   So I’ll go over that next week on the next bonus Run to the Top. Are you ready to race?  Let  me know and I just might feature your story on a future episode. CONNECT, COMMENT, & COMMUNITY: Leave a review on Apple Podcasts!  A great FREE way to support the show! Email Coach Claire Follow Claire on Instagram Follow RunnersConnect on Instagram Join the Elite Treatment where you get first dibs on everything RTTT each month! Runners Connect Winner's Circle Facebook Community  RunnersConnect Facebook page GET EXPERT COACHING AT RUNNERSCONNECT!

7 Signs That Say You're Finally Ready to Crush Your Marathon Goal

What if you could get faster, stronger, and more mentally sharp despite turning the corner beyond age 40?  It is actually possible. Now, if you started running in your teens or in your twenties, you are not going to be able to race or train at the same intensity or paces as you did back then.  But just because your times aren’t going to be the same doesn’t mean that you can’t run your very best and have the same sense of pride and accomplishment as you did when you were younger. In fact, you might even find more satisfaction in your running as a master. Coach Claire's guest will tell you how. Cathy Utzshcneider is an accomplished athlete and coach who did not even start her running journey until age 40.  In the years since, Cathy has won nine USA Track and Field national age group championships, a silver medal at the Nike World Masters Games, and a gold medal at the North American World Regional Championships. She was ranked No. 5 in the world in her age-group in the mile in 2005.  She is a lead faculty member of coaching and high performance at Boston College and is the author of three books on master’s running. Her coaching practice has produced eight Olympic trial marathon qualifiers, six world age-group records, 10 American age-group records, and 67 USA Track & Field (USATF) age-group champions. CONNECT, COMMENT, & COMMUNITY: Leave a review on Apple Podcasts!  A great FREE way to support the show! Email Coach Claire Follow Claire on Instagram Follow RunnersConnect on Instagram Join the Elite Treatment where you get first dibs on everything RTTT each month! Runners Connect Winner's Circle Facebook Community  RunnersConnect Facebook page GET EXPERT COACHING AT RUNNERSCONNECT! Cathy's Coaching MOVE!

Defy the "Rules" of Aging: How You Can Run Your Best Past Age 40 with Master's Coach Cathy Utzschneider

Running strides will get you fast, fast! What if we told you that there was a way to get faster, to improve your running form, quicken your feet, better prepare for a race, and have some fun, all in less than 90 seconds of work?  The good news that such a thing actually exists.  This simple speed development drill is a staple of track and field and cross country teams all over the world, but many recreational runners are missing out on a classic tool that can massively improve their running. It’s called the stride.  Or striders, or accelerations, or stride-outs.  Lots of names for the same awesome skill.  But what it’s not is a sprint or a surge.  Coach Claire Bartholic will explain. In this episode, she investigates why strides are so amazing, what they do for you, and tells you exactly when and how to do them. CONNECT, COMMENT, & COMMUNITY:   Leave a review on Apple Podcasts!  A great FREE way to support the show! Email Coach Claire Follow Claire on Instagram Follow RunnersConnect on Instagram Join the Elite Treatment where you get first dibs on everything RTTT each month! Runners Connect Winner's Circle Facebook Community  RunnersConnect Facebook page GET EXPERT COACHING AT RUNNERSCONNECT!    

Strides: The Simple Way You Can Run Faster with Less Than 90 Seconds of Effort

Sha'Carri Richardson thought she was going to the Olympic this summer after winning the 100m sprint.  But when she tested positive for THC after the race, she was disqualified. Like Richardson, several elite athletes have made headlines recently, while the use of marajuana has pretty much been an open secret among the best of the best. But why?  What is the science behind this controversial plant?  What researchers are starting to learn is that the natural runner’s high that we feel when we go for a run is directly related to the one you get from THC and NOT from endorphins like so many believe. Now there’s a whole lot more to this topic than getting stoned and going for a run, I promise you, and today I’m going to talk to the investigative journalist who literally wrote the book on it. Josiah Hesse’s work has been featured in publications including Vice, The Guardian, Politico, and Esquire.  In his new book, RUNNER’S HIGH, Josiah takes us on a journey through the secret world of athletes who experience astounding, cannabis-inspired physical and mental transformations.  He explores the groundbreaking science of the runner’s high, the economics of the $20 billion CBD market, and the fundamental racism and inequalities in the enforcement of marijuana prohibition. Regardless of what you feel personally or politically about marijuana, and how it relates to running, this is a stereotype-busting deep dive into a fascinating topic and I hope you’ll join me for the trip. CONNECT, COMMENT, & COMMUNITY:   Leave a review on Apple Podcasts!  A great FREE way to support the show! Email Coach Claire Follow Claire on Instagram Follow RunnersConnect on Instagram Join the Elite Treatment where you get first dibs on everything RTTT each month! Runners Connect Winner's Circle Facebook Community  RunnersConnect Facebook page   GET EXPERT COACHING AT RUNNERSCONNECT!    

