843. Molly Seidel, On Returning to the New York City Marathon

"People can say whatever they want. But at the end of the day, I know what my bigger picture is. I know what my why is here. And so I’m just going to really try and stick to that knowing I feel very confident in what I’m trying to do, even if people might not understand it right now. It’s all just a process, baby."

Next weekend, Molly Seidel will run the TCS New York City Marathon — her first marathon in two years. But the Molly who will be lining up in Staten Island this year is very different from the fresh-off-earning-an-Olympic-bronze-medal Molly who ran it in 2021. (Her 2:24:42 is still the fastest time run by an American woman in NYC.) In this conversation, Molly talks about the highs from the past few years, including that fourth-place finish in New York City in 2021 and an eighth-place finish and personal best (2:23:07) at the Chicago Marathon in 2023. She also talks about the lows, including what was going on behind the scenes during those races, injuries, mental health struggles, and sponsorship changes. She offers updates on her new coach, her new home base, her new relationship, and her new relationship with running, and talks all about her training, mindset, and goals for race day in New York City.

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In this episode:

• What’s making Molly happy today (2:05)
• How Molly is feeling heading into this year’s New York City Marathon (5:15)
• How Molly today compares to the 2021 Molly who ran an American course record in NYC (11:05)
• Why Molly is calling Austin home right now (13:40)
• Why Molly changed coaches this year (20:35)
• What Molly’s NYCM training has been like (23:30)
• What would make this year’s New York City Marathon a success? (27:35)
• Molly’s advice to fellow New York City Marathon runners (29:50)
• Molly’s take on L.A. 2028 and whether she’ll try to make another Olympic team, and what sponsorship looks like these days (35:00)
• Congrats, grad! Molly talks about earning her MBA (38:45)

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