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Eyewitness Account of Boston Bombing

By on April 17, 2013 in Guest Perspective

eric_bostonEric Strand is a friend of ours from St. Louis, MO. We interviewed him on podcast episode 67. He crossed the finish line approximately 10 minutes before the first bomb exploded.

BOSTON—This was my sixth trip to the Boston Marathon. (My wife) Tami and I love the marathon weekend here. Everyone in the city embraces the race, even the cabbies who grumble about the street closures. Just like St. Louis knows its baseball, Boston knows marathon running—and maybe a bit about baseball. Weather conditions were very good with a light headwind that picked up to a stiff breeze as we made the turn on to Boylston (Street).

Crowds were excellent, about three or four deep the entire length of the run down Boylston from Hereford to the finish. Tami, my mom, aunt, uncle and some local Boston friends were camped out along Hereford about a half mile from the finish. Their plan was to watch me run by and then walk back to the hotel to meet up. We are staying near Tufts Medical Center, so they had to head in the direction of the finish line.

As I approached the finish, they had the second wave runners go to the left and the third wave runners to the right side of the finish line. I was in the second wave. My son pointed out that the bomb was probably already planted a few feet away as I ran by about 10 minutes before the first explosion. Continue Reading →

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Interview with ‘T-Rex Runner’ Danielle Hastings

By on April 15, 2013 in Health and Wellness, Interview, Podcasts

I shared a hotel room with Danielle (left) at the 2013 Go! St. Louis Marathon

I shared a hotel room with Danielle (left) at the 2013 Go! St. Louis Marathon

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In this podcast episode we talk with Danielle Hastings (T-Rex Runner) about her eleven year battle with an eating disorder.

I’ve followed Danielle’s blog for some time and was able to meet her at the recent Go! St. Louis Marathon. She has written an excellent series on Eating Disorders for her blog.

Reading these posts made me realize that this serious issue is often avoided or minimalized. I’ve had a few friends over the years who’ve struggled with an eating disorder and I know that there are many people out there with the same battle.

This episode will help educate you on this very important topic. Continue Reading →

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Race Recap: Go! St. Louis Marathon

By on April 15, 2013 in Race Recap

T-shirt and Medal from the 2013 Go! St. Louis Marathon

T-shirt and Medal from the 2013 Go! St. Louis Marathon

I had the privilege of running my 14th marathon recently. The Go! St. Louis Marathon is in its 13th year and bills itself as a “Family Fitness Weekend.”

Although I’ve already run a marathon in the fair state of Missouri I was already going to be in St. Louis that weekend for a coaching clinic.

You might say that this was an opportunistic marathon. That’s one of the benefits of staying in marathon shape—you can sign up for a race at the drop of a hat.

After spending two days sitting in class from 8-5 and cramming my head full of information I was ready to run 26.2 miles. I stayed at the lovely Drury Plaza Hotel and my room had an awesome view of the Arch. I shared my room with Danielle (T-Rex Runner) who we interviewed in episode 79 and her friend Amanda. When they got into town on Saturday (after running a marathon that morning in Indiana) we went to the race expo together to get our race packets. I was embarrassed to be unable to help with directions around St. Louis in the slightest. Continue Reading →

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Race Recap: The Modesto Half Marathon

By on April 8, 2013 in Race Recap

Modesto Half MarathonSurgical Artistry Modesto Marathon is a well organized local race drawing about 3,000 people. It features a marathon, half marathon, and 5k. My dad and I ran the half marathon.

Farewell to Modesto
The purpose of my coming to Modesto was to help my mom and dad empty their house and move to the Washington coast.

The move required a massive downsizing –from a 4,000 sq ft home to a cabin less than half that size. Literally every item had to be packed, sold, or given away. I’m talking about 60 years of stuff! Some of the stuff was going to me . . . I just had to get it home.

The move just happened to coincide with the Modesto Marathon so Dad and I decided to run the half as a final goodbye to the city where I grew up and where he lived most of his life. It took us 2 hours and 24 minutes to finish the half marathon. Apparently we like long goodbyes.

—Read the rest of my race recap— Continue Reading →

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Interview with World-Class Endurance Athlete Lisa Smith-Batchen

By on March 20, 2013 in Interview, Podcasts, Ultramarathon

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In addition to running over 100 marathons, Lisa Smith-Batchen has completed the Badwater Ultra Marathon 9 times (winning twice).

In 2010 she ran 50 miles in 50 states in 62 days raising money for orphan charities.

Her new challenge is completing the Badwater Quad (4 back to back Badwater crossings). To accomplish this feat she will run a total of 600 miles in the merciless summer heat of Death Valley, California.

Continue Reading →

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How I Ran a Sub-4 Hour Marathon

By on March 5, 2013 in PR

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You might have heard on our last podcast episode that I ran the Rock ‘n’ Roll New Orleans Marathon in 3:54:15.