Sha'Carri Richardson Isn't the Only Elite Getting High: The Performance Advantages of Cannabis with Josiah Hesse

Is a cool down after running really important?  Do you tend to skip your cool down when time is crunched? Coach Claire Bartholic reveals the the four biggest myths about cool downs, because even if you do one religiously, it might not be doing what you think it’s doing. Despite what they don't do for you, there are still some great reasons for incorporating a cool down into your routine after each and every run.  Claire explores how you can maximize the time at the end of your runs most effectively. CONNECT, COMMENT, & COMMUNITY:   Leave a review on Apple Podcasts!  A great FREE way to support the show! Email Coach Claire Follow Claire on Instagram Follow RunnersConnect on Instagram Join the Elite Treatment where you get first dibs on everything RTTT each month! Runners Connect Winner's Circle Facebook Community  RunnersConnect Facebook page   GET EXPERT COACHING AT RUNNERSCONNECT!    

Four Myths About Cool Downs Revealed (And Why You Should Still Do One)

Will running a marathon in high-tech super shoes help you run faster? Nike made huge headlines when they came out with the Vaporfly series in 2017.  Featuring a new kind of foam and a flexible carbon plate, Nike promised that their expensive new shoes would improve a marathoner’s running economy by 4%. With elites and recreational runners doing everything they could to improve by just one percent, these magic new shoes were pretty tantalizing. But with all new technology comes controversy.  Nike had already been supplying its best runners with Vaporflies as early as 2016, which was an Olympic year.  Other athletes sponsored by other companies would be at a clear disadvantage if the 4% improvement numbers were really true and they complained to the governing bodies of the sport. Rules changed and the copycats followed Nikes lead.  Now in 2021, most of the major running shoe companies have some version of high-tech foam and carbon plate shoes and all of them need to be available to the public before they can be used in competition. So what does this all mean for you?  How much do high-tech shoes matter in your running and racing?  I wanted to find out so I invited Michael Haischer on the Run to the Top to tell us what he found. Mike is a doctoral student and lab manager at the Athletic and Human Performance Research Center at Marquette University in Milwaukee, WI, which just so happens to be my alma mater. Mike and his team wanted to better understand the potential performance-enhancing effects of technological advancements in marathon racing shoes.  So they examined the finishing times of the top 50 male and 50 female runners from all the World Marathon Major series in the past decade, both before and after the introduction of new Nike shoe models. Did the Nikes make a difference?  And if so, what implications does that have on the rest of us, who are not in the top 50? We are about to find out. Take a Listen on Your Next Run! CONNECT, COMMENT, & COMMUNITY: Marquette University's Athletic and Human Performance Lab Leave a review on Apple Podcasts!  A great FREE way to support the show! Email Coach Claire Follow Claire on Instagram Follow RunnersConnect on Instagram Join the Elite Treatment where you get first dibs on everything RTTT each month! Runners Connect Winner's Circle Facebook Community  RunnersConnect Facebook page GET EXPERT COACHING AT RUNNERSCONNECT!

How Much Faster Will You Run in Nike Vaporflys? Mike Haischer Has the Data

Do you eat before a run?  Should you?  And what should you eat that will fuel your run the best? Coach Claire Bartholic explores exactly what you should eat before any type of run.  She brings back registered dietician and 2:57 marathoner Meghann Featherstun to explain the science. Coach Claire also gives you meal and snack ideas that you might not have thought of that are quick to grab, easy on your stomach, and fast to fuel your run.   CONNECT, COMMENT, & COMMUNITY: Leave a review on Apple Podcasts!  A great FREE way to support the show! Email Coach Claire Follow Claire on Instagram Follow RunnersConnect on Instagram Join the Elite Treatment where you get first dibs on everything RTTT each month! Runners Connect Winner's Circle Facebook Community  RunnersConnect Facebook page   GET EXPERT COACHING AT RUNNERSCONNECT!    

