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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


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

lisa_smith-batchen*Audio Content Available For Members Only. Click Here to Join Now

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

mtasuperman1*Audio Content Available For Members Only. Click Here to Join Now

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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The Unbreakable Runner

By on January 10, 2013 in Ultramarathon

UnbreakableI recently ran twenty miles. This was a scheduled run in my marathon training for the 2013 New Orleans Marathon.

Twenty miles still feels like a huge distance to me and perhaps it always will. But I’m curious . . . do ultramarathoners look at 20 miles as a mere warm up? What’s 20 miles if you’re running 100!?

I finished my run strong and happy but tired. I can’t fathom running another 80 miles. Yet thousands of people (many who are older than me) run 100 mile races every year around the world.

One such race is the Western States 100 which starts at Squaw Valley Ski Area, Lake Tahoe, California and crosses mountains and canyons eventually ending in Auburn, California 100 miles later. Runners must make it in 30 hours or less.

I just watched a documentary called Unbreakable: The Western States 100. In 2010 the competition was particularly fierce. The four runners contending for first place were as follows: Continue Reading →

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Maximizing Your Running Goals in 2013

By on January 2, 2013 in Motivation, Podcasts

*[Audio Content Available For Members Only. Click Here to Join Now]

Get Fit in 2013In this episode we talk about setting and maximizing your running goals in 2013. And for this episode’s quick tip we recommend a running app with live tracking and voice feedback.

When I look back on 2012 I have to say that it was a good year. However, from the perspective of achieving my running goals it was a mixed bag.

I came close to qualifying for Boston two times. The first time I missed my goal by 1 min, 47 seconds. The second time I missed the goal by 41 seconds. It was exciting to come so close, yet disappointing to be so far away.

At the beginning of December we went through a hard time. I was 18 weeks pregnant and had a sudden miscarriage because the baby had a genetic disorder. I was hospitalized after losing a lot of blood and going into shock. Since then we have done our share of grieving the loss of our baby and I’ve also had some physical challenges to cope with. I was left very anemic which has affected my energy levels and strength. For the first week I would get fatigued walking across a room and was plagued with dizziness. I currently can only run a half mile without getting very short of breath and fatigued. I’m definitely not going into the New Year where I want to be physically.

I share this experience because I know that many of you are struggling physically and emotionally. We want to provide some realistic encouragement to you as you go into 2013.

So here are a few suggestions of ways to maximize your running and fitness goals in 2013. Continue Reading →

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