A sub-4 hour marathon is not remarkable as far as finishing times go. I’m a middle of the pack runner. (I finished 597 out of 2633).

But I did run 37 minutes faster than my best time . . . which is remarkable for me.

And it was actually easier than I thought it would be. Much easier than running my first marathon.

Here are a few tricks I used to keep my run under 4 hours.

Continue Reading →

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Race Recap: The Rock ‘n’ Roll New Orleans Marathon 2013

By on February 28, 2013 in Podcasts, Race Recap

New Orleans Rock 'n' Roll Marathon*Audio Content Available For Members Only. Click Here to Join Now

Last weekend we rocked the Rock ‘n’ Roll New Orleans Marathon. It was great to be in the “Big Easy” again and enjoy the sites, sounds, and food. We stayed at the beautiful Drury Hotel located downtown in the business district. All in all we had a wonderful mini-vacation/marathon experience.

Continue Reading →

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Three Year Anniversary of MTA Podcast! + Building Confidence as a Runner

By on February 22, 2013 in Podcasts

trev_and_angie_cartoon*Audio Content Available For Members Only. Click Here to Join NowT[/drocap]his podcast episode celebrates the 3rd anniversary of MTA.

I can definitely stay that time flies (or more appropriately that time can run away if you’re not careful).

It has been an amazing experience to interact with thousands of runners over the years and personally help people achieve their goals through the Academy.

We want to thank each one of our faithful listeners.

Building Confidence as a Runner
In this episode we answer personal questions that many listeners want to know and talk about building confidence.

It doesn’t matter where you’re at in your life right now. You can move forward and reach your goals. First, you must allow yourself to dream.

Next, you must take action and put in the hard work. You’ll finally see the rewards if you have confidence in yourself and don’t give up.

Marathon training is about so much more than running 26.2 miles. You’ll find that your self-esteem will grow by leap and bounds when you dedicate yourself to reaching that goal. Suddenly a whole world of possibilities opens up to you. That’s why we always say,

“You do have what it takes to run a marathon and change your life.”

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What I Need to Run 20 Miles

By on February 5, 2013 in Fueling, Long Run
Fuel for my 20 miler (minus the fruit in the background)

Fuel for my 20 miler (minus the fruit in the background)

Tomorrow Angie and I are going on a 20 mile trail run. I’m totally stoked!

In fact, I’m so excited about this run that I found myself gathering my fueling supplies 17 hours in advance. Usually I throw it all in a bag before heading out the door.

Now that I step back and look at it all . . . THIS IS A LOT OF STUFF!

But every one of these fueling items is necessary when I run for 3+ hours.

Here is a break down of what I’m taking Continue Reading →

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How to Become Superhuman: Interview with Fitness and Nutrition Expert Ben Greenfield

By on January 31, 2013 in Interview, Nutrition, Podcasts

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Ben Greenfield is a fitness and nutrition expert who competes at the Ironman and Half Ironman World Championships.

What does it mean to become superhuman?
Everyone is born with a certain number of genetic triggers. Your diet can unlock or keep locked those triggers that have the power to activate your genetic potential. Becoming superhuman means to become the strongest version of yourself possible.

Here are the questions we asked Ben:

  1. You have a live event coming up called Superhuman Coach, can you tell us what it means to become superhuman?
  2. Can you give us some examples of superhuman food?
  3. What do you think about eating for one’s blood type? Will it help with weight loss?
  4. Overtraining: how do we prevent it? And if we see we’re starting to over-train, what can we do without losing too much during marathon training?
  5. How do endurance athletes handle the GI distress issue?
  6. Why does cramping happen and how can we prevent it?
  7. What should I be looking for in a probiotic supplement in terms of specific bacterial strains and what sort of culture counts would be considered sufficient or adequate?

Also Mentioned in This Episode

Yaktrax pro for running in the snow!

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Interview with Elite Runner Camille Herron

By on January 18, 2013 in Elite Runner, Interview, Podcasts

Photo of Camille Herron*Audio Content Available For Members Only. Click Here to Join Now

Camille Herron is an elite marathoner from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. She has taken first place at 7 marathons –most recently the Rt. 66 Marathon in Tulsa.

Her marathon PR is 2:37!

She made it to the US Olympic Marathon trials in 2008 and 2012.

She also holds the Guinness record for the fastest female runner wearing a superhero costume. Dressed from head to toe as spider woman she finished in 2:48:51.

We had the chance to talk with Camille via Skype and ask her what life is like as a professional runner.

Here is what we discovered Continue Reading →

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Your Footprints in the Snow

By on January 15, 2013 in Motivation

footprint in snowThe snow doesn’t stay around for long here in S.E. Missouri.

We usually only get a light dusting -enough to conceal a dangerous layer of ice.

On one such day I found myself on a 5 mile training run. The temperature must have been in the low 20s.

As I picked my way along the road trying to avoid the icy patches I suddenly saw footprints. Continue Reading →

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