What to Eat Before A Run

Sarah Clem is the director of operations and running coach at CHAARG, an organization dedicated to igniting a passion for movement in college women.   CHAARG stands for Changing Health Attitudes + Actions to Recreate Girls.  They have chapters on 115 university campuses in the US and their mission is to free young women from the elliptical and show them that fitness can (and should!) be fun.  Sarah Clem has been an avid runner for the past 16 years and started the CHAARG Run Club in order to help more women learn to love running. She's coached over 500 athletes to complete their first 5Ks, 10Ks, half marathons over the past year and is looking forward to sharing the powers of running with even more young women this fall. CONNECT, COMMENT, & COMMUNITY: Leave a review on Apple Podcasts!  A great FREE way to support the show! Email Coach Claire Follow Claire on Instagram Follow RunnersConnect on Instagram Join the Elite Treatment where you get first dibs on everything RTTT each month! Runners Connect Winner's Circle Facebook Community  RunnersConnect Facebook page GET EXPERT COACHING AT RUNNERSCONNECT!   This episode is sponsored by LMNT When coaching endurance runners of all levels to be their best, I always emphasize the need for proper hydration with the right balance of electrolytes.  Most athletes I've coached are surprised to learn that their sodium needs are actually much higher than they expected and it's been hurting their performance.  Part of the reason athletes need much more sodium than they think is not just because they lose electrolytes through their sweat, but also because athletes tend to eat very healthy diets.  They've been told that salt is a bad thing in food and frequently don't get enough for their lifestyle.  Much of the science of sodium is based on people who eat highly processed diets which also are very low in potassium.  It could actually be the low potassium levels causing the issues that sodium has been blamed for!  What is clear is that both sodium and potassium at the proper levels are essential for high performance (and for life in general!).  When I race, I don't crave sweet, I crave salt and LMNT is the perfect way to hydrate and replenish the electrolytes I need to perform and feel my best.  Head over to DrinkLMNT.com/RUNNERSCONNECT for your salty samples.       

Get off the Elliptical + Run With Us: Sarah Clem

The tempo run is a classic workout for runners. But  what does the word "tempo" really mean?  It can mean different things to different runners and can be done at different paces. Coach Claire Bartholic brings on Coach Dylan Belles, fellow RunnersConnect coach and 2:16 marathoner to help explore the science, benefits, and different types of tempos or threshold workouts. They will go over the three main phases of intensity of tempos: aerobic threshold, lactate threshold, and anaerobic threshold.  They clear up the confusion since these terms are often used interchangeably, so you can be the smartest one at your next group run.   CONNECT, COMMENT, & COMMUNITY: Leave a review on Apple Podcasts!  A great FREE way to support the show! Email Coach Claire Follow Claire on Instagram Follow RunnersConnect on Instagram Join the Elite Treatment where you get first dibs on everything RTTT each month! Runners Connect Winner's Circle Facebook Community  RunnersConnect Facebook page   GET EXPERT COACHING AT RUNNERSCONNECT!    

How Tempos Make You a Better Runner

Imagine having the opportunity to train for one of the top marathons in the world with nearly all the advantages of an elite.  You’d have access to world-famous coaches, have top of the line training gear and tools, and thousands of dollars of free stuff.  When race day comes around, you’d be whisked away to meet your teammates in person, as prepared as humanly possible for the race of your life. Sounds amazing, right?  Katie Sloane and Ivan Alonso  won exactly that. They are two of the lucky winners of a contest held by Zwift, a massively popular multiplayer online cycling and running platform.  Ivan Alonso is a 39 year old, Texas-based husband and father of two young children. Since beginning his athletic journey, he’s lost nearly 100 pounds from both running and cycling and dropped an incredible more than 90 minutes off his very first marathon to become a sub-three hour marathoner today.   Katie Sloane is a 31 year old amateur ultra runner from England who is shifting to the roads by training for Berlin.  She’s most at home on  the trails with her dog, but don’t underestimate Katie’s talent in the marathon.  She’s training for a blisteringly fast 2:45 finishing time. Claire Bartholic asks them about their running Cinderella story and what it’s like to virtually train like an elite for one of the world’s most iconic races.  If you’ve ever wondered what your training and racing would look like with some of the best coaches and gear in the world, you can experience it vicariously through their stories. CONNECT, COMMENT, & COMMUNITY: Leave a review on Apple Podcasts!  A great FREE way to support the show! Email Coach Claire Follow Claire on Instagram Follow RunnersConnect on Instagram Join the Elite Treatment where you get first dibs on everything RTTT each month! Runners Connect Winner's Circle Facebook Community  RunnersConnect Facebook page   GET EXPERT COACHING AT RUNNERSCONNECT!   This week's show brought to you by:  Heal from the Amino Company. Heal is an amino acid, whey and creatine based formulation designed to reduce recovery times and improve physical function after injuries by accelerating muscle repair while helping maintain a healthy inflammatory response. Check out the research here: https://aminoco.com/rttt  If you're looking for a nutritional advantage when it comes to recovering from your running injury or your daily training I recommend you give Heal a try.  If you’re interested in learning  more and giving Heal a try, we’ve got a special offer for you where you can save 30% by using the code RC30. Just head to: https://aminoco.com/rttt and use the code RC30 at checkout to save 30%     

Elite Training for Mere Mortals: Katie Sloane & Ivan Alonzo

Running podcast to motivate and help runners of every level, speed, and age run their best. Sinead Haughey interviews running influencers, scientists, psychologists, nutritionists, and everyday runners with inspiring stories.

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Run to the Top Podcast | The Ultimate Guide to Running